I can’t remember the last time I bought bread at the store. I’m finding easier ways to make my own delicious and healthy homemade bread and this may be the easiest and fastest. I’m done with proofing yeast and rising dough twice. This is my go-to bread that I use for sandwiches, French toast (it soaks up the eggs in seconds!), and soft bread crumbs.
A few things to keep in mind when baking bread: 1) An instant read thermometer really helps to measure the temperature of the milk. Too hot and you’ll kill the yeast – too cold and it won’t grow. 2) Other additions should not be cold, like the oil and egg. If I’m short on time to warm up a cold egg I have been known to put it in my apron pocket and let my body heat warm it up. Note to self: *Next time, let your partner know about the egg before he hugs you goodbye!
This is one of my most popular recipes, probably because it’s so easy. Well, it’s also because it’s a really soft wheat bread, perfect for sandwiches or toast. I tried making it with 100% whole wheat flour but without much success. It didn’t want to rise and it was too dense and heavy so it needs some bread flour in the mix.
I’m calling it simple whole wheat bread because it really is… and it’s fast. Start-to-finish: 90 minutes! This is as easy as it gets to make homemade bread so I hope you’ll try it. Did I mention that your kitchen will smell terrific too? Click here for the recipe. – Jenny Jones
I’ve been so busy working on new recipes and photos that I’ve neglected some of my older recipes and this week, I had a taste for carrot cake. I was surprised at how much healthier my baking is now and I thought that if any cake could be made with olive oil, it’s carrot cake. There is so much flavor there with the pineapple, toasted pecans, and cinnamon, I didn’t think you would ever taste the olive oil. So I tried it… and I was right. But that wasn’t the only change I made.
I also made it with whole wheat pastry flour so now it’s whole wheat carrot cake and I’ve even simplified the process. Carrot cake is such a great American creation. I remember the first time I was offered a piece of carrot cake. It was in the early 60s and my landlady in Las Vegas asked me if I wanted to try some carrot cake. Who puts carrots in a cake? You might as well put broccoli in my ice cream! What’s happening here? I must have made a face because she immediately said, “I know it sounds weird, but it’s really good. Just try it.” So I did. Wow! I loved it then and still love it today.
If I’m going to have cake, it has to be as healthy as I can make it and whenever I can avoid butter, I do. This cake has no butter, not even in the frosting. It’s a cream cheese frosting made with reduced fat cream cheese. Regarding the flour, the new recipe calls for 1/2 whole wheat pastry flour and half all purpose flour but you can make it with 100% whole wheat pastry flour or even 100% all purpose flour if you like. All variations taste great.
One more thing: toast your nuts! There is a world of difference in flavor between raw and toasted nuts. And it’s easy. Put the raw nuts on an ungreased baking sheet at 350 degrees F for 7 – 10 minutes. I toast a whole bunch at a time and keep them in the fridge for all my baking. I prefer pecans in this recipe but walnuts work too… toasted! I hope you’ll try my new Whole Wheat Carrot Cake. Click here for the recipe.
Why buy a jar of tomato sauce when you can make your own in 20 minutes? Seriously. By the time you boil the water and cook the spaghetti, your delicious, homemade, spaghetti sauce is done. And it tastes way better than the stuff in a jar. If your family likes spaghetti and meatballs, they will LOVE spaghetti and meatballs with this homemade sauce. It just tastes so much better.
You can even make this recipe using fresh tomatoes but it takes a little longer because you’ll need to peel the tomatoes first. I’ve made this sauce many different ways… with fresh peeled tomatoes, with cherry tomatoes (unpeeled) from my garden, I’ve done it with roasted tomatoes, but most of the time I like the quick and easy 20-minute version. I’ll be using it in a recipe I’ll be posting soon… oven-baked chicken parmesan!!!
Did you know that cooked tomatoes are a great source of lycopene, which is a known defender of prostate cancer? But they need a little fat for better absorption so be sure to use the full amount of olive oil (1 tablespoon). Oh, by the way, tomatoes are also believed to protect against heart disease, memory loss, macular degeneration and may even prevent some wrinkles caused by the sun. Click here for the recipe.
OMG! I love these breakfast cookies so much! They are so healthy and each cookie has over four grams of fiber! Let’s talk about what’s in them… and what’s not. First of all, there is no butter and no white flour. There are lots of oats and whole grain flour, and then I add some high fiber cereal or wheat bran for even more health benefits – and crunch. They are sort of chewy and crunchy at the same time. The prunes not only add fiber, they help keep the cookies moist. Dark chocolate does have health benefits…. and it’s chocolate! Now some info on the ingredients:
~Flour: Whole wheat pastry flour is not the same as whole wheat flour. The pastry flour will make a lighter cookie.
~Oats: I use Quaker Old-Fashioned Oats, not quick-cooking.
~Cereal: I use Smart Bran (from Whole Foods) or Kellogg’s All Bran Original or plain wheat bran.
~Oil: I use avocado oil but they also work with extra light olive oil or canola oil.
~Chocolate: Dark chocolate has antioxidants so the darker the better. I use dark chocolate chunks, usually a 70% dark chocolate bar.
~Prunes: They are not all the same. Moist prunes keep the cookie moist so I use Sunsweet Premium Prunes in the round can or St. Dalfour French Prunes in a jar. If you can’t find these prunes, try pouring boiling water over regular prunes, cover and let stand for 15 minutes, then drain and chop. Without moist and sticky prunes, these cookies will be dry.
Why should you make this cookie? It’s all about the fiber in this healthy breakfast cookie, which contains lots and lots of soluble and insoluble fiber. The benefits include everything from lower cholesterol, protection against colon cancer, heart disease & stroke, reduced risk of diverticulitis, hemorrhoids & diabetes as fiber slows the absorption of sugar, more stabilized blood sugar, less constipation, easier weight management because fiber keeps you feeling full longer… but if you increase your fiber, it’s also important to drink plenty of water for it to assimilate properly. But enough about fiber. Make this cookie. Try it. It’s so good, you’ll be doing what I do and having it for dessert too! – Jenny JonesClick here for the recipe.
UPDATE Feb. 27th:
In case anyone finds their cookies to be dry, please make sure to use moist prunes and not the typical ones that are more common. If you can’t find these prunes, try pouring boiling water over regular prunes, cover and let stand for 15 minutes, then drain and chop.
Are you ready for Super Bowl Sunday? I’m pretty sure it’s a football game but I just watch for the commercials, then I leave the room when the ball-throwing starts. If you’re looking for healthy snack ideas for this weekend, here’s one you’ll love. It’s my Caramelized Onion-Roasted Red Pepper Dip and this combination of richly caramelized sweet onions and roasted red pepper makes a unique, delicious, intensely flavored dip that may sound complicated but it’s really easy to make. I use bottled roasted red peppers. You could roast your own peppers… but I don’t. Jarred ones are ideal for a dip so the only work is to caramelize the onions – that’s something you can’t buy. Serve this amazing dip and I promise you everyone will love it and probably ask for the recipe.
It’s easy. First you caramelize the onions (which you can do the day before) and then you put them and everything else in a food processor. It’s that simple. In fact, the dip will taste even better if you make it all the day before. So…. let’s see…. you can cook the onions tomorrow, finish the dip on Saturday, and let it marinate in the fridge until Sunday. This delicious recipe raises the dip bar from the old days when we all made onion dip with a package of onion soup mix and sour cream.
This dip is not only tastier, it’s way healthier too. Red onions are full of anti-aging compounds that reduce inflammation and may protect you against cancer, stroke, and memory loss. By using reduced fat sour cream and fat free yogurt, you’ll have a low-fat and healthy dip to serve with crudite or maybe some nice reduced fat chips. Happy Super Bowl Sunday! Click here for the recipe. – Jenny Jones
I make a lot of hard boiled eggs. A lot. There are some in my fridge right now… perfect, easy to peel, no green ring, hard boiled eggs for snacking, breakfast, deviled eggs, and egg salad. I’ve learned a few things about how to make foolproof hard boiled eggs so here’s what I know…
1) Really fresh eggs will be harder to peel so use your older eggs for boiling.
2) Place eggs in a pot and cover completely with cold water.
3) Do not crowd too many eggs in the pot or they may not cook.
4) If you see a stream of bubbles coming out of an egg in the cold water that means it’s cracked. Remove the cracked egg and save it for cooking.
5) Add ½ teaspoon of baking soda to the water. If you don’t have baking soda, use salt.
6) Bring the water to a full, rolling boil.
7) Cover the pot and turn off the heat, leaving the pot on the warm burner.
8) Set a timer for 17 minutes. Prepare a bowl of ice water.
10) After 17 minutes remove the eggs from the hot water using a slotted spoon and place them in the ice water for 2 minutes. They will still be warm inside after two minutes.
11) Serve immediately or keep refrigerated.
11) Freshly boiled, warm eggs will be easier to peel than cold ones.
12) Peeling them under running water makes peeling easier.
13) Start to peel at the fat end of the egg for easier peeling.
So that’s all I know about making perfect hard-boiled eggs. Now here is why I eat them: Eggs are a great source of….
~Protein, B vitamins, and minerals.
~Choline, which reduces inflammation, protects against breast cancer, and supports brain health.
~Lutein and Zeaxanthin to ward off macular degeneration.
~Sulphur for shiny hair, strong nails, and glowing skin.
~New research tells us that egg yolks contain dietary cholesterol but they do not raise blood cholesterol. For the latest research on eggs from Prevention Magazine, click here.
So that’s everything I know about making perfect, easy to peel, no green ring hard boiled eggs. Now here’s as quiz: Q: Why do brown eggs cost more than white ones? A: Because the hens are bigger and it costs more to feed them. Nutritionally, there is no difference.
The best thing about this simple meal is that every single ingredients has health benefits. Brown rice has fiber and lots of minerals including selenium, which has been shown to protect against cancer. Beans also have soluble fiber to lower cholesterol as well as calcium for bones. And don’t get me started about all the antioxidants in colored peppers! So here is an easy vegetarian recipe that’s super healthy. It’s high in protein and fiber and oh yes… flavor!
By the way, high fiber meals keep you feeling full longer and that helps with weight loss. This is a recipe you can easily make your own with more jalapeno pepper for added heat, toss in your favorite extra spices, or use a different kind of bean. I really like red beans in this dish but I can never find canned red beans at the grocery store. Whole Foods carries one by Westbrae that I prefer so if you can find it, I think you’ll like the meaty texture of these beans.
But a close second would be red kidney beans and even black beans would work. By the way, black beans are the highest in antioxidants of all beans. Basically you can’t go wrong with any kind of canned beans in this heart-healthy, easy recipe.
Let’s talk about rice for a minute. Brown rice has more nutrients and fiber than white rice but if you’re short on time, you can make this dish with converted rice (I like Uncle Ben’s). You won’t get as much fiber but you’ll still get protein, iron, and folate from converted rice and all the benefits (including fiber) of the beans and peppers. Both brown and white rice are gluten free.
Next meatless Monday, try this simple vegetarian one-pan meal. Click here for the recipe. – Jenny Jones
There’s no butter in this moist and sweet walnut cake. The Greeks call it karithopita and what makes it so moist is that you soak it in a spicy syrup made with cinnamon, lemon peel, and cloves. Just poke a few holes around the top of the cake and pour over a warm, sweet syrup. A lot of Greek desserts use a syrup – baklava is a great example.
I always feel better when I can bake something sweet for dessert without butter. This cake uses oil and since it’s a Greek cake, I use heart-healthy olive oil. Both olive oil and walnuts are considered heart-healthy. Any time I bake with nuts, I always toast them first and I suggest doing it for this cake, especially because there are a LOT of walnuts in the recipe and toasted walnuts always make a cake or cookies taste better.
My stepmother is Greek so I have grown to love Greek food (and her, too). She is the one who told me to poke holes in the cake before pouring on the syrup since not all recipes use holes but it really helps soak the cake beautifully. My Greek walnut cake can be served warm or cold. Make it for your next party. Opa! Click here for the recipe. – Jenny Jones
It doesn’t take much skill to make delicious homemade chicken soup… just a little patience. The best chicken soup starts with the best homemade stock so I am sharing my recipe for easy chicken soup and stock, which is all the same to me. And wait ’til you see how easy it is. There’s really not much to do.
You just put everything into the biggest soup pot you have and cook it. The best flavor comes from chicken parts with a lot of bones, which is why I use backs & necks and wings. Ideally, I get a package of each since there is more meat on the wings. So forget making soup with chicken breasts – you won’t be happy.
Aromatic vegetables are a must and those include onions, carrots, celery, and I like to add a parsnip too. You can put them in whole or chop them up. The main thing is time. I cook mine for three hours and it never fails. After three hours of cooking, there’s not much left of the vegetables so I always discard them. And I pick the meat off the bones and store that separately.
So this recipe is technically a chicken stock and I always make it the night before because once it’s refrigerated, 100% of the fat will rise and solidify on the top for easy removal. It’s saturated fat and we don’t need that. In fact your soup will keep even longer in the fridge if you keep the fat layer on the top, kind of like an airtight lid.
The next day, my stock is ready to use in all of my cooking and just perfect as a soup. Once the fat layer is discarded if I want chicken noodle soup, I chop some fresh carrots and cook them with the noodles in the stock. I also use the stock to make other soups like vegetable soup, bean soup, chili, and I also drink it as a healing broth. Chicken soup does have healing compounds if you have a cold or flu so this is the perfect time to try my healthy homemade chicken soup recipe.
Sure it’s three hours, but so were the Golden Globes last night — you could have watched it AND made soup. That’s how to multi-task! Click here for the recipe. – Jenny Jones
I can’t remember the last time I bought bread at the store. I’m finding easier ways to make my own delicious and healthy homemade bread and this may be the easiest and fastest. I’m done with proofing yeast and rising dough twice. This is my go-to bread that I use for sandwiches, French toast (it soaks up the eggs in seconds!), and soft bread crumbs.
