Ingredients

-2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
-1 rounded tablespoon sugar
-1 rounded teaspoon salt
-1/2 cup chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
-2/3 cup frozen vegetable shortening, cut into pieces
-4-6 tablespoons ice water
-2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

Directions

Combine flour, sugar and salt in food processor; pulse to blend. Add butter and shortening and cut into flour mixture using pulse button. When mixture resemble coarse meal, transfer to large bowl. Combine 4 tablespoons ice water and cider vinegar in small bowl; pour over flour mixture. Stir with fork until moist clumps form, adding additional 2 tablespoons ice water if necessary.

Gather dough into 2 balls and flatten balls into disks. Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes or up to 4 days. Well-wrapped dough can be frozen up to 2 weeks. Allow dough to soften slightly at room temperature before continuing.

Ingredients

-1 granny smith apple, peeled, cored and diced into small pieces (about 1 1/4 cup)
-1 teaspoon lemon juice
-1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
-2 1/2 tablespoons sugar
-1 teaspoon flour
-8 soft caramel candy squares, chopped into bits
-Salt, approximately 1 teaspoon
-1 tube crescent roll dough (8 ounces)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place diced apple into small bowl and sprinkle with lemon juice. Stir to coat apples. Add sugar, cinnamon and flour and stir until apples are evenly coated. Set aside.

Line baking sheet with parchment to keep melting caramel from sticking during baking. Separate dough into triangles, gently stretching shortest side then cutting each into two roughly even triangles. Place one tablespoon of apple filling in center of each triangle. Top with caramel bits (about half a square) and a pinch or two of salt.

Bring corner of longest side across edge about 2/3 of way and pinch together. Bring opposite corner across then final corner and pinch edges together to create a small pouch. Filling will seem like a lot, but dough will stretch as you pinch together.

Bake for 15-17 minutes or until golden and filling is bubbly. Cool on tray for a couple of minutes for caramel to firm. Serve warm.

Ingredients

-1 pound prepared whole-wheat pizza dough, thawed if frozen
-1 cup canned unseasoned pumpkin puree
-1/2 cup canned no-salt tomato sauce
-1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
-1 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella
-1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
-2 ounces turkey pepperoni (1/2 cup)

Directions

Place the oven rack in the lowest position; preheat to 450 degrees F. Coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray.

Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to the size of the baking sheet. Transfer to the baking sheet. Bake until puffed and lightly crisped on the bottom, 8-10 minutes.

Whisk the pumpkin puree, tomato sauce and garlic powder in a small bowl until combined.

Spread the sauce evenly over the baked crust. Top with mozzarella, Parmesan and pepperoni. Bake until the crust is crispy on the edges and the cheeses have melted, about 12 minutes.

Ingredients

-1 package (48 ounces) frozen dinner roll dough, thawed
-1 can (15 ounces) pizza sauce
-2 cups (8 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese
-1/2 cup finely chopped green pepper
-1/3 cup chopped ripe olives
-32 pepperoni slices
-Vegetable oil

Directions

For each calzone, press two dinner rolls together. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough into a 6 x 3 1/2-inch oval. Spread 1/4 cup sauce to within 1/2 inch of edge. Top with 1/4 cup cheese, 1 tablespoon green pepper, 1 to 2 teaspoons olives and 4 pepperoni slices.

Press two more rolls together and roll into a slightly larger oval. Place over filling; firmly press edges to seal.

Cut another roll in half and roll out to 1/8 inch. thickness. Cut a 3 x 1/4-inch strip. Place lengthwise down center of calzone.


To form laces, cut four 1 x 1/8-inch strips; place across center strip. Cut two 4 x 1/4-inch pieces of dough.

Bake, uncovered, at 375 degrees F for 16 to 17 minutes or until golden brown. Cut calzones in half before serving.

Ingredients

For Filling:
-1 1/2 cups sweetened dried cranberries
-1 cup cranberries, fresh or frozen, thawed
-1/2 cup honey

-2 teaspoons freshly grated orange zest
-1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
-1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom or allspice
For Dough:
-2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
-1 cup whole-wheat flour
-1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
-Scant 1/2 teaspoon salt
-1/4 teaspoon baking soda
-1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
-1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom or allspice
-1/3 cup canola oil
-3 1/2 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
-1 cup sugar
-1/3 cup honey
-2 large eggs
-3 tablespoons low-fat milk, plus more as needed
-2 1/2 teaspoons freshly grated orange zest
-2 teaspoons vanilla extract
-1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Directions

For Filling: Combine dried and fresh cranberries, honey, orange zest, cinnamon and cardamom (or allspice) in a medium nonreactive saucepan (see Kitchen Note that follows) over medium heat. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil and cook, stirring, until the fresh cranberries burst and soften, 4 to 5 minutes. Let cool slightly. Transfer to a food processor and puree. If the mixture seems dry, stir in up to 2 teaspoons water. Transfer the mixture to a nonreactive container and refrigerate while preparing the dough.

For Dough: Whisk all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, cinnamon and cardamom (or allspice) in a large bowl. In another large bowl, combine oil, butter, sugar, honey, eggs, milk, orange zest, vanilla and almond extracts. Beat the wet ingredients with an electric mixer first on low speed, then on medium speed, until well combined. Add half the dry ingredients and beat on low speed until just incorporated. Stir in the remaining dry ingredients with a wooden spoon until evenly incorporated. If the mixture is too dry to hold together, stir in up to 1 tablespoon more milk. Cover and refrigerate the dough for 30 to 45 minutes to reduce its stickiness.

Turn the dough out onto a work surface and divide in half. Shape each half into a 6 inch-long log. Working with one log at a time, center it on a 16 inch-long sheet of baking parchment or wax paper. Cover with a second sheet. Press and then roll into a 12 x 15-inch rectangle of even thickness, inverting the dough occasionally to roll out any wrinkles and patching it to make the sides as even as possible. Transfer the dough, in the paper, to a baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining log of dough and transfer to the baking sheet. Place the baking sheet in the freezer until the dough is slightly firm, about 15 minutes.

To Prepare Pinwheel Rolls: Place one sheet of dough on a work surface. Peel off the top sheet of paper. Spread half the reserved filling evenly over the dough (it will be a thin layer). Working from a 15 inch-long side, tightly roll up the dough jelly-roll style, leaving the bottom sheet of paper behind. While rolling, slightly stretch out the center to yield an evenly thick roll. Wrap the roll in a clean sheet of wax paper, twisting the ends to prevent unrolling (see Tip that follows). Place on a baking sheet. Repeat with the second piece of dough and place on the baking sheet. Freeze until firm, at least 3 to 4 hours.

To Bake Cookies: Position racks in the upper third and center of the oven; preheat to 350 degrees F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Working with one pinwheel roll at a time, trim the uneven ends. Cut the roll crosswise into 1/4 inch-thick slices using a large serrated knife; periodically turning the roll to maintain a relatively round cookie shape. Place the cookies on the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 1/2 inch apart. Bake the cookies until puffed and barely golden brown, 12 to 16 minutes, switching the pans back to front and top to middle halfway through baking. Immediately transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool completely. Cut and bake the remaining pinwheel roll.

Kitchen Note: A nonreactive pan—stainless steel, enamel-coated or glass—is necessary when cooking acidic foods, such as cranberries, to prevent the food from reacting with the pan. Reactive pans, such as aluminum and cast-iron, can impart an off color and/or off flavor in acidic foods.

Ingredients

Savory pastry dough
-2 pounds Golden Delicious, Gravenstein or Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and cut into -slices 1/3 inch thick
-1 1/4 cups sugar
-1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
-1 teaspoon vanilla extract
-1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
-1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
-1/8 teaspoon salt
-2 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
-5 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
-1 egg
-1 tablespoon water

Directions

Prepare the pastry dough as directed and refrigerate for 1 hour.

In a bowl, combine the apples, sugar, lemon juice, vanilla, nutmeg, cinnamon and salt. Toss until the apples are evenly coated. Add the flour and toss again to coat evenly. Cover and refrigerate until needed.

Preheat an oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly butter and flour a 9-inch pie pan and tap out the excess flour.

On a lightly floured work surface, divide the dough into thirds. Combine 2 of the pieces into 1 and, using a heavy rolling pin, roll out into a round 12 inches in diameter and about 1/8 inch thick. Carefully transfer the round to the prepared pan and press gently into the bottom and sides.

Turn out the apple mixture in the pastry-lined pan. Dot the top with the butter pieces.

Roll out the remaining pastry into a round about 10 inches in diameter. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and water until blended. Using a pastry brush, brush the edge of the bottom pastry shell with a light coating of the egg mixture. Lay the second round on top and, using scissors, trim away all but about 1/2 inch of the overhanging dough. Then crimp the top and bottom edges to form a decorative rim. Cut a small slit in the top of the pie to act as a steam vent. Brush the top lightly with the egg mixture and place the pie on a baking sheet.

Bake until the crust is a rich golden brown, about 40-50 minutes. Remove from the oven, transfer to a rack and let cool slightly. Serve warm.

Processed foods are bad.
They are the main reason why people all over the world are getting fat and sick.

How do we know?
Every time a population adopts a “Western” diet high in processed foods, they get sick.
It happens within a few years. Their genes don’t change, their food does.

Real vs Processed Food

The word “processed” often causes some confusion, so let me clarify what I mean.

Obviously, most foods we eat are processed in some way. Apples are cut from trees, ground beef has been ground in a machine and butter is cream that has been separated from the milk and churned.

But there is a difference between mechanical processing and chemical processing.

If it’s a single ingredient food with no added chemicals, then it doesn’t matter if it’s been ground or put into a jar. It’s still real food.

However… foods that have been chemically processed and made solely from refined ingredients and artificial substances, are what is generally known as “processed food.”

Here are 9 ways that processed foods are bad for your health.


1. Processed Foods Are Usually High in Sugar and High Fructose Corn Syrup

Processed foods are usually loaded with added sugar… or its evil twin, High Fructose Corn Syrup.

It is well known that sugar, when consumed in excess, is seriously harmful.

As we all know, sugar is “empty” calories – it has no essential nutrients, but a large amount of energy.

But empty calories are really just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the harmful effects of sugar…

Many studies show that sugar can have devastating effects on metabolism that go way beyond its calorie content.

It can lead to insulin resistance, high triglycerides, increased levels of the harmful cholesterol and increased fat accumulation in the liver and abdominal cavity.

Not surprisingly, sugar consumption is strongly associated with some of the world’s leading killers… including heart disease, diabetes, obesity and cancer.

Most people aren’t putting massive amounts of sugar in their coffee or on top of their cereal, they’re getting it from processed foods and sugar-sweetened beverages.


2. Processed Foods Are “Hyper Rewarding” and Lead to Overconsumption

We all want to eat good food. That’s just human nature.

Evolution provided us with taste buds that are supposed to help us navigate the natural food environment.

Our appetite gravitates towards foods that are sweet, salty and fatty, because we know such foods contain energy and nutrients that we need for survival.


Obviously, if a food manufacturer wants to succeed and get people to buy their product, it has to taste good.

But today, the competition is fierce. There are many different food manufacturers, all competing with each other.

For this reason, massive resources are spent on making foods as desirable as possible.

Many processed foods have been engineered to be so incredibly “rewarding” to the brain, that they overpower anything we might have come across in nature.

We have complicated mechanisms in our bodies and brains that are supposed to regulate energy balance (how much we eat and how much we burn) – which, until very recently in evolutionary history, worked to keep us at a healthy weight.

There is quite a lot of evidence that the reward value of foods can bypass the innate defense mechanism and make us start eating much more than we need, so much that it starts to compromise our health.
This is also known as the “food reward hypothesis of obesity.”

The truth is, processed foods are so incredibly rewarding to our brains that they affect our thoughts and behavior, making us eat more and more until eventually we become sick.

Good food is good, but foods that are engineered to be hyper rewarding, effectively short circuiting our innate brakes against overconsumption, are NOT good.


3. Processed Foods Contain All Sorts of Artificial Ingredients

If you look at the ingredients label for a processed, packaged food, chances are that you won’t have a clue what some of the ingredients are.

That’s because many of the ingredients in there aren’t actual food… they are artificial chemicals that are added for various purposes.

This is an example of a processed food, an Atkins Advantage bar, which is actually marketed as a low-carb friendly health food.

I don’t know what this is, but it most certainly isn’t food.

Highly processed foods often contain:

1. Preservatives: Chemicals that prevent the food from rotting.
2. Colorants: Chemicals that are used to give the food a specific color.
3. Flavor: Chemicals that give the food a particular flavor.
4. Texturants: Chemicals that give a particular texture.

Keep in mind that processed foods can contain dozens of additional chemicals that aren’t even listed on the label.

For example, “artificial flavor” is a proprietary blend. Manufacturers don’t have to disclose exactly what it means and it is usually a combination of chemicals.

For this reason, if you see “artificial flavor” on an ingredients list, it could mean that there are 10 or more additional chemicals that are blended in to give a specific flavor.

Of course, most of these chemicals have allegedly been tested for safety. But given that the regulatory authorities still think that sugar and vegetable oils are safe, I personally take their “stamp of approval” with a grain of salt.

4. Many People Can Literally Become Addicted to Processed Junk Foods

The “hyper rewarding” nature of processed foods can have serious consequences for some people.

Some people can literally become addicted to this stuff and completely lose control over their consumption.

Although food addiction is something that most people don’t know about, I am personally convinced that it is a huge problem in society today.

It is the main reason why some people just can’t stop eating these foods, no matter how hard they try.

They’ve had their brain biochemistry hijacked by the intense dopamine release that occurs in the brain when they eat these foods.

This is actually supported by many studies. Sugar and highly rewarding junk foods activate the same areas in the brain as drugs of abuse like cocaine.

5. Processed Foods Are Often High in Refined Carbohydrates

There is a lot of controversy regarding carbohydrates in the diet.

Some people think that the majority of our energy intake should be from carbs, while others think they should be avoided like the plague.

But one thing that almost everyone agrees on, is that carbohydrates from whole foods are much better than refined carbohydrates.

Processed foods are often high in carbs, but it is usually the refined variety.

One of the main problems is that refined, “simple” carbohydrates are quickly broken down in the digestive tract, leading to rapid spikes in blood sugar and insulin levels.

This can lead to carb cravings a few hours later when blood sugar levels go down again. This phenomenon is also called the “blood sugar roller coaster” – which many people who have been on a high-carb diet can relate to.

Not surprisingly, eating a lot of refined carbohydrates is associated with negative health effects and many chronic diseases.

Do NOT be fooled by labels like “whole grains” that are often plastered on processed food packages, including breakfast cereals.

These are usually whole grains that have been pulverized into very fine flour and are just as harmful as their refined counterparts.

If you’re going to eat carbs, get them from whole, single ingredient foods, not processed junk foods.

6. Most Processed Foods Are Low in Nutrients

Processed foods are extremely low in essential nutrients compared to whole, unprocessed foods.

In some cases, synthetic vitamins and minerals are added to the foods to compensate for what was lost during processing.

However, synthetic nutrients are NOT a good replacement for the nutrients found in whole foods.

Also, let’s not forget that real foods contain much more than just the standard vitamins and minerals that we’re all familiar with.

Real foods… like plants and animals, contain thousands of other trace nutrients that science is just beginning to grasp.

Maybe one day we will invent a chemical blend that can replace all these nutrients, but until that happens… the only way to get them in your diet is to eat whole, unprocessed foods.

The more you eat of processed foods, the less you will get of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and various trace nutrients.

7. Processed Foods Tend to be Low in Fiber

Fiber, especially soluble, fermentable fiber, has various benefits.

One of the main ones is that it functions as aprebiotic, feeding the friendly bacteria in the intestine.

There is also evidence that fiber can slow down the absorption of carbohydrates and help us feel more satisfied with fewer calories.

Soluble fiber can also help treat many cases of constipation, which is a very common problem today.

The fiber that is found naturally in foods is often lost during processing, or intentionally removed. Therefore, most processed foods are very low in fiber.

8. It Requires Less Energy and Time to Digest Processed Foods

Food manufacturers want their processed food products to have a long shelf life.

They also want each batch of the product to have a similar consistency and they want their foods to be easily consumed.

Given the way foods are processed, they are often very easy to chew and swallow. Sometimes, it’s almost as if they melt in your mouth.

Most of the fiber has been taken out and the ingredients are refined, isolated nutrients that don’t resemble the whole foods they came from.

One consequence of this is that it takes less energy to eat and digest processed foods.

We can eat more of them in a shorter amount of time (more calories in) and we also burn less energy (fewer calories out) digesting them than we would if they were unprocessed, whole foods.

One study in 17 healthy men and women compared the difference in energy expenditure after consuming a processed vs a whole foods-based meal.

They ate a sandwich, either with multi-grain bread and cheddar cheese (whole foods) or with white bread and processed cheese (processed foods).

It turned out that they burned twice as many calories digesting the unprocessed meal.

The Thermic Effect of Food (TEF) is a measure of how much different foods stimulate energy expenditure after eating. It totals about 10% of total energy expenditure (metabolic rate) in the average person.

According to this study, people who eat processed food will cut their TEF in half, effectively reducing the amount of calories they burn throughout the day.

9. Processed Foods Are Often High in Trans Fats or Processed Vegetable Oils

Processed foods are often high in unhealthy fats.

They usually contain cheap fats, refined seed- and vegetable oils (like soybean oil) that are often hydrogenated… which turns them into trans fats.

Vegetable oils are extremely unhealthy and most people are eating way too much of them already.

These fats contain excessive amounts of Omega-6 fatty acids, which can drive oxidation and inflammation in the body.

Several studies show that when people eat more of these oils, they have a significantly increased risk of heart disease, which is the most common cause of death in Western countries today.

If the fats are hydrogenated, that makes them even worse. Hydrogenated (trans) fats are among the nastiest, unhealthiest substances you can put into your body.

The best way to avoid seed oils and trans fats is to avoid processed foods. Eat real fats like butter, coconut oil and olive oil instead.