Exclusive: John Kanell's New Cookbook Focuses on How to Make a Delicious Meal Without Getting 'Stressed Out': 'I Like to Teach People'

John Kanell knows all too well that it's not easy to prep dinner ahead of time — especially with two twin boys running around.

As a result, the cooking and baking expert, who taught middle school math and science before following his passion, which led him to found Preppy Kitchen, decided to help others who might be in a similar predicament, going on to create Preppy Kitchen Super Easy: 100 Simple and Versatile Recipes, which releases on August 20.

"I have twin boys who are 7 years old now, and although the toddler stage is hard, my life is getting so busy with clubs and sports now! There's more school and homework, and it's all piling on. By the end of the day, you just want to get something delicious on the table that everyone is going to like, and that was really the inspiration behind the new book," Kanell exclusively tells Morning Honey. "My first book, which made the New York Times Best Sellers List, Preppy Kitchen: Recipes for Seasonal Dishes and Simple Pleasures, was about making something delicious and having that meditative moment in the kitchen. This one is about how am I going to get dinner, lunch, breakfast or dessert on the table and not be a stressed out mess?"

"I took recipes that I love — a lot of fan-favorites — and I streamlined them to make the methods simpler," Kanell, who lives with his husband, Brian Dow, in Connecticut, notes of the process. "I wanted to make the ingredient list less daunting. If you could use an air fryer, I will show you how to do that — or a slow cooker or instant pot. My childhood favorite is one of my pasta side dishes, spicy tomato orzo, and the super easy hack is to use Blood Mary mix for the base, which gives you that spicy tomato base and then you do a little magic on the stove top and pop it into the oven, so you don't have to worry about stirring it. It comes out perfectly. That was the inspiration."

Since the book includes hundreds of recipes, Kanell went "back and forth" about what he wanted to incorporate. "You want to provide some balance. I was like, 'Let's include a couple more shrimp recipes or beef recipes so everyone has something they could like, or provide the option to swap proteins out,'" he says. "A lot of times you'll notice there's a quick tip or trick you could do. I like to give you this option of like, 'Well, if you don't like this protein, you use this or try these spices.' There's a lot of different options for you to make recipes your own."

"As the book progressed, I decided on the chapters I wanted to flesh out. There's the Pantry of Convenience, which focuses on things that are basic, including butter, flour and milk, and then you work from there. If you have this base down, you can make a ton of delicious things from it."

"Those are the tools you need, which I talk about in the book. Master one recipe and get a handful of recipes that you can make — and make them again and again until you love it and have it almost memorized so it's easy," he says of people who might experience kitchen anxiety. "Just do one thing and do it really well. Don't try and do everything at once!"

Though it's tough for Kanell to choose one of his favorite recipes, he usually craves his special salmon that is stuffed with a cream cheese caraway mixture. "It comes together super fast and you can meal prep it out so you can bake it over the course of a couple of days," he explains. "It's so delicious. I ate the entire testing batch over the sink! The minute it came out of the oven, I inhaled like four or six portions in one."

When creating the book, the dad-of-two notes the pear fritters came out "surprisingly delicious."

"Maybe you want to make some donuts, but you don't have time for the yeast to rise, so these pear fritters come in handy! If you can make pancake batter, you can make these, and they have a really easy kind of lemony glaze over them. They're delicious," he shares.

Some of his family favorites include making a breaded crispy chicken piece in an orange sauce. "It's a fun recipe you can make, and you can make it in the air fryer or you can make it in the oven. It's so easy," he says. "I'm so excited about that. On the back cover of the book is the birthday cake I make for myself every year, which is a really simple olive oil cake. It just melts in your mouth. It has this wonderful flavor with lemon and then you pile it up with whipped cream mixed with mascarpone and lots of berries. It's super easy and delicious!"

Since Kanell typically throws meals together, when working on the book, he had to take notes, which wasn't easy! "The apricot chicken stew I typically just throw together when I make it, and I usually make that most weeknights, so I had to stop myself and measure things out as I went," he says. "If it's a main course, I had to figure out the sauce and think about texture. If it's a softer chicken with a silky sauce, maybe you want to throw in some peanuts or almonds or something for some texture to give you that full experience and make it a bit more elevated."

But the cherry on top of making this book was having his sons join in on the fun. "They're my biggest helpers because my goal was to get them in the kitchen with me. My most cherished memories include being with my mom and helping her in the kitchen. I always try to get my boys to whisk something or put spices in. It's also a really good way to get picky eaters on your side — have them help you make something new. You can say, 'You added the spices in, you try it!' Spending time together makes you feel more connected," he says.

"I love seeing the look of pride on their faces. I remember they made some chocolate cupcakes to take to a birthday party, and they were beaming. They were like, 'We made these cupcakes,' and the look on their faces was priceless. I love seeing them realize they can make these big things and seeing how proud they were of themselves."

Kanell is just grateful he gets to do what he loves. "I like to teach people how to make food. I'm still a teacher, and I love having that connection and being able to reach people from around the world," he says. "It's very exciting when I am somewhere and someone is like, 'I love your crème brûlée. I learned how to make it from you.' It's like having a much larger classroom."

"It's so gratifying, and I just love that they trusted me. Whenever someone makes one of my recipes, it's like they are trusting me with their time, money and resources. The meal came out well, and they're happy, which fills me with a lot of pride," he adds.

Ultimately, the social media personality wants anyone and everyone to pick up this book. "No matter your skill level, you can still get frustrated and almost scared when it's time to put food on the table because we're so busy," he shares. "We've never been busier! You only have a few minutes, so my hope is that people will look to the book, find something that interests them and make it because every recipe is really frustration free! You'll feel more comfortable in the kitchen if you always worry it's never going to be good."

And though Kanell just released his second book, more aren't out of the question. "I have so many more ideas. I keep a big journal of all the recipes that I'm working on. I'm excited for the next chapter, but I'm focused on this one first! There's always a to-do list."

Purchase Preppy Kitchen Super Easy: 100 Simple and Versatile Recipes now!