Good things
are homemade.

From the garden · Makes approximately 10–12 tarts

Fresh Raspberry Tarts

Homegrown raspberries, a buttery crust, and a recipe that’s part of our family. These were a favorite dessert for Dylan growing up, and one of his dad Bill Kerr’s favorites, too, now made in our kitchen with a little help from Nora.

Read the whole story in Lessons →

The raspberry filling comes from Miss Vickie’s Kitchen: Family Recipes by Vickie Kerr, Dylan’s mom. The butter crust is adapted from the Natasha’s Kitchen recipe we used.

A special thank-you to Miss Vickie for sending us the little tart tins we used, we’ve had them for ages, and it’s so fun to put them to work with her recipe. She also suggested a tart baking dish as another option.

Butter crust

• 2½ cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
• ½ tablespoon granulated sugar
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• 1 cup cold unsalted butter (2 sticks), cut into small cubes, we used Kerrygold
• 7–8 tablespoons ice water

This is a full batch of dough, enough for two single pie crusts. Depending on the size of your tart tins, you may have dough left over.

Raspberry filling

• 2 cups fresh raspberries
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• About 2 tablespoons organic raspberry jam, optional, we added this to our batch

Another little tip from Miss Vickie: if you’re short on fresh raspberries, raspberry jam can help make up the difference. We added about two tablespoons of organic raspberry jam to ours. Thank you for the tip, Miss Vickie!

Make the butter crust

I used a food processor to work the butter into the dry ingredients, then mixed in the water by hand in a bowl.

1. Combine all of the dry ingredients, the flour, sugar, and salt, in a bowl.
2. Cut the cold butter into quartered cubes and toss them in the flour mixture to coat.
3. Transfer the flour-and-butter mixture to a food processor. Gently pulse in short bursts, stopping when the remaining butter pieces are roughly pea- to blueberry-sized. Leave those little chunks of butter rather than blending everything smooth.
4. Tip the mixture back into a bowl. Add the ice water gradually, starting with 6 tablespoons and adding more from the measured amount as needed. Gently mix by hand just until the dough holds together when squeezed.
5. Turn the dough out onto the counter and gently bring it together without kneading. Divide it into two balls, then flatten each slightly into a disc. Wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Fill and bake the tarts

1. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Roll out the chilled dough on a lightly floured surface, slightly thicker than a traditional pie crust. Keep the second disc chilled while you work.
2. Use a glass, jar, or cutter slightly larger than your tart tins to cut circles. Gently press them into the tins without stretching the dough. Leave the shells unbaked; don’t prick them with a fork.
3. Gently crush the raspberries with a fork or masher, leaving some texture. Stir in the sugar, cornstarch, and lemon juice, along with the raspberry jam if using.
4. Spoon the filling into the raw tart shells, filling each about three-quarters full. Don’t overfill.
5. Bake at 425°F for 5 minutes. Reduce the oven to 400°F and bake for 10 minutes, then reduce to 350°F and bake for about 10 more minutes, until the filling bubbles and the pastry edges are golden.
6. Let the tarts cool completely in their tins before removing them. The filling will thicken as it cools.

Grow the berries. Pick them with your kids. Make the dough. Let little hands cut imperfect circles. Make a mess. Recipes get passed down because someone keeps making them. This one is worth keeping.

Tools from our kitchen

A food processor for gently pulsing the butter into the flour, a mixing bowl for adding the water, a rolling pin, and the little tart tins Miss Vickie sent us. The filling comes from Miss Vickie’s Kitchen cookbook, read more about why it has a place on our shelf.

Easy family dinner · One-hour brine

Easy Brined Roast Chicken

A roast chicken does not need to be complicated. A simple one-hour brine helps season the meat, a little time uncovered in the refrigerator helps dry the skin, and olive oil is all it needs before going into a hot oven.

Ingredients

• 1 whole chicken
• 2 gallons cold water
• 1 cup salt
• Olive oil, for coating the chicken

Brine and dry the chicken

1. Make the brine: Stir the salt into the cold water in a food-safe container until dissolved.
2. Brine: Submerge the chicken completely, cover, and refrigerate for 1 hour. Keep the chicken refrigerated for the entire brining time.
3. Dry: Remove the chicken from the brine and discard the used brine. Pat the chicken very dry with paper towels.
4. Air-dry: Line a rimmed sheet pan with parchment paper and set a roasting rack on top. Place the chicken on the rack and refrigerate uncovered until you are ready to cook it.

Roast the chicken

1. Heat the oven: Preheat the oven to 425°F.
2. Add the olive oil: Rub a light coating of olive oil all over the chicken, including the legs and wings.
3. Start hot: Roast the chicken at 425°F for 15 minutes.
4. Lower the heat: Reduce the oven temperature to 375°F and continue roasting for about 1 hour and 30 minutes. Begin checking sooner if your chicken is smaller.
5. Check for doneness: The chicken is ready when a food thermometer reaches at least 165°F in the thickest part of the breast and the innermost part of the thigh, without touching bone.
6. Rest: Let the chicken rest for 15 minutes before carving so the juices can settle.

Serve it with potatoes, rice, a favorite vegetable, or a simple salad. Save the pan drippings for the chicken gravy recipe, then save the carcass for the homemade chicken stock.

Roasting time can vary with the size and shape of the chicken, so use the thermometer reading as your final guide. The USDA recommends cooking all poultry to at least 165°F. See the USDA temperature guidance.

From the roasting pan · Makes about 1 cup

Simple Roast Chicken Gravy

The best part of roasting a chicken is turning everything left in the pan into a rich homemade gravy. The flavorful drippings do most of the work, and you only need a little chicken stock to bring everything together.

Ingredients

• Pan drippings from 1 cooked roast chicken
• 2 tablespoons rendered chicken fat from the drippings
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• Chicken stock, as needed
• Salt and black pepper, to taste, optional

Make the gravy

1. Separate the drippings: Pour the warm pan drippings into a heatproof measuring cup or fat separator and let the fat rise to the top. Spoon off and reserve 2 tablespoons of the fat.
2. Measure the liquid: Keep the flavorful juices that remain beneath the fat. Add enough chicken stock to those juices to make 1 cup total. Depending on how many drippings you have, you may need only a small amount of stock.
3. Make the roux: Heat the reserved chicken fat in a small saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and cook for about 2 minutes, whisking often, until the mixture is smooth and lightly golden.
4. Bring it together: Slowly pour in the drippings and stock mixture while whisking continuously. Keep whisking until smooth.
5. Thicken: Bring the gravy to a gentle simmer and cook for 2 to 5 minutes, stirring often, until it reaches a nice, thick consistency. Add a splash of stock if it becomes too thick, or simmer it a little longer if it is too thin.
6. Taste and serve: Taste before adding salt since the drippings may already be well seasoned. Add black pepper and salt if needed, then serve warm with the roast chicken.

Your drippings and chicken stock should total about 1 cup before they are added to the fat and flour. Start with the drippings so you keep all that roasted flavor, then add only as much stock as you need.

Family dinner · Slow cooker · Save some for later

Slow-Cooker Spaghetti for Ski Days & Busy Nights

Cooler weather calls for something warm, nourishing, and filling, and in our house, homemade spaghetti sauce is always a good answer. Fresh vegetables, plenty of herbs, and a generous helping of beef make this one of those dinners we come back to again and again.

Life gets busy. There are tasks to finish, kids’ sports and activities, and all the other things we want to make room for. So when we make this sauce, we make enough to enjoy now and freeze for another night. Dinner today, a little breathing room later.

It’s especially welcome during ski season, another favorite time of year for our family. A warm bowl of spaghetti after a day on the mountain? That’s our kind of winter dinner.

This spaghetti is all about heartiness. We use 3 pounds of 80/20 ground beef every time, browned in larger chunks so the sauce feels generous and meaty. It’s also one way we help our little one enjoy more protein instead of reaching only for pasta with butter. Nothing fancy, just finding a family meal that works for us.

Jump to the ingredients

What goes into our sauce

Make it as hearty as your family likes: add more protein or pile in extra vegetables to suit your appetite. Our own batch always uses 3 pounds of meat, with vegetables and herbs added to taste. If you make a larger batch, use a larger slow cooker or divide it between cookers so you stay within the recommended fill limits.

• 3 pounds 80/20 ground beef
• Fresh celery, chopped
• Onion, chopped
• Fresh garlic, minced
• Bell peppers, chopped
• Fresh basil
• 2 cans crushed tomatoes
• 1 can tomato purée
• 2 cans tomato sauce
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Thyme, we like plenty
• Oregano, to taste
• Garlic salt, to taste
• Garlic powder, to taste

For now, we use canned crushed tomatoes, tomato purée, and tomato sauce from Trader Joe’s. Our goal is to eventually preserve our own tomatoes in jars, one more little step from the garden to our family table. This spaghetti sauce recipe is for enjoying fresh or freezing, not for shelf-stable canning.

Let the slow cooker do its thing

Slow-cooker time: About 4–6 hours on LOW, until the vegetables are tender and the sauce is hot throughout. Use a cooker large enough for the batch and follow its recommended fill limit; divide the batch if needed.

1. Keep it hearty: Brown the ground beef in a skillet, in batches if needed, leaving larger chunks instead of breaking it into fine crumbles. Cook the beef through to 160°F, checked with a food thermometer, then transfer it directly to the slow cooker.
2. Bring it together: Add the prepared beef, chopped celery, onion, garlic, bell peppers, basil, crushed tomatoes, tomato purée, and tomato sauce to the slow cooker. Stir in the thyme, oregano, garlic salt, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Start lightly with the salt and garlic salt, you can adjust the seasoning at the end.
3. Cook low and slow: Cover and cook on LOW for about 4–6 hours. Keep the lid in place as much as possible, and allow more time if the vegetables are not yet tender. Use LOW, not the WARM setting, for cooking.
4. Finish and serve: Once fully cooked, taste and adjust the seasoning. Spoon over cooked pasta or cooked spaghetti squash. Put aside the extra sauce for another family meal.

Pasta night, or a little something from the garden

Serve with your favorite Italian pasta, or choose certified gluten-free pasta if that’s what your family needs. Cooked spaghetti squash is another naturally gluten-free option. For a gluten-free meal, check the sauce ingredients and seasonings as well, and use clean utensils to avoid cross-contact.

Spaghetti squash has been one of the easier things for me to grow. We now harvest around 15–20 squash each year, curing and storing our harvest for meals during the colder months. There’s something really satisfying about serving a homemade sauce over something you grew yourself.

Cook once. Give your future self a night off.

We eat what we need and freeze the other half of the sauce for a busy evening days or weeks down the road. Freeze it in portions that make sense for your family, separately from the pasta or squash, and label each container with the date.

For safe storage, divide extra sauce into shallow containers and refrigerate within two hours, don’t leave the whole slow-cooker pot out to cool. Refrigerate for up to 3–4 days, or freeze promptly for another meal. For best quality, use frozen leftovers within 3–4 months. Thaw in the refrigerator and reheat on the stove or in the microwave to 165°F throughout; bring the sauce to a rolling boil. Don’t use the slow cooker to reheat cold leftovers. USDA leftover guidance.

Next year’s patch starts with this year’s ideas

We save seeds from our squash for next year’s patch, too. As the seasons go by, our vision keeps getting a little bigger. Next year, we’re dreaming of a dedicated area for our melons, squash, and those sprawling plants that like a little extra room.

This summer, I even tried growing pumpkins in a large container on our patio. It’s a reminder that you can experiment without having a huge garden. Give the plant a roomy container with drainage, space for its vines, consistent water, and appropriate nutrients. Container-friendly varieties are a good place to start. More about container growing.

A little garden note: mushroom compost is a soil amendment, not a complete fertilizer, and it can be high in salts. Use it according to the product directions rather than filling a pot with it. Compatible squash varieties can cross-pollinate, so plants grown from saved seeds may be different next year. Follow variety-specific curing and storage guidance, and check stored squash regularly. Compost guidance · Saving squash seeds · Winter squash growing and storage.

A meal for tonight, a little tucked away for later, and seeds for another season. That’s the kind of everyday rhythm we’re learning to love.

Tools for this recipe

A roomy slow cooker, a skillet for browning the beef, a food thermometer, and shallow freezer-safe containers for saving another family dinner. Use the equipment you already have, and check your slow cooker’s recommended fill limit.

Family dinner · serves 6

Dylan’s Hawaiian-Style Pineapple Chicken

Sweet, savory, and slightly spicy, this easy chicken-thigh recipe features a homemade pineapple marinade and beautifully caramelized edges. Prepare it in the morning, let the chicken marinate throughout the day, and broil it when you’re ready for dinner.

A family-favorite dinner

When I was working full-time and driving our kids to sports and activities, my husband, Dylan, handled most of our family’s cooking. He supported our family by making sure we had nourishing meals on the table, even during our busiest seasons.

Now, I’m learning some of his best recipes so I can take the lead on more of our dinners while he focuses on other projects. For us, marriage isn’t about dividing everything into permanent “his” and “hers” responsibilities. It’s about working as a team and asking, What can we do together to give our family the best possible options?

Nutrition is a big part of that mindset in our home. We want to give our girls a strong nutritional foundation as they grow and develop. As parents, we also want to nourish ourselves in a way that supports our energy, well-being, and longevity through every season and decade of life.

This Hawaiian-style pineapple chicken is one of Dylan’s family favorites. The homemade marinade starts with equal parts pineapple juice, soy sauce, and brown sugar. Fresh ginger, garlic, sriracha, and a splash of rice vinegar round everything out with warmth, spice, and acidity.

The chicken can be prepared in the morning and left to marinate throughout the day. At dinnertime, simply arrange it on a rack and broil it until juicy, caramelized, and cooked through. It’s especially delicious served over rice, although we also love slicing it and adding it to a fresh salad.

Prep time: 15 minutes · Marinating time: 2–8 hours · Cooking time: 20–25 minutes

Ingredients

• 2–3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 1 can pineapple juice, about 1 cup
• 1 cup soy sauce or tamari
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger, or to taste
• 3–4 garlic cloves, minced
• Sriracha, to taste
• Sliced green onions, optional
• Sesame seeds, optional

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the pineapple juice, soy sauce, brown sugar, rice vinegar, ginger, garlic, and sriracha until well combined.
2. Before adding the raw chicken, transfer approximately ¾ cup of the marinade to a separate covered container. Refrigerate this portion to use for basting.
3. Place the chicken thighs in a resealable bag or covered container. Pour the remaining marinade over the chicken, making sure each piece is thoroughly coated.
4. Refrigerate the chicken for at least 2 hours or up to 8 hours. Avoid leaving it in the pineapple marinade overnight, as the pineapple can eventually make the chicken overly soft.
5. When you’re ready to cook, remove the chicken from the refrigerator. Position an oven rack approximately 6 inches below the broiler, then preheat the broiler on high.
6. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Place an oven-safe wire rack on the baking sheet and lightly grease it.
7. Remove the chicken from the used marinade and arrange the thighs in a single layer on the rack. Discard the marinade that touched the raw chicken.
8. Broil the chicken for 8–10 minutes. Turn each piece over, brush it with some of the clean reserved marinade, and broil for another 6–10 minutes.
9. Continue cooking as needed until the edges are caramelized and the thickest part of each chicken thigh reaches an internal temperature of at least 165°F.
10. Let the chicken rest for 5 minutes before serving. Garnish with sliced green onions and sesame seeds, if desired.

Serving ideas

• Over steamed white or brown rice
• With cauliflower rice for a lighter option
• Alongside roasted or mashed potatoes
• Sliced over a crisp green salad
• In a rice bowl with cucumber, carrots, avocado, edamame, or steamed vegetables
• As an island-inspired plate with rice and the optional macaroni salad below

Optional Hawaii-Style Macaroni Salad

For an island-inspired plate, serve the pineapple chicken with steamed rice and a scoop of this creamy macaroni salad. It can be prepared earlier in the day or the night before, making it an easy optional addition rather than another dinnertime task.

Prep time: 15 minutes · Cooking time: 10–12 minutes · Chilling time: At least 1 hour

Macaroni salad ingredients

• 8 ounces elbow macaroni
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 cup avocado oil-based mayonnaise, preferably homemade or made with simple ingredients
• ¼ cup whole milk
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1 medium carrot, peeled and finely grated
• 2 tablespoons finely grated sweet onion
• ½ teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Macaroni salad instructions

1. Cook the macaroni slightly past al dente, until completely tender and soft.
2. Drain the macaroni well without rinsing. Transfer it to a mixing bowl while it is still warm.
3. Toss the warm macaroni with the apple cider vinegar, then let it cool for approximately 10 minutes.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together the avocado oil mayonnaise, milk, sugar, salt, and pepper.
5. Add the grated carrot, grated onion, and approximately half of the dressing to the macaroni. Stir until evenly combined.
6. Once the macaroni has cooled completely, fold in the remaining dressing.
7. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.
8. Stir the salad before serving. If it has thickened more than you prefer, add a small splash of milk until it reaches your desired consistency.

Recipe notes

• Keep the marinade equal: The foundation of the chicken marinade is equal parts pineapple juice, soy sauce, and brown sugar. To resize the batch, maintain that basic ratio.
• Adjust the heat: Add a small amount of sriracha for a mild, family-friendly version, or increase it for a spicier finish.
• Use unseasoned rice vinegar: Seasoned rice vinegar contains additional sugar and salt, so unseasoned vinegar works best in the chicken marinade.
• Reserve before marinating: Always separate the basting sauce before the marinade comes into contact with raw chicken.
• Watch the broiler: Broilers vary considerably. Keep a close eye on the chicken as the sugary marinade begins to caramelize.
• Don’t over-marinate: Pineapple juice tenderizes meat, but leaving the chicken in it for too long can affect its texture.
• Choose your mayonnaise: We prefer an avocado oil-based mayonnaise or homemade mayonnaise prepared with avocado oil.
• Cook the macaroni until soft: Hawaii-style macaroni salad traditionally uses tender macaroni rather than firm, al dente pasta.
• Make it ahead: The macaroni salad tastes even better after it has chilled and the flavors have had time to come together.

Photo coming soon.

Tools for this recipe

A mixing bowl and whisk, a covered marinating container, a rimmed baking sheet with a broiler-safe rack, tongs, a basting brush, and a food thermometer. For the optional macaroni salad, set out a pot, colander, grater, and another mixing bowl.