Welcome to Plays Well With Butter 🙋🏻♀️
I help home cooks make fuss-free & flavor-packed meals, any night of the week!
Whether it’s a Monday on the couch or an at-home date night – dinner always deserves to be amazingly delicious.
That’s why I’m so obsessed with crafting foolproof, well-tested recipes you can trust to deliver maximum flavor with minimal effort.
The best tasting food doesn’t have to be the most complicated or time-consuming. My quick, streamlined recipes empower anyone to whip up simple yet super impressive dishes in no time using tricks learned from my restaurant days.
If you’re a flavor-obsessed home cook then I’m here to help you create crave-worthy, comforting dinners that bring joy into your kitchen.
Because life is too short for anything but good food!
Hi there, I’m Jess!
My obsession with flavor began in college when I worked as a server in fine dining restaurants. Something clicked for me in those kitchens – my curiosity and love of food started to grow.
I quickly became known as the girl who always asked all the questions, eager for the chefs to teach me how they made the food taste so damn good.
At the end of a long restaurant shift, I watched endless hours of the Food Network to soak up how and why cooks prepared such perfect, fail-proof recipes. The Virgo in me can never resist this pursuit of “best ever.”
I was especially drawn to experts like Ina Garten, Tyler Florence, Anne Burrell, and Alex Guarnaschelli. They showed me that simple dishes can still have a restaurant-worthy “wow factor.”
Looking back, this shouldn’t have been a surprise to me.
My Japanese-Hawaiian mom has always been the queen of low-fuss meals. She’s famous amongst our friends and family for recipes like her Teriyaki Chicken and Pork Chow Fun, which use minimal ingredients to create tons of Asian-inspired flavor.
(Yes, that’s Mark Ruffalo!)
All of this knowledge quickly transformed my home kitchen. I started exploring simple ingredients and methods, testing recipes side by side, and gaining confidence in my palette.
But cooking became a lot harder when I started commuting to work for a full-time corporate job.
All of a sudden dinner was a chore I had to do, not the fun, curious exploration I had fallen in love with.
I became determined to preserve my joy of cooking, even on a busy schedule.
But the “quick and easy” recipes I found online left me feeling uninspired. And the amount they saved in time often led to a lack of flavor. Why did I have to choose between the two?!
So in 2016, I started sharing recipes online just for fun. I quickly realized that lots of other people also craved maximum flavor with minimal effort. That’s how Plays Well With Butter was born!
Today, I continue to share flavorful, low-fuss recipes from my cozy kitchen in Minneapolis, Minnesota. I may have ditched the corporate hours and long commute, but PWWB recipes will always, always be crafted out of joy and with flavor, simplicity, and convenience in mind.
If you’re new here, welcome! I’m so glad to have you.
I suggest starting by digging into some delicious basics like…
- The PWWB Recipe Index, where you can filter through our entire collection of dishes. Sort by cooking time, special diet, season, occasions, and more!
- Our list of Weeknight-Friendly Recipes (aka the absolute best flavor-packed, unfussy meals!)
- My Mise En Place approach to meal prep for effortless weeknight cooking
Some of my favorite dishes are still the ones I first learned from my days in an Italian restaurant! My Best-Ever Bolognese is my culinary specialty and I can still recall the moments making a simple Pasta Carbonara in the wee hours of the morning after my shift.
You’ll also find a lot of family-inspired recipes on PWWB. My family’s Hawaiian heritage has inspired staples like Spam Musubi and Shoyu Chicken, among other local-style classics. But since I was raised in the Midwest, regional classics like Wisconsin Beer Brats and Butter Burgers also have my heart.
But don’t let me tell you what’s best! Here’s what other readers like you love most:
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“I have made this for dinner guests who were shocked it was homemade. So. Good!” -Rachel
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“Seriously so good and felt restaurant quality!! By the time I was ready to cook the recipe, I felt like I had learned something and knew it was going to be a great dish! Thank you!” -Greta
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“Drop everything and make this recipe. It is UNREAL. So so delicious.” -Bianca
Join me in the kitchen! 👩🏻🍳
Follow PWWB on Instagram and YouTube to watch me make the latest recipes.
If you have any questions, comment on the recipe and a team member will get back to you! If you’re wondering something then other readers probably are too, so it’s great to keep the conversation online.
Maximum Flavor, Minimal Effort
3 foolproof secrets to low-fuss, flavor-packed dinners, learned from years working in restaurants.
Looking to collaborate?
We love partnering with awesome brands and collaborating with other bloggers! The CookIt Media talent management team supports PWWB with brand partnerships, social media takeovers, and general digital marketing strategy. Contact us if you’re looking to collaborate on any of these initiatives.
Meet the Plays Well With Butter Team
Plays Well with Butter is now a small but mighty team of flavor-obsessed foodies making the recipe magic happen. Thank you for including us in your home cooking journey!
Jess | Founder and Recipe Creator
Jess is the creator, voice, and primary recipe developer at PWWB. Her Midwest roots, Hawaiian family heritage, and general obsession with tacos and Italian food have set her on a lifelong quest to create the best-ever flavors in her Minneapolis kitchen. She’s fueled by iced coffee year-round and always has an epic TV drama on her watchlist.
✨ All-Time Fave PWWB recipes ⇢ Slowly Braised Short Rib Ragu and Beer-Braised Carnitas
Emma | Operations Manager
Emma is the process guru at PWWB, overseeing content development, recipe sharing, and all other odds and ends that keep a recipe website running smoothly. When she’s home, she loves woodworking and taking on DIY projects. But she’s also the PWWB team travelista, with recent trips around the world to Finland and Tanzania.
✨All-Time Fave PWWB recipes ⇢ Skillet Chicken Pot Pie and Chicken Shawarma Hummus Bowls
Erin | Content Strategist
Erin’s innovative, strategic thinking helps execute the big ideas that keep PWWB relevant and valuable to our readers. She’s a proud Minnesotan who loves hockey, Tater Tot hotdish, and escaping to the lakes. She’s a firm believer that any time is the right time for ice cream (especially if it’s s’mores flavored!).
✨All-Time Fave PWWB recipes ⇢ Parmesan Pistachio Crusted Chicken and Best-Ever Ricotta Meatballs
Lori | Recipe Developer and Best-Ever Mom
Lori is a retired elementary school librarian and now supports her daughter, Jess, with PWWB recipe testing and creation. You’ll taste elements of her Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Native Hawaiian heritage in lots of PWWB recipes! She has a no-fuss, quick and easy approach to cooking and loves to help Jess re-create nostalgic childhood dishes.
✨All-Time Fave PWWB recipes ⇢ Best-Ever Guacamole and Hearty Minestrone Soup
Chris | Chief Taste-Tester and #1 Cheerleader
Chris has been with his wife, Jess, along every step of her food blogging journey. He’s tried every single recipe and is always ready to provide feedback, lend a supportive ear, or wash a pile of dishes at the end of a shoot day. His optimistic outlook, fun-loving personality, and constant encouragement have played a pivotal role in creating PWWB.
✨All-Time Fave PWWB recipes ⇢ Best-Ever Grilled Buffalo Wings and Cast Iron Skillet Pizza
PBR and Bodie | Clean-Up Crew
PBR and Bodie are Jess and Chris’ German Shepherd babies. PBR is the hungry big brother always ready to clean up food scraps in the kitchen and Bodie is the cuddly baby happiest playing ball in the backyard. The pups frequently lurk in the background of photo shoots and they love to snuggle at the end of a long day on their feet in the kitchen.
✨All-Time Fave PWWB recipes ⇢ Grilled Peppers and Grilled Sweet Potatoes
We’re always excited to talk about food!
Follow along with the PWWB team on social and share your latest recipes with us. We LOVE hearing about and seeing your PWWB creations!
