Cook Dinner with Me (From Scratch, Seasonal Cooking) | VLOG 

My 11 yr old daughter made bread for the first time because of you! That was last week. Now she's made bread 3 times, and she's planning on another batch today. Now she says she's a bread baker. And she is! Thank you, and Happy Birthday! 🎉

I’m so glad you pushed past your reservations and started this cooking channel. Like others have said, I particularly like these unstructured videos where you are showing us how to cook and also chatting and sharing wisdom and encouragement. You don’t know how many of us need the encouragement and friendly voice. I’m likely at least 10-15 years your senior, yet I feel a sense of peace and renewed motivation while you work and chat with us. Thank you for being you!

You are reminding me of how my grandmother would come and stay with my family and me for a week when we lived far from her. We were a young family and my food supply would be low and she would make wonderful meals out of so little. She blessed and amazed me. Now I am 75 and watching you and finding your videos very refreshing. I love your attitude and your great communication skill. (I tried to work thru using my cast iron and it’s still not smooth like yours. Grrr. Lol) Keep up your good work.❤️

After watching how you spatchcock your chicken, I tried it on a turkey. It was by far the best turkey I have ever made. I love this format of talking while "shopping" and cooking. I'm loving this new channel. 😊

I love garden shopping! Take us along some more please. I invited my mom to grocery shop with me once. She raised her eyebrow but said, "Sure, why not." She got real confused when we drove past the nearest grocery store and I parked the car in front of my plot at the community garden. But she had so much fun finding all the treasures in there!

Last week I spatchcock a chicken, made broth from the bones and then made the chicken rice wellness soup for my sick husband. Such a good two nights of food and healthy. Thanks

Great job Jess! I’m a retired chef and applaud your efforts to help people learn to cook from scratch. You make it so attainable. …and…the chicken with sweet potatoes and that salad looks wonderful. Keep up the great work.

Making meals from the ingredients at hand is an invaluable skill. Keep it coming! My children have said there's no food in our house, just ingredients and I continue trying to teach them to assemble food from ingredients!

As someone who cooks from scratch and my pantry, I love that you are showing people how basic ingredients can make a great meal. You are awesome. Have a very Merry Christmas

Lol. I love it.. she says "let's go grocery shopping." An she goes to her out side storage building (pantry) an then to her garden (greenhouse). Everyone's version of homesteading truly does look different. Thanks Jess.

I literally just finished a cup of that black orange spice tea that I got with my last Beulah coffee order. When I saw you making some, I felt connected, somehow. I'm glad you decided to make a vlog today, even though you almost didn't. I'm sure I speak for all of us that watch, we love to see your smiling face and hear your laughter, even if no pdf recipe is included. 😄

Seems to me like you have several groups that watch this channel. I have been a longtime R&R watcher (way before 2020) and love the sense of spending time with a like-minded friend (digital, but a friend never the less) whether thats in the garden, your kitchen or the roastery. I appreciate the motivation this channel gives me to do better with my meals on the days I'm less inspired. Thank you.

I love the candid videos and just chatting while you cook. It’s the closest thing to sitting in your kitchen talking with you. Plus it’s nice to see the real life stuff where plans may change ❤

Jess, we love everything you do! Seriously, I just love it when you post anything. It always just feels like we’re hanging out. And your videos, no matter the content are a refuge for me.

I love that you chat while peeling/prepping potatoes. You could've edited that out to "save time" but it's much more endearing that you talk to us.

Homemade salad dressings were one of the first "formulas" (as I call them) that I learned to make from scratch instead of buying. Once you learn the ratios, you can swap out the different oils, acids (vinegar/citrus juice), sweeteners, and herbs and make nearly endless combinations. Such a great place to start replacing your current grocery store conveniences!

I love cooking without a recipe. I look at a recipe for inspiration and then it sparks ideas using ingredients I have. My husband will pull up a recipe and decide we can't make it because we don't have some obscure ingredient... I'm like, we can totally make something like that. I love to create in the kitchen.

I am a 73 year old GMA. I love that we can just hang out. I can teach, but I am not a cook. Just got inspired to bring my 35 year old Dutch oven, and make a loaf of bread. Thank you for doing this!!!!!❤

Honestly you tube doesn’t need another cooking video but none with Jess so that’s why we’re here. God bless this channel ❤

I am so thankful for every video you share on both channels! I made the soup this morning for my sick son and was so proud that I took the time to make something so much more nutritious and nourishing than my typical sick day go to. These laid back chats while you cook I love and find them so valuable as well! Keep it up Jess you are spreading such important wisdom and light into the world

I enjoy your chatty videos, whether you're cooking on this channel or shelling peas on the porch on Roots and Refuge. I shell beans, knit or embroider dish towels while you chat. Thank you for being you.

I’ve been loving the spatchcock method of cooking a chicken. I made one on Sunday and made mashed sweet potatoes with butter, cream, Parmesan, and thyme. If you’ve never tried sweet potatoes that way, it’s so so good.

My 22-year-old daughter followed your biscuit video to do biscuits on Thanksgiving day and she was so proud of herself. I can not thank you enough for dumbing down and simplifying the process of learning to cook from scratch. I am not at all offended to not know how to cook from scratch as it was not taught to me nor modeled for me, but I am so very grateful for someone who is willing to go there with those of us who have very little experience and just model for us by doing. Parents are doing their best and if it weren't for Chef Boyardee and boxed tuna helper I would have starved to death in childhood, but as an adult it's hard to find people willing to go back to ground zero to help you. You'd be amazed how much you can learn just by watching someone else step by step. I once heard the Minimal Mom call it body doubling. Basically, I do it along with you at the same time and the presence of someone else helps to get over the fear of what if. Merry Christmas to you and your sweet family! Oh, and thank you so much for showing me where to find my brussel sprouts on the plant. I had no clue! 🤣

Jess said, “God bless you” right after I sneezed. She was clearly talking to me. 😂 Thanks for the videos. They are a source of inspiration and comfort.

Absolutely love the idea of ‘shopping’ in your pantry & garden! Please continue to make these type of videos. So much inspiration to make countless meals with this one video 🥰

Oh, I am SO glad you started this channel. You give me confidence every time I watch you cook. I’m 58, and I have cooked for my family for 3 decades, but it has-and continues to-morph from fully pre-packaged, processed foods as a newlywed, through the spectrum of nutrition to being much more natural now. I always thought scratch cooking everything would be too hard, but I know better now.

I love this type of video. I enjoy and find value in learning how people think about and approach a task like cooking. If I understand your thought process, I can better replicate the recipe or feel more confident tweaking it to better fit my preferences. I also just enjoy hanging out with you in an informal setting. It feels more friendly. Thank you for doing what you do, friend.

Vlog cooking video is A-OK with me! Whatever makes it easy for you to hang out with us, and to feel that this channel is fun for you!

Looks amazing Jess. I'm loving your kitchen videos. Id love to see more like today's too. Watching from Central UK.

I love any videos you do… gardening, cooking, milking cows, chatting while shelling peas, ranting, devotionals … they are all amazing… I’d watch any, and all, of them! ❤

Love these hanging out in the kitchen vlogs. They are my fave! equivalent to a garden tour, no need for official recipes all the time. My Italian grandmother never cooked with a recipe and that is how I learned by watching. Just hang out with us Jess, cook food your family and let us stand by you. This let's us see the process and give us the ability to make it our own. Giving us an exact recipe is "giving" us the fish, showing us is like "teaching" us to fish.

Have to say, Jess, that I absolutely love this style of video! I can cook from scratch, have been for years, and the big reason I watch your videos (here and Roots and Refuge) is because you are my dish washing/kitchen chores buddy! It's almost like us visiting ❤ Very comforting.

My 11 year old daughter and I make bread for the first time following your video. We loved it, it tested great and it was an amazing bonding time with my daughter. Thank you so much! 😊

Absolutely loved watching you cook dinner. Great inspiration for trying out new recipes. Cooking non-dairy for the last 12 years has been a real challenge. I feel so much better. Cooking from scratch makes it easier.

Yes! More vlogging meals. It helps me 100000% to see how people actually cook and what ingredients they keep on hand for quick dinners

Your other channel inspired me to start a garden. I love this channel as well. It reminds me that there is no reason why I am not able to put a little more effort in the kitchen and make healthier meals for my family. Thank you for being so inspiring.

Yes. more please!!! your pleasant down to earth approach has won me over!!! thanks so much. and wanted to say my heart was in two when your daughter ran into a horrible situation. all the moms (and grand moms, which is what I am) knew. ❤

Some of my favorite videos of yours are you harvesting something from your garden and then cooking vlog style! I loved watching this! It's so relaxing and I feel like I'm sitting with a friend while she cooks

OMG thank you for talking about the whole chicken thing. I’m a 62yo woman. My mom couldn’t boil water. We lived in the city and went out to eat to for most meals. I still remember the day i learned in grammar school that meat was an animal. At about 13yo i said to my mom “how about I do the grocery shopping I’ll cook.” I completely had no idea. I would go to friends house and ask there moms how do I cook this.” At 16yo I went to babysit and the woman made everything from scratch the food was AWESOME. I went back to her and said “can u teach me to cook.” She said absolutely. This woman became my best friend for 30yrs until her passing. My children ate delicious and healthy meals. I am a nurse and nutrition is so important. I revere what u r doing in this channel. About 15yrs ago my older son said “how about I video u cooking and put in on RU-vid.” I wish I had said OK. My younger son (31yo) is a cook

I've been cooking from scratch my whole life. By the age of 12, I was preparing meals from scratch for a family of 6! A great skill to have. I taught my children to do the same.

I’m laughing, crying and remembering. I’m 75 and live with my daughter, son-in-law and two grandsons 19 and 9. All my cookbooks are here on a couple of shelves with my daughter’s books as well. She is adopting my ways for her family as well. I have many notes. We had things such as ‘once a month is ok’, ‘everyone liked this’, ‘never again’.

I absolutely LOVE these types of videos. We use the end of the mustard bottles to make a delicious dressing as well. Never thought of the jelly or jam jar! Next year (2024) we are hoping it get a green house up so we can extend our growing season here in Wisconsin! Thanks for putting out these videos Jess!

So much good advice! I am a perfect example of someone who started from almost zero (figured it was Mom’s job, and by the time I wanted to learn, Mom had died) to “knowing just enough to be dangerous” to becoming a darned good home cook. Made lots of mistakes, but once I decided that learning to cook for my family was important, and I started to have some success from sheer repetition, progress begat progress. After 28 years of marriage, cooking has become a passion, and I love learning new things and knowing how far I’ve come. Trust me, fellow viewers, if I can do it, so can you!

Always love hearing from you Jess.. you’re like an old friend and it’s fun to hang with you no matter what you are doing. Your cooking is encouraging me to branch out and try new things. I appreciate you in whatever way you are willing to share. Keep up the good work!

I love when you just chat with us. Cooking is a bonus. I vote to please add them when ever it suits you hun 💕

Oh yes! Keep doing this exact format. So helpful. Love the dressings and sauces. Thanks Jess!❤

It feels like hanging out with a friend, I like this kind of video. Thanks Jess for bringing us into your kitchen!

I've been calling recipes, "good suggestions." Calling them "good training wheels" is more inspiring. I really enjoyed this format.

I have been watching your roots and refuge channel for years. Just watching what you throw together is great. I myself don’t follow recipes often so just seeing what you do gives me ideas for different foods to try. Thank you for all you do ❤

I’m in my 70s I learned how to cook and can from scratch and garden by sitting on my lazy butt talking to my mom and my grandma. Well they cooked from scratch for me and the rest of my family. When I got married, I wanted to share with my husband, the wonderful and delicious thing I ate growing up so we bought a cast iron skillet and I started cooking from scratch fresh vegetables from the produce kinda like my mom and grandma did, now I’m starting a garden etc. but sometimes just showing people what you do and maybe getting a few pointers along the way and most people can figure it out. I’m OK a lot of people enjoy my cooking when I can share it so I appreciate you just showing us what you do, thanks ❤❤❤

Jess, I LOVE the cooking and chatting thing! It reminds me so much of spending time in the kitchen with Mom. I'd come home from school, plop myself down on the kitchen stool next to the stove, and tell her all about my day. As I talked, my job was to stir and tend whatever was in the pot on the left front burner: puddings, gravy, the beginnings of a soup, sauces, you name it, all from scratch. You know, you don't need to be teaching in a formal way for people to learn from just seeing what you're doing. Learning through osmosis, I call it. That's really how I learned to cook from my mother. So enjoyable spending time with you this way today. Blessings to you and your family.

I could sit here and watch/listen to you all day! lol You are so knowledgeable on so many things. My son is who actually turned me on to watching your videos a few years ago. He LOVES you and all your gardening videos! TY for sharing with us all! Merry Christmas to you and your family! Dinner looked AMAZING!

I have learned so much watching my husband’s Nana cool over the years. It is incredible how she can throw a meal together for a crowd with seemingly minimal ingredients at the last second

I’m 64 yrs old and never knew you could eat Brussel sprouts raw. The salad, purple sweet potatoes and chicken looked delicious. I’m enjoying watching your cooking channel. I’ve followed your garden channel for several years so when the first cooking channel came out it popped in my suggestion feed. I subscribed that day. I haven’t commented on them, maybe I did on the first one, but I always 👍🏻. No matter how old I get, I learn something new everyday…now if I could just remember it all, I’d be a genius.😆😉

LOVE the kitchen cooking chatting vlog! Any hang out time with Jess and fam is a win win WIN🎉

Am from the Caribbean and all we do is cook from scratch with no recipe instructions. It strange to me when you say cook from scratch but I get that the culture of this country is different. And I love that you are giving confidence to move forward, thank you

"Cook Dinner with Me" makes a great series! So many great cooks say they learned to cook by watching their parent and/or grandparent in the kitchen. And you are the matriarch of this online tribe! It's encouraging to me to see you calmly talking and cooking at the same time, strolling outside to grab forgotten ingredients. I need to work on lowering the stress in my kitchen. I think that will come with tried and true successes in the kitchen - upping the ratio of success to failure. Please don't stop posting recipes, entirely, because they are a security blanket for me, especially when cooking with fresh ingredients. I so enjoyed cooking with you, and I don't (think I) like anything but the chicken. But with that bright dressing, I'd actually try the brussels sprouts and kale salad. Happy Birthday! What a shame we can't cook for you! Thanks for including us.

I am absolutely loving this channel! This feels like I'm just hanging out with you in your kitchen while you cook dinner. It's perfect. Other cooking related content that I would find helpful is a breakdown and discussion of various parts of a cow or pig for those of us who buy them by the section. I find that when I have got through Al of the trees and true cuts, I get to cuts that I don't know exactly how to prepare and those are the last to get used.

Love the cook and chat. I have been a from scratch fan for many years, but life takes its toll. I raised 5 children on what we call gathering meals. Because as we be daughter says, it looked like there was nothing to eat and no hen dinner was a full meal complete with dessert. Now cooking for 1 I just gave in to quick freezer meals or fast food. The last few minutes of watching you has helped me to remember the joy of cooking and of eating. Now I’m a GMA of 26, and I need to pass these things down. Thank you again.

Jess, I love when you do videos like this one. You are the only RU-vidr that my hubby isn’t irritated by. That’s huge!!

I cooked for my family while our kids were growing up. I will be honest, I have never enjoyed cooking. I always felt I could do something more productive with my time. A lot of time spent preparing and cooking and then they gobble it up in about 10-15 minutes. Then the cleaning of the kitchen. Just hasn’t ever been my favorite activity. I’ve always loved reading cookbooks,(so weird, huh?), and I do have a decent collection. At age 65 now, I actually want to love to cook. I think it will be a long process, but it’s something I’m going to work toward in 2024. Love this new channel of yours. I love Jess in the kitchen, casual vlog or teaching tutorial, as well as Jess in the garden! I’ve learned so much from you since the day I found R&R in Arkansas! ~~Lisa

Jess keep these videos coming. I am enjoying your new channel. After gardening for years, I am finding that I got into growing my own food backwards. It would have been smart to learn what to do with all of the produce first. So, I have been working on learning what to do with all of it. :) Keep cooking and preserving! These vlogs are helpful! Personally I think that cooking was always done in the past by what was passed down from moms and grandmas. It is an art and should be very creative. Please don't worry about formality because most of us don't worry about that anyway.

Love the cooking vlog. You made so many great points. Wish I could have watched this when I was learning to cook. And I will try that Brussel sprout & kale salad. Looks deelish!!

Yes please. I love what you are doing. I’m learning to eat seasonally with watching your channel and you are not only inspiring but encouraging. You light the fire in me to keep going!! Thank you

Yes to this style of cooking vlog! I thoroughly enjoyed sitting by your kettle (I love the orange spice tea, too!) and across the table from you! And yes, words matter! Your words are a joy to listen to! Thanks Miah, for the great encouragement! Much love!❤

I love this video Jess! This is how I typically cook and have been trying to teach my (now grown) children this same method/habit. Groceries are so expensive that I often just dig through leftovers etc to try to put something together and reinvent a new meal. These are VALUABLE lessons, maybe now more than ever before in many of our lives. Please keep this up! 😊

Loved it Jess! I’m going to try your winter salad concept and see how it goes over with the family.

This is EXACTLY what I needed to learn about cooking next. I started with no knowledge and America's Test Kitchen recipes. I was SO SLOW! And I wasn't brave enough to improvise. I deeply appreciate seeing your thought process.

Loving the relaxed chat while making dinner. Almost felt like I was enjoying my tea in the kitchen with you.

Absolutely, yes! I would love more videos like this one. I didn't have a big enough cast iron pan to do your chicken, so we bought one and did it. Loved it! We'll be doing that a whole lot more than air frying whole chickens, which was our go to before. Thanks!

I really appreciate the way you cook. You use things I wouldn't be comfortable putting ingredients together. I would like to see more of these videos .

Such a timely message as I just started today, learning to bake bread from freshly ground wheat. It was a long day with a LOT of learning, but that's what students do, right? Learn! I've been watching you since the first garden after your MIL passed... so thankful for all you share. 💞

I love these videos! I don’t care if it’s recipes or not I just love seeing how you eat and use your produce and meats!

Love these videos. I’m a roots n refuge fan and I’ve been looking for this type of content to pair with my harvest, so this is a really nice related content. It’s taking gardening to the next level and I think many ppl look for this. Makes me happy!😊

Love this type of video. Just so comfortable, hanging out in a friend's kitchen! Your plate looks delicious! I make a similar salad with dried cranberries, pears, feta and pepitas!

This was a fun visit with you & I so appreciate your time to create these! Blessings to all 🤗💗🇨🇦

❤I just love this vlog! What a fabulous idea just letting us watch you cook supper and throw it together. I love to do the same thing, but boy is it nice to have fresh ideas every once in a while. Watching you Cook is so joyful! Keep it up! happy birthday and merry Christmas!

I love seeing how you normally cook and come up with dinner. You should definitely do more of these!

Jess, this makes my heart happy. This is something I've wanted to do but have largely been prevented from doing because I have to work and my energy is so limited. Thank you for this inspiration! My husband asked for simple meals, nothing overly complicated and I am absolutely going to be watching for more like this. You may have even inspired me to try making bread (for the first time!).😁

Love this new channel Jess! I’m 70 and could really use some inspiration to get me in the kitchen more! You are a sweet inspiration Jess. Would love more everyday meals with whole food ingredients. Have a very Merry Christmas! God bless you and yours!

You’re an excellent cheerleader/teacher/coach Jess! “You can do it!/I’ll teach you how!/You’ll have to get over it” 😂 Perfect blend of push and hand holding. Thank you for being you 😊

Jess, amazing all the talking you can do while cooking. That’s what would probably ruin my meal. LOL! I love how - as always - you make us viewers feel like we are there with you. You are so real and personable. Thank you for all you do and share with us. Merry Christmas to you guys!

Absolutely love this! I also love your recipe videos so both would be great. Jess thank you for this channel, I’ve been so inspired and have gained confidence in my kitchen. Cooking from scratch really changes one’s relationship with food in amazing ways and I’m so grateful for what you do.

When I was a kid, Grandma would go down to the chicken coop and secure a chicken and process it. She would carry it up to our outdoor cooking shed - it was open on 3 sides - and she would make chicken and dumplings on the wood stove. It was literally the best thing you will ever eat in your life. Real food is where it's at. I've been cooking since I was 7, I started making cakes from scratch at age 8. I burned the wild rice so bad last week, I had to dump it out. It happens! 😆 In my defense, wine on the back porch may have diverted my attention 😆

I'm such a sap, but you had made me tear up a bit when you started joking about the cauliflower soup! I put these videos on while I'm cooking dinner for me hubby and the kids after I sign off from my WFH 8-5..and this just felt like you were right here in my kitchen chatting and cooking away with me! So good for the heart! Your such a humble and kind spirit, thank you for these videos! Some of us really need them ❤ p.s I'm making steak with roasted brussel sprouts and sweet potatoes and mac n cheese lol!

I loved this video and shared it with my daughter and daughter-in-law. This was such an encouraging format for those learning how to cook from scratch. Thank you Jess!

Love this style of cooking. Bring em on mama...to mama.

YUM! Yes, love the "cooking and chatting thing". Makes me feel like I am sitting at your island watching you cook me dinner. :). I am a from scratch cook. That is the way my Mom and Grandma taught me. I also love to cook and cooking for friends is one of my great passion. Love it when friends are over and we sit at our island and chat while I cook. I give them chopping jobs to do and we have a great time eating and sharing recipes. Hubby's love it when we all get together and cook big meals. :)

I LOVE this style of video. I like to cook with my heart too and watching someone else do it helps me conceptualize ways I can put things together.

I'm loving this channel! On the R&R channel you're turning me into a gardner and this channel I'm learning to cook from scratch. On Tues I received from a local farm we order our meat from 3 whole chickens for the first time. Because I want to try the spatchcock way of cooking it.I appreciate all of the great videos you give us! I hope your birthday was a great one!

I love these kind of videos. I learn so much from you as you just do life. Please keep sharing real food that is just so doable because you make it look so easy. Getting back to my homesteading life.

I love watching your videos not just for your content but your chat and personality. You've lifted me through some darker times just by going through what seeds you're plantng and chatting. Made me start thinking there could be a future. Although I've always cooked I'm going deeper now into growing and preserving food. Just keep being you and your audience will love it!

Legit best cooking show I’ve ever watched!

Happy Birthday Jess!🥳 I've been watching your other channel for years and I'm glad you started this channel. Your gentle loving spirit shines through. Thanks for teaching us so much.😊

"We can learn to do anything." No truer words were spoken.

I’m 64 years old and never really learned a lot of homemade cooking. What I did learn I’ve forgotten at least half. Or things come back to me as I watch. I remember asking my mom to show me how to cut up a full chicken. I was coming of age as store cut chicken was coming popular, but it was more expensive. As a young bride, the skinless pieces were becoming the rave. My husband has a VERY limited pallet and has made my variety very limited. Anyway I say all this to ask if you would slowly demonstrate how to cut up a chicken. My family wouldn’t know what to do with that chicken you just cooked. I remember mom showing how to find the bone joints to break or tear apart to be able to cut more easily. But it’s been 45-50 years since mom showed me. That would be content I would love to see. Thanks Jess.

I really liked this casual format. I have a lot of cooking experience and I'm sure many who are watching do also. I don't need exact recipes. I feel like I only follow a recipe when baking and not when cooking. I like seeing the techniques of how you treat your ingredients. It gives me ideas and I can adapt to fit my likes and needs. I never made a salad the way you just did. It helped me with ideas of how to use the greens growing in my garden. Thank you!

I would love more videos like this, especially if Bear is gonna make a surprise appearance. 😊🐶❤

I love the variety in types of content for this channel. The recipes are great and this chat/vlog version is nice to show how it really all works in your kitchen. Happy belated birthday!

Looks delicious and makes me hungry. I’m 64 years young and cooked my whole life but never cooked spatchcock chicken. I’m going to try cooking it this week, thank you Jess 💕