Stuffed, Glazed, and Slow-Simmered

Range is the word for this week. The salmon takes 15 minutes, the white bean skillet wraps up in 30, and then there are the slow cooks — stuffed peppers and chipotle chicken tacos that need a few hours but mostly just need you to leave them alone. The chicken au poivre sits in the middle: 45 minutes, mostly hands-on, but it eats like something from a bistro.

This Week's Recipes

1. Stuffed Peppers
2. Slow Cooker Chipotle-Honey Chicken Tacos
3. White Beans with Mushrooms and Marinara
4. Chicken au Poivre
5. Roasted Salmon Glazed With Brown Sugar and Mustard

1. Stuffed Peppers

Stuffed peppers look like a project, but the filling is basically beef, rice, and cheese packed into an edible bowl. This version adds fennel, tomato, and Parmesan to the mix, then covers everything in mozzarella that melts and browns in the oven. Most of the 75 minutes is hands-off — you're not standing at the stove the whole time.

At step 6, before you add the red-pepper flakes and wine, scoop out a portion of the filling for the kids. Let them stuff their own peppers — kids who fill their own food tend to eat it, and it keeps them busy while you finish yours. Make sure the ground beef hits 160°F before it goes into any pepper. Once baked, cut the pepper shells into manageable pieces; they'll be soft, but check for sharp edges. Remove all seeds and stems before serving.

The adult peppers get the full treatment: fennel, red-pepper flakes, wine in the baking dish, and a Parmesan-mozzarella top that broils into golden patches. They reheat well the next day.

The Split: Adults get fennel and red-pepper flake filling with wine; kids get mild beef-rice-tomato stuffed by their own hands.

Serves: 6-8 | Time: 1h 15m | NYT Cooking →

2. Slow Cooker Chipotle-Honey Chicken Tacos

Five hours sounds like a lot until you remember that four and a half of them are the slow cooker doing its thing. This recipe combines chicken with honey, warm spices, and chipotle chiles in adobo, then shreds into smoky, sweet taco filling. Set it up before you leave in the morning and you're mostly done.

At step 1, before you add the chipotle chiles, pull half the honey-spice mixture into a separate container. That's the kid batch — sweet honey-glazed chicken with mild spices, no heat. Slow-cook it alongside the adult version or in a smaller vessel. When it's done, shred the chicken and check carefully for any small bones. Serve with cheese, sour cream, and avocado, but cut or mash the avocado into small pieces — larger chunks are a choking hazard. For kids under 4, mashed avocado on the side rather than sliced.

The adult tacos get chipotles, black beans, and a squeeze of lime. Top with pickled onions if you have them — the acid does a lot for the sweetness.

The Split: Adults get smoky chipotle-honey chicken with pickled onions; kids get sweet honey-glazed shredded chicken with cheese and sour cream.

Serves: 4 | Time: 5h | NYT Cooking →

3. White Beans with Mushrooms and Marinara

White beans, mushrooms, and marinara in a skillet sounds pretty humble, and honestly it is — until the mozzarella goes under the broiler and pulls it all together. This one takes 30 minutes, uses one pan, and garlic bread is basically required.

At step 3, before the red pepper flakes go in, scoop out the kids' share of beans and mushrooms. Stir in plain marinara and top with mozzarella, then broil until bubbly. Cut mushrooms into quarter-inch pieces or smaller — or skip them entirely for kids under 3. Rinse the canned beans to cut sodium. Make sure the garlic bread is soft, not hard or crusty.

The adult version gets red pepper flakes stirred through the sauce before the same mozzarella broil on top. Thick slices of garlic bread for dragging through — that's really the whole point.

The Split: Adults get red pepper flake heat under broiled mozzarella; kids get mild marinara with beans and melty cheese.

Serves: 4 | Time: 30m | Budget Bytes →

4. Chicken au Poivre

This one's a harder sell for kids — cracked peppercorns and cream sauce aren't exactly chicken nugget territory. But the seared chicken underneath is golden and crispy, and that part they'll eat. This recipe is a French bistro classic made weeknight-friendly, and the split gets it onto a family table without watering it down.

At step 3, when you're building the peppercorn sauce, pull the kids' chicken out of the pan first. Use the same fond to make a quick butter-cream sauce — just skip the cracked pepper. Use boneless, skinless thighs, or remove all bones completely before serving. Cut the chicken into pieces appropriate for your kids' ages. The butter-cream sauce is rich, so serve it in moderate amounts. For adventurous eaters, put a small spoonful of the pepper sauce on the side and let them dip — that's how you build a palate over time.

The adult plate is the main event: chicken simmered in peppery cream sauce with thyme, finished with lemon, over egg noodles. It takes 45 minutes and most of that is active cooking, but it tastes like something you'd pay thirty dollars for.

The Split: Adults get classic peppercorn cream sauce over egg noodles; kids get golden-seared chicken with mild butter-cream sauce.

Serves: 4 | Time: 45m | NYT Cooking →

5. Roasted Salmon Glazed With Brown Sugar and Mustard

Fifteen minutes. That's the whole recipe — mix a two-ingredient glaze, spread it on salmon, roast at high heat. The brown sugar caramelizes on the surface and makes the fish taste like you tried harder than you did. Crispy, sweet, barely any dishes.

At step 2, give kids their own small bowl with extra brown sugar and just a touch of mustard — let them stir and brush it onto their own fillet. Use tweezers to check for and remove all pin bones before the fish goes near anyone's plate. Verify the salmon reaches 145°F. Once it's cooked, flake into small pieces and check for bones again. Fish and mustard are both common allergens, so flag those if you're cooking for guests or new eaters. For younger kids, swap the Dijon for yellow mustard — same idea, less bite.

The adult fillets get a proper Dijon-brown sugar glaze with a good mustard kick. Serve with braised greens or whatever vegetable you have on hand — the salmon holds things together on its own.

The Split: Adults get a bold Dijon-brown sugar glaze; kids mix their own sweeter version and brush it on themselves.

Serves: varies | Time: 15m | NYT Cooking →

Start with the salmon. It's 15 minutes, the glaze is two ingredients, and your kids get to brush it on themselves. If that doesn't buy you a little goodwill for the chicken au poivre later in the week, I don't know what will.