After Lisa befriends Fat Tony's son Michael, Fat Tony invites the Simpsons over for dinner as a sign of gratitude. Shockingly, Fat Tony is shot by a rival family moments after Michael admits he would rather be a chef than take over the family business. Fat Tony's main thugs, Dante and Dante Jr., want Michael to be the new kingpin, but when he declines, Homer steps up and leads the family on a major mob spree in "The Mook, The Chef, The Wife and Her Homer".

Hoping to see a new side to Homer, Marge convinces him to buy a refined collection of carpentry books. To Marge's dismay, the books only gather dust until she accidentally breaks a nightstand - and uses the books to fix it herself. Soon Marge is hammering together everything from birdfeeders to doghouses and it isn't long before she decides to transform her new skills into a full-fledged business. Unfortunately, the residents of Springfield don't trust a handywoman to make repairs, so Marge hires Homer to pose as a "front" while she handles the real work. Meanwhile, Bart finds out that peanuts are no longer allowed at Springfield Elementary because someone suffers from an allergy. But this loss becomes his treasure when he finds out that the allergy belongs to his nemesis, the one and only Principal Skinner. Before long, both Bart and Homer are in over their heads and it's up to Marge to nail things back together.