Hello Fresh

We're looking at a dreary, gray, all day rain here. It's also my day off. Figures. I'm not complaining, though, as it pretty much helps with my motivation to pack Christmas away for another year and return the house to "normal." Tim brought all the boxes in for me on New Year's Day when he was off and I had to work. So....I just need to get at it. I'm ready. I put everything up Thanksgiving weekend and I love it, but after a month I'm ready for the less cluttered look.

The concert tickets I ordered for our daughter-in-law's Christmas gift arrived with all kinds of "offers" enclosed with them. I threw all of them away, but one. We've always been intrigued by those meal plans that deliver all the fresh ingredients and a recipe. I've heard from those who love them and others who don't and we just couldn't decide whether to try it or not...and which one to try if we did.

The offer we received was from Hello Fresh. They offered $90 off on our first 4 boxes. Now, there are several sizes of plans. You can choose to receive food for 2 or 4 people and either 2, 3, or 4 meals per week. Obviously there are only 2 of us and we chose 3 meals per week. The way the deal works is that we get larger amounts off on the first 2 boxes and less off on the next 2 boxes. After that we can cancel at any time. You can also postpone or change when a delivery will arrive if the normal timing doesn't work for you.

Not counting the discount, a box of 3 meals for 2 people costs about $50. If you eat out (or get takeout) three times per week, which we usually do, it actually costs less than that. The big drawback is that you actually have to cook. Ha! They make it pretty easy, though, with big step-by-step recipe cards with color photos. They aren't too complicated and take about 30 minutes to prepare. You get to keep the recipe card so you can make favorite meals again on your own.

On New Year's Day I made Amazing Apricot Chicken with roasted potatoes and green beans.

The veggies were simple, seasoned with sea salt, cracked pepper, drizzled with olive oil and roasted for about 20 minutes. The chicken was seasoned with salt and pepper and cooked in a pan with a bit of oil. The sauce is apricot jam, leeks, and balsamic vinegar. It was delicious and Tim loved it.

Last night I made Juicy Lucy Burgers with roasted broccoli.

The broccoli was again just seasoned with salt and pepper and drizzled with oil before roasting. I also put the 2 cloves of garlic included in the package in a little foil packet (had to make that) on the baking sheet with the broccoli. The "jam" on top the burgers was made with thinly sliced onion, chopped roma tomato, a pinch of sugar, salt and pepper, and balsamic vinegar. The burgers were seasoned with a seasoning they sent along (something like seasoned salt) and they were stuffed with shredded cheddar cheese. There was also a sauce/dip made of mayonnaise, sour cream, salt and pepper, and that garlic I roasted mashed up. They included 2 Brioche rolls which I split and toasted. They got spread with a bit of the mayonnaise sauce and ketchup. Then the burger went in and the onion/tomato jam went on top. The rest of the mayonnaise sauce was for dipping the broccoli in.

Again, a big success and that is saying something, because Tim LOATHES broccoli but he ate all of his...before he even tried the burger!

The third meal in the box, which I probably won't make until tomorrow (I'm making a big old pot of ham and bean soup today) is Pork & Poblano Tacos with kiwi salsa and lime crema.

The bottom line is that for us, we think this is going to be a good option. It gets us trying new foods and eating healthier portions and there is little to no waste as you get exactly enough for two meals. There are no leftovers.

The chosen meals are not the same every week and there is always a variety of other meals that you can swap out for the basic ones they choose for you. They let you know via email when it is time to choose the next week's menu.

If it sounds like something you'd like to try, let me know because I can hook 4 people up with a deal to get their first box for FREE!