Not One of the Usual Meal Suspects

In an effort to expand our palettes and add new recipes to our revolving list of daily dinner meals, we've had the opportunity to have a Blue Apron experience and try several of the recipes from Cook Smarts.

We were fortunate enough to cook several Blue Apron dishes after receiving a free gift certificate from a friend. All of the ingredients required for the three meals that we were receiving arrived at our doorstop, packed with ice. The box also included detailed recipe cards, detailing every step required to prepare each meal. My oldest daughter and I worked shoulder to shoulder in the kitchen to prepare two of the three meals one evening for dinner. Our taste buds were pleasantly surprised to experience something new that didn't require the hands of a gourmet chef! 

This first pictured meal was a hamburger with a homemade aioli sauce and green bean salad. The second dish pictured was a Taiwanese Chicken and rice dish with Choy Sum. 

I would have never selected these recipes from the internet had I done my usual search online for new recipes, so it was a nice change to have a special meal on our dinner table and it not be one of "the usual" meals from our regular weekly meal list. 

While the Blue Apron experience was unlike any other at our dinner table, the price of the meals isn't cost effective when we considered how it could fit into our budget. We decided to do a little searching to see what other meal planning programs there are online that may be more cost effective. 

We happened upon the Cook Smarts Program. With Cook Smarts, you are provided with a weekly set of recipes. If you do not like a specific recipe for a certain week, you can search through their archives to select one that suits you and your family. Once you've selected a recipe to your liking, you have the ability to generate and be emailed the grocery list with the ingredients necessary for each recipe. So far we've tried two recipes from Cook Smarts. 

This first meal was Chicken Thigh Kabobs with a cucumber salad (the pasta shown was the 3rd Blue Apron meal that we received). The second meal was a Chicken Udon Noodle Dish with Broccoli. Both meals were very good and definitely worth a repeat. 

You can join the Cook Smarts Program for $6 a month, receiving weekly recipes, gaining access to their recipe database, and having your grocery list sent to you as you shop for your ingredients for each meal. My family has always enjoyed gathering around the table each day. It is the one moment out of the day where we get to break bread together and share the ups and downs of our day, laugh a little, and eat till our hearts content. It is a nice treat when there's something new on the table to add to our conversation. If either of these programs are not a fit for your family, doing some searching online and reading through the comments on recipes will help you find new meals that you can bring to your family's table. 

(For a look back at a previous blog entry on meal planning go here)