My family eats a ton of produce there is no way I am going to get enough in any box. My typical produce aisle purchase is:

2 heads romaine, 1 large box organic baby spinach, 3 red pepper, 1 head cauliflower, 3 broccoli crowns, 1 lb green beans, 1 napa, 1 lb sugar snap peas, 3 avocados, 5 lbs carrots, celery hearts, tomatoes, and 'special green vegetable' ie asparagus, broccoli raab, kale, etc., 3 pickling cucumbers, herbs(based on cooking plan), + lots of fruit.

I long for summer when my garden supplies much of this.

I spent a lot of last year trying the services. I tried Sun Basket, Chef'd, Home Chef and Plated.

Sun Basket was my favorite for their packaging and recipes, but they only offer a 3-meal plan which is too many meals per week because we do not eat red meat so we would end up with one fish, one poultry and one grain-based meal. The grain-based meals were almost always yucky in texture and blandness, so basically we were paying for 3 meals, but only making two...too expensive. Used it for three weeks.

Chef'd was way more expensive than any of the others and the amount of protein provided was laughable. I chose one of the Melissa D'Arabian meals and there was only three ounces of protein (I weighed it raw) in a meal for two people. (insert that annoying buzzer sound here). I could buy an expensive fresh fish filet large enough for two of us with accompaniments for the same price. Only used it one time.

Home Chef has a 2-meal plan and the ingredients are acceptably fresh, but often you receive a spice mixture (so you haven't learned a new recipe) and the overall taste of their meals is pretty bland. It's definitely targeted towards more unadventurous palates. It's the cheapest of the services if I recall correctly. Used it for three weeks.

Finally, Plated ended up being the service we used most often. It offers a 2-meal plan, has the widest selection for non-red meat eaters because it has some standards that are always available, and offers desserts if you want to splurge once in a while. The flavors are still a bit bland and the cooking methods are limited to pan-frying and oven-roasting (as are all of the services). However, you can adapt some recipes. For instance, I would use my stove-top grill instead of pan-frying and sometimes, I would blanche the vegetables rather than roasting them.

I think you have to go into the process with the mindset that you will try things even if you think you don't like them. You may surprise yourself. We found that we like rainbow trout. In the past, we wouldn't have tried a lake/river fish.

Lastly, I think if you are going to use the services long-term, you probably will need to use more than one service at a time to get the variety that you want. All of the services let you skip weeks, so it's not a problem to use one service one week and a different service the next week.

P.S. We tried one other service...maybe Hello Fresh...but their delivery would come early in the day and the driver would leave it out in the sun by our mailbox rather than by the front door in the shade like all of the other services, so while we liked their recipes, we had to discontinue the service.

Localeater, that is exactly one of my biggest complaints. I don't always eat vegetarian but I prefer a meal with a lot of veggies. It really defeats the purpose if I must still go to the grocery and supplement a meal.

Fun2B - your experiences cover a lot of the things I either observed or feared. I do eat red meat on occasion but I don't eat meat every day. The Chef'd meals really appealed to me but sheesh, it's cheaper to go out to eat! I am even more put off now that I hear there's so little protein to the meal. In truth, I don't mind a small amount of protein -- but at their prices, that's just ridiculous!

I ended up canceling my order from Hello Fresh. It annoyed me that I couldn't mix and match from the vegetarian and classic menus-- and too many of the meals made their sauces with sour cream. I am lactose intolerant and sour cream really upsets my stomach (and honestly, I've developed a gag reflex to both sour cream and yogurt). I can eliminate sour cream as a condiment but when it's an integral ingredient to the sauce, eliminating it very much takes away from the meal.

I am starting to think this just isn't the way to go for a single person. I am going to have to buck up and just force myself to get interested in preparing something other than salads for myself.

I've been trying several out over the last month.

We started with Sun Basket, which we like best overall. And they now offer 2, 3, and 4 meal plans, so you don't have to just get 3. So far they have had the most interesting meals. My only gripe with them is that you can't cancel or suspend your membership on their website. You have to phone them. You can, skip weeks online though, but you need to stay on top of it, or else you'll get meals delivered that you hadn't planned on. :) They do send out plenty of reminder emails to choose your menu for the following week.

We also have tried Hello Fresh, which is fine, but no real wow factor. And about a quarter of the small avocado that sent us to make guacamole was inedible. :( Our Hello Fresh deliveries have been delivered to our front porch.

Home Chef comes in 2nd place. Their meals aren't as creative as Sun Basket, but were tasty, and they sent us a perfect avocado. :)

About a year ago we had one week's worth of Blue Apron meals which our son and his girlfriend gave us as a Christmas gift. I remember liking them very much.

We haven't tried Plated yet.

All of these companies offer discounts on your first shipment, that make them just about half price. Just Google for their coupon codes

I'm hoping that grocery stores pick up on the meal kit idea. I would love to be able to pick up a couple of meal kits at the grocery store whenever I want.

One of my local stores (an Ahold store) offers meal kits via Peapod. I am not sure if you can purchase them in store. They did a little promotion saying that they worked with Gina from Skinny Taste to develop some new recipes. I love the idea of that-- I mean what could be fresher or more local? Unfortunately, I found their meals totally uninspired and a lot of the ingredients were their store brand.

It's totally ridiculous but I have fallen into a routine of ordering my groceries online. I have grown to hate grocery shopping anywhere but the farmer's market and TJs (which is not close). I go to the market for fresh veggies and sometimes meat but all else I order online (often in the wee hours of the night!) I have had a few issues with my order but nothing major. It prevents me from impulse buying something I don't need or that I won't use .. but it also doesn't allow me to plan meals around what looks fresh and good.

I use Hello Fresh and Blue Apron. It works really well for me. Not having any waste is one of the advantages. I order the meals for 2. If my son eats with me, Definitely no leftovers. If it's just me, I have lunch for the next day.

For me though, the biggest advantage is not having to meal plan or shop. My situation is that I am in a very small west Texas town. Thirty miles away is Lubbock, which does not even have a Whole Foods or Trader Joe's. Meal kit delivery is the easy way to prepare some interesting (to us) meals. Occasionally, there has been a problem with quality. Both companies have credited the meal with no questions asked. I'm happy most of the time with the spices/flavors but I really study the menus before I choose. I'm able to choose vegetarian or regular meals on Hello Fresh. I look at the upcoming choices on both sites and skip the week for the service from which I'm not ordering that week.

Im going to check out Sun Basket, it sounds good! Anyone want to share their promo code?

Questions

1. Do you use a meal kit service? If so, which one(s)? We did you use Blue Apron for about 1 yr. I stopped because I felt under pressure to use them and they had more calories than I would typically make. ( I think)

2. Do you find you have waste? We got meal kits for 4, and they fed our family of 5. We had 2 meals per week and made a point of not wasting any

3. Are you happy with

- quality of ingredients? Excellent, truly excellent, produce and meat, and I am very finicky. One time, and one time only, we got something wilted and they refunded the entire meal cost.

- variety of meals? Pretty good, but for us, too much Asian. I am not crazy about soy and ginger, I only order Asian food pretty rarely and I am very finicky about where. (hmm a trend)

- level of spice/flavor? Quite good. Without a recipe, as a home cook, and one trying to keep fat down, my week night meals are pretty boring. Theirs are much better

4. Do you modify the recipes to suit your taste? Not that I recall, i trusted them and learned from them.

PS I hate grocery shopping too, and we need to do it almost every day. Things go bad, esp fruit and the like, and we dont like anything frozen. ANd if I try to plan ahead, our plans always change. I created a detailed spreadsheet and send my cleaning person.

Terriks, I just went to the Sun Basket site because you said they were now offering a 2-meal plan. Sadly, the 2-meal plan is for 4 people, so for 2 people, there's still only the option for 3 meals per week. If they ever change so that you can opt for 2 meals per week for 2 people, could you let me know? Thanks.

We used Blue Apron for three or four months. The variety was great, the menus easy to follow, and I did learn some things. But, and a big BUT............. I have every kitchen gadget, tool, appliance there is: the meals took at least 30-45 minutes to cook, and I'm glad I'm had a dishwasher to clean the mess! I think this would be a great service for novice cooks, but for an experienced cook, not so much.

Oh yes, they say 45 minutes and it is ... there is nothing fast or easy about making the stuff. The attraction is that they do the shopping, they figure out what's for dinner, and they may introduce you to something new, and yes, it is almost like a cooking school the instructions are so clear and thorough.

Terriks, I just went to the Sun Basket site because you said they were now offering a 2-meal plan. Sadly, the 2-meal plan is for 4 people,

That's so weird, because when I decided to skip a week I got a pop up saying that I could choose just 2 meals for 2 people if I wanted. The cost per meal does go up if you only get two.

Also with the 2 meal plan you don't get free shipping. (Home Chef)

Terriks, I think I remember that Sun Basket was going to test a 2-meal plan for 2 people, but they don't seem to offer it directly on their site...at least that I can find.

Perhaps you have to use the three meal plan once or twice before they offer you the 2 meal plan.

Occasionally, I look at the menu offerings of these services, and there's always something that looks great - but overall too little in the way of veggies, too much carb (pasta, buns), and I'd love to find the service with the dark meat of chicken, since I really dislike chicken breast.

GreenChef looks interesting, but I don't see where you get the details until you sign up.

I'm single, and willing to try a two meal plan for two people. Briefly, anyway.

We had Blue Apron, the choices were limited when when the order is for two. Everything was fresh but less vegetables than we eat in many of the meals. If you search around on Blue Apron site I believe they do special diets. Also,wanted I was surprised they delivered where we live. One delivery it had snowed about 6 inches, our 250 ft uphill driveway wasn't plowed yet. Delivery man walked up with the heavy box.

Yeah, I was really surprised by the calorie count of meals across services. I don't really have a problem supplementing/stretching a meal with more veggies but it really defeats the purpose of subscribing to a service (at least a big portion of it for me).

Artemas, this is just from Sun Basket but others use chicken thighs also. Ginger-Sesame Chicken with Sugar Snap Peas and Red Rice

They also include both vegetarian and paleo recipes in the selections-- so there are many options to eliminate and/or limit red meat and carbs.

Not ridiculous to do online shopping if it works for you. It's not offered in my little city, but I do a good bit of shopping at Jet/Grove for paper products, cleaning supplies, etc. things that would come from the grocer. I also buy pet food/products on line (chewy). For groceries I really need/want to look at produce and meat. I actually like to cook, but when I have plenty of time. On days I work, I absolutely need to know what's for dinner that night and preferably something somewhat quick, crockpot, left-overs, etc. I've not been interested in the kits so far.

If you're just looking for inspiration, have you considered a menu planning service like eMeals? I think it's $5/month, and they give you a week's worth of meals, with instructions and a shopping list. And they make the shopping logical (use half this head of cabbage, reserve remainder for later in the week.)

You still have to procure the groceries, but you already have cooking skills, so if you are ordering online, you could order what the list tells you and still not have to put too much thought into it.

I looked at it, but we eat meatless, and I felt like they relied too much on fake meat substitutes. They have all sorts of menu options: vegetarian, low carb, paleo, gluten free, budget, etc. And they have a 14 day free trial.

www.emeals.com

Yeah, Tina.. I don't use peapod (which is available here) but one similar. I've had issues with them selecting produce but I prefer to select that myself at the market anyhow. I will add lettuce, grape tomatoes or broccoli crowns to my order as I generally need them mid-week for salads. This past week, I added asparagus to the order and it was pretty disappointing. I'd have walked past if I'd seen it in person (though I'll use it in an omelet and it will be fine). I don't usually order meat from them.

AOK, I think the meal planning is the issue. It's not that I don't know how to do it-- it's that I resent the time required to do it. ESPECIALLY when I am focusing on losing weight. I love flavor and interesting combinations but when I am being vigilant on the calories, I feel like my day starts to become centered on looking up calories, thinking about calories, thinking about interesting meals with the fewest calories, shopping, cooking, eating. Blah! Like Mtn and her family, I don't like most frozen foods (there are a few exceptions) so it requires multiple visits to the grocery store a week. I thought the meal kits would take some of the pressure off.

And to veer of my own topic for a moment, here's another confession (and tip) LOL. I keep my pantry stocked with these Kitchens of India Pindi Chana. (The link is to amazon but my local groceries carry them). I abhor the idea of prepared foods but these contain no preservatives, they're low cal and pretty tasty even if not fresh. I usually steam some broccoli and make some rice and it's a very simple and satisfying meal:

We did Blue Apron for about 6 months. The pros were the meals were varied and interesting. The portions were large too. We have a family of 3 and always had leftovers. I also love that they assume you have nothing at all and give you every single ingredient you will need, even things like salt and pepper. The biggest con is that it was time consuming to make the recipes. These are not simple throw together dinners. And if I am going to spend that long cooking a weekday meal it defeats the purpose.

Just read the food section of the NYTimes! Suggestions for an entire week with recipes. Some have longer prep time, but many do not.

Learn how to make an omelet, grill meats when the weather allows, make easy soups and pasta dishes. If shopping is a problem, even my Kroger will now do all the "hunting and gathering" and bring it right to your car. I also just discovered that my favorite small local market will also deliver in the neighborhood- handy if I'm not feeling well. Their prepared foods are delicious, if expensive.

I just signed up for Hello Fresh. It will arrive on Thurs - 3 meals for 2 people. My DH and I are both good cooks but I don't like to plan and cook every week. My DS has soccer nearly every night so our evenings are pretty scattered and my DH travels often.

I will let you know how it works out for us. DH is not on-board with the idea as he is a food snob and a super healthy eater. I am much more relaxed and will eat a bowl of cereal for dinner if he is out of town.

I received an email from Sun Basket today with a survey about a new menu option they are planning called Lean and Clean, which will have more diet friendly options. It's not available yet, but I'll keep my eye on it.

Mrrogerscardigan, I think having someone come in to do the work is great-- not practical for me but it's a great service! I have a friend who used to do this for 2 clients (not in my area though). I do have a person I spoke to regarding coming in to do housekeeping that could also do my shopping though. I had forgotten about that -- maybe that's my best bet. I'll have to think about it.

Anglo, I know how to cook-- and omelets are one of my regular things to make. I am good on the grill too. It's really about the delivery of "right sized" portions and meal planning that enticed me. I do have local stores that will shop and deliver if needed but I don't trust them with fresh produce or meat selection.

Rory, hope it works out for you!

Terriks, I like the sound of that. I really did like the offerings at Sun Basket best. I will keep on eye out for emails and announcements. They do have more lean and low cal offerings than many of the other services and as I've said, their menus are more appealing to me in general.

I've decided to hold off for now.

Thank you all for your input, experiences and suggestions!

Mrrogerscarddigan, that you are looking for is generally referred to as a personal chef. Many will come in on a designated frequency and prepare several meals. This option gives you the greatest potential flexibility and control over dietary restrictions and menus.

I tried a meal delivery service as a gift for my parents, but my dad didn't like it. I've known others who raved about it, but it wasn't the way my mom - or his mom - used to make things. Since then, a local grocery has started selling the fresh equivalents of TV dinners in a chilled deli case -- an entree or entree and sides portioned and ready to go into the oven to be cooked. They seem to have even more of them since I heard MyFitFoods closed. They must be pretty popular.

I can't see ordering meal kits for us -- and probably not likely to do the fresh TV dinner option, but I've enjoyed reading the comments and learning more about them. One thing we have done is join a CSA and we get a farm share box with fresh veggies and eggs. We started with weekly and found that it was too much for the two of us -- I felt like we had to use at least one or two of the veggies for every lunch and dinner and it limited our choices for cooking too much. It made me want to go out more and feel like I could less. We changed to bi-weekly and found that to bee a good balance. It encourages us to try new things and to try familiar things in new ways. But the best thing is that even when we do an old favorite again. the produce has all been so fresh and flavorful. My college son is talking about looking for a farm share to participate in next year or after he graduates (the year after). Tickles me, because he was my picky eater.

I have looked into meal services but I haven't tried any yet because for me the price of the 3 meals from them is what I can pay if I go get groceries myself for the whole week. I normally don't meal plan. I always make sure I have chicken breast ( I buy a bag of individually packaged ones) , veggies, potatoes, pasta, sauces, spices. Then each day I can figure out what I'm in the mood for and have that. There may be 1 day in the week when I need to run to the store after work to grab something but that is rare.

We've been doing Blue Apron continuously for the last 15 months. We love it!

- Waste: Less than when grocery shopping for dinner ingredients. I don't have to buy an entire package of something when I only need a small amount. Plus, I don't go to the grocery store as much so don't buy a bunch of impulse stuff. Grocery shopping is pretty much just staples. Our grocery bill is much reduced, even when adding in the cost of the BA meals.

- Quality: I have yet to have anything delivered spoiled. Once, FedEx delivered the next day and they credited the whole thing without hassle. They tout a direct partnership with farmers and I believe that's true based on product quality.
- Variety: This is a huge plus for us. No more getting in a food funk. Lots of different spices and flavor combos that I would not normally prepare. Black garlic was a new one for me! We love all the Asian offerings. DH has always been a picky eater, and I believe his taste buds have matured over the last year. He's a little more adventurous when we go to restaurants and doesn't just stick with his usual meat and potatoes type of meal.

- Spice/flavor: See above. Lots of spice, lots of flavor

- Modifying: Yes, I do a little. The use of olive oil is very liberal and adds to the calorie content quite a bit. When 2 tsp is called for, I usually only use 1/2 tsp. Some recipes end up using 6 to 8 tsp of olive oil (as much as 300 calories), that can be cut back substantially. I tend to cook onions more than the recipe calls for because DH is raw onion averse. Depending on the dish, I'll sometimes supplement with additional veggies. Just whatever I might have on hand, fresh or frozen.

Other thoughts: I'm a pretty proficient food prepper (say that three times fast!), so it doesn't take me very long to cook a dish, usually 30min, sometimes 45. Plus, I love to mes in place - I find it relaxing.

I've never tried one. However, aside from budget concerns, there I have several requirements and I know how to cook with variety and health in mind.

I tend to cook (chicken) as boneless & skinless. But as I want to limit our animal fat, I take a few minutes to trim all excess fat from around and inside each chicken thigh. Most restaurants, meal kits, other cooks do not tend to do this. You'd be surprised at how much (inside) fat there is: 4 thighs = 1/3 to more hidden extra fat.

I also like dishes with a lot of fresh vegetables, but some meat. It seems that a lot of dishes are all vegetables or very heavy on the meat (chicken, fish, etc.).

I find that there are some vegetables and greens that last longer than others. Sugar snap peas last and just a few, washed, trimmed and cut diagonally, barely cooked or quick-blanched can add interest to all sorts of meals.

Spring Greens (variety) turns mushy quickly, whereas a similar sized package of baby spinach will keep fresher for much longer.

Button mushrooms last long if you remove them from foam box and store in a brown paper sandwich bag in fridge.

"Stir Fry" dishes do not necessarily need to be cooked in lots of oil or at high temperatures*. (* recent studies suggest that cooking most foods at high temperatures is unhealthful.) Use a bit of low sodium broth or diluted bouillon paste, instead of extra oil. Pump up some of the aromatics like (for Asian) garlic, ginger, green onion. Dry toasted sesame seeds give great bump of flavor along with benefits like a bit of calcium. There are low sodium, low-fat umami boosters.

You can quickly accumulate a folder of easy recipes with a variety of ingredients and after a little experience (unless you dislike cooking), you can develope more agility at swapping ingredients, improvising and quickly whipping up delicious, simple meals.

I'm that wild for shopping, so someone else does this. Sharp knives, counter space, a few good pans and a dishwasher are great assets.

Some of the kits look good, and I'm sure the convenience of having the entire kit and directions at hand take some of the thinking, stress and effort away. But you can probably also, if it interests you, put together your own kits -- either on an index card or in your head. And if you can "also use" a number of grocery ingredients for different meals in the same week, that's a two-for.

Ex. With the fresh spinach leaves in the plastic box, plus fresh mushrooms

-- I can include them in a panini-like lean roast beef sandwich with thinly sliced mushrooms, a very thinly sliced small bit of lower fat, lower sodium lacy Swiss cheese, thick layer of spinach leaves on a baguette section (split, only a bit of smart balance). A baguette can be used, even if day or two old & dried.

--the same spinach leaves and mushrooms can be added to an easy to make (dough) artisan pizza (add thin onion, basil), or an omelette or soup (greatly STRETCH 1 or 2 packages of RAMEN soup kit (add some frozen shrimp, chicken, or other; some scallions (good keeper), sesame oil, sliced Bok choy ((good keeper).

-- Salad -- any of above. Add a few slices or orange. Maybe a bit of crumbled cheese, bit of red bell pepper, bit of tomato, simple dressing or quickly make Asian-orange or other favorite dressing. Use a hand mandoline slicer to quickly add shredded beets and / or carrot shreds or hicama or green mango or green papaya. If you plan ahead, you can have a bit of already cooked quinoa to add to salads or soups.

-- you can make "kit" ingredients ahead and freeze many. Ex. Trimmed chicken breasts or thighs, frozen in groups of four sepately wrapped; flatted into thin "steaks"; julienned strips or diced. Easy to label, freeze, defrost and use.

-- many of the easy to store/long fresh keep-well ingredients above, I use for my version of "Mollie's Noodles" (bought original at Verrill Farm, Concord). Chinese noodles or linguini, boiled al dente, drained. Add bits of green and red vegetables from above, a bit of cayenne, bit of Sichuan peppercorn powdered, bit of tahini or toaste sesame oil. Serve room temp or cool.

When you make your own meals, from your own mindfully selected fridge/panty) kits, you can control the sodium and fat, vegetable:protein ratio.

If I could afford it and if I could be sure of getting low sodium, low saturated fat, I'd love to try some of the kits mentioned above. But, I'd likely spend as much time prepping and cooking (I always wash even "pre-washed" greens and produce).

Sorry I went on so long. Oops.

"Personal chef" ooh la la! I was thinking "culinary student needing a side gig"!

That works too!

That's a great idea, Mrrogerscardigan! When I was 13/14, I had a job with a neighbor preparing dinner each night (as well as making after school snacks and keeping an eye on their kids which were just a little younger). I was a good cook even at that young age as I'd been cooking for my family of 6 for a number of years.

Well, I received my HelloFresh box yesterday. (I canceled my subscription but I'd already paid for the first week of three choices) I haven't made any of the meals but here are a few of my first impressions.. Rory, I believe you signed up in the same week I did so I'll be curious to hear what you thought.

I chose three meals-- a shrimp and asparagus risotto with meyer lemon, a spicy apricot chicken with green beans and couscous and a steak with tomato vinaigrette. Two were under 600 calories, one was at 630. That's a caloric range I am comfortable with... still, I feel the menus are wayyyy too light on veggies. Even more so when I opened one of the meal boxes. The quantity of asparagus was very small-- about the size (or even a bit less) than what I'd use for one serving. I am not completely anti-carb but I will often double up on veggies over carbs.

the packaging was simple and the instruction cards were clear and seem to be complete. They are definitely worthy of saving for to make another time though I wish they were much smaller. I won't likely keep them.

The quality of the proteins looks pretty good-- I'll know better when I prepare the dishes.

I will say that given the initial week cost only $29, I don't think I'd have been able to shop for these meals on my own for the price... but then had I shopped on my own, I'd probably have ditched at least 1 of the carb side dishes (cheap) and added veggies/salad makings (more expensive).

Petalique, I think you are right on target. I need to come up with my own ideas for "kits" and shop based on them. A number of the dishes across services are things I either already make or could easily make. I just need to be motivated to stick with the shopping.

On a side note: I have decided to try the every other day fasting-- 500 calories one day, eat what you want the next day. This will require that I keep up with shopping so that I have good, fresh produce for the 500 calorie days. I am just going to have to get better about planning and going to the market. I don't plan on pigging out on the "eat what you want" days but I am going to want some variety on those days since the 500 calorie days aren't likely to have much variation.

FunkyArt, Just received my 1st Hello Fresh box today. Sadly I am not a big vegetable fan so I am not as likely to eat them if I don't have them and a plan for them. DH is a big vegetable fan so he will be happy that these meals contain more vegetables than I would normally make.

This is what the contents looks like.

Everything looks fresh and simple to prepare. I will make the steak tonight. I like that's it's all planned out so I don't need to think about what's for dinner.

Oh, I am glad that we didn't have much overlap. I'll be eager to hear what you think.

I looked at the Sun Basket offerings. They do look good and one isn't stuck with just one menu type. (You don't just have to pick ONLY vegetarian or ONLY omnivorian for that week.) I do like to vary it up. BUT.. when I looked at a week or two ahead, there were overlaps of the same exact menu item. I'll still need to search.

Yeah, I noticed that Sun Basket has a few "customer favorites" that are repeating. I hadn't noticed that in the past.

I will say that Sun Basket does have more options to choose from each week-- more than Blue Apron, for instance.

Sliced Steak Tagliata with Sweet Potato Wedges and Warm Tomatoes in Vinaigrette was a hit here this evening. We do prefer ribeye on the grill but the sirloin was good in the cast iron. DH and I split one the of steaks and DS ate the other. I would not normally buy arugula because you need to buy more than I would use. The portion of arugula was perfect for DH and I. There were no left overs.

Just wanted to circle back and say that I thought all the meals were good-- products were fresh and good quality. I wouldn't rave about the dishes but they are pretty decent and better than what I'd make on most week nights.. BUT I skipped making the carbs in 2 of the three meals. I saved the risotto and the couscous for another time. I am being very mindful of calories and in both cases, I just didn't want to eat them. I did make the sweet potato-- but I baked and then mashed it with salt, pepper and the rosemary. In dropping the carbs, I also saved time and a number of pots to clean (saved three on the risotto!)

I had already canceled my subscription before the order arrived-- and I haven't changed my mind. While I wasn't at all displeased with the food delivered, I still prefer more veggies .. and fewer calories.

This experiment did push me to get out of my rut and to think more creatively about healthy, quick and tasty meal night dishes.. and it was well timed because I will be working back in the office again (I've been working at home for the last 2 months!) and I will need to plan and be more organized.

Glad you came back to talk about your experience. We tend to eat pretty simply with a protein and a vegetable or salad, so while it was fun to try the meal boxes, I wouldn't want to have them all the time. It's too bad that more of the services don't allow you to just buy the week you want rather than having to consciously opt out of each week especially since it seems like you have to belong to more than one to get enough variety.