Hello Fresh Meals

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This post was sponsored by Hello Fresh but the opinions expressed are all my own.

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Life can get monotonous. I often find myself in thee same routine day after day, followed by the same dinners on rotation. There is nothing wrong with having a routine (trust me, I’m a scheduler!) but when it comes to eating, having the same meals gets very boring to me.

I enjoy meal planning, but can get very overwhelmed when it comes to figuring out fun, new things to make for dinner. Especially when I have to try and plan those new recipes into our grocery budget. I also get weary about trying new recipes that have a lot of steps or a lot of ingredients. It can take the fun right out of cooking if you have to spend 35 minutes chopping vegetables.

That’s why I was so excited to try Hello Fresh! If you haven’t heard of Hello Fresh, it’s a monthly meal subscription service that includes the ingredients for healthy dinner recipes created by Chefs and delivered right to your doorstep. The recipes are based on seasonal farm fresh ingredients and take the guesswork out of making dinner.

Hello Fresh allows you to pick your meal type (regular, vegetarian, family, etc) and then pick your delivery date and time each week. On your scheduled delivery date, you’ll receive the ingredients needed to make your delicious meals delivered straight to your front door. The meals comes with easy to understand recipe cards that show step by step instructions (including pictures) on how to prepare the healthy and fresh meals. It’s also amazing that Hello Fresh has a team of dietitians on staff to ensure the meals provided are healthy and well balanced.

What I loved most about the Hello Fresh meals I received was that the produce was very fresh and everything was pre-portioned. I didn’t need to measure anything out because everything I received was already packaged based on the portions I signed up for (in my case 2 servings/meal). Plus I get such a kick out of seeing a tiny bottle of balsamic vinegar or a cute little package of honey. Tiny stuff in my jam.

For my trial, I made the following 3 meals (each recipe in linked)…

Argentinian-Style Cod with Almond Herb Chimichurri

We love fish in our house but I have never had such fresh tasting cod in my life! Definitely much better quality than the frozen fish I’m used to buying at the store.

Out of the 3 meals received, this one was probably my favorite. It had so much flavor and the herb chimichurri you make to place on top of the fish is to die for! I’m definitely saving this recipe to make again (and again and again).

Upgraded Steak and Potatoes with Green Beans Amandine 

This meal was AMAZING! The steak I received was such great quality and don’t even get me started on the Demi-glace pan sauce. You guys…I have never even heard of demi-glace pan sauce but I was easily able to make it in my own kitchen thanks to Hello Fresh.

One of the most fun parts about this meal was that Hello Fresh was cooking this same exact recipe on Facebook Live. It was fun to follow along and prepare the meal with the same people that created it. Such a great feature to be able to follow along and see how to prepare a recipe.

Dan was out of town for this meal so I was lucky enough to have the leftovers the following day. I felt insanely fancy having leftover steak and sweet potatoes for lunch, especially since i was wearing sweats while eating it.

Bountiful Barley Bowl with Roasted Brussels Sprouts & Pepitas

A hearty and filling vegetarian meal that was so full of flavor. I don’t have much experience cooking with barley but after trying this recipe I’m a fan. I was nervous that this meal wouldn’t be very filling. However, after making it, I found it extremely hearty and very filling to eat. The flavors are fantastic and it’s so easy to make.

One fun thing about trying these Hello Fresh meals is that you get exposed to new cooking methods. I’ve  roasted a lot of vegetables, but this was the first time I’ve seared brussels sprouts in a cast iron skillet before roasting in the oven. They came out so perfectly roasted that I can’t wait to try this with more vegetables.

[blockquote size=”full|half|third|fourth|two-thirds|three-fourths” align=”left|center|right”]I would recommend Hello Fresh to anyone that is looking for a fun way to liven up their dinner experience.[/blockquote] The meals are simple to make and each recipe card comes with step by step instructions. The recipe cards also come with nutrition information and wonderful pictures of each step.

Anyone interested in trying out Hello Fresh can use the code “FRESHFANSRD35” to receive $35 off their first order.