More Meal Planning review -- the Fresh20 vegetarian sample meal plantrial run. Day 2.


Continuation of The Fresh 20 review! First, a correction: the grocery bill for last week's items was only $55. We bought $10 worth of c-r-a-p for a last-minute let's-have-movie-night-and-eat-unhealthful-foods, so the total receipt was $10. This only includes 5 meals and is supposed to feed 4 people. We are only 2.5 people, however, and my husband travels a lot. I invited people over to dinner every night last week to make my testing a little more scientific.

If you remember, Monday morning I did an hour of food prep -- grating ginger, chopping vegetables, whipping up some pesto for later in the week.

One thing I love about The Fresh 20, so far, is that it's mostly about whole foods. I'm not into packaged guacamole or pesto (I can always taste that same strange chemical-flavor). I also am primary caregivier to my 2-year-old, however, plus I own my own business, so it's not like I have a lot of time. Making the pesto for the week -- arugula, basil, and cashews -- was easy and took just a few minutes. It takes me longer to open a jar these days with my arthritic hands.

Anyway, on Tuesday, I had Ginger Tofu, Snow peas, and Rice, for lunch -- left over from Monday's dinner. Tuesday evening was a fail on my part, however, as I met some friends for dinner. So much for the stay-in-and-cook goal. 

Still, Fresh20 only sends 5 meals a week, allowing for social events that happen unexpectedly, so I tried not to beat myself up about it. 

Wednesday's dinner was Pesto Zucchinni with Cannollini Beans, Broccoli and Roasted New Potatoes. I forgot to save half of the pesto for another recipe, so it was extra pesto-y (a good problem, believe me). It was completely delicious. The Wee Boy ate all of his, and both grownups had seconds. (David was out of town, but we had a friend over to recipe-taste.) So. Good. 
I think next time I will use the vegetable peeler to make zucchini noodles (or "zoodles" if you are super-annoying) instead of the rounds -- just a personal preference. 
The Wee Boy's plate. He ate it all.

I think my favorite thing about this particular meal-planning service is that it thinks ahead. I love to cook and invent recipes, and planning different meals isn't the challenge for me. The challenging thing is not wasting food, or rather, using the same ingredients in various different meals without making things boring. So when Fresh20 has me roast 2 pounds of new potatoes on Day 2, but then says "put half back in the refrigerator to save for Meal 4," my mind is blown. YES!!! That is the problem I have been looking to solve. And Meal 4 doesn't include roasted potatoes, so it's not a meal-double. (Meal 4 includes potato salad made from the extra roasted tatties. GENIUS.)

Enough for today. I'll tell you about Meal 3 tomorrow ... I'm a bit behind blogging, as usual, but I will say that I enjoyed last week's meal plan enough to attempt a different menu from the same company again. 

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