Winter 2.0: Time for Chili

Yup, daffodils & snow flurries. 

Remember last week when I was bouncing around in my sandals in the sunshine proclaiming that Spring was here? Well, then March started in like a lion with 50 mph winds and it snowed this morning. 

We should all be used to this already, North Carolina weather is notoriously fickle year-round. There have been years where I've worn short sleeves at Christmas and shivered through snow in my Easter dress. And I guarantee that those instances were met with drastically different weather the days before and after. It's just madness down here. 

So I'm officially withdrawing my Spring pronouncement and cancelling all spring menus until further proof of season-change is provided. I take back last week's bright surf 'n' turf salad and suggestions that you look for fresh produce and instead dive head first into warm, cheesy recipes. 

Let's start with a bowl of chili. 

I recently bragged that I was proud to have found two recipes to claim as my own; one for chicken noodle soup and the other for chili. I was saving my chili recipe so as to not give it away before my church's annual chili cook off; you know, because I was going to win. 

Spoiler alert: I didn't win, I didn't get honorable mention, but almost all of it was scraped out of the Crock Pot when we got ready to leave. It may not have won me another Summit Church title (still proud of being the Dessert Queen), but it is a tasty recipe. 

Chili is contentious. Folks like what they like and they don't want to deal with any nonsense outside of their chili definition. My dad's chili always has mushrooms, J's is made with beef and local sausage, a Texan girlfriend lives for no-bean chili. Up until recently, my chili loyalty went to whoever fed me the most (generally my dad #onlychildperks), but now I can boast a preference for my recipe. It started as a ground turkey chili, but is also good with lean beef; it's made with black beans; and you have to top it with green onions and sour cream. 

Because of my dad's kitchen sink chili - with meat, beans, tomatoes, mushrooms, peppers, and onions - I tend to drift to a chunkier style of chili. Some recipes are more watery (and I mean that in the best way possible) with fewer ingredients beyond meat and tomatoes. That's edging into soup territory for me, so I appreciate that this recipe has lots of bits and pieces and retains a heartiness. Plus, the "secret" or at the very least, unexpected, ingredient - crushed tortilla chips - thickens the liquid further and pulls all the flavors together.

Photo courtesy of Food Network magazine

Food Network magazine, who originally produced what I'm now calling "my" chili, called this recipe "Quick Turkey Chili" and they were spot on. This recipe takes hardly any time and only one pot to prepare. 

Several years ago, I was the Fellowship Coordinator at our church and I had to organize all our monthly meals, including the Chili Cookoff. I remember a lady rushed in right before church started. She'd had a family emergency the night before and was frantically making her chili in front of me. She threw canned veggies, tomatoes, spices (including a Hidden Valley ranch packet?!?) into a Crock Pot, cranked it to High and left it to simmer for the hour-long worship service. And she won. By a landslide, according to our judges. I've rolled my eyes at that performance for years, but now, my recipe doesn't take much more effort. 

First you muddle the tomato paste and spices together to make a really aromatic lump, for lack of a better word, to create a flavorful base. You then literally dump everything else in to cook off (like your raw meat) or to simmer and meld together. The starch from the tortilla chips acts as a binder and pulls everything together as it simmers. Then you add a punch of flavor with some extra green onions. It couldn't be easier. Unless of course it was... but you have to be extra thoughtful in your grocery shopping and meal prepping. 

As you may know, J & I are on different work schedules which saves us a bundle on day care costs, but also means we have to be incredibly organized in our meal planning for everyone to eat healthy, homemade food. To do so, we plan out a week's worth of lunches and dinners and make one big weekly shopping trip (goal: bi-monthly or even monthly shopping excursions). We peruse sale papers; make monthly trips to a bigger city to hit Aldi, Trader Joes, and/or Sam's Club; and try to get the best deals on what we think are smart purchases. We try to stick to our weekly lists, but especially on our monthly Asheville trips, we'll stock up on items that are on a good sale or we know we'll use.

You have to be smart and think big picture. If peppers are on sale [often Aldi will have them for $1.50/3-pack (even the more pricey colored ones!)], buy several to bring home, dice, and freeze in one-pepper-portions for later. In dishes like chili, peppers will be soft anyway, you don't lose any texture by pre-freezing (and you won't need to thaw them, either). 

Also, this recipe (and most soup recipes) makes around a half-gallon of finished product. I divide it right away into freezer-safe quart containers (these are 50 cents each at Dollar Tree or use freezer bags and lay flat on cookie sheets in the freezer, then you can stack them like books!). One quart usually feeds us for a lunch and dinner apiece (plus a baked potato) and I can immediately freeze the other quart for later. 

If you think making this chili is fast, you won't believe how fast it is to just thaw a quart! 

MY First Comfort Food Recipe

Always incorporating food
into our adventures -
Homemade ice cream at the
Knoxville Farmers' Market

I enjoy cooking, serving, and eating food. Heck, I even enjoy incorporating food into my other hobbies - like reading cookbooks or cooking magazines, or you know, writing this very blog. Despite all of that interest, love, and time, I was still disappointed in my relationship with food because something was lacking: an achievement I hadn't quite reached. 

There are lots of things I love to cook and that I make well, but I'd never call them "mine." I've longed for "my" recipes. You know, the ones that when my Baby is grown, he'll call and say "Mom, how do you make your ...?" and I'll pull out a raggedy stained recipe - that I no longer use, because it's pure muscle memory now - to hand off to him. 

I think most people have that kind of food association with the people they love. There's some recipe that will always be associated with, and tasted best when prepared by, your nana, husband, mama, or next-door neighbor. It might be from scratch, semi-homemade, or maybe even take-out they served in just the right way. 

My dad has a gift for cooking outstanding fried chicken. He uses boneless chicken breast tenders for these "Daddy Nuggets." They're best served with rice, gravy, and tiny "baby biscuits" (which are mine ONLY; y'all eat the full-sized ones). Or maybe his best dish is his "Daddy Burgers" (Seeing a pattern here? Only child + Daddy's girl); they're better than any restaurant burger I've ever had. 

Mom makes the best tomato + Velveeta baked pasta (sorry, no affectionate name here. I called it "Barf" as a kid, for looks alone). And her beef stroganoff is humble, simple, and THE BOMB. Despite all logic, Dad's attempts to elevate it with homemade sauce and fresh peppers fall short. 

And J makes the best meatballs. Period. The funny thing is, they're from his Mamaw's recipe, but she has zero recollection of every making them...so they're certainly his now!

But I wanted MY recipes. Things Baby will specifically request, like I do with beef strogranoff: "No, Dad; I want Mama to make it!"

Sunday at The Summit

First, I wanted my own chili recipe. I was raised on - you guessed it - my Dad's chili. Every winter, he'd get out the gigantic pasta pot (now the electric turkey roaster - efficiency, y'all) to make gallons of chili. We'd freeze it and eat homemade chili year-round. Then, I married J who had his own distinct and delicious recipe. And we're members of a church whose core tenants are: 1. The Great Commandment, 2. The Great Commission and 3. January = Chili Cook-Off time. So, I've seen the depth and breadth of the definition of chili. And how attached folks are to their chili. There are hardcore camps: beans vs. no beans, beef vs.turkey vs. veggie vs. venison, spicy vs. mild; and Lord, all the secret ingredients!

The good news is, after much tinkering, I've found MY chili recipe. However, I'm not sharing that with you today. The Cook-Off is this Sunday and I'm not giving these goods away. Who knows, maybe I'll report back with my "prize-winning" recipe. 

Next, I wanted to have a signature comfort food. I know this is a broad category covering all types/courses/flavors of food. I want it to be something Baby and Hubs request when they're sick or had a rough day or just need a reminder of a warm, loving home. And I've found it, perhaps in the most cliche, comforting sick-day food: chicken noodle soup! 

My lil' star face! 

Baby is an adventurous eater and will try anything, but this kid LOVES soup. Maybe it's the fun slurpy    noise or the warmth or his lazy refusal to chew,    but this first time I made this, he cried until I fed it to him, straight from the pot...for breakfast. And I don't blame him, it's delicious. 

Instead of long noodles like Campbell's or egg noodles, this recipe uses the cutest pasta option: stars! The original recipe is designed for "pastina," a generalized name for the smallest pasta shapes. There are a variety of teeny tiny shapes, but I prefer stelline pastina, shaped like itty bitty stars. Using pastina is obviously adorable, but adds great texture to the soup, too. The veggies are all similar tiny cuts which makes for a better mouthfeel. And c'mon, we all need a bowl of whimsy sometimes. (See PRO TIP below.)

I used a hunk of this 5 lb. Grana Padana cheese I won
in a Splendid Table drawing. I've frozen hunks of it for
recipes just like this that need a little fancy cheese. 

The soup is incredibly quick (less than 30 minutes) and easy to prepare (under 10 ingredients), but has deep developed flavors. You saute the trinity (carrots, celery, onions), then add thyme, chicken broth (see PRO TIP below) and the secret ingredient: a 2-inch piece of Parmesan rind. That may sound bizarre, but it adds a great nuttiness and saltiness, making your soup taste like it simmered for hours. If you can't get Parmesan rind, be sure to garnish your bowls with grated Parmesan. But I highly recommend the rind; grocery stores with an actual cheese counter normally sell rind for fairly cheap (and it keeps in the freezer for ages). Or, kill two birds with one stone and splurge on a little wedge and use every inch of the cheese. 

This was originally a meat-less recipe (could be vegetarian, if you swap in veggie broth), but the first time I made it, I tossed in leftover rotisserie chicken - GAME CHANGER. We buy chicken a lot - even the cuts we don't normally prepare for entrees - just to shred for enchiladas, soups, curries, or chicken salad. Grocery stores normally mark down rotisserie chickens in the evening, which we'll occasionally buy, shred and freeze in two-cup servings. Shredded chicken is certainly one of our pantry (freezer) staples and fits this dish so well. Makes it a little more filling, but not heavy, and adds extra texture, too. 

When you're looking for a simple dinner-in-a-hurry that tastes like low-and-slow comfort food, this soup is just right. But be sure to give me credit; it is MINE, after all. 

Week Two: Heavyweight Carrot Cake

I realize I was just whining about our culture's overzealous focus on nutrition, calories and general fun-sucking from delicious food. But, I have to at least provide a warning about my second cake: it's not for the faint of heart or atrophied arm muscles. Actual nutrition facts aside (a tiny bit of extrapolation will tell you how healthy it is) this cake is downright HEAVY. Not dense, but physically heavy. 

Take a peek at a couple of the ingredients:

• 1 pound carrots, shredded
• 1 pound cream cheese, softened
• 1 1/4 pounds butter, softened
• 2 pounds powdered sugar, sifted

We're already weighing in at 5.25 pounds without even including flour or eggs. Carrying this cake in to work today on my glass cake stand (which already weighs a metric ton) was a sheer feat of endurance. I'd like to add One-Handed Cake Carrying to the Olympics or at the very least, the Highland Games. 

So prepare yourself if you intend to bake this cake or tote your grocery bags in from the car. I recommend starting with some bench press reps today. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Welcome to Week Two - we are officially one-fifth of the way through my challenge to bake a cake a week through the end of the year. 

To recap: 

Week 1: Coconut Cream Poke Cake

Week 2: Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting from Martha Stewart's Martha's American Food

This week, I opted to make my boss' birthday cake. I moved into this position at work a year ago and one of my first observations about my new department was that these folks love birthdays and especially, birthday cake. My meticulous predecessor kept a birthday spreadsheet with each person's primary and secondary cake and icing preference. Y'all - if your office, friend circle, or other crowd of people who love each other and love eating, doesn't do this, you're missing out. 

My second observation about this crew was that 25% of them listed carrot cake as their favorite birthday cake. That's unheard of. Carrot cake is wonderful, and my go-to Easter dessert, but no one really requests it for their birthday, right? But I forgot to mention that my predecessor also apparently makes the world's best carrot cake. Excel skills and great recipes - no pressure, right?

So let it be said that I'm in no way trying to replicate her recipe or replace her - and Kathleen, if you're reading this, I miss you and will never be able to fill your shoes - but carrot cake is Boss' favorite, and it fits the bill for my challenge. 

Carrot cake is a classic, American comfort food and I'm hoping to use this challenge to find a couple of traditional, mainstay recipes for those occasions where I feel very June Cleaver. An interesting thing about carrot cake is that recipes vary so much from the incredibly simple to over-the-top ingredients like pineapple, raisins, and crystallized ginger. However, no matter how many add-ins you use, it is always a humble, warm and comforting spice cake with creamiest icing. And there's a 90% chance there'll at least one tacky piped carrot on top; this cake is in the class 10% minority. 

Available HERE on Amazon. This is a great cookbook with un-fussy recipes of the foods we love in the US. It's sorted by geographic area, so you'll likely be really familiar with your section (hello, peach cobbler and pimento cheese) and iconic dishes (think: NY cheesecake, Philly cheese steak or New England clam chowder), but will likely be surprised by other less famous recipes. Highly recommend!  

Also, J and I have been doing an extensive study of this particular cookbook and are determined to have made every recipe in it next year. 

Part of our effort to cook through this cookbook includes the attention to writing in the book, on the recipes as we cook and eat. We've both grown tired of sacred cookbooks that are for looking, not using. We are now committed to making notes in all our cookbooks. I want mine covered in crumbs and stains (the best recipes are always on the stickiest, crunchiest pages) and have notes all over them. How else will you remember things like "not four American portions, maybe 10 European, but not US #merika" or "sauce reduces quickly" or more importantly, things like "YAAAAS. THE BEST!" or "VOID THIS RECIPE. DO NOT MAKE AGAIN." 

Please note: this challenge has NOTHING to do with cake decorating skills. #fail

Here's what I intend to write on page 66 of American Food:

• Subtle spice; maybe add more ground ginger/cinnamon/nutmeg
• Cake has great texture
• Frosting is A+++
• Make frosting ahead! But leave out well in advance to be warm/pliable 
• Don't skimp on pecan garnish

All in all, this was a pretty good cake and the crowd at work seemed pleased. I'm not certain this is the best carrot cake in the land, but I LOVE the frosting. I will refer back to this recipe to frost other cakes and since it makes almost 5 cups of frosting (thank you, 2 lbs of sugar and 1 lb of cream cheese) it will make enough for a whole pile of cupcakes. 

Calorie-Free Cake -- just kidding

Consider yourself warned: I'm climbing on my soapbox for a little rant. 

When I began considering baking a cake per week until 2018, I pitched the idea to my ever-wise Facebook crew. And they were generally supportive - because, cake! - but were also, surprisingly, full of health advice - because, cake? - but it got me to thinking and actually aggravated me. Problem #1 with crowd-sourcing your dreams. 

There were suggestions about ways to share the cakes to keep from eating it all, tips on how to save calories/fats, and suggestions for healthier recipes. And I get it, 10 weeks of cake is a lot of cake, but my first thought when someone suggests a challenge like that is "ooh, how do I get on board" or "here's my recipe for at-home Baker's Joy" or my husband's initial reaction, "how can you afford that much butter and vanilla?" 

So, I'm kinda pissed that these suggestions about health, diet, and calorie counting clogged up my fun query and dampened my excitement. 

First, food is important. We need it to survive but in a privileged society where we aren't solely focused on nourishment, we also have the opportunity to really enjoy it. I have the great fortune to be able to spend money at grocery stores, to spend time cooking for myself and the ones I love, and to go out and enjoy the gift of other people's professional cooking. So why shouldn't I take the next two months to not only enjoy the fruits of my baking and the results of new experimental recipes, but also to reconnect with my love of cooking? 

Which makes me think this: is it because I proposed the challenge?

I recently watched a (ridiculous) Refinery 29 video about an employee who ate nothing but pizza (or the closest approximations thereof) four times a day for five days. 

Homegirl had breakfast pizza, homemade gluten-free pizza, fruit + Nutella pizza, classic $1 NYC slices etc. and she lived happily ever after, save for one stomachache. However, a Facebook comment stood out to me: how would this comment thread be different if she wasn't a cute, thin, white girl? 

What would your gut (no pun, intended) reaction be to seeing slovenly Kevin from accounting eating 10 slices of pizza a day for a week? Or that big girl at the gym who only lasts 5 minutes on the treadmill? "We" - the collective group of people with opinions and wifi - would not stand for it. Why? It's five days out of someone's life! They could be healthy. They could regularly exercise. They could be  are just damn fine without our concern for their well-being. 

I'm not skinny, but aside from some Smaug-worthy heartburn and allergies from hell, I'm pretty healthy. This barely muscular, doughy, and perfectly imperfect body gets through the day without too many complaints. It nourished and brought a wonderfully healthy baby boy into the world and it only gained 12 pounds to do so (7 of which were exclusively baby) and so far, it's nursed him for 15+ months while losing the baby weight + an additional 30 pounds. So I've had to ask myself a la Carrie Bradshaw: would a cake-a-week be a big deal if I looked like, say, Carrie Bradshaw? 

Now, these particular people who offered suggestions on Facebook and those who I've explained my cake calendar to since, aren't jerks dropping passive aggressive hints about my weight, sugar intake, or chins. These are all women whom I genuinely respect and who care about me. But that shows you how ingrained discussions of weight, calories and fat are in our culture. We're willing to tell the people we love, whose ideas we fully support, that they should be thinking about their diet...constantly and that they don't deserve to indulge. It's subtle and well-intended conversation, but it's coming from a place, deep within all of us that is paralyzed at the thought of being unattractive. This self-consciousness is such a part of who we are that we can't be held accountable for our own behavior. It's like a compulsion to share and defend ourselves at the same time; "I care about my health. I'm bettering myself! See? Now, you should too!" 

All that being said, I appreciate another element of the culture of my she-tribe, that we look out for each other. We only want the best for each other and I'm sure they'd be alarmed if I expressed an interest in anything dangerous or truly, immediately unhealthy. But I just hate how this observation speaks to all of our fears and panic. I want to take the time to be more thoughtful in my conversations with others, especially with other women, about their plans/dreams/challenges and not be dismissive. I need to reprogram my subconscious to ask more personal, positive questions and offer real, helpful thoughts instead of jumping to negativity. 

I need to be asking myself: is this something I would say if they were talking about or doing something "traditional" or "healthy" or "generous"? Can't their excitement over baking ten cakes warrant the same excitement I'd give someone trying a kale-of-the-month club? Shouldn't I be as proud of them taking up disc golf as I would be of their interest in Soul Cycle? Why am I not praising their decision to go out on a date without the kids as much as I do their macaroni art projects with the two toddlers? 

Day (Whole) 30 or How I Learned to Make the Best Damn Potato Salad Ever

Well, he did it! Jordan finishes his Whole 30 today.

I never had any doubts he could do it. This man can be the most determined person ever. He's gone a full 30 days without sugar (save accidentally licking Ransom's dripping fruit popscicle), legumes, all grains, soy, and dairy. I, on the other hand, have enjoyed a steady diet of queso and mini M&Ms.

No, really, I've stayed on the wagon for the majority of our meals - maybe adding a condiment or slice of cheese; but my snack life has been a little (ok, a lot) more lax.

And even as a two-time Whole 30 drop out (aren't you proud, mama?), I have to say it is a pretty good plan. Strict, yes. Time consuming, hell yes. But the food is good and REAL and the results are obvious.

I want to share a few quick positive observations with you before I share what might be our new favorite recipe in the whole world (not just Whole 30, but all of recipe-dom).

• You don't have to go hungry. There's no counting - carbs, calories, fats, nothing. There aren't limits on how many times a week you can eat x. You're actually listening to your body and if your body feels hungry, you eat. Given, you need to eat something good, but you're not denying yourself food in general. This is a big deal for a "diet" - I don't do hangry well.

• You're not eating bizarro "health" food. We didn't eat a single piece of kale, a chia seed, or fake noodle made out of mushroom powder. Sure, you might lose weight from the cabbage soup diet or the one where you just drink water with lemon juice and cayenne pepper but who cares if you're skinny if you're a miserable jerk?

• You can make delicious meals that people wouldn't even realize were Whole 30 - like the recipe below. Meat + vegetables + fruit is really all you need. And when you fully utilize your spice cabinet and lovingly cook things, not just microwave them, you can make tasty food.

So, speaking of delicious meals, here's our Friday night feast. Yes, we've made it every Friday night; it's THAT good.

I found this potato salad recipe right as we were getting started and we made some minor modifications to make it Whole 30-approved, but also, more delicious. If you want to follow the original recipe, you can view it HERE.

We pair this with a juicy, medium grilled steak; which, if you do it right, needs nothing more than salt and pepper - no A1, no clarified butter, just perfectly seasoned beef. But it would be great with any protein and I think it would be perfect for a potluck or picnic. It's also great cold, assuming you'll ever have leftovers.

* Whole 30 mayo recipe HERE

It's been a hard month, no doubt (see: my breakdown on Day 5 HERE). But it's not been un-enjoyable and the results are easy to see. J's got more energy, he's looking all svelte, and we haven't had a single "where do you want to eat" fight!

I really would recommend Whole 30 to anyone seeking a change or even just a re-set on their digestion and metabolism, if for no reason than you'll actually enjoy the food you're eating and the way you feel.

For more information on Whole 30, consider buying the affordable cookbook and reading through the process and trying some of the recipes. You're supposed to do this 100% and take it on as a lifestyle change, but even just starting out with making healthier decisions and home cooked meals is a step in the right direction for anyone.

Review: Blue Apron Meal Subscription Service

A friend gifted us a free one-week subscription to the do-it-yourself meal service,  Blue Apron. Blue Apron delivers all the ingredients and recipes for delicious, relatively easy and quick (allegedly under 35 minutes) meals to your door.

Our delivery arrived on Friday and we were able to enjoy our meals together this week - savoring the last of my maternity leave. I will be reviewing this service in the following categories on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being excellent and 1 being awful:

1. Plan options - Does it suit my family?
2. Pricing - Can we afford it? 
3. Cooking - Is it unique without being cumbersome?
4. Eating - Are the meals delicious?
5. Overall enjoyment

PLAN OPTIONS - Rating: 4

First, we chose a plan. Options included three meals for two people or two meals for four people (two additional meals from leftovers!). We could also use some "credit" from the free offer and use a higher-priced plan for four meals for four people (which would make eight meals for us but would require some payment instead of being fully free). I appreciated being able to choose the amount of meals I could get, especially when one option would provide leftovers. Despite the math yielding us more food with a two-for-four, we opted to receive the three meals for two plan. 

You are able to choose a diet/preferences - they have meals for pescetarians, vegetarians, non-red meat eaters etc. Because all items are packaged at the same facility, they do not recommend using this service if you have severe allergies. We aren't food sensitive and are trying to be more adventurous (read: eat more fish), so we didn't indicate any preferences. 

Then the fun part - which proved to be incredibly tedious for me - choosing our menus. You're able to view a calendar listing all the meals of each particular week. The three meal plan has six+ options, while the two meal option has four. Because I'm incredibly indecisive, we perused all available menus (there are usually four weeks' available at a time) and options for each plan. Many of the entrees are featured on all of the plans (at different times) with different sides; but there are several meals that are unique to a particular subscription. There are a wide variety of options from somewhat familiar creations to things I would consider exotic or unusual for our kitchen. This breadth of recipes is a great plus for Blue Apron; but I will warn you, it makes deciding difficult! 

However, the shortcoming is that you can't always select individual recipes that you like; many are bundled. For example, if you select that you want Roasted Pork Steam Buns, it may select your other two meals instead of letting you choose each one. I assume this has something to do with the packaging process. This worked to our benefit because we chose a "safe" recipe that was bundled with one new, but not unheard of dish, and one "bizarre" meal which I might not have chosen on my own. Since I couldn't pick every meal we got, I really had to play around with the calendar to make sure the meal plan we'd selected plus the delivery week worked well with the pre-arranged bundles. Seriously, I put at least an hour into this. #IHaveNoLife


PRICING - Rating: 3

Our subscription was free. YAY! And honestly, that's probably the only way we'd have ever tried this. We've done monthly subscription boxes before (now defunct Goodies, and Skoshbox), but they were in the $7-15 range and I wasn't upset if a box was lame. However, at these price points I'd be hesitant to blindly try it out. The plans are priced as follows:

The Blue Apron four-for-four plan is $8.74/serving ($139.84/week).

Blue Apron falls right in the middle of the price points for two other comparable plans, Hello Fresh and Plated. Hello Fresh allows you to get more meals per week, which lowers the per serving price, but with a similar three-for-two plan you'd be shelling out $11.50 per meal or $69 per week. Plated has both smaller and larger plans (two and four meals per week). Their three-for-two plan is slightly cheaper at $48 per week (apparently marked down from $72). 

Obviously, this may not be the thing for you if you have a larger family and you intend to feed them all. It could still be a fun date night option for you and your partner or good "bonding with the teenager."  And despite my annoyance at picky eaters paired with my determination for our baby to have a sophisticated palate, I don't think many kids would go for these things anyway. What kiddo is pumped for cod and radishes? 

Overall, $9.99/serving isn't necessarily outrageous considering what we might spend if we went out to eat, and I'd argue that it is of $9.99/plate restaurant quality; but it is considerably higher than what we budget per homemade meal. It's certainly do-able here and there as a fun activity (with food!) but we could never do it every single week. It would certainly have to be put into our budget and we'd have to give up something else. 

Or we could steal the recipes and make them at home with things we already have on hand or can buy for cheap...


COOKING - Rating: 4.5

The heavy box arrives with almost everything - save olive oil, S&P, and water - you need for all three recipes, including spices and items like vinegar or sesame oil.

Three meals-worth of ingredients, delivered straight to my door.

It's a ton of stuff in adorable, but absurd packaging (see: below). I'm a sucker for all things dainty (you should see the tiny champagne vinegar bottle!), but this does feel a little wasteful.

Thankfully all packaging materials are allegedly recyclable.

You have exactly what you need, it's all fresh and good quality, but you do have to prep some things. For example, we received a single carrot that needed to be shredded for slaw and a block of cheddar instead of a baggie of grated cheese. And that is why this cooking subscription can appeal to all levels of chefs - YOU have to do the work. You're responsible for your own mis en place and preparing everything, but nothing is difficult and their instructions are very clear. They even offer tutorials online to help you with things like knife cuts and prep demos. It would be a great learning experience for a new (or young!) chef, but interesting enough that pros would enjoy it.

Even the worst cooks can make these recipes!

The techniques are relatively simple and quick. Plus, the recipes don't require fancy equipment or lots of dish washing.

And just like the commercial, the cooking experience provided by Blue Apron is a lot of fun for families. We were able to make our first meal while Baby napped, and we got in some quality Mama & Daddy time helping each other cook. We fell in love cooking for each other, so finding a product which delivers that experience straight to our home is a blessing. But you could totally cook these on your own without being overwhelmed - unless you're on your own and have a screaming baby flailing in their jungle swing, or ahem I assume it would be difficult and you might just burn some breadcrumbs while leaving the middle of the chicken almost under-done...ahem. 


EATING - Rating: 4.5

Our menu included Fresh Pimento Cheeseburgers with Collard Green and Carrot Slaw, Chicken Milenaise with Warm Potato and Brussel Spout Salad, and Cod with Udon Noodles. The pictures on the recipe cards are deceiving - the food looks good, but with TINY portions - and they all sounded just a little out there. But whoa. They all tasted great. 

The pimento cheeseburger was made from high-quality beef and served on delicious buns covered in more sesame seeds than I've ever seen! I will say the pimento cheese stuck out to this Southern girl as a version designed by a non-Southerner. There was little mayo, and it sure as hell wasn't Duke's (the King of all Mayos), so the texture wasn't what you'd like on crackers or finger sandwiches, but it was melty and so flavorful. The recipe included a great tip, too: put the pimento cheese on the bottom toasted bun AND on top of the hot burger, double the gooeyness!

We were both AMAZED by the cod dish; we totally expected this to be unique, but not something we'd order or even try to make again. But whoa! It was flavorful, full of unique textures and well-balanced. So, be sure to try something a little out-of-the-box in your delivery box! 

And of course, you can't go wrong with breaded chicken cutlets (unless you have that hypothetical baby meltdown experience). Plus, the quirky side dish of warm potato and brussel sprout salad with mustard vinagarette was great, too! 

OVERALL- Rating: 4

Despite my inability to choose what I wanted to order, the service itself is incredibly easy to use. I was able to easily navigate their website and explore all available options. I also appreciate how easy it is to change your mind (see:inability to make decisions). You can view your scheduled deliveries and skip, change the delivery date or choose different menus at the click of a button. As a mom whose calendar is quickly filling up, I can't emphasize enough how important that sort of flexibility can be. 

But we have canceled our membership since our trial ended. They will, of course, automatically charge your card for the next delivery and we will have to plan better if we're going to put forth this expense. It's completely do-able once a month, but I'd die if my card was charged $60 more than once per pay period.

I highly recommend pressuring your friends who have free passes to share them with you, and even if you didn't have a freebie, consider giving this a go once. It's a great activity to do as a family and a fun way to try new recipes without having to buy the obscure ingredients (togarashi spice blend, anyone?). 


STAY TUNED... we're planning to try another subscription box soon!  

Lay's "Do Us a Flavor" Taste Test

Lay's Potato Chips, in their infinite corporate wisdom, created an exciting advertising campaign that also outsourced the work of their R&D department; the annual Do Us a Flavor contest. Folks submit their flavor ideas to Lay's, who then chooses four flavors to develop and sell for a limited time. The general public votes for their favorite flavor which will join the chip canon and earn a big cash prize for the "flavor ambassador" who submitted it.

They've done this contest for three years or so now, with some hits and some big misses. 

One of their first trios included sriracha, cheesy garlic bread and chicken & waffles. The first two weren't too shabby and pretty true to their inspiration. However, the chicken and waffles chips made me realize that sometimes imitation is not the sincerest form of flatter, but just downright weird. They were too realisitic and my brain couldn't process a thin slice of potato tasting like maple syrup, much less fried chicken. 

Last year, they upped the weird factor by introducing us to bacon mac 'n' cheese (which tasted just like gas station Hot Fries!), mango salsa (I despise mangoes), wasabi ginger, and cappuccino chips. I was underwhelmed and kinda grossed out by that group. 

While I questioned their judgement last year, I must admit the process is interesting and they are able to produce on-point flavors that accurately represent the inspirations (however misdirected). And they made an exciting update to put texture into play, too. You can submit your flavor with a "chip style" -kettle cooked, wavy or traditional - that I find to be a big influence on the success of the chip. For example, cappuccino chips shouldn't be wavy, because what on God's green Earth would you dip that in? But waves are a perfect fit for a salsa-flavored chip; the pairing with guac is obvious!

Lay's has just released their newest quartet of contenders and we bought three of the four flavors this weekend. The 2015 Do Us a Flavor nominees are wavy West Coast Truffle Fries, Southern Biscuits and Gravy, kettle cooked Greektown Gyro, and New York Reuben. We picked up the Truffle, Gyro and Reuben chips at our local Ingles Market (on sale!); they are supposed to be available nationwide within the month.

Prior to Lay's release of 2015 flavors, we found a bag of Larry the Cable Guy biscuits and gravy chips at Big Lots (artisinal grocery it's not) for less than $2. Enjoying our youthful sense of immortality, we bought a bag. They were disturbingly realistic and tasted like fresh sausage and creamy, peppery gravy... and that made me very uncomfortable. Maybe I take issue with the re-imaginging of Southern staples, but I just can't wrap my head around a porky potato. Needlesss to say, we skipped the Lay's version. Let's assume it's lovely and true to breakfast...but spare me. 

Only a hit in the midwest?
Data from 8.3.15 on www.dousaflavor.com

Here's our review of the other three flavors. Like any good girl of Irish descent, I do have a specific rubric for my potato products; so we based our judgments on the following criteria: is the flavor a good interpretation of the intended dish; is the flavor enjoyable on its own, unrelated to the original food (would you eat these again regardless of novelty); and how successful is the flavor:"chip style" pairing?

NEW YORK REUBEN (traditionally cut chips)

This was the flavor J was most excited about. After working in a deli for many years, he is a connoisseur or reubens and was very eager to try them. I'm a casual reuben-eater, if for no other reason than my palate is not rye-bread-friendly. 

Overall, the flavor is okay, but the purest notes are of rye. So, the one item that I generally substitute on my sandwich is the primary flavor of the chips. But, once I got used to that twangy taste, I could eat these fairly mindlessly and enjoy them. J was anticipating more of a mustard/sauce flavor in addition to the meat and rye, and was pretty disappointed. 

I think the flavor is approachable outside of the context of just being a reuben chip and that's helped by the super thin texture that just screams picnic or late night munchies. No frills, just like a basic reuben, but it's hard to knock the novelty kitsch. 

I've never seen a chart using corned beef-colored graphics.

GREEKTOWN GYRO (kettle cooked chips)

I wasn't anxious to try these given how poorly I handled the fake-sausage chips. But I think Lay's did a great job compiling all the diverse and complex flavors of a gyro to make a multi-faceted chip. You get a subtle beefy taste - the way barbeque chips taste more like sauce than literal smoked meat; but thankfully, you also get the tzatzki sauce with fresh cucucmber and dill; a little onion and a hint of feta. J put it best saying "these are delicious" and they are probably the best out of the three. 

I love the choice of kettle chips for this flavor, too! When I think of gyros, I immediately think of the crispness of the Greek salad stuffed in the pita with the meat. These extra crispy chips are reminiscent of the crunch of the lettuce, onions and cucumbers you find in a quality gyro. They really added authenticity of flavor and dimension by choosing the kettle chips. 

I'll be casting my vote for this flavor!

WEST COAST TRUFFLE FRIES (wavy chips)

Because we aren't independently wealthy and maybe because the tv cooking shows we watch belabor how much the oil is overrated, we don't eat many truffle-laden foods. But I anticipated these chips to taste refined, with a light truffle perfume and a subtle flavor. The picture also included melted cheese (Parmesan? Asiago?) and fresh herbs on the potato wedges, so I was looking for bright, clean flavors. These fell short. They were like a delicate version of sour cream and onion chips; maybe chives instead of "onion" and a little more garlic than your plain old sc & o chip. But certainly nothing to write home about. They tasted fine but I hardly find them innovative. 

They do work well as a wavy chip because I could see them pairing well with onion dip, or something to impart more bold flavor. 

Meh. 

The Do Us a Flavor contest is really a fun diversion for summertime snacking. We look forward to seeing what's new and trying the experimental flavors. However, I am a year-round salty snacker. J has a huge sweet tooth, but I crave salty snacks, especially chips. As enjoyable as this is, I'm probably just as happy with a bag of plain rippled chips and french onion dip. 

If you are looking for a REAL chip experience with bold, unique flavors and unparalleled quality, head to The Gourmet Chip Company in Asheville, NC. They are a handmade chip (and pressed sandwich) shop in the middle of downtown with the best flavors I've ever found. They'll fix your chips right in front of you with awesome combinations like Belgian dark chocolate and apple-smoked bacon (The Corsican) or sun-dried tomatoes, pecorino romano cheese, fresh basil, sea salt and balsamic vinegar (The Italiano) at reasonable prices. And they have a retail shop with packaged chips, too! It takes a lot of will power for us to not stop here everytime we're nearby (thanks in part to crappy city parking). 

(foreground) Pressed Cuban sandwich with The Buffalo chips and
 (background) The Pressed Parisian Melt with The Italiano chips

Fancy artisinal chip shop or not, I highly suggest venturing outside of your comfort zone with chips. The things you like and dislike, just might surprise you! 

Taste Test: Reese's Oreos

This is a fun part of blogging - responding to your requests and challenges! A reader (and friend) shared a new product and asked for a review before she bought it herself.

As an early Memorial Day display of patriotism, I’m combining two very American things - being opinionated and eating Oreos - into a surely delicious post.

We’ve seen a rapid and uninhibited boom in the Oreo universe in the past 2-3 years. My childhood cookie aisle stocked maybe four types of Oreo - original, double stuf, reduced fat and lunchbox-friendly minis - in a variety of sizes. I’m a double stuf girl, so my only decision was about upgrading to the family size packs.

Now, according to their website, there are 28 - yes, over two dozen - different Oreo cookies (not including different types of packaging or Oreo-related products like pie crust). The varieties include somewhat sensible, although already old hat flavors like golden (vanilla wafers), ratio-changers like mega stuf (for all you folks who double up your cremes), chocolate-covered cookies (we’ve been making those at home years) all the way to the bizzaro creme flavors like birthday cake, cookie dough and marshmallow crispy.

Snackworks. com

Their most recent flavor experiment brings Oreo together with another incredibly prolific brand - Reese’s. Reese’s has at least 11 different products produced in-house, with countless others like Bryer’s BLASTS ice cream, where they guest star. And I will be the first to admit, we are a Reese’s house. I’m pretty sure J bleeds peanut butter and chocolate. Every stocking, Easter basket and birthday cake features some sort of Reese’s combo. Obviously, we were very excited to see this pairing!

In February, J and I provided a truly scientific (wink wink) study on Nabisco’s limited edition release, red velvet Oreos. You can read that review here. We’ll base this review on the same criteria as the red velvet. First, we’ll discuss the two major flavor features of the cookies: the wafer and the creme. Next, we’ll discuss their structural integrity by testing both their “twist” and “dunkability.” Finally, I am adding another analysis (and suggestion) for achieving  “the perfect bite.”

Without further ado, let’s review.

The Cookie:

Unlike the red velvet variety whose wafer tasted different (and were red, duh!), these cookies had the signature Oreo flavor and appearance. There was a sense that the texture had been tweaked because these wafers were incredibly crunchy and when eaten separately, felt harder. Otherwise, same old, same old - and that’s a good thing!

The Cremes:

An exciting feature of the Reese’s cookies is that there are two different cremes inside each cookie! I do believe this is a first for Oreo (at least on the same layer - they do have a triple decker cookie with two different layers of creme). Half of the creme layer is peanut butter and half is chocolate. J said it best with, “it’s close to the spirit of Reese’s (cups) but reminds me more of Reese’s sticks.” I think it’s got a Reese’s pieces feel to it. (Every Reese’s lover is a connoisseur, really). If you’re looking for an exact copy of a Reese’s cup, this isn’t it, but it’s got the peanut butter and the chocolate in good balance. I really enjoyed the peanut butter side, especially the texture. Where the red velvet cookie’s creme had been grainy (and cloying) from so much sugar, this was actually good. It had a very pleasant taste, a lot like real Reese’s pb and upon further inspection, had actual flecks of peanuttiness that contributed to the Reese-like texture. I haven’t done enough “research” to know if this is the same chocolate creme they use in other varieties. The chocolate half seems like a generic chocolate flavor, not too sweet and not too chocolatey. Being butted up against pb it does take on a little of that flavor, too. A bite with a mixture of both cremes is pretty darn good and thankfully, not too sweet.

The Twist

I need two things for a good twist - the cookie stays intact and the creme stays on one wafer, not a smear on both. The red velvet variety’s sugary creme was a mess and stuck to both cookies. This cookie twisted perfectly. The harder cookie held up and the creme stuck tight to a single wafer.

Dunkability

Oreos demand milk. As such, they have to be structurally sound enough to take a good dunk in a glass of milk. I like either a fraction-of-a-second splash or a long super-softening soak for my Oreos. These held up pretty well, maybe not as sturdy as a traditional cookie, but didn’t dissolve into a mess. Through a series of tests, J determined that a 10-second submersion yields the best results for a soft, milk-logged cookie that isn’t yet mushy.

The Perfect Bite

If you’re looking for a perfect bite, I wouldn’t twist and double up cremes or eat it open-faced. I suggest going in for the traditional sandwich and giving it a dip in milk (at least 5 seconds). Make it even better by trying to put the “seam” of the creme between your front teeth so you get a bite of both sides, not just one flavor of creme. Yum!

For more LEGO-y goodness, follow J on Instagram here. 

A peanut butter cup it’s not, but a good cookie, absolutely. The flavor is tasty, the Oreo-design is on point and they’re delicious with milk.

I think the main thing keeping it from being a better copy is the unsurmountable texture and experience differences. A Reese’s cup almost instantly melts in your hands and coats your mouth in creamy chocolate. It’s one of those warm and fuzzy experiences that takes you to childhood, just like unwrapping the silver foil of a Hershey bar. Eating a cookie, no matter the flavor profile, can’t match the melty, gooey feel of tearing open an orange packet.

Also, it would be very remiss of the cheap curmudgeon in me to not mention the ridiculous pricing of these “special” cookies. A standard pack of the (now) “regular” Oreos - original, golden, double stuf, and reduced fat - costs $2.98 at Wal Mart and contains 36 cookies. The quirky packs are noticeably smaller and awkwardly shaped containing only 24 cookies, but still priced at $2.98. I read the cost-per-ounce breakdowns while grocery shopping - especially when comparing brands or bulk vs. small packages - and this one just doesn’t work out. I get it, it’s a limited edition product, but c’mon, just price them fairly!