Saving my Sanity at Dinner with HelloFresh

This post is sponsored by HelloFresh. All opinions are my own.

Special discount code at the end for new customers!

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As moms I think we all have a list of things that we dislike doing. What’s on my list might not be on yours.

My list of mom dislikes includes:

• Putting laundry away
• Cleaning up wet messes, like spilled milk and water
• Finding shoes (Why, oh, why can’t they end up in the same place all the time?!)
• Sorting through the pile that seems to grow on one of our counters
• Cooking (Ugh. Seriously I wish I didn’t have to).

The challenge is that many of the tasks we dislike doing are pretty important to the functioning of our families. The ones that aren’t critical may end up getting pushed aside, which is why the pile of “stuff” keeps growing in our kitchen.

But – those ones that we need to do and are necessary in life get done even if we don’t enjoy them.

Take cooking for example. I don’t enjoy it. And honestly, I wouldn’t even say that I cook. Don’t worry – my kids do eat! But it’s more like opening things, heating them up, and adding something easy like berries, grapes, or some cheese.

We eat a lot of grilled cheeses from a panini press, spaghetti, variations of sandwiches . . . So yeah- I wouldn’t say that I cook. I make meals, but I don’t cook. From time to time, I bust out with the slow cooker and “cook” in that and there are a few recipes that I can make but again, it’s not something I enjoy.

My husband is also usually at work at dinner time so I’m typically trying to throw something together that doesn’t take a lot of time because I have kids running around who need attention.

Enter: HelloFresh!

With my “cooking” history in mind, I was excited when HelloFresh sent us a box of meals to try out, but I was also a little nervous. I didn’t quite know what I was getting myself into but I want to be better about making healthy meals at home.

When my HelloFresh box arrived I was excited to check it out. I chose the Veggie Plan because I don’t eat meat (though I do eat seafood) and the recipes looked delicious enough that even my meat-eating husband would enjoy them. You’ll know what meals you’ll be getting, and if you choose the Classic Plan you can choose from a list of recipes.

There’s also a Family Plan but I liked the looks of the meals in the Veggie Plan for the week I’d get my delivery.

Part of what I loved about HelloFresh is that when my box arrived, it was organized really well with three boxes: one for each meal, instructions and all packed on ice.

In each box were the ingredients I’d need for my meals and the instructions for all of them. The instructions told me exactly how long I’d need for each meal and the level of difficulty. It was great knowing I had everything I needed for three meals.

I’ll be honest- I cooked two meals and my husband did the third. The first one I did was a quinoa dish with Brussels sprouts, butternut squash cranberries, pecans and melty gruyere cheese.

Other than the sprouts taking me a while to chop, it was seriously easy. And very delicious.

I also found Jamie Oliver’s spaghetti recipe super easy, cooked it when I was home with the kids, and I’ll definitely be making both of these again. Our third recipe was a vegetarian version of Shephard’s’ Pie- another good option but maybe not one I’d add into our rotation because I’m not a huge fan of peas (I’m pretty sure I know where my older son gets his picky-ness!).

Here’s the thing. I can cook. I just don’t like it. But with everything already portioned out, put together, and step-by-step instructions, it’s really easy to cook and pretty hard to mess it up.

Getting a delivery from HelloFresh is like an awesome gift that comes right to your door. It helps you be prepared to cook, which for us is probably more than half the battle. I also knew what I was getting myself into in terms of time so that I could plan accordingly for the nights my husband was home and when he wasn’t.

Adding in new meals to our rotation was great because I definitely get stuck “cooking” the same things over and over again. HelloFresh also becomes a confidence boost where you realize you can actually cook!

If you’re a new customer and want to give HelloFresh a try, use code GETMOM35 for $35 off your first order! Seriously- $35 off! What a great way to try something new.

Let us know what you got in your box and how you like it!