Review :: Gobble Take 2

Here’s another review of another week of Gobble. See link below if you want to try it yourself!

Chicken Katsu Bento Box with Jasmine Rice & Sautéed Sugar Snap Peas and Miso Soup

It was super putzy (I don’t think people use that word anymore. But to me, it means busy work…lots of steps…some maybe unnecessary).

Get someone else to do the dishes in this one. It used 5 plates, 4 bowls, two stove top pans and a baking sheet.

The miso soup was just soup concentrate and water. But was still tasty!

I could not get the breading to stick to one of the breasts. The other one was just fine. But the ‘problem one’ wouldn’t come to temperature, it lost the breading, and wouldn’t get golden. Still tasted good though!

The flavors were good. I doubt I’d get this one again though since it was such a pain in the arse to make. But it was very good.

Chicken Katsu Bento Box with Jasmine Rice & Sautéed Sugar Snap Peas and Miso Soup

Shrimp Louie Sandwich with Lemon Pepper Zucchini Spears

This one was good…but…the aioli was too runny and I ended up with basically a puddle of milk on my plate. But the shrimp/aioli mix was delicious. Good buns too.

As you can see the green onions had gotten a little yucky (my delivery was a day late, Thanks FedEx). But the tomato was *chef’s kiss*!

I didn’t care for the zucs but I never do. The lemon pepper seasoning helped, but it’s like lipstick on a pig for me. I just don’t like zucchini.

They gave me enough lettuce (whole head) to have two salads afterwards!

I’d get this one again, but I’d not use lemon juice in the shrimp mixture, just maybe lemon zest instead so it’s not so wet.

And I’d feed the zucs to the dogs.

Shrimp Louie Sandwich with Lemon Pepper Zucchini Spears

Blackened Top Sirloin Steaks with Mashed Potatoes & Baby Carrots

I was busy the night that this was on the menu, so Greg made it. He said it was easy, but dumb that they wanted him to put it in the oven for one minute. He just left it in the pan until it was cooked.

The potato mash was precooked, he just added the vegetables to it.

The meal was delicious though. If I wasn’t trying to cut down on beef, I would order this every time it was offered.

Blackened Top Sirloin Steaks with Mashed Potatoes & Baby Carrots

My thoughts after another week of Gobble:

My gripes first…

I don’t understand why they want you to finish these meals in the oven. It’s unnecessary and a waste of energy to turn on my oven, spend 30 minutes preheating it so that it can cook something for 1 minute.

Every recipe so far calls for using a microwave. I don’t have one. So I have to improvise by heating something in a pan or oven instead.

Now the good…

I really like these meals. They’re delicious, fast and easy.

They have so many good choices each week, it’s hard to narrow it down to three. It’s the one meal kit where I struggle with this. Most of the others, I have to end up picking one I’m not jazzed about. But not with Gobble.

Give them a try!!!

We are a participant in the Gobble Associates program an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Gobble.com. However, I do pay (full price) for the meals I get and cook.

April 20, 2021

Review :: Hello Fresh Lemon Tortelloni Palermo

Another great dish from Hello Fresh. This is the Lemon Tortelloni Palermo with Roasted Bell Pepper & Parmesan. It’s another vegetarian dish.

finished Lemon Tortelloni Palermo — Lemon Tortelloni Palermo

If you’re curious about the difference between tortelloni and tortellini I’ll tell you!

Tortelloni is a bit larger and “the extremities closed differently”. Extremities! How cute is that? My pasta has arms and legs!

Also, tortellini is usually filled with meat, and tortelloni is filled with cheese and parsley or spinach.

prep for Lemon Tortelloni Palermo — Prep for Lemon Tortelloni Palermo, note how they gave me the upside-down tortelloni. Tasted the same.

Making this dish went off without a hitch. It was easy and quick and delicious.

Of course, since it’s vegetarian Greg had to eat a whole package of salami half an hour later. Even though I’m sure this was very high in calories with the butter, cream cheese and sour cream. If I were to make this on my own, I might lighten it up a bit. But I’d probably just order it from Hello Fresh again.

April 20, 2021

Review :: Hello Fresh revisit Mushroom Soy Ramen

Some time ago…ok a really long time ago when this meal kit service was new (2015 according to my records), I tried Hello Fresh. I thought the recipes were fine, but nothing great. I was alternating with Plated at the time and honestly, Plated was so good that nothing could hold a candle.But I gave up on Hello Fresh when I unpacked the box and there was raw chicken juice leaking all over my lettuce. I threw it out and canceled my subscription.

Flash forward to 2020 when I keep seeing posts from foodies I follow on Instagram showing their lovely looking dishes from Hello Fresh. I also learned last year, that Every Plate which I used for quite some time with some success is OWNED by Hello Fresh. So I thought, hmm, maybe I need to give it another shot.

Well a few weeks ago I got an email saying that if I comeback I could get a discount so I decided to try it again.

For my first box I got:

Three Hello Fresh bags on a sparkly countertop — Here’s what was in the box

Mushroom and Soy Ramen with Fried Onions
Crispy Cajun Chicken Sandwiches with Crispy Potatoes & Secret Sauce
Lemon Tortelloni Palermo

First up was the Ramen. If you know me, you know that there are not many things in life that I like more than Ramen. Instant or fresh. I love it all.

Prep for Mushroom & Soy Ramen with Fried Onions

So I’m happy to report that this was very good. The noodles are not exactly what I would call “Ramen”. They were too straight, skinny, and white, and not chewy like fresh ramen should be. But they were super good anyway.

The broth is the hard part of ramen in my opinion. But this one does some cheating with pho concentrate, hoisin sauce, and miso concentrate. It’s not noodle-house-level broth, but it’s tasty anyway.

The mushrooms were really good even though I didn’t serve with all the soy sauce, as I was afraid it would be too salty (and I think it would have been).

I did serve this with my homemade chili oil, though it really didn’t need it, it’s just that I love that oil and I put it on everything.

I recommend this one for sure. I’m looking forward to the other two!

March 20, 2021

Review :: Home Chef’s Crispy Prosciutto and Pesto Penne with Tomatoes and Parmesan

A couple of nights ago I made the Crispy Prosciutto and Pesto Penne with Tomatoes and Parmesan dish from Home Chef.

This is one of their “15 Minute Meal Kit” options. This is perfect for nights when we have something to do in the evening and don’t want to order out. I’m talking about Zoom Happy Hour nights, yes I am.

This was super easy and quick. The onions were pre-cut and the sauce pre-made. I just had to cut the tomatoes and prosciutto.

Prepping for Crispy Prosciutto and Pesto Penne

Leave it to me, to even have trouble with that. I started to cut it up not realizing that there were plastic sheets between all the slices of meat. Oopsie. It took me awhile to pull all those slices apart and remove the plastic. But I’m happy to report that I got all of them and neither of us ate any plastic.

This dish was delicious. It’s so decadent that I assumed it was at least 800 calories, but it’s just over 600 so that’s not so bad. If I do this again I’ll make a salad to go along with it.

I also wish I’d taken a photo before putting the Parm on it, everything with Parm on it looks the same. But trust me, it was pretty!

Here’s the recipe! – Not that you can make it at home iwhtout a pre-made sauce….

Click here to get Home Chef meals, $35 off.

March 6, 2021

Review: Gobble

My first shipment of Gobble came in mid-February. The three meals I got were:

Wagyu Beef Swiss Cheeseburger with Mushrooms & Truffle Aioli
Pan-Roasted Barramundi with Yukon Potatoes and Lemon Caper Sauce
Chicken Au Poivre with Demi-Glace & Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes

I would give them all 4 out of 5 stars. I guess my favorite was the chicken. The Coriander and Black Pepper spice that you put on the chicken was amazing.

Chicken Au Poivre with Demi-Glace & Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes

It’s the only one that I didn’t have an issue with, however small. What I didn’t like:

The burgers were delicious, but suuuuuper greasy! My stomach hurt the rest of the evening.

Wagyu Beef Swiss Cheeseburger with Mushrooms & Truffle Aioli

The fish was good, but I got really sick of the fish flavor about halfway through. It wasn’t fishy though, thank goodness. Maybe I just don’t love barramundi. This is the first time I’d had it.

Pan-Roasted Barramundi with Yukon Potatoes and Lemon Caper Sauce

But the main reason I don’t give these full stars is this:

There’s really not much cooking involved. Even the potatoes came precooked, in a pouch. There’s no chopping either. It’s basically like warming up restaurant meals. They’re delicious, but they’re not cooking.
Some of the dishes require you to use a microwave. I don’t have a microwave in the kitchen I cook these in.
Some use a lot of dishes, for there being so little actual cooking involved.
While they give you a “recipe” card, it’s nearly impossible to remake these recipes without ordering the kit from them again because some ‘ingredients” are actually precooked foods. Such as a pouch of mashed potatoes, or a pouch of beurre blanc. You can make your own, but it likely won’t taste the same.

If you are a foodie/chef type these probably aren’t for you. Unless you want to have a few nights where you don’t have to think about anything and can throw something together quickly and easily (this is the camp I fit into).

If you are someone who loves to eat interesting meals, can boil water and sauté, but doesn’t love chopping and prepping, this is for you.

I’m ordering a second week coming up soon so I’ll be interested to see how those come packaged and what is involved, I’ll report back!

Want to try it yourself?

Friends and family who signup using this link get 2 meals for two for $18

February 13, 2021

Review :: Spinach Ravioli from Home Chef

Recipe: Spinach and Ricotta Ravioli Bolognese with Parmesan

This is one of those easy ones where you just mix and put in the provided tray and pop in the oven.

ingredients for Spinach and Ricotta Ravioli Bolognese with Parmesan — Ingredients for Spinach and Ricotta Ravioli Bolognese with Parmesan

It comes with a plastic tray. Which would be fine in the microwave, but it said that I was supposed to cook it in that tray, in the oven! Plastic, in the oven?! I got too nervous to use it in the oven, so I used my own ovenware.

Spinach and Ricotta Ravioli Bolognese with Parmesan from the oven

This had great flavor, but I would prepare it differently. The sauce didn’t really come together, nor was there enough of it. Also, the ravioli didn’t get cooked through, it was still pretty chewy.

I had ordered my Home Chef this particular week with 4 servings per meal instead of 2 because my husband is always still hungry after we eat our two servings. But instead of giving me double portions of everything, they just gave me two bags of each meal. So, I ended up making each meal twice instead of making the 4 servings.

Therefore, I had a choice to make it a different way. A few days later, I did it this way:

I used the instant pot, only because I was working in the bar kitchen and didn’t have a large pot down there and was too lazy to go upstairs and get one.

So, I heated the pot on sauté and added the sauce ingredients whisking to make the sure the cream cheese was really mixed into the sauce. I also added about ½ cup water since I wanted the pasta to cook all the way through.

After adding the ravioli, I set the Instant Pot on high for just 1 minute, but just as it came to pressure I got the dreaded “burn notice”! So I just let it bubble on sauté.

Spinach and Ricotta Ravioli Bolognese with Parmesan from the Instant Pot

The pasta still didn’t get done enough, but the sauce was good. One of the raviolis stuck to the bottom of the pot and got destroyed, so it sort of became part of the sauce.

I don’t know if I’d get this again. It would be easy enough to make it again on my own if I had a good meat sauce. But it would probably be a lot better in the microwave.

Have you tried this one? What was your experience?

Here’s their recipe.

December 10, 2020

Recipe :: Indian-Spiced Chicken with Brown Rice

This was a Plated dish called Indian-Spiced Chicken with Cardamom Brown Butter, Pistachios, and Roasted Carrots. I’ve made it a few times now, without the kit and make some changes.
Sine the meal kit it came from is discontinued I think I can share the recipe, especially since I’m not sharing their recipe, but my adaptation of it.
Here’s what it looked like when I made it with the kit:

The second time I made it, I substituted thighs for breasts. I don’t recall why I made that choice, but I prefer dark meat, and usually have it on hand more than chicken breasts, so that’s probably it.

The third time I made it, well…the new change was an accident. I prepped the carrots and put them in the oven. I set a timer, but I didn’t hear it and didn’t remember the carrots until we were done eating. Ooops! Luckily it was still amazing!

Indian-Spiced Chicken with Brown Rice

3 ounces baby spinach
2 tablespoons sliced almonds
6 ounces boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 cup quick cooking brown rice
2½ cups water
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
¼ tablespoons golden raisins
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 teaspoons kosher salt
Dash of cayenne
black pepper

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil over high heat (if you’re making the rice on the stove). You’ll be draining it so you want at least 2 cups of water.

Rinse spinach and pat dry with paper towel; roughly chop.

Pat chicken very dry with paper towel and cut into 1/2″ pieces. Season all over with garam masala, a sprinkle of salt, and pepper.

Meanwhile, season boiling water generously with salt. Stir in rice and cook until tender, 22–25 minutes. Drain and return to pot, off heat, then cover to keep warm. Or you can make the rice in the Instant Pot, quick release and drain off excess water.

While rice cooks, heat 2 teaspoons olive oil in a medium pan over medium-high heat. When oil is shimmering, add chicken; sear until golden and pieces easily lift from pan, 6 minutes. Stir and sear other sides until cooked through and no longer pink, about 6 minutes more. Remove pan from heat. Transfer chicken to a plate and set aside to rest; wipe pan clean for the next step.

Place pan from chicken over medium heat, then add butter, cardamom, and almonds. Swirl pan occasionally until butter turns golden and fragrant and pistachios are toasted, 7–8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper as desired; remove pan from heat.

To pot with rice, still off heat, add golden raisins, spinach, and half of cardamom brown butter and pistachios. Stir everything to combine and wilt spinach slightly. Taste for salt and add as needed.

Divide rice between serving plates. Top with Indian-spiced chicken and spoon over remaining cardamom brown butter and almonds.

I did think that this would be great with roasted vegetables such as carrot (which the original recipe called for) or asparagus, green beans, brussels sprouts, or broccoli. Any veg that roasts well. I think I will do brussels next time.

Let me know if you try it (or if you have in the past!)

November 17, 2020

Dinner :: Zucchini & ’Shroom Hibachi Bowls

I made the Zucchini & ’Shroom Hibachi Bowls with Scallion Rice & Spicy Special Sauce from EveryPlate for Meatless Monday!

Ingredients for meal — Ingredients for the meal

Not to mislead you with that exclamation point, It was ‘meh’. This had almost no flavor. Nowhere near worth the 840 calories it supposedly has. Where are all those calories? This was boring boring boring. The carrot mixture had no flavor despite having 3 packets of soy sauce. It needed something else, desperately. Garlic? 5-spice? Sesame oil? Anything!

The mushrooms were good, but that’s likely due to the pat of butter that you put on them after they’ve cooked. I even added the leftover fry seasoning to the rice before plating, and added some salt. But still, it was bland.

Oh and it uses three pans so clean up was a pain too. Also a little miffed that I have to provide so much of my own ingredients. How hard would it have been to include a packet of ketchup, pack of sugar, a couple of pats of butter, and 2 eggs? We all expect to provide our own oil, salt and pepper, but the other stuff?

I will not make this one again, nor would I recommend ordering it. All the time I was eating it I was thinking, ‘well at least it’s healthy’. It’s not.

I will leave on a positive note…the mayo sauce was good. It was mayo, sriracha, ketchup, sugar (I only used a tiny bit–there’s sugar in ketchup already), and this mysterious “fry seasoning” (it tasted a little like Cajun spice).

At least it was pretty!

Every Plate – honestly, they have some really great meals! So if you want to give it a try use my link for a free box.

November 15, 2020

Dinner :: Beef Banh Mi Bowls

Tonight I made the Beef Banh Mi Bowls from EveryPlate. EveryPlate is the budget-conscious little sister of Hello Fresh. The meals are usually pretty good, and far less expensive than any other meal kit that I have tried.

Part of why it is so inexpensive is that they don’t give you all the ingredients. In an upcoming meal I have, there are 7 ingredients listed that you ‘must have on hand’. I totally get providing my own salt, pepper and oil. But this one needed me to have on hand: Salt, Pepper, Ketchup, Butter, Sugar, Vegetable Oil and eggs.

But that’s another meal that I’ll be making for lunch next week. This one provided everything but salt, pepper, oil, butter and sugar(which I barely even used).
Ingredients for Banh Mi Bowl
This is the second time I’ve made this and I really wish I’d read my notes on time #1 because there I noted there was much too much carrot. Well, since I *didn’t* read that, there was this time too! Funny, how that works.

This is one of the best ones from EveryPlate in my opinion. I’ve never had anything terrible from there, but certainly there have been ones that were just unremarkable. This one is pretty good though, since I’ve ordered it twice!

I did not use the full amount of sugar as I’m trying to limit that, and I don’t like sweetness in savory dishes (though I love salt in sweet dishes. I’m weird).

Here’s the finished product. This time I served them with pot stickers (frozen) that I steamed in the Instant Pot.

Beef Banh Mi Bowl

I should have used larger bowls like I did the first time.

Beef Banh Mi Bowl

Try EveryPlate here.

November 12, 2020

Dinner :: Hot Italian Pork Sausage & Brussels Sprouts with Bucatini Pasta

Dinner tonight was the Hot Italian Pork Sausage & Brussels Sprouts with Bucatini Pasta from Blue Apron.

Hot Italian Pork Sausage Pasta

It was delicious! I forgot to add back in some of the pasta sauce and it did dry out, so I should have done that step. But the flavor was great. It was NOT hot at all however. So when remaking this one, pick a really hot sausage.

Hot Italian Pork Sausage Pasta

If you’re getting this from Blue Apron, add some chili flakes if you want spicy.

It was super easy and minimal clean up too.

The Recipe on Blue Apron: Hot Italian Pork Sausage & Brussels Sprouts with Bucatini Pasta

Hot Italian Pork Sausage Pasta