First Glance || Blue Apron Box

I have not been so excited to see the UPS guy as I was today. 

After seeing a bunch of ads, I decided to give Blue Apron a try.  Blue Apron is a delivery service that sends you a box of pre-portioned meal ingredients, with recipes (including step-by-step photos), to make three dinners for two people (there are also plans to feed four or six people and you can opt for vegetarian meal only plan). You also have line-of-sight to the expected delivery day/time frame ~ so you can pick a window that fits your schedule. You have access to the following week's menu a week in advance so that you can decide if what is being offered looked appealing before ordering.

Our meals arrived neatly packaged in a cardboard box lined with ice packs to keep the contents fresh (pictured above) for a few hours. The veggies are individually bagged, meats are vacuum sealed, spices are portioned out, and everything is clearly labeled to avoid any confusion. Packing the contents away in the fridge, I was impressed with the quality of what was sent (in some instances better than what I can find readily in my local store). Each recipe was well documented and every single ingredient (except for olive oil, salt, and pepper) is included in the box.

Couple of cautions ~ 

1. Currently there are no meal plans past 'meat and fish' or 'vegetarian'. Watch the menu carefully for any food allergies or preferences before letting your order drop.
2. Price point...this works out to $10 per serving per person. I suspect that I could source some of this locally cheaper but, you are paying for the convenience factor. As I reviewed the recipes and compared to the contents of the box I got, the portions seem to be reasonable and I doubt there will be any leftovers.

While the dishes don't seem to be overly original, there are some ingredients and combinations here that I might not normally bring into the house. Additionally, this is a great opportunity for me to hone some of my culinary design skills (my knife work sucks for example).  Expect to see updates here on the dinners we create.

Product Review || Chef’n Looseleaf Kale and Herb Stripper

Confession time ~ I am something of a 'gadget guy'; so it should not surprise anyone that this little tool caught my eye when I was in Sur La Table the other day.

When using fresh herbs (think rosemary, thyme, etc) part of the prep work involves removing the leaves (which have the flavor) from the steams (which are not good eats).  Enter the Chef’n Looseleaf Kale and Herb Stripper (roughly $8), which promises to "speed up time-consuming prep tasks".

Does it work? Yes. Does it save me a whole lot of time? Not enough to make me feel like I got my bang-for-the-buck with this purchase ~ I might feel differently if I had spent half the money. Gets three out of five stars in my kitchen.

Alder Plank Salmon

Walked into Sur la Table to buy $10 worth of salt but, I walked out with over $60 worth of stuff and the inspiration for tonight's dinner.

Walking through the store, I came across a pre-sanded, 'Alder Grilling Plank' for just $5 (the similar sized cedar plank was double the price). Knowing that I had some salmon fillets that needed to be used up at home, I was a bit excited at the thought of an entree that might resemble my favorite cedar plank salmon. Regardless of the wood, you cannot just throw it on your grill. Be sure to soak in salted water for about an hour before using (I know folks who have done wine or apple cider vinegar but, I haven't).

I created a simple marinade for the salmon using one lemon (score for having a lemon tree in the back yard), three tablespoons of soy sauce, a couple pinches of Hawaiian Alea Salt (also from Sur la Table), and a couple grinds from the pepper mill. Mix together in a bowl and brush on the salmon fillets that you have placed on the 'seasoned' (aka soaked) plank. I also added a few shakes of Black & Tan Gomasio (found at Whole Foods) over the top for taste/texture. With your food on the wet plank, place on a preheated grill over indirect heat (keep a mister bottle of water handy so you can handle any flame flare-ups).  I used the left over marinade to season white and green asparagus spears ~ with also went on the grill. Cooking times for both can vary based on environmental conditions so, cook the fish to 145 degree internal temperature and the veggies roughly 5 minutes on each side. Seriously, this is crazy simple to put together and put in front of the family ~ you just have to pay attention to the food as it cooks.

We plated with some sliced heirloom tomatoes ~ whole dinner Weight Watchers points, based on a 4 ounce salmon fillet size, was just 11 points.

Every other time I have ever done plank-grilling (with cedar) the plank itself was typically charred to the point that an additional use was not possible (even though I followed the same seasoning process I always do). I expected the same this time but, was pleasantly surprised and expect to be able to use this at least two more times before tossing in the bin for recycling. 

Apple & Carrot Salad

We didn't have many holiday gatherings this year that required us to bring much more than a couple bottles of wine but, we have a couple over the next of days that have us bringing something more substantial.

Hot side dishes are a pain to keep warm so, I am throwing them out as I don't feel like dealing with the logistics of that. Now we've zeroed in on a cold side dish and need to find something that will not likely already be there (I am forever calling 'dibs' on this one), is healthy, easy to fix, and that people will actually want to eat.  I found the solution in an Apple and Carrot Salad that has just a few ingredients and takes just a few minutes to make.

You will need about ten minutes and the following;

• 3 large, fresh apples (red and green)
• 1-1/2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 3 cups uncooked carrots (sure you can 'matchstick' these but, I just bought a bag).
• 1/4 cup of chives (don't buy the stuff in the jar, buy fresh and chop yourself).
• 1 tsp sugar (I used Whey Low in lieu of the cane variety).
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp table salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper (or more) to taste
• 2 oz of feta cheese, crumbled.

Assembly is easy...

1. Core, thinly slice, and matchstick the apples. Tim's Tip: place the matchsticks in cold water with a bit of lemon juice added. This will keep what you cut from oxidizing (turning brown) while cut each apple.
2. Drain and pat dry, place into a a large bowl and toss with some additional lemon juice (to taste ~ prevents oxidization until served).
3. Add carrots, chives, oil, sugar, salt, pepper, and cheese. Toss to mix thoroughly.

This will serve ten and yields about 3/4 cups per serving. For those of you counting Weight Watchers points, this is just 2 per serving.

Egg White Breakfast Bites

There is a shift afoot in my household that has changed the dynamic of the expected morning routine.  Don't get me wrong, I am happy to have a promotion that takes me into the office most days and managed to uncover a way to spend 45 seconds making a healthy, hot breakfast during the week.

I made "Egg White Bites" for the first time last week and discovered that these worked pretty well when paired up with a pre-cooked turkey sausage link. Here is what you will need.

Ingredients:

• Carton of egg whites
• Olive oil cooking spray
• Salt, pepper, or your other favorite seasoning
• Fresh veggies (I used onion and zucchini but, you can use tomatoes, spinach, kale - or just about anything you would put into an omelet).
• You will also need a mini-muffin pan. You can use a larger one, but it will take longer to cook.

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
• Spray each indented section with the olive oil cooking spray so that the bottom and sides are lightly coated.
• Dice your veggies, I was doing this at the same time I was prepping our dinner so, the food processor came in handy.
• Add to each indented section of the pan. You can fill as much or as little as you want but, do not pack it too tightly in each section. My tip is to fill to about the halfway point...
• Fill each section with egg whites. Typically, if you use the mini-tins I find that it will take about one tablespoon of egg whites.  If you filled the section with half veggies, you will see some of them mix with the egg whites as you pour them in.

• Add seasoning.  At the very least, salt and pepper but, you can use whatever you want. This week, I used a bit of Old Bay (we tend to steer towards the savory side) in the tins.

• Place in the oven. The mini muffin tins will take 10 or so minutes but, if you use a regular size one then I would suggest you double the time.  Check them at the ten minute mark, if they do not look like the ones pictured below, then give them a couple more minutes.

If you aren't eating these right away, allow to cool before moving to a container and placing in the fridge (which was my end goal tonight).  The end product will last about four days in the icebox.

Reheating is a snap.  Times listed work for my 900 watt microwave - yours will vary based on wattage and how much you put on the plate (I typically go with two Egg White Bites and three Turkey Sausage links).

1. Line a microwavable plate with a paper towel, put food on plate
2. Cover with another paper towel (I am honestly not sure why paper towels are so magical in the microwave but, trust me on this so that you can avoid the mess that I ran into one morning last week).
3. Microwave on high for 45 seconds - enjoy after removing the paper towels...

You can add salsa, hot sauce, whatever you normally would with your eggs in the morning. I am making these up on Sunday night so we are good to go for a 45 second investment during the week (which means this boy can get to the gym before going to the office). For those of you tracking your points in Weight Watchers, this is just three...so not a bad kick start to your morning.