Final Blue Apron Meal- Pan Seared Chicken with Peach Salsa

Sorry, I am late posting this but I finally made the last Blue Apron meal. I got the box on July 12th and I made this meal on July 18th. I am happy to say that all of the produce was still very good and fresh. 

(As a disclosure, I was in a hurry to make this meal so that fact does play a piece in my opinion)

I started the water for the rice first and followed the instructions for the rice. It was supposed to boil for 30-35 minutes. Next, I made the peach salsa and it was super easy. I liked that the vinegar for the salsa was pre-portioned in a little bottle. No need to make sure that you put enough in, just open and dump in.

Next, I prepped the tomatoes and zucchini. Both were going into the rice, the tomatoes only needed to be halved with some salt and pepper. The zucchini needed to be sliced with some garlic added and then pan fried. It was at this point that I started the chicken. Just salt and pepper on the chicken and then pan fried with a little olive oil. 

So this whole time that I am doing this I am still checking on my rice. No matter what it seemed tough; so much so that I stopped cooking the chicken to give the rice another 10 min to boil. Mind you that I also had to add additional water to the pot. So here I am starting to get close to the time that I need to leave and the rice was still not done (or at least I didn't think it was done). I finished the rice with some creme fresh and the tomatoes and zucchini. 

Clay was not interested in the meal and has cereal. Again, the meal would feed 4 people and I did separate it for leftovers for Travis and I. Now the reveal.... was it good. Yes, it was! Austin ate it all and liked the rice. I thought it was good but that the rice tasted undone. Now come to find out later that I had a huge brain fart and wild rice is supposed to be tougher. Dugh!! But I really loved finishing the rice off with creme fresh. This addition gave the rice a creamy texture that paired really nicely with the tomatoes and zucchini. 

My only recommendation for this recipe is to note on the card that the rice is supposed to be a little tough or hard. It would have saved me 15 additional min of boiling the rice and unneeded stress. Hahaha!

Why are kids such a holes??

I am sorry but since when did we decide it was ok to raise a bunch of a holes? Why is it that kids are worried about what they look like at a young age? It is not ok to make fun of or bully another.

No matter what.

This all started when the kids and I were talking before bed. They start swimming lessons this week Monday-Thursday. Being that I am back to work, I told them that their swim shirts may not be washed everyday. The kids eyes about popped out of their heads. They said that if they didn’t wear swim shirts that they would be made fun of for being fat. What?!?!?

I have 2 healthy kids. One is tall and lean and the other is tall and bigger in the belly. Yes, I know this and we have been working on it. It hasn’t helped that they kids have been obsessed with Fortnite this summer (Don’t get me started....). But they are not fat.  By any means. We all have weight to lose and Lord know I do as well but as adults we do not say it to other people’s face. Yes we may talk about it behind peoples back but most normal people don’t say it to someone’s face. That being said, I would rather kids followed this same concept. Keep your comments to yourself and do what your parents do, talk about it behind their back. There is no need to be an a hole and say it to their face.

In light of this situation I have fully given my child permission to say “Stick it in your ear” when another kids makes fun of him (kid version of go F your self). I have also said that it is ok to tell. Now don’t get me wrong, I don’t encourage my kids to tattle (Lord knows I hate it) but if someone who is going into 6th grade is going to make fun of a almost 1st grader there is something wrong. Don’t get me started on the fact that this said child is at the upper end of the age limit and is still in a school childcare program. I don’t know all of the circumstances and there must be a reason; but that doesn’t give him the excuse to ruin my child’s life. I shouldn’t have to fight with my child to get him to go to a school childcare program because he is worried that he will be made fun of....

IF I ever find out that my child is making fun of another child I have told them several times that they will have a reckoning when they get home and it will last. I flat out told them that they will lose everything and I mean EVERYTHING!!! Austin one time lost everything except for his bed and dresser. If I find out that they were bullying they will lose their bed and dresser as well as everything else and will have to earn it back. Piece by piece.

Please, for all of us out there, teach your kids to stop bullying or at least follow your example and do it either behind the person’s back or in the privacy of your own home. Kids have enough to worry about and so do I!!

Beef Sworma Bowl from Blue Apron

The next meal I cooked in my Blue Apron trial was beef sworma bowls with harissa and maple syrup carrots and zucchini. Finally tzatziki and pita.

Now this recipe was super easy and fast. Clay was not willing to try it but Austin was.

When asked, Austin said he like it all and ate everything! The carrots were something new for me. The harissa has a heat to it but the maple syrup cuts it nicely! The beef was nicely seasoned with a little heat to it. The pita and tzatziki offered a fresh and  coolness to the meal and paired nicely.

Again there was enough for 4 meals. Since Travis is at work I put the other 2 meals in a Tupperware container. Once Travis has it I will inform you all on how well it heats up as left overs.

One more meal to go on this experiment, Seared chicken with reduce and peach sauce.

Wild Alaskan Pollock from Blue Apron

On Thursday night I decided to cook the Wild Alaskan pollock. Now I have never cooked fish (I know!! Shame on me!) The instructions are clear and have pictures to help. This recipe included smashed garlic potatoes and roasted broccoli.  Clay was excited to help me and he did a great job with helping (he was in charge of the broccoli).

I have made mashed potatoes and broccoli but neither this was. The recipe called for you to smash the garlic and put it in the water as the potatoes boil. I have also never roasted broccoli so both of these cooking techniques were new to me.

Now I am all done cooking and here comes the question everyone wants to know. Will it feed a family of 4. I have to say it does!! Now Austin wasnt home but we have left over fish, broccoli and would have had potatoes but Clay wanted extra.

I am happy to say that everyone loved the dinner. Travis usually eats the vegetables first to "get it over with". To my surprise he exclaimed how good the broccoli was. Being sceptical I asked if he was kidding and he said no. I started to eat and I was surprised how good it was as well. All of it was!

I cannot wait to try the other 2 recipe and see if we have the same results. I took pictures with a coveted plate at the end.

#blueapron

 All of the ingredients are pre-packaged and portioned correctly for the recipe. 

 The recipe card comes with everything you will need if you decide to make it again.

Clay was so excited to help and use a “real” knife! 

 Clay helped dredge the fish by doing the flour and then place it in the egg bath.

Finished product!

Blue Apron Experience

Ok, here is a food post so scroll on by if you dont like it.
I have always been intrigued by all of the meal kit programs out there. I have been looking for a while, but was worried to "try" it at full price. So on the 4th of July I saw a sale for Blue Apron offering $40 off your order. This brought the normal price of $95 for 3 meals to feed a family of 4 down to $55. Now, $55 is a price I can "try" something at and not feel too bad if it is a fail. So I looked over the 6-7 menu options for this week and picked 3. I got Wild Alaskan Pollok, Beef Sworma bowls and Pan seared chicken with peach sauce.

Well the box came today before I went to work. I was super excited and nervous as it was super hot outside.  So, in all of my glory I brought the box in and opened it. It was wrapped in a thermal bag and an ice pack on top. Everything was fridge cold inside!

These kits come with everything you need including the eggs and flour. Basically, if you only had olive oil and salt and pepper at home you are golden.

Update 2018

Ok, this time I am really going to try and keep up and be more dedicated with blogging and keeping you all up to date on what is happening in our lives. I promise to keep it fun, fair, and honest.

SO... here we go. What have we been up to since I last blogged.... Well for starters we just got back from our first BIG family vacation with the boys. We went to Disney World and it was amazing!! The  look on the boys faces and the many Thank You’s were worth all of the anxiety that the planning caused.

Austin is now in 3rd grade and Clay is in Kindergarten!! Where did the time go?? How in the world did the boys get so old but I still (for the most part) feel like I am in my mid 20’s. The boys are doing well in school; we have conferences on Tuesday so we will see if my perception is correct. So far Clay has done amazing at school. He has Austin’s old Kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Macriffic. She is one of the best teachers we have every had and Clay absolutely adores her. Clay is learning how to read and I can tell that he has been paying attention because he is reading things that he never has before. Austin is doing well too. Not going to lie, this year has been HARD! I don’t know if it is just the learning curves as he gets older but man this year has been a struggle. I won’t go into too much details, but we have started a new plan with Austin and so far a week in it seems to be going well..... again, I will find out for sure on Tuesday.

The boys finished up another great wrestling season. They both had their ups and downs. Clay got his first win and a pin this season!! Austin learned a lot and had a bunch of tough brackets this year but is still is finishing a winning season.

Travis is about to celebrate his 38th birthday in the next few weeks. Holy cats he is getting old. (Love you babe!) Travis is still working at the Clinic in security and was given a new post at work and is mostly downtown; which means less time at St. Mary’s campus.

I have been busy as usual. In the fall I decided to go back for my Master’s degree. (I know, I am crazy). But I have actually been having fun with it. This time around I am going at it slower. Mayo helps with reimbursement for courses so I am going slowly so Mayo will end up paying for it all. Lord knows I don’t need any more school debt. If I keep on track I will graduate in 2020; 1 year longer than if I paid it all myself. I am ok with that because the job I have been working towards doesn’t require a Master’s degree; the degree will only help me.