What's on My Table?

Right around the time that Alex was starting with his hectic football season schedule, I was winding down my first trimester but still relying pretty heavily on him for preparing meals.  Then, Sheena over at Bean in Love mentioned eMeals and I knew I had to check it out.  A pick-up-and-go meal plan for the week, complete with an organized grocery list, and budget-friendly cost was just what the doctor ordered!

We've been using eMeals for nearly two months now and I have to say we love it!  There's so much more variety in our diets and we definitely feel like we're eating better.  The food is delicious, and most recipes are super easy to follow, and every meal includes a variety of vegetables and/or compatible side items.  If you're more adventurous or have specific dietary needs, you could always forgo the budget-friendly plans and pick something more exciting like kid-friendly (lol), 30-minute meals, or even paleo if you're really out there.  :-p

With eMeals, we get to eat delicious meals like this - Asian chicken pasta salad.  YUM-O.

As I told one of my friends a few weeks ago, I'm 90% satisfied with eMeals and the the 10% dissatisfaction is all a matter of user error.  We're still trying to make it through a week without forgetting something at the store, or misreading a recipe to the point where I use double of an ingredient that was intended to be halved for two recipes.  Yeah, FAIL.

I do have a few complaints about the inability to really customize a printable based on the create-your-own meal plans (an advanced feature one might choose to use after trying a few weeks' worth of plans).  We really prefer printing hard copies of all the weekly plans and working off of paper notes at the grocery store, but the create-your-own is only accessible via the app.  I will say, the projected grocery cost for the first few weeks wasn't accurate since we had to purchase a bunch of staples (seasonings, primarily) that we didn't already have on hand.  These days, the projected costs are pretty darn accurate - and would be more so if we shopped at one of the stores featured by the company.

There is also no way to indicate preferences for certain style meals (other than changing a meal plan) or to say that you really didn't like a meal an don't want to receive it on a future plan.  Weekly plans are guaranteed not to repeat again for 6 months, so we haven't repeated anything yet, but I do wish there was a way for the company to take into consideration our preferences before sending our plans each week.  My hope is that eMeals will continuously improve their service as it gains in popularity and these customization features will someday be available for use.

Turkey and Black Bean Taco Salads.  SO GOOD!

...Like I said, we really do love the program!  Initially we signed up for the 2-week free trial and agreed to a 3 month subscription, but I wouldn't be surprised if we decided to splurge for the year once the initial period.  The annual cost of just $5 a month is really a great deal!  I promise I haven't been asked to write this post, BUT if you do want to give it a try, there is a referral and affiliate program, so please e-mail me first and I'll get you all set up!

So, what's on YOUR table?

-Lauren

Note:  Affiliate links are included in this post.