Food & Drinks Mother’s Day Gift Guide

Heavenly Mother’s Day with Hello Fresh

 

No shopping, no grocery lines, no kitchen disasters, no grumpy diners. Every week the HelloFresh chefs create amazing recipes for you to follow along and cook balanced meals at home. Get all the farm-fresh ingredients & recipes delivered straight to your door. They even start the prep work by pre-measuring and pre-cutting the ingredients for you! Simply have fun cooking dinner, no planning necessary. The easy way to cook dinner from scratch.

 

HelloFresh delivers to 95% of the Canadian population including Ontario, Quebec, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, Newfoundland, and the Maritimes. They’re expanding quickly and actively working on expanding their delivery area.

F.A.Q

 

How does the food stay fresh in transit?
All of their boxes contain an insulated liner and ice packs to keep your food fresh until you get home the night of delivery.

When do they deliver?
They deliver Sunday-Thursday each week depending on your postal code and deliveries typically arrive between 8am-8pm. 

What if you’re not home to accept delivery?
Not to worry! If you are not home during delivery, the courier will drop the box off at your front door (or wherever you specify in your Delivery Instructions).

 

 

Meal Plans

 

Family Plan

The Family Plan features easy-to-follow recipes with fresh, healthy ingredients. It’s the best way to get the entire family (even picky eaters!) into the kitchen to cook and enjoy dinner together.

 

Pronto Plan

The Pronto Plan is quick, convenient, delicious and nutritious! Meals are simple to prepare, taking under 30 minutes to make, and full of exciting flavours to help break your mealtime routine.

 

Veggie Plan

The Veggie Plan involves an abundance of seasonal produce, hearty grains, and vegetarian friendly proteins.

 

French Dip Sandwich with Baked Home Fries

 

Ingredients:

  • 570 g Beef Strips
  • ½ cup Mozzarella Cheese, shredded

  • 160 g Sweet Bell Pepper

  • 6 g Garlic

  • 2 unit Beef Broth Concentrate

  • 4 tbsp Mayonnaise

  • 100 g Shallot

  • 690 g Russet Potato

  • 227 g Cremini Mushrooms

  • 1 tbsp Cornstarch

Instructions: 

1–    Preheat the oven to 450°F (to roast potatoes and toast buns). Start prep when oven comes up to temp! 

Cut potatoes into 1/2-inch matchstick fries. Over two baking sheets, toss fries with 2 tbsp oil (1 tbsp per sheet). Season with salt and pepper. Roast side-by-side, in middle of oven, until fries are golden-brown, 25-28 min.

2–    Meanwhile, peel, then mince or grate garlic. Thinly slice mushrooms. Core, then cut bellpeppers into 1/4-inch slices. Peel, then cut shallots into 1/4-inch slices. Pat beef dry with paper towel. In a large bowl, toss together beef, shallots and half the garlic. In a small bowl, stir together mayo and 1/4 tsp remaining garlic. Set aside.

3–    Heat a large non-stick pan over medium-high heat. When pan is hot, add 1 tbsp oil, then half the beef mixture. Cook, stirring often, until beef is browned and cooked through, 4-6 min. Transfer to a plate and cover with foil to keep warm. Repeat with another 1 tbsp oil and remaining beef mixture.

4–    To the same pan, add another 1 tbsp oil, then peppers and mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring often, until veggies are golden, 5-7 min. Transfer veggies to the plate with beef. In another small bowl, whisk together cornstarch and 2 cups water. Add cornstarch mixture and broth concentrates to the pan. Cook, whisking, until combined, 2-3 min. Season with pepper. Remove from heat and set aside.

5–    When fries are golden-brown, transfer all to one baking sheet. Split buns in half and arrange them on the now empty baking sheet, cut-side up. Sprinkle cheese over bottom buns. Toast buns in middle of oven, until cheese melts and top buns are golden-brown, 4-5 min.

6–    To the pan with sauce, add any juices from the plate with beef mixture. Whisk together. Spread garlic-mayo over top buns. Divide beef and veggies between bottom buns. Spoon over some sauce and top with top buns. Serve fries alongside with remaining sauce for dipping.

 

Loved that the beef was already pre-cut and I didn’t have to wrestle with it. 

We did however have a few issues. Our home fries, although delicious, look nothing like the pictures. And the au jus was bland and extremely liquid compared to what was pictured. I can’t help but wonder if WE made a mistake or if this recipe needs adjusting.

It was quite delicious nonetheless.

 

 

 

Tandoori-Style Chicken with Fragrant Rice and Cucumber Raita

 

 

Ingredients:

  • 680 g Chicken Thighs
  • 50 g Shallot

  • 200 g Greek Yogurt

  • 20 g Cilantro

  • 1.5 cup Basmati Rice

  • 6 g Garlic

  • 132 g Mini Cucumber

  • 2 tbsp Tadka Masala Mild

 

 

Instructions: 

1–    Preheat the oven to 450°F (to bake chicken). Start prepping when the oven comes up to temperature!

Peel, then mince or grate garlic. Roughly chop cilantro. Into a medium bowl, using a box grater, finely grate cucumbers. Sprinkle with 1/4 tsp salt and set aside. Peel, then cut shallots into 1/4-inch slices.

2–    In a large bowl, combine garlic, half the yogurt, and 2 tbsp tadka masala. Pat chicken dry with paper towel. Add chicken to yogurt-masala mixture and stir to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

3–    Heat a medium pot over medium heat. When the pot is hot, add 1 tbsp oil, then shallots. Cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly golden, 3-4 min. Add rice. Toast, stirring often, until fragrant, 1 min. Add 3 cups water, then cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to low. Cook, still covered, until liquid is absorbed, 12-14 min.

4-    Meanwhile, on a parchment-lined baking sheet, arrange yogurt-marinated chicken. Bake in middle of oven, until chicken is cooked through, 14-16 min. 

5-    Meanwhile, drain cucumber over the sink, then firmly squeeze off excess water. Return cucumber to the same bowl, then add remaining yogurt and half the cilantro. Season with salt and pepper. Stir to combine.

6–    Fluff rice with a fork and season with salt. Divide rice between plates. Top with tandoori chicken and dollop with raita. Sprinkle over remaining cilantro.

 

 

It’s hard to fully judge this recipe as we didn’t follow it to a “T”. You see, I don’t like cilantro, it tastes like soap. Therefore we omitted it from the recipe. 

I expected the chicken to be spicy, which it was not, I was quite happy about that. I found no need for the cucumber raita, it was very bland (I assume that is due in part to the cilantro that we omitted). The rice was perfectly seasoned with just a hint of seared shallots. 

We found the meal was lacking a salad and crusty rolls.

 

Pan-Seared Chicken with Roasted Potatoes, Green Beans and Creamy Dill Sauce

 

Ingredients:

  • 680 g Chicken Breasts
  • 9 tbsp Sour Cream

  • 7 g Dill

  • 2 unit Chicken Broth Concentrate

  • 600 g Yellow Potato

  • 340 g Green Beans

  • 1 tbsp Dijon Mustard

 

Instructions: 

1–    Preheat the oven to 450°F (to roast potatoes). Start prepping when the oven comes up to temperature.

Cut potatoes into 1-inch pieces. On a baking sheet, toss potatoes with 2 tbsp oil. Season with salt and pepper. Roast in middle of oven, until potatoes are golden-brown, 25-28 min.

2–    Meanwhile, in a medium pot, add 5 cups water and 1 tsp salt. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Meanwhile, finely chop dill. Cut stems off green beans, if needed. Pat chicken dry with paper towel, then season with salt and pepper.

3–    Heat a large non-stick pan over medium heat. When pan is hot, add 1 tbsp oil, then chicken. Cook, on one side, until bottom is golden, 6-7 min. Flip chicken over, then cover and cook, until chicken is golden-brown and cooked through, 6-7 min.

4–    When chicken is done, transfer to a plate and set aside. Heat the same pan on low heat. Add broth concentrates, sour cream, mustard, 2 tsp dill and 1/4 cup water. Whisk together, until sauce starts to simmer, 1-2 min.

5–    Meanwhile, to the medium pot with boiling water, add green beans. Cook, stirring occasionally, until beans are tender-crisp, 1-2 min. Drain beans and return to the same pot, off heat. Season with salt and pepper.

6–    Thinly slice chicken. Divide chicken, roasted potatoes and green beans between plates. Drizzle creamy dill sauce over chicken. Sprinkle over any remaining dill, if desired.

 

 

This was by far the winner of all three recipes. The perfectly roasted potatoes pared with those fresh green beans and that juicy pan-seared chicken breast magically all came together once topped with the amazing cream sauce. That cream sauce is heaven in a dish! Only slightly spiked with a touch of mustard and fresh dill, it’s the perfect addition to this meal. I will definitely be making this recipe again.

 

Go Green

HelloFresh is committed to sustainable business practices and helping home cooks go green. Help them with their mission to limit waste by recycling your box and composting.

 

Paper-Based Packaging

Their boxes are made from post-consumer recycled fibers and are 100% recyclable themselves. Add all paper-based items to your blue box!

Insulating Liners

HelloFresh’s liners are made from FSC-certified sustainable cardboard and pulper-safe film and are fully recyclable. In order to keep their ingredients fresh during extreme weather conditions, you may receive alternative liners.

 

No More Food Waste

 

HelloFresh sources as local as possible and send you the exact amount of everything needed to make your recipes, helping to cut household food waste by more than 60%! Please remember to discard items like carrot ends and lemon rinds into your household compost. You may re-use any of the HelloFresh brown paper bags as compost bags as seen above.

 

Ice Packs

 

 

 

HelloFresh’s ice packs are filled with a non-toxic salt solution. You can re-use them for a picnic or in a lunch box. Once you’re finished, melt the ice packs, cut open the bags, pour the non-toxic solution down the drain (using hot water to dissolve the gel), and recycle the plastic casing. You can also inquire about their ice pack return program by emailing recycling@hellofresh.ca.

How could Hello Fresh Improve?

 

Would love to see Hello Fresh offer the option of substituting thighs for breast, even if it’s at a higher cost to the buyer. This would be a nice feature as a lot of people only eat white meat (such as my mom).

Or the option of subscripting ingredients in the case of allergies. For instance, I’m allergic to mushrooms, would of loved to have been able to substitute them for onions in my French Dip Sandwich recipe.

I would also like to see an option for bigger portions. This is the number one comment my family has made. Maybe something along the lines of “hungry man portion” or “second helping option” ?

Also, I’d love to see an option to add a vegetable/salad/buns/rolls. For instance, with the Tandoori Style Chicken there was no side salad or veggie, we had to make our own. We also ended up eating it with a little crusty roll.

If you’d like to learn more about HelloFresh or any of their recipes, head over to their Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter 


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