Blue Apron Meal #2: Lemon-Thyme Turkey Cutlets

I made meal #2 from my very first Blue Apron delivery last night. For those of you who may not know what Blue Apron is, check out more of the details about the service and my first delivery in this post.

On last night’s menu: Lemon-Thyme Turkey Cutlets with Asparagus, Brussels Sprouts and Crispy Fingerling Potatoes

I was excited about this recipe when I got my first delivery and was definitely in need of some comfort food last night after a typical Monday back in the office.

Deep sigh. Vino.

All of the ingredients were nicely packaged and still super fresh after delivery last Friday!

The recipe was easy to follow and the prep straightforward. The veggies and thyme were super quick. The potatoes and turkey took a few steps each (but provided me time to drink more wine). It was Monday folks, play along.

And um, thanks to that Monday therapy wine… I may have forgotten to take pics of the turkey prep and the actual meal cooking. Oops.

It was all super easy and the only downside was that the potatoes and asparagus were SO. VERY. YUM. that I gobbled up about half of both before I could finish cooking the meal! I will definitely double the quantity of those two ingredients when I make this again. So good.

The turkey was easy to make, but required about twice the cooking time called for in the recipe due to the thickness of the cutlets. The sauce was absolutely dreamy! As the turkey finishes you add in the garlic and shallots and then the chicken demi-glace, lemon thyme, water and BUTTER (hello!) with the veggies. The finished product was absolutely YUM!

And pretty, if I may say so.

I consider myself an Intermediate cook and would rate this recipe as Easy. I will definitely make it again! The $20 meal resulted in 3 portions versus the 2 it claims, so overall this was a good deal and resulted in the comfort food I so needed on a Monday night. Well done Blue Apron!

Next on the menu, meal #3 from my first Blue Apron delivery, Ratatouille-Filled Zucchini with Tomato and Basil Quinoa. I will let you know how it goes! Fingers crossed.

Cheers!

 

My First Blue Apron Delivery & Meal #1

I received my first Blue Apron delivery and made meal #1 Saturday night! For those of you who may not know what Blue Apron is, it is a delivery service that sends you new recipes and all of the fresh and portioned ingredients to make them as frequently as weekly (or on the schedule of your choice). A co-worker of mine introduced me to the service and gave me a coupon for a free first week’s delivery, so I had to check it out. I am in desperate need of some new recipes, and I really do enjoy cooking but the planning and shopping can be overwhelming (and expensive). We will see how this goes!

My first order arrived Friday morning even though I asked for a Thursday delivery date. I was a little worried that the extra day might have caused the food to spoil, but fortunately all was good! Although there is A TON of packaging, they did a great job of insulating and cooling the entire box – especially the meat and seafood – with biodegradable ice packs.

All of the ingredients were perfectly portioned, packaged and super fresh. There is a lot of packaging, which is a downside, but the quality of the packaging is high, so you can clean and repurpose almost all of it and recycle the rest! My order was for three meals for two and the only items they ask you have stocked in your pantry are oil, salt and pepper. In addition to the ingredients, you get very simple, step-by-step instructions for each recipe. Easy peasy!

Blue Apron Meal #1: Pan-Fried Orange Shrimp with Sautéed Scallions and Baby Bok Choy over Jasmine Rice

I made the first recipe from my delivery Saturday night. The ingredients were all fresh and nicely packaged. The shrimp was vacuum-packed and cleaned properly, which was a nice surprise – absolutely no fishy smell. Whew.

The instructions (a printed version of these) were super-duper easy to follow. I would consider myself an Intermediate cook, and would characterize this recipe as Very Easy. Prep work was simple and quick:

Cooking took less than 10 minutes! No joke. I used a wok instead of the sauté pan they recommended and the only thing I would do differently next time is add the liquids sooner and let them cook a little longer to reduce and thicken.

Dinner was served! It was super YUM and the recipe made about 3-4 decent portions versus the 2 the recipe claimed so now I have leftovers. Not to shabby for a $10 meal!

Overall, Blue Apron meal #1 was a success and something I will definitely make again! I love that they send just the right amount of ingredients so that I don’t end up with a bunch of extra produce rotting in the fridge after making three different recipes. Here is what’s up next on the menu – stay tuned – I will let you know how they turn out!

• Ratatouille-Filled Zucchini with Tomato and Basil Quinoa. Definitely not something I would typically make. When I think Ratatouille a cute cartoon rat is all that comes to mind, so this could be interesting.
• Lemon-Tyme Turkey Cutlets with Asparagus, Brussel Sprouts and Crispy Fingerling Potatoes. This sounds fabulous. Can’t wait!

Cheers!