I first heard of Blue Apron, a service that delivers all the ingredients you need to make three gourmet-quality meals, back in December 2013.
My friend Merri followed a Blue Apron recipe and made us a delicious dinner of udon noodle soup during one of my visits to New York City. She initially signed up for Blue Apron to teach herself how to cook since she was not really comfortable in the kitchen and absolutely raved about the step-by-step instructions that came with each shipment of the meal delivery service.
I came home from New York and spoke highly of the service to Ryan… so much so that he ended up giving me four weeks of Blue Apron meals for Christmas that year! We had so much fun trying new recipes and using fun, flavorful ingredients. We continue to use the service regularly and I promise you we have yet to make one meal we didn’t love. I now have my mom and dad hooked on regular deliveries, too!
In case Blue Apron hasn’t been on your radar up until now, here’s how it works: Blue Apron is a service that sends you all of the farm-fresh ingredients you need to make three delicious meals a week for $9.99 per person per meal (with free shipping). (A Family Plan is also available and feeds a family of four for $8.74 per person per meal.) All ingredients are delivered to your doorstep in a refrigerated box and come with three chef-designed recipes that are easy to follow thanks to gorgeous photos of each step of the recipe. (The Tom-Yum Style Shrimp and Noodles and the Orange Ginger Salmon are calling to me!)
Ryan and I initially opted for the vegetarian meal plan to help ourselves learn to cook more delicious meatless meals, but you can choose whether or not your want your meals to include red meat, poultry, seafood, etc.
For our most recent Blue Apron delivery, we opted for a pescetarian meal plan and received all the fresh ingredients we needed to make two vegetarian dishes and one meal with fish.
Here’s what our menu looked like:
This dish was truthfully the one we were least excited about, mainly because it looked like it might be a little bland since, at first glance, it seemed like simple white fish, cooked rice and wilted spinach. Well, we were in for a very pleasant surprise because this dish was a big-time hit with both of us!! (It actually ended up being Ryan’s favorite!) It was absolutely delicious thanks to the salty miso yuzu glaze and the fresh ginger. Definitely not your average fish and rice dish!
I couldn’t wait to make this salad. The colors from the bright orange sweet potatoes and deep green kale made it look so vibrant and tasty. I am happy to report that is ended up being every bit as delicious as I hoped it would be! The chewy texture of the farro paired together perfectly with the soft sweet potato and the crunchiness of the hazelnuts. I also loved that I learned how to pickle onions while I made this recipe, as that’s something I never knew how to do before! I told Ryan I think this salad would also taste delicious chilled as a summer side dish to bring to a BBQ with friends.
If you put a fried egg on top of something, Ryan will definitely order it at a restaurant, so this recipe caught his eye the minute we pulled it out of the Blue Apron box. (My egg was cooked all way through – pregnancy precaution.) Ryan ended up cooking the sauce part of this dish (for some reason, during pregnancy canned crushed tomatoes are currently making my stomach turn) but by the time he was done following the recipe, the smell encouraged me to give it a try and I loved it!! While he tackled the peppery sauce, I made the tortilla chips that served as the crunchy bed for the dish and fried up the eggs. Team work at its finest! Also, I loved the way this recipe had us toss fresh avocado in lime juice, salt and pepper before using it as a delicious garnish. That really kicked the flavor up a notch!
Giveaway
Now here is your chance to try Blue Apron for yourself! One PBF reader will win a free week of Blue Apron meals for two!
To enter this giveaway, click here to pop over to Blue Apron and check out what’s on the menu for this week and leave a comment below telling me which recipe you’d be most excited to create!
Please note: This giveaway includes a week of meals for two people. Blue Apron delivers to 80 percent of the United States. In order to win this giveaway, you must live in one of the delivery zones. (A map of the delivery zones may be seen here.) I will randomly select a winner on Friday.
And please don’t worry if you don’t win! The first 100 readers who try Blue Apron will receive two free meals on their first order! To receive this promo, please click here to order.
Good luck!!!
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Disclaimer: While this post is sponsored by Blue Apron, affiliate links are not included and I am not receiving any compensation for orders placed with Blue Apron. Thank you for your support!
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I have been craving Asian, so the Tom Yun-Style Shrimp and Noodles sound incredible!
I would have to order the Tom Yum-Style Shrimp & Noodles.
I would love to try the Tom Yum Shrimp Noodles!
I’d like to try the Smoky Beluga Lentils
I would love to make the Smoky Beluga Lentils.
The Salvadoran Black Bean & Cheese Pupusas look really good!
In the spirit of St. Paddy’s Day, I’d love to try the Corned Beef Spiced Flank Steaks
Ooh the jambalaya looks tasty!
Definitely think the Corned Beef-Spiced Flank Steaks would be a fun and fancy way to celebrate St. Paddy’s. If only they had a Shamrock Shake to go with it!
Tom yum shrimp and noodles!!
The turkey chili sounds delicious.
I’m so hungry right now! That fish looks amazing! I would like to try the Tom Yum-Style Shrimp & Noodles. I love shrimp, so it caught my attention right away!
I’d make the Baked Fontina pasta… I’ve never met a pasta I didn’t love! 🙂
I’d like to try the flank steak! Looks so yummy
they all look so yummy! would love to try the tom yum style shrimp and noodles
I would love the Baluga Lentils. Looks delicious!
Baked Fontina Pasta for sure! Give me a lllll the carbs 😉
I’ve never had tom yum soup, but always have! So the Tom-yum style shrimp and noodles would be my pick!
I’m craving that turkey chili!
Not sure if I am too late but either way I’d love to try the Tom Yum-Style Shrimp & Noodles! I love shrimp 🙂 & congratulations on the baby!!! So exciting
The Turkey Chili looks great!
I would love to try the Turkey Chili!!
The baked fontina pasta looks SO good!
I would love to try the turkey chili! Always wanted to try their meals!
The corned beef-spiced flank steaks!! It is almost St. Patrick’s Day after all 🙂
Corned Beef-Spiced Flank Steaks, YESS!!!!!
I would love more recipes for lentils. So, the smokey beluga lentils would be a hit for me!
Smoky Beluga Lentils all the way! Sounds like such a unique dish. Loving eggs lately too!
I definitely want to try the Tom Yum-Style Shrimp and Noodles!
Mmm the Baluga Lentils sound fabulous, thanks for hosting the giveaway! And congrats on the baby boy, so excited for you both!!!
I like everything! The turkey chili sounds amazing!!!
Baked fontina pasta – I love brussels sprouts!
Tom yum Shrimp!!
I would probably love to try the Turkey Chili. I’m obsessed with chili & have never tried turkey chili before.
Corn beef spiced flank steak! I am 13 weeks pregnant and have had a bad craving for steak for about 6 weeks!
The Tom Yum-Style Shrimp & Noodles sounds delish!
Smoky Beluga Lentils. Lentils are one of those things that I feel I should eat more of, but I don’t have a winning recipe for them yet. These sound good!
Turkey chili for sure! Yum!
I am a huge fan of any kind of turkey!
Tom Yum Noodles FOR SURE!
The Tom-Yum Style Shrimp and Noodles looks incredible!
Tom yum shrimp and Noodles pleeeease!!!! 🙂
the tom yum soup looks awesome!
The tom tom noodles! I have heard such good things about all of their food.
The Corned Beef-Spiced Flank Steaks with Braised Cabbage & Buttered Red Potatoes sounds festive, delicious, and way outside my comfort zone!
I think I’d try the turkey chili!
The Salvadoran Black Bean & Cheese Pupusas!
Tom yum for sure! Congrats on your pregnancy!
The Warm Golden Beet & Freekeh Salad! Looks delish!
Short rib burgers on pretzel buns look fantastic!