I will never forget the look of panic on my new husband’s face as I chatted on the phone with my newly minted mother in law.
She had asked what I was cooking for supper.
There was no way for her to know that I had “planned” crackers and onion dip for myself and expected my husband to fend for himself; rummaging in the pantry for the crumb filled bag ends of several boxes of cereal and hoping for the best as to the expiration date on the milk. He launched himself over the back of the couch, lunging at the phone in my hand. “Don’t tell her!”
Well, d’uh.
We lost my mother in law last year, but I still feel her meal planning expectations, and the promise I made her to take care of her boy and our sons.
But I hate it. The meal planning.
Every night, a nutritious meal to fuel their bodies and give them the energy to carry them through to the morning.
Little hands make light work!
I would happily cook for an hour if someone would just tell me what to make. Okay, maybe not happily, but not so grugdingly. To this end, I have signed up for countless meal planning services. I have roughly a thousand books with as many months’ worth of “can’t miss” recipes for each day of the week. Bah. Still no good. Even with the apps you can customize, it is hard to fit your family’s specific tastes into a template.
So I was pretty intrigued by the idea behind Simply Supper. The southside company is a meal preparation business that holds several sessions throughout the week where you are invited to prepare six or twelve meals in a serving size of either 2-3 (which was perfect for my family with a two year old and a five year old) or 4-6, from a selection of entrees that change monthly.
My first taste of Simply Supper was when a friend brought several dinners she had prepared as a baby present after the birth of my second child. It was such a thoughtful gift, and the food was so, so good.
My little sous-chef
Now, I have finally managed to make it there myself. Well, not by myself…I brought my five year old, and it was a great experience!
When you book a meal preparation session, you are asked to select the meals you would like. I choose things I would mostly never take the time to prep and things outside my normal repitiore: Maui Meatballs, Firecracker Chicken, Ragin’ Cajun Po’boys, Sausage Ragout, Pork Medallions in Mushroom Marsala, and the intriguing Earl Grey Salmon.
I didn’t have to cut up any of this
Each station in the storefront location is set out for a different recipe, with the ingredients and idiot-proof instructions (thank you!) all laid out, like a cooking show, or maybe an organized person’s house.
The system they have devised is so nicely organized, it felt like a fun little night out with my son, rather than the onerous job of planning and prepping. If you don’t want to do that though, you can also have them prep the meals for you.
The cost is really reasonable when you consider you don’t have to plan, grocery shop, go back to the grocery shop for the things you forgot, clean your kitchen, chop everything, get distracted by Facebook, or do the dishes afterwards!
I have a freezer full of delicious meals and a hankering to go back next month…I hear the holiday menu is amazing!
Simply Supper is located at #1, 2305 Rabbit Hill Road. You can call them at (780) 433-6958 or email info@simplysupper.ca A very big thank you to them for hosting us!
