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Post by luxexterior on Jun 17, 2021 17:31:45 GMT
Earlier this month, I won a $90 HelloFresh discount for logging my meals on a food diary app. The first box came this week and was completely free. I tried out the Balsamic Fig Chicken recipe tonight, and while I did stumble a bit based on how much food prep and cooking was going on all at once, I was immediately in love with the dish once I finally got to sit down and eat. The meal tasted like real restaurant food! The chicken dish consists of chicken topped with a sauce made from fig jam, balsamic vinegar, fresh rosemary, chicken stock, and diced onions. Part of the dish also included diced yukon gold potatoes and salad greens with a bit of lemon squeeze.
For the first delivery, I ended up asking for too many servings for the first few recipes, but at least I'll have plenty of delicious leftovers!
I was listening to Jefferson Airplane while in the kitchen:
Looks & sounds fantastic I wish I was eating that for dinner tonight.
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Post by Emily Wilson on Jun 18, 2021 23:44:57 GMT
Up next from the box: Zucchini and Tomato Flatbread! Much to my surprise, this recipe turned out to be both sweet and spicy. The cheese spread is ricotto with lemon zest and squeeze. The toppings include sauté zucchini and grape tomatoes. After I pulled the flatbreads out of the oven, I also added chopped parsley, some drizzles of honey and one small pack of chili flakes. I have never tasted a flatbread quite like this one before, but I think I'd have it more often!
This recipe didn't take as long to make as the last one, but I still got something to jam to. I was listening to the Cowboy Bebop soundtrack:
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Post by Emily Wilson on Jun 21, 2021 23:37:13 GMT
Third and final meal from the box before I start digging into the second shipment! Turkish-spiced chicken in apricot sauce. Served with a side of basmati rice with lemon squeeze/zest, chopped scallions and roasted almonds. Other side food includes harissa-spiced carrot fries.
Like with the other recipes I tried out, I also really liked this recipe! Only thing I didn't care for were surprisingly the carrot fries themselves. I personally prefer the fries I make with olive oil, garlic powder, sea salt and pepper with the big sturdy carrots I get at the farmer's market than the small limp carrots that came in the box with the harissa spice. Aside from that, I really loved the Turkish-spiced chicken and rice. I especially liked the rice, because it had toasted almonds in them, and I LOVE almonds! I didn't really listen to any music while I was cooking, so I saved the music for when I was eating instead. I was listening to Ondatrópica's self-titled debut album. One of the tracks includes a cover of Iron Man!
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Post by The Ocean on Jun 21, 2021 23:50:01 GMT
Okay, that is a HELL of a good rendition of Iron Man!
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Post by Emily Wilson on Jun 24, 2021 21:41:23 GMT
First meal from the second shipment: Creamy mushroom cavatappi! If the serving looks too small, it's because I grabbed too big of a bowl. Simply put, a pasta dish with sauted mushrooms mixed in a pan with blended milk and cheese.
I think once I sat down and was ready to eat, I remembered that I didn't really care for these types of pasta dishes before. But once I started eating, I thought that this dish was alright. Not my all-time favorite recipe from HF, but I will say that it tastes far better than the store-bought mac 'n' cheese boxes or the cheddar cheese pasta dish I tried to make last year (and failed).
Re-listened to Alice Cooper's Brutal Planet today. 🎵 Lot's of melting cheddar cheese, spreading instant meat disease... 🎵
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Post by Emily Wilson on Jun 25, 2021 22:24:59 GMT
These weren't from the box, but something I've wanted to try for awhile now: Stuffed red bell peppers with brown rice, ground beef, chopped onion, melted cheese, and tomato sauce. I tried one tonight, and it was super tasty!
Listened to some Ozzy today:
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Post by Emily Wilson on Jun 29, 2021 23:04:59 GMT
Last recipe from the second box: Chicken Au Poivre. Chicken Cutlets served with sauce made from chicken demi-glace, butter, minced shallot and chives, and crushed peppercorns. Sides include oven-baked Yukon potato wedges and green beans.
Very similar to the very first chicken dish I made from my first delivery, but that's okay. I had to cook the wedges and green beans for a little while longer than the instructions said though. Despite this, I do like the sauce more than the other one. (Probably because I've gotten better at making sauces.)
Listened to Judas Priest's Nostradamus album:
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Post by Emily Wilson on Jul 3, 2021 1:52:39 GMT
I opened my third box this week! Has ingredients for two recipes. The first one I tried out was the roasted veggie farro bowl. A serving has three parts: - Bottom (not shown since it's on the bottom of the bowl): Farro that was cooked on the stove. After the roasted veggies (sweet potatoes and onion) were finished in the oven and the farro was finished boiling, I mixed half the roasted veggies in the farro pot with melted butter.
- Top: Arugula salad greens with the other half of the roasted veggies and a sauce blend containing lemon squeeze, olive oil, dried cranberries, and non-sugar natural sweetener.
- Toppers: Lemon zest, sunflower pepitas, and shredded Parmesan cheese.
Only thing I forgot to include before I tossed the potatoes and onions in the oven was chili powder. Oh well. Even without the chili powder however, this recipe was extremely good!
This recipe absolutely passes with solid gold stars! To be honest, I have been struggling a bit with making my own salad bowls since I started trying to incorporate salad dishes this year. Tonight's meal really helped me figure out what I really need to make one that was both popping with flavors and fulfilling. It's for that reason that this is one of my top favorite meals that I got to try out so far.
Today's album is More by Pink Floyd:
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Post by Emily Wilson on Jul 15, 2021 19:35:16 GMT
This week was a 3-day family visit with my sister, her husband, and my nieces. On Sunday, we mainly hung out in my neighborhood, but on Monday and Tuesday, I got to hang out with them in Myrtle Beach. We got to check out many places, which was especially fun for me, because even after moving, I was mostly chilling in my new house. I didn't really go out and do anything fun in Myrtle Beach until my relatives visited. One of the things we got to check out was the Simpsons 4D Experience, which had a real-life Aztec Theatre and Kwik-E-Mart! I got one of their large Lard donuts while I was there. It was really good.
Inside the "movie" lobby were ceiling TVs that played musical clips from The Simpsons. Last one that played before I took my seat (and my personal favorite) was the one with Sherry Bobbins.
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Post by luxexterior on Jul 16, 2021 8:13:02 GMT
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Post by Emily Wilson on Aug 1, 2021 21:17:32 GMT
Last week's final box recipe: Za'atar Crusted Cheese. Served with couscous, sliced grape tomatoes, broiled sliced zucchini and onions and topped with chopped basil and lemon squeeze. Listened to Metal Church during dinner to remember Mike Howe:
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Post by Emily Wilson on Aug 31, 2021 2:39:45 GMT
Okay! So while I was visiting the Food Assembly Hall last week, I got to try out three of their different eateries! On the night of the BOC concert, I went to Coco's Fresh Italian to have chicken Parmesan panini for dinner. Then on Saturday morning before leaving, I had breakfast from the Whisk Crepes Cafe, and the one I had was called Midnight in Paris: A sweet crepe with raspberries, chocolate sauce, whipped cream, and chocolate ice cream. On top of having the crepe, I also had one of these donuts (Death by Chocolate) from the Donut Distillery. My song choice for today is Tainted Blood off of Symbol Remains:
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Post by Emily Wilson on Sept 28, 2021 22:49:05 GMT
Over the weekend, I went to a couple of places: On Saturday, I attended a flea market and then went to Blueberry's Grill afterwards for breakfast for the first time to try their Pancake Blast. It was absolutely good, and I especially loved how they pancake mix itself also had berries in it too and not just the berries and banana on top.
Then on Sunday, I visited a garden preserve called Brookgreen Gardens to check out the sculpture exhibits. The place also had a fancy lunch restaurant called Austin's Harvest Restaurant. Got to try their Greek chicken salad, which consisted of grilled chicken, slices of pita bread, hummus, diced tomatoes and cucumbers, shredded onion, chopped greens, chickpeas, crumbled feta cheese and grapes. For dressing, I had lemon oregano vinaigrette to the side. Only thing I didn't like were the grapes, but overall it was a superb dish. It was especially tasty as leftovers!
Of course, I did bring leftovers home with me, because I had to make room for dessert. I had tartufo. What I didn't know was that the dessert had bits of hazelnut in them, but I surprisingly liked it, considering that I'm currently extremely picky when it comes to nuts. Also got to try a little bit of key lime pie, which was outstanding.
I have personally lately been into Alan Parsons again lately, so my song choice for today is Blown By The Wind from his solo album On Air. Kinda hard to decide who I want to see next after seeing BOC again. If there was another band or solo artist I want to see live again, I think it would be Alan Parsons. He knows how to keep the setlists fresh and sounding amazing, and is a class act when meeting in-person. His tour was postponed again, but I hope there's a possibility to see him again next year.
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Post by Emily Wilson on Oct 15, 2021 21:16:49 GMT
Today's local luncheon: Grilled portabella patty with parmesan cheese, grilled balsamic onions, roasted red peppers, and fries. For dessert to-go, chocolate cake.
What I found extremely interesting was how the restaurant has a next-door "mall", which gave me HUGE vaporwave/mallsoft vibes, even though this place wasn't a typical huge mall building. Aside from being one of the only people visiting, the layout made it feel all the more surreal as it was like going through a pathway with murals that remind me of mall pseudo-gardens.
I would have picked a track today from Ozzy's Down to Earth because it turns 20 tomorrow, but after going to the "mall" today, I have a urge to listen to some vaporwave/mallsoft compilations while I work from my computer:
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Post by mary on Oct 15, 2021 22:42:28 GMT
Anytime someone mentions a mall, I always think about the Granite Run Mall in Media, PA which was my favorite mall when I was young. It was always such a treat to go shopping there. It's so sad what became of it. Here's a video that someone filmed shortly before it was demolished.
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