Healthy and Convenient Meals by Fresh n Lean

Samples were provided to facilitate this review, however all opinions are our own!

I don’t know about you guys, but I’ve never been fancy enough to have food to my door so I was giddy when I was given the opportunity to review this stuff.  And by this stuff, I’m talking about Fresh n’ Lean food delivery.   Fresh n’ Lean is a company that offers a fresh and healthy food delivered to your door, that’s all organic, GMO free and with no artificial ingredients.  There are multiple meal plans to choose from, whether it’s 1-3 meals a day, for 1 or 2 people, or an a la carte option.  Prices vary from $2.89 (a la carte item) to $50.39/day (3 meals/day for 2 people) with the option of 5 or 7 days a week.

First let me mention, I was surprised at the size on some of these meals.  They weren’t wimpy, by any means.  Because of the way I eat, which is primarily several small meals a day, I split each container in half and only ate about 3 or 4 a day.  I did eat other things beyond these meals though.  I drink a protein shake every morning and I also needed some fresh, crunchy veggies in my life so I ate a salad every day too.  Aside from that, these meals were my primary calorie source for about 4 days.  It also happened to work out perfect since I had less time to make my lunches this week due to a longer and more hectic than normal work schedule, so this opportunity couldn’t have come during a better week.  I split everything into two smaller containers that would fit in my lunchbox and packed up what I needed in the mornings.  If there is one thing I could describe these as, it would be convenient.  The idea that everything is planned out and delivered to my door is a weight off anyone’s shoulders.  Especially since it’s healthy AND vegan. 

The box was quite well taken care of too considering it came in a large styrofoam cooler with icepacks.  Each meal was in its own container, air sealed with plastic and a sticker on top with ingredients, nutrition facts, heating instructions and an expiration date.  Needless to say, all I needed to do was pop it in my fridge and be done with it, but anyone who knows me knows I have to complicate things.

Overall the food was really good.  There were only a couple of things I didn’t like and a few critiques I could have.  The Chia Pudding I wasn’t terribly fond of, but that may be a personal preference of mine since I don’t ever eat it warm.  And the Chickpea Stew would have been amazing if the chickpeas had been cooked more.  The only meal I just really didn’t like was the Tumeric Kidney Bean Broccoli Bowl.  I found out two things while eating this:  I don’t like turmeric and I really don’t like kidney beans.

That being said, I also had a couple that I absolutely adored.  My number 1 favorite: Eggplant Artichoke Heart Pasta.  Holy Crap.  I could have eaten this pasta every day for a week and not been bored.  I’ve grown fonder of both eggplant and artichoke hearts recently, so I may be a little biased in my opinion, but this stuff was delicious!  I’ll admit, my initial taste of it was when it was cold and I was splitting everything up into the smaller containers and I was a little scared to try it.  The pasta didn’t have a good texture and it turned me off.  Turns out, that’s just what I get for being nosey and not warming it up first.  It’s made from brown rice pasta, so it made perfect sense that the texture would change once heated.  There was nice chunks of eggplant, broccolini, and kale, but no one flavor stood out on its own.  Everything just melded perfectly and it really was just a melt in your mouth kind of flavor.
 

The Southern Vegetable Beans?  Yup.  I’m officially a fan of black-eyed peas.  I’d never had them before this and I will probably continue to be obsessed with them for the next couple months.  Being born and raised in Kentucky, people were surprised when I told them I’d never had black-eyed peas before.  It had always been one of those beans I was super unsure of, didn’t know how to cook and didn’t grow up with.  But becoming vegan opened up my eyes to a lot more foods I’d either never had or didn’t know or remember I liked.  But all these babies needed was a little bit of hot sauce and I was in Southern heaven!  Black eyed peas, celery, broccoli, carrots, in a smoky, slightly sweet sauce and it was amazing!
Oatmeal is one of those things I don’t eat very often, so I was a little spoiled with the Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal.  It was perfect for the simple fact that it wasn’t too sweet but there was plenty of fruit.  Apples, dates, raisins, made with coconut milk and maple syrup; it was delicious.  I might actually have to try to recreate this one since I’m always trying to get my boyfriend to eat healthier and actually eat breakfast!

All in all, the service is great, the food was really good and even the stuff I didn’t enjoy as much still smelled amazing every time.  Considering the freshness, convenience and the fact that everything was organic and healthy, the prices really aren’t that bad.  Maybe not something for everyday eating, but certainly appealing enough to make your life a little easier and even get you through a long week at work!

Visit them online at www.freshnlean.com

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