Family Meals Minus the Stress

In my search to find an answer for the everyday dinner dilemma, I decided to check out Dream Dinners, a franchise that allows you to prepare dinners in their store.  The thought of making a mess in someone else kitchen is appealing.  They have the spices, the vegetables already chopped, and all of the ingredients you need to assemble the perfect dish.  The only thing you have to do is measure, stir and place into freezer bags. 

Full disclosure here, I have tried them before but I never analyzed it.  I decided to revisit this idea of dinner when they sent me an email last week offering 15% off the already assembled meals with no minimum purchase.  So I took them up on their offer but this time I took out my calculator and started thinking about my time and money.  I purchased four, three-serving meals and two side dishes for about $72.00.  But before I left,  just like they always do after completing you're meal preparation, they tempt you with food samples from some of the meals on the menu.  On the day I went, they had made a yummy, creamy dish called "Pub Style Chicken with Mashed Potatoes".  They offered a free three serving meal of this dish if I booked "today".  Needless to say, they sold me on scheduling my session.

The minimum order is six, six-serving meals.  The chicken dishes range from $24.99 - $38. for six servings while the beef dishes range from $38. - $45. The pork dishes range from $28. - $34. The shrimp and seafood stew meals run from $39. - $41.  When you break it down per serving, the range is $4.17 - $7.50.  It takes about an hour to to assemble six different meals, if you know what you're doing and don't spend too much time talking.  It's a reasonable amount of time out of my day and a reasonable price.  The best part of the deal is that I don't have to think too much about "what's for dinner."  However, I found that there's still some work to do once you get home.

Some of the meals come with a side dish of green beans, asparagus or potatoes.  Usually another side dish is needed such as a salad, rice, or beans.  I made the "Orange Bourbon Chicken" with asparagus, we did not have any leftovers the next night and my husband says the serving sizes are "skimpy".   I made rice and a salad to go with it and it was very tasty.

The assembly session at the store is fun with music playing in the background.  I can be very focused when I follow the recipes and even alter them, placing any cheese in a separate bag because some in our family don't like the creamy, smooth, melting chunks.  One daughter has a sensitivity to gluten, so I will be able to cook gluten-free pasta and scoop some of the sauce from the dish I make on to her pasta. 

For four dishes I save at least an hour a day without the stress.  As far as the cost,  I made a similar dish this week and here's what I purchased:
2 lbs of chicken breasts $7.98 ( I bought the family pack and took out 2 lbs)
1 bottle of Roasted Pineapple Habanero Sauce $7.99
1 lb of asparagus $2.99
1 1/2 cups of rice $3.00
1 bag of pre-washed salad, tomatoes, cucumber $4.50
1 loaf French bread $1.50
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Total is $27.96

$27.96 is similar to what I would pay at Dream Dinners, but you wouldn't get the rice, salad, and bread.  So I subtracted those items and came up with $18.96.  This is about $12.00 less than I would spend at Dream Dinners.  So far, I like this idea and I'm looking forward to my session.

Note: "When Good Enough is Perfect" NEVER comes into play for my professional or school work.