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My Dinnerly review has been a few weeks coming. If you’ve been following, you’ll know by now that we have spent a little time of late talking about eating. We need food whether our brains are prepared to help us create a meal or not. Even when we are in the mood to cook, sometimes we just find ourselves tired of the same old thing.
Dinnerly saved me from my meal rut
My meal schedule, if I had ever bothered to write it down, looked something like this: tacos, chili, spaghetti, lather, rinse repeat. They’re quick, they’re easy, and while I was on tour during the summer and settling into work for the fall, they were simple things I could put together without much thought. It doesn’t take much skill to brown burger or boil water. The boys and I spent many a night on the couch dealing with the results of all the beans I’d ingested. Fortunately, my nose isn’t as sensitive as theirs.
Boredom isn’t good for your appetite
In the meantime, though I was making meals quickly, I was tired of eating the same old thing. Yes it was easy, yes it consistently tasted good, but I was bored. You all know boredom is bad for the ADHD brain. We crave new experiences, stimulation, and variety. There was none of any of that in my dinner routine. It was time to wake my mealtime up from the snoozefest.
In my boredom, I went full millennial: I decided to try a meal delivery service. I landed on Dinnerly because they were cost-effective, I liked the purple in their advertising, and they were having a sale! Not too often I get a win all across the board. The ordering process was simple enough, and before I knew it I was opening up my box of goodies and getting ready to cook up a storm.
Think about it this way: you’ve heard me say several times I don’t consider myself a cook, yet I was able to get these results:
That was a potato gnocchi and spinach recipe they sent me. You steam the gnocchi, wilt the spinach, add the cheese, and broil. Easy, right? In 30 minutes I went from being hungry to having a meal that was pretty enough for me to come share pictures with you. If that doesn’t tell you something, nothing else will.
I’ve been using the service for a few weeks, and I know you’re ready to hear my full thoughts on it. Luckily I’ve found some benefits (and trouble spots) for us ADHDers looking to give meal delivery a try. Here’s my Dinnerly review at last.
The triumphs of using Dinnerly
- It comes to the house with everything you need – That means spices (except salt and pepper), sauces, vegetables, meats, sour cream, EVERYTHING you need to make the recipes, except a few condiments that are noted in the recipe, are going to be in that box. As you know, going to the grocery store can often feel like a set up for failure. There is overstimulation galore in the grocery store. Looking through rows of items and getting so overwhelmed you can’t remember what you needed is a huge problem. Coming home from that to realize you got everything except for what you needed to complete the recipe is defeating.
- You get to try food that is far from the same old thing– This week I have a tortellini pesto waiting in my refrigerator. I don’t do pesto at home, not ever. But I’m about to. It is important to try new things so we can stretch our cooking skills and make things besides tacos and spaghetti sometimes. With Dinnerly, I get to try new foods that I never even considered trying to make at home.
- You’re saving time and money – Have you ever gone to the grocery store and bought everything except what you needed? Have you gotten distracted and gone somewhere, leaving the groceries to melt and spoil in the car? Those things are a HUGE waste of our time and money. When you avoid the grocery store, you avoid the overwhelm, the waste of gas, and the waste of time. You’ll still have to get some basic items, but at least this way you know that dinner is covered by your Dinnerly service.
The Trouble Spots
Just like everything we find ourselves using, you definitely want to weigh out the pros and cons. You know when there is ADHD to consider, you want to make sure that what you’re doing is something that is going to be helpful. There weren’t many trouble spots, but there were a few:
You have to review the menu options/recipes
When you are working, going to school, dealing with kids, etc, it is easy to forget to check in with something, but with Dinnerly if you don’t check your meals within a specific time, you may end up with something you don’t particularly like. Fortunately, they have the menu planned out for weeks in advance so you’re able to make selections weeks in advance. Then it will be like a pleasant surprise when good food shows up at your door.
Remembering to grab the other items you need
When you check the recipe list for the week, you need to pick up a few items to round out the recipes sometimes. Simple things like vinegar or a specific oil. Nothing complicated, but if the grocery store is your kryptonite, you might want to place an order on Amazon before your box arrives.
Making time to cook
Dinnerly can give you a boost in the food department. It will put the tools you need in your hand, but it can’t create the time you need to cook for you. If finding time to cook is one of the issues you are having, hopefully reducing your shopping time can help you with increasing your cooking time.
Give me YOUR Dinnerly review
Dinnerly has been incredibly helpful to me, and I hope that this Dinnerly review is helpful to you if you’re considering it. With it, I can save time, stop overspending at the grocery store, and spend more time hanging out with my dogs, which they certainly appreciate. If you give them a try, let me know what you think!
Until next time,
René
How To Cook When You Have Funky Executive Function
100 Things To Eat When Your Brain Won’t Let You Cook
Housecleaning and ADHD Is A Perpetual Challenge
6 Grounding Techniques That Plug My Mind Back Into The Present
Does Konmari Spark Joy For The ADHD Brain?
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