When was the last time you cooked a family Meal and actually took the time to appreciate the results of your efforts before everyone tucks in?

If you’re anything like me then you won’t be able to remember that ever happening because as soon as something is ready to be served, it goes on the table and everyone dives right in.  It doesn’t mean that we aren’t grateful for how lucky we are to have food on our table, it’s just that as soon as everyone is sat around the table it’s time to catch up on our day and everyone always wants to be the first to share what’s happening.

We wouldn’t be alone either according to research done by Hellofresh which found that on average we Brits spend hardly any time appreciating what we’ve made.  We’ve spent time planning what we’re going to have, sourcing the ingredients, making the food and then serving it up for our families to eat yet we don’t take a moment to appreciate our own efforts – no wonder I often feel uninspired when I’m writing our weekly meal plan!

So when HelloFresh challenged me to choose a meal from their Food For Thought collection of recipes and cook it for my family I was quite excited.  I’ve always loved cooking and making meals that I know my family will enjoy but I feel like I’ve lost a lot of the joy that I used to get and I know it’s because I’m a bit stuck in the rut with the meals I’m choosing to cook each week.

HelloFresh wants to encourage people to take the time to appreciate and to be proud of the meals we put on our table so they’ve developed a range of recipes that they know have the wow factor without being difficult to make.   The recipes all include an extra step to make you consciously take the time to appreciate what you’ve done.  I love this idea and it fits with how I feel about mindfulness and being in the moment.

I chose to cook Speedy Sausage Pasta which is one of the ‘rapid’ recipes from the collection and whilst I won’t share the recipe with you as you can find it over on the HelloFresh page if you want it, I will tell you that I had more fun cooking this than any meal I’ve cooked in a long time.

It took around twenty minutes from start to finish but because I was so focused on the various steps, it was really relaxing.  The last step of the recipe reminded me to step back and be proud of what I’d made and to appreciate it and I couldn’t resist grabbing my camera and taking a few photos which is something else that I haven’t done much lately.

Just look at it though, it looks amazing even if I do say so myself…

Everyone enjoyed it so much that they’ve requested it for tea again soon!

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