If you are new here, welcome! We had quite the bump in awareness over the past week when our co-founder, Lindsey, had a tweet go viral and then subsequently appeared on a number of national news programs. If you signed up for our mailing list, you are receiving this, but can opt out at any time.
I write this from my perspective; sometimes it’s from my own dual-career household and sometimes I pull from what’s going on at Strongsuit. It’s free (there is no paid version to opt into) and I don’t use affiliate links. It’s just a way to stay in touch with our community, not to drive revenue.
Weekend Things
Planning Weeknight Dinners
Building the routines:
We’ve tackled weeknight dinner routines enough times to know it isn’t really about googling Paleo recipes or last minute filling an online cart. It’s about creating a system that works consistently. And the system is never one size fits all. So how do we figure out what works for individual members and then help with the follow through?
I keep thinking about those quizzes in teen magazines - “Which hot celeb should you be dating?” or “Which Disney princess are you?” But instead of the dream of dating Harry Styles, it’s the dream of: “How should you get dinner on the table without losing your mind?” And it would go something like this:
How important is it to you that your dinner is “homemade”?
very
the preparation yes, the decision of what recipe to cook no
as long as I recognize the ingredients and know it’s healthy, it’s ok
that’s just not the reality right now
How much time do you have to make dinner (realistically)?
a little time to plan weekly, time to get it “on the stove” while I finish up work (or I have help getting it on the stove)
no time to plan, but 30 - 45 minutes to get it on the table (me or someone else)
a little time to plan weekly, no time to prepare the meal
no time at all
How picky are your fellow eaters?
have preferences, but can eat around ingredients
willing to try new things
likes to pick for themselves
definitely picky
Do adults and kids always eat together?
More often than not
50/50
A night or two
Doesn’t happen
Is packaging waste/recycling a factor in your decision?
I hate plastic containers
If I can recycle it, no big deal
Minimal is great, but I’m not losing sleep over it
Not a factor
Mostly As: You’re a sheet pan/grilling/easy recipe type. You don’t mind finding recipes you’ll return to time and again and someone in the house has time to combine ingredients and then quickly cook.
Mostly Bs: You’re a meal kit box type. You’ve got decision fatigue and hate creating and shopping the grocery list, but you don’t mind a little chopping, cooking and assembly.
Mostly Cs: You’re a meal subscription type. You don’t need to decide what you are in the mood for each day, but you need it to be as simple as sticking it in the microwave.
Mostly Ds: You’re best with take-out. The kids might be in a rut and there’s just no way that you are eating plain pasta and chicken nuggets again. So they can go their way at meal time and you can treat yourself to something delicious cooked by a professional and delivered hot.
But then, the choices:
So maybe you know in theory what works best, but how do you put it into practice?
Type A: when we start to pull actual recipes for members, our favorite cookbooks that we return to time and again is Dinner: Changing the Game by Melissa Clark and Sheet Pan Suppers by Molly Gilbert. We love Smitten Kitchen for her no-fuss, made in a real kitchen recipes and this Honey Garlic Shrimp was a gateway into the rest of this site.
We love Whisk to store recipes and create shareable shopping lists, but have also have found cute meal planners if you need something to put on the fridge to avoid “What’s for Dinner?”
Type B: there truly is a meal kit for everyone. This chart is helpful for a quick comparison, but we’ve found HelloFresh to be popular with our members Dinnerly to be the best for picky-ish eaters. These don’t save you much time evening of, but they are great if different people in the house are cooking and you want to avoid having to do the work of laying out all the decisions, details and instructions on ingredients.
Type C: Strongsuit has found the best meal delivery services to be pretty regional. CookUnity delivers to 47 states and Provenance has been a choice for members focused on avoiding specific ingredients. But in Columbus, OH, our members love Alchemy Prep and we are regularly searching for hyper-local options based on member needs.
Type D: Strongsuit has found that where we can help is supporting members in just “letting it go.” Not every season is a time for home cooked meals and conversations around the table. Why not lean into the variety? And cut yourself a break?
Can't Live Without this week...
I was at lunch with a friend this week when I noticed that we were just a block from Muji - home of my most favorite pens. I stopped in to stock up and took a second to browse. I’m so glad I did because their socks are SO good. The colors are punchy, but the price even better.
As always, this newsletter is free (there is no paid version with extra content) and the links are not affiliate driven.