Purple Carrot - Meal Delivery Review

 This is my "take 2" on the Purple Carrot review. The first time around I didn't have the greatest experience but a year on I decided to try again and was pleasantly surprised that many of the kinks have worked out. I like to prepare meals myself so they are slightly cheaper than the ready made meals. This was always a temporary "over the summer" thing for me. It's still a little pricey, the cheapest the dinner meal being $11 a serve (if you get four servings). I decided I liked it so much this time that I ended up keeping it but trying to get it every second week. You can easily skip weeks.

What I will say that I like is that if you opt for the four servings it still comes packages in two serve bundles so you don't have to cook all four servings at once which I love. I still love that they have the colored recipe book and don't have many pre-made ingredients so you can easily recreate at home on your own budget. I also love that they display the calories and nutrition at the bottom of each meal. Delivery was much more reliable than last time and there are plenty of GF options. 

I like the "pantry" option too so you can take on a couple things to make free shipping (over $100). What I thought worked best economically beside the four serve option was to skip every second order and in the order I was getting a couple of extra meals. It means I'm spending less per week plus ensured free shipping.

My only real issue is that there is no Eastern hub so everything is shipped from the North West so by the time it gets to Florida I almost have to eat everything the same day because a lot of the greens are on their way out. I also hate the GF wraps, they crumble and are very average. I use my own store bought ones. They give you an occasion free box to send to someone which is great but they definitely should set up incentives for customers to recruit other customers. I've sent two free boxes to friends who became subscribers so it would be more motivating to give something back, Purple Carrot are you listening??

Thanksgiving 2023!

 Thanksgiving 2023 already behind us! We had our plans change last minute but here's what I was able to get together on a coupe days notice!

Rebel Cheese (ordered from Purple Carrot) - Balsamic Fig and Smoked Cheddar

Picked up this Meati chicken made from mushrooms (very low processed - hardly any ingredients). Surprisingly had a very similar texture to chicken. Bought from Sprouts.

Green Bean Casserole is always a must! 

The Full Spread; Garlic Roasted Rosemary Potatoes, Mashed Potatoes, Onion Gravy, Stuffed Mushrooms, Southern Collard Greens, Cranberry Sauce, Agave Balsamic Glazed Brussels Sprouts and Carrots.

Of course, Pumpkin Pie!! Use a premade Wholly Wholesome GF vegan pie crust. Tru Whip Vegan for optional topping.

Also had Chocolate Pie, using premade vegan GF by Mi-Del.

Chocolate Pie

 I found this recipe that didn’t use tofu, because I didn’t have any. I used a premade vegan GF graham cracker crust I had got on sale and the filling took all of 5-10mins to make. Just needs a few hours to set. It was ma HUGE hit! Tasted like chocolate mouse :)

Original recipe from One Lovely Life. Original Graham Cracker Crust recipe from Sugar Spun Run.

Chocolate Pie

Ingredients

3 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

4 Tbsp cornstarch or arrowroot

1/3 cup coconut sugar (or white sugar)

1 (13oz) can full-fat coconut milk

1 cup unsweetened almond milk

2/3 cup dairy-free chocolate chips

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/8 tsp. salt

Premade Graham Cracker Crust (recipe below)

Toppings (optional) 

Dairy-Free Whipped Topping (Like CocoWhip, TruWhip Vegan, or Reddi-Wip almond or coconut)

Dairy-Free Shaved chocolate, chocolate chunks, or mini chocolate chips.

Method

In a medium saucepan, whisk together cocoa powder, cornstarch, and coconut sugar. Pour in coconut milk and almond milk.

Bring the mixture up to a boil, whisking constantly to help avoid lumps.

Boil 2-3 minutes, or until mixture is visibly thicker. (You want it to really thicken.)

Remove pudding from the heat and add chocolate chips, vanilla, and salt.

Whisk to combine until the chocolate chips are completely melted. (Mixture will be quite thick now.)

Remove pie crust from the refrigerator and pour in your chocolate cream filling.

Cover the pie with plastic wrap or beeswax wrap and chill until completely chilled through and set, at least 2-3 hours. (I love making this pie even further ahead–8-12 hours.)

When ready to serve, remove from the refrigerator and uncover. Top with whipped topping and shaved chocolate, as desired. Note: the surface of the pie may crack as it chills. This is totally fine. That’s what whipped cream is for!

Graham Cracker Crust

Ingredients

1 ½ cups (170 g) vegan GF graham cracker crumbs (or 11 graham cracker sheets pulverized to crumbs in a food processor)

2 Tablespoons vegan sugar

1 Tablespoons vegan brown sugar packed

7 Tablespoons (100 g) vegan butter melted

Method

Pulverize graham crackers in food processor until finely ground into crumbs (skip this step if starting with graham cracker crumbs). 

Stir together graham cracker crumbs and sugars in a medium-sized bowl.  

Add melted butter and use a fork to combine ingredients well until crumbs are all moistened.

Pour mixture into pie plate or springform pan.  U

se the bottom of a measuring cup to firmly pack crumbs into the bottom of the pan and (if using a pie pan) gently press up the sides.  

Use your fingers to pack crumbs tightly into the sides of the pie pan.

If the crust needs to be pre-baked, bake on 350F (175C) for 10-13 minutes and allow to cool before filling. 

If using this crust as part of a different recipe, bake according to your recipe's instructions.  

If this crust is for a no-bake recipe, refrigerate or freeze for 10-20 minutes before filling.