This post prepared in partnership with Blue Apron
I believe delegation is the single best time-management trick I’ve discovered. If you’re juggling work, family, and countless responsibilities, you need to focus on what only you can do, say no to nonessentials, and delegate the rest—without guilt.
Meal planning and grocery shopping became especially challenging as my business grew. It wasn’t that I didn’t value those tasks; I did. That’s the hard part: you know something matters, but finding the time to manage it all feels impossible, and that can bring a lot of guilt.
We tried planning and cooking ahead, and we keep simple favorites on hand for busy nights, but there are still weeks when I can’t carve out time to shop or spend a day cooking in advance. Rather than feel bad every week about dropping the ball, I looked for a practical solution that works for our family.
One of the best solutions I found is Blue Apron, a meal service that delivers fresh, pre-measured ingredients so you can cook chef-designed meals at home. It removes the need to plan menus and shop while still letting you prepare a hot, fresh dinner. I appreciate being able to delegate the planning without guilt—the meals are creative and delicious. With a growing teenage son in the house, having easy-to-prepare, satisfying dinners is essential; otherwise we have a very hungry, cranky kid on our hands.
Blue Apron recently delivered two meals to our home, and it was such a relief to know dinner would be ready when we wanted it. I didn’t feel guilty about letting someone else handle the shopping and measuring, and I still got to cook and serve a homemade meal for my family.
My daughter and I enjoyed making the first dish together: Chicken Paillards with Fresh Linguine. It was simple to prepare—each ingredient arrives pre-measured, so nothing goes to waste and you don’t end up missing herbs or spices. Blue Apron offers different plans to match your family’s needs, and you can skip weeks when it doesn’t fit your schedule. They have a two-person plan and a family plan that works well for four people or households with small children. We served four and still had leftovers for lunch the next day.
The recipe card was straightforward, with ingredients listed on one side and step-by-step directions on the back. We chopped the vegetables, boiled the pasta, and cooked the chicken ourselves, so the meal felt fresh and homemade.
My son’s reaction when he saw the meal was priceless. He asks every evening, “What’s for dinner?” and while he’s fine with pizza, he’s especially excited when there’s a tasty, home-cooked option. It felt great to skip the shopping and menu planning and still sit down together to a good meal. I’m looking forward to trying more dishes, like zucchini and yellow squash enchiladas and seared salmon with preserved lemon and red quinoa.
Interested in trying Blue Apron? Here’s a special offer.
The first 50 readers to order will receive two free meals on their initial Blue Apron order.
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Details available through the Blue Apron offer.
Thank you to Blue Apron for providing the meals for this post. All opinions and experiences are my own.