Gobble Dinner Box Moroccan Style Baked Eggs with Falafel & Couscous
Our first meal was Louisiana Shrimp with White Cheddar Grits, which I really enjoyed!
We opted to try recipes that we would not normally make, this is for sure one of them! I have never had shakshuka before, let alone made it! I have to say though Gobble did not disappoint!
Before I review this dish let me share a hilarious little story! I got out the ingredients ready to make this dish, I had not ever made Falafel before so I assumed that the package with 2 ball shaped items was the falafel.
I asked J and this was his opinion too. The recipe says to make 6 balls so I cut each one into 3 and I said to J that there were chocolate chips in the falafel! He was like no, there are not chocolate chips in falafel, which I knew but these definitely looked like chocolate chips. I even tasted one.
Haha, it turns out Gobble sent us 2 free chocolate chip cookie dough balls. The Falafel was the green paste!!!! Luckily I questioned it before J had me mix chocolate chip cookie dough into the shakshuka base with the eggs!
With that little hiccup aside, here are my judging criteria for the Gobble box. They come from the Gobble website claims, which seem too good to be true!
Time
Does it take 10/15 minutes to make?Quality Ingredients
Can you tell that they have sent organic products and quality products?Cost
Is it really 40% less than I would pay for organic produce at my local grocery store? Gobble costs $11.95 per meal, which is $23.90 for the whole meal.Taste
Do I enjoy the meal? Do my kids both eat it?
Time
This dish not only took 15 minutes to make, it is a one pan recipe. This meant that the time I spent cleaning up afterwards was minimal.I love that it was so quick to prepare because it meant I could spend more time with my family. The only downside to the short time, is that a lot of the ingredients come premade. This means I have no idea what was in the Shakshuka sauce, so I wouldn't be able to make it again. I also don't know how much sugar or salt it contains.
We do not eat a perfect diet, but I do like to be mindful of what is in the thing that my children are eating.
Quality Ingredients
I struggle with this one a little. The meal looked and tasted great, but how do you know if the eggs were from organic grain fed chickens? They looked and tasted very similar to the ones I get at Kroger, which are supposed to be cage free, but you never know. In the Gobble box the packaging is mostly plain, so there are no clues where the ingredients are from, or even what is in them!
Cost
This recipe is going to be difficult to break down the cost, as the shakshuka and falafel mix were pre-prepared so I am not entirely sure what I would need to buy to recreate them.
I do my weekly shop at Kroger. So I am going to look for the prices for the organic and premium brands (as that is what Gobble says they use) there.
2 eggs- Simple Truth Cage Free Large Brown Eggs Grade AA $2.50/12 = $0.42
cilantro- $0.44 = $0.22
couscous- Near East Roasted Garlic & Olive Oil Couscous Mix $2.29 for 5.8oz = $2.29
swiss chard- Organic - Red Chard (closest I could find) $1.99 = $0.99
shakshuka sauce is not sold at my Kroger, but I can find a 16oz jar online for about $6.
fresh falafel is not sold at my Kroger, but I found another local place that sells it for $5
This recipe had some speciality ingredients so worked out as $14.92 for 2 people, which is $7.46 each.
Gobble costs $11.95 per meal, which is $23.90 for the whole meal.
I would save $8.98 ($4.49 a person) by buying the ingredients myself. Gobble claims to save you 40% off buying ingredients yourself, I do not see this to be true unless maybe you are buying direct from each manufacturer.
Taste
We did all really enjoy the taste of this meal. This was the dish I was slightly concerned about serving up, but even though it was slightly spicy, my kids finished it up!
I really enjoyed trying a dish from another country and I am really pleased we chose it. The Shakshuka sauce was delicious and the Falafal was really flavourful. I like that we were able to try something new and it was toddler approved!!
I researched the dish a little online, and it says it is traditionally served with Pita bread, I wish I would have bought some or got some in my box because that would have been perfect!
I think it was a win. It was a great meal, and because we had a coupon for the box we did not pay full price. I think the Gobble box is a great idea to try new recipes, but it is a little on the costly side.
Yum - it looks great! I had never heard of Gobble before. I have done HelloFresh and like that a lot.
We did Hellofresh first and tried Gobble as we got a coupon. I prefer Hellofresh as you start with the whole ingredients, I like that you would be able to replicate the recipes by yourself and also think it feels healthier and less processed. The Gobble meals only take 15 minutes to preoare and they have a great variety of recipes, but I dont feel they are as fresh as Hellofresh as sauces/veggies etc come premade ready for heating.