Random Outlaw

May Super Suppers Update

Well I realized that I wrote about my religious experience at Super Suppers, but I haven't updated on the actual product from that experience, so here goes.

I bought six meals again: Ravioli with Italian Sauce, Heavenly Chicken, Sirloin and Potato Bake, Chicken Cacciatore, Beef and Broccoli, and Honey-Ginger Chicken Grill.   I'm going to try and vary the menu a little more next month because this month was really heavy on the chicken.  We sometimes end up eating chicken three days in a row.

The Sirloin and Potato Bake was made with tater tots, which was not specified on the menu.  R will not eat tater tots, so I was a little dissapointed with that.  It actually turned out to taste really good.  I made something else for R.   As for the Beef and Broccoli stir fry, I think that I will probably separate the baggie of meat in the future and just defrost that so that I can cook the vegetables frozen.  This is how most frozen stir frys work.  When I defrost the whole shebang, the veggies got kind of soggy, but the meal still tasted good.

Somehow we got a little wonked out on our leftovers, so usually only three people are actually eating the Super Suppers (R, my sister, and the Moosh).  I generally get stuck with leftovers, which I am loathe to eat, and so they often get thrown out and I get Taco Bell instead.  I am going to try and rectify that next month, because that's not the point of buying Super Suppers.   It worked much better when I was splitting the meals amongst the four of us.

Overall, again, the quality of the food is really good.  The Heavenly Chicken is probably my favorite.  I also enjoyed the Honey Ginger Chicken.

Next month I will be purchasing 12 meals so that I can pay less and so I only have to go once.  Because of all the picky eaters I'm feeding I will be doubling up on certain meals we like and skipping others altogether.  I am still trying to figure out why Super Suppers includes a dessert item as an entree.  On their June menu (scroll down to the bottom of the page), they offer Peach Bread Pudding as one of the choices.  They also had a dessert in April.  I'm not really interested in buying desserts, ya know?

So, for me, Super Suppers still receives a thumbs up.  This time I will be going to a class in the city where I live, and skip the religious experience.   Now I just have to convince my sister to baby sit.   Maybe I can offer her a Super Supper.

That Uncomfortable Feeling

Today I went to my first Super Suppers assembly session.  Jesus was happy that I was there!  What?

First, a disclaimer: I do not have any problem with other people's belief systems.  At all. Except when they are being pushed down my throat.  Amen.

And, a clarification: I am an atheist, but I'm not one to advertize it.  I generally try to go with the flow.  And some of my best friends (read: my entire family) are Christians.  R is a lapsed Muslim.

I was slightly late to the assembly session, but no matter!  They were in the middle of orientation.  When I put on my apron and joined the group, the owner of the store said, "Hi Lisa! Jesus is happy that you are here today!" I said, "OK, then!" but I was thinking, "WTF?"

She then went on to explain the assembly process, yada, yada, yada.  We were invited to try the sample entree (heavenly chicken), and to partake in some lemon water, iced tea, or a wine spritzer.  Then she said, "We'll all work for about an hour and then we'll have a prayer circle!"  And there it was, that uncomfortable feeling.  The feeling of being the only dissenter in the room.  Everyone else was nodding and smiling, but I said, "I won't be participating in that." 

Owner lady got a fixed smile on her face.  "Oh, sure! Of course! It's up to you!" The damage, however, had been done. 

I grabbed my list and headed to the first station, and began to make my food.  I had four meals (out of six) finished by the time the prayer circle started.  Owner lady went and tagged everyone else in the room to come over, while I stood there and radiated don't-ask-me vibes, and pretended to be fascinated by my chicken cacciatore.  Thankfully, she did not tag me and make for another awkward situation. 

In the prayer circle everyone thanked Jesus for Super Suppers.  Owner lady thanked Jesus for giving her the foresight to open this Super Suppers store and that everyone there was a sign that Jesus approved of her business practice. There was some more stuff, and then everyone said something, and then they were done.    When the prayer circle finished I was on the home stretch, finishing my last meal, about to get out of uncomfortable land.

I finished up, and took off my apron so that I could run out to my car to get the basket I  was using to carry the food home.  As I was loading up my stuff, owner lady came over and said, "Wow, you were really fast! Is everything OK?" I said, "Yeah, great, fine... gotta go!"  She held the door open for me, and said, "Do you need any flyers for  your friends?"  I told her (truthfully) that I'd already talked up Super Suppers to everyone I know (mainly at work), but that none of them lived in Denton (all true! I wasn't trying to be mean).  She said, "All right, well see you next time!" I said, "Yeah." Then I went home.

So here's my problem.  I was extremely offended by the whole Jesus tone of the assembly session.  I felt that it was inappropriate of her to force her religion down the throats of her customers.  OK, I know that nobody gives a crap about the sensibilites of atheists (except other atheists), but what if I were Muslim? Buddhist? Jewish?  Many people would be offended by this type of proselytizing.  (Interesting aside: I am both Muslim and Catholic on paper.  My parents are Catholic and so I have all of my Catholic papers.  When I applied for my Iranian passport, I was forced to convert to Islam by signing a paper.  So I could claim either, but I'm not anything IRL.)

I see this as the equivalent of my husband forcing his customers to kiss a picture of Mohammad when they come into his store.  Or forcing them to pray to Allah.  Or praying to Allah very loudly while people were shopping in his store.   Would the Christians who came in his store be offended?  You bet they would.  It would probably make the evening news.  He doesn't do any of these things, of course.  However, he does have a beautiful framed prayer written in Arabic.  Where is it? In his office, so that he can enjoy it while he is there. 

If you're wondering why I didn't just play along, it's because I really have a problem with forced prayer.  My parents are extremely religious and they forced us to go to church, to pray, to read the Bible, etc. I always hated it, and I refuse to participate in religious functions of any kind.  I had no idea that this would happen when I went to a store to purchase a product.

This type of scenario is quite common for atheists and persons of any faith other than Christian here in Texas, the buckle of the Bible Belt.  Many evangelical Christians kind of center their lives around church, and especially in the smaller cities, can go well into adulthood without meeting someone of no faith or a different faith.   They simply do not think in terms of offending other people because they were raised in an environment where everyone is Christian.  I understand this.  It still pisses me off.

Now I have to decide if I want to continue using this store.  My initial reaction is no (owner lady said that the prayer circle is a tradition, so I'm guessing they do it every time), but this store has several advantages for me: easy access to babysitters, flexibility of schedule, and the fact that you can make either six or twelve meals at any session.  Most other stores make you do either a six session or a twelve session.  The next closest store to me charges more for the service than this store.  I am torn.   I hate this.

Super Supper Update

Last week I purchased six meals from Super Suppers.  They were: Oriental Chicken Wraps, Maple Lemon Chicken and Rice, Lemon Teryiaki Meatballs, Chipotle Chicken, Mexican Lasagna, and Ham and Cheese Potato Bake. 

I have now eaten four of the meals, and all I can say is, "Wow!"  This really is a great idea.  The food is fresh, it really tastes and looks like something you'd make in your own kitchen.  I have not informed my husband about the whole Super Suppers thing, and he doesn't suspect anything because it's real food.

I think one of the greatest benefits of it is that the meals are balanced and they are healthy.   That's more than I can put together on a workday.

Of course I've been talking this up to everyone within earshot, and I've got several people at work who are interested in it.  Who wouldn't be? 

The only drawback for me is that you have to think in advance, because once the meals are frozen, Super Suppers recommends that you thaw them for two days in the refrigerator.  It was kind of a problem this time, because they made my meals for me (I was the only one that signed up for that time so the comped me a free assembly) and they were all frozen when I got them.  So I had to wait a couple of days to try them.   However, when I do the class myself, the meals will not be frozen, so I can set a couple aside and then freeze the rest.   

My sister doesn't like the fact that you have to provide the side dishes (usually a salad or vegetable and a starch).  She thinks that for $15.50 a meal, they should include the sides.  It doesn't bother me at all.  I think $15.50 is reasonable for a complete entree that feeds 5 or 6 people.   I'm actually feeding three adults and a toddler on half a complete meal.  That's a hell of a lot cheaper than eating out.

So yeah, I love the Super Suppers. 

Super Woman I Am Not

I try.  I really do.  I try to keep up with the housework, the laundry, the bills, the cooking, etc., etc.  This is in addition to - what is that again? - oh, yeah, my full-time job.  Oh, and my almost two-year-old.  And helping out with the business as needed. My plate, she is full. 

My house, therefore, suffers from not being dusted or vacuumed enough.  Nobody lovingly swiffers the floor on a regular basis.  My laundry sits for days in the dryer, crying silently, wrinkling in its circular prison. 

I cook dinner at home maybe three or four times a week.  I buy for seven.  Half the food usually goes bad before it gets used.  I am disorganized.

But now there is help.  Help for the poor, the unwashed, the working mothers.  Super Suppers.  Ohhhhh, yeah.  They do the shopping.  They make the menu.  They provide the recipes.  You take two measly hours out of your schedule and assemble all of the ingredients.  Then you take them home and freeze them, and cook them at your leisure.  I'm having an orgasm RIGHT NOW.

They aren't crap recipes, either.  Chicken wraps, lemon-teriyaki meatballs, chipotle chicken.  The menu changes every month, too, so you're not eating the same crap over and over again.

I'd made up my mind a couple of weeks ago that I was going to try it and see how it impacts my craptastic time management problem.  My main hopes are twofold: having appetizing food a home that I am willing to eat at work (the land of "Hey! Who wants pizza?" five nights a week), and having food available for R when he gets home.  I feel bad because sometimes there's nothing ready for him to eat.   He works 16 hour days, 7 days a week.  He sure as hell doesn't have time to cook.

The service is reasonably priced at $98 for six meals and $185 for twelve (each meal feeds 4 to 6 people).  It is expensive on its face, and if you're a super woman or man who bargain shops and cooks everything at home, you're probably having an apoplectic fit at the cost.  But I am not so super, and each meal will last us quite a long time (we're really only feeding two), and I'm hoping it will be positive for everyone.   I'm only getting 6 meals this time.  It's a trial run.

I'm still going to cook some at home.  R likes to have Iranian food every now and then, and there are some recipes that I make really well and just love.   On work nights, though, Super Suppers will probably rule the roost.

R would probably take exception to this whole thing, even though, technically,  it meets all of his requirements.  He likes his food cooked at home.  This will be, but it will be prepared somewhere else.  I don't intend to let on where the good food is coming from unless he asks, though.

BONUS! As I was writing this, the Super Suppers rep called me and told me that they will be assembling my meals for me for free!  Apparently I'm the only one that signed up for the session on Thursday, and they didn't see any point in making me come in.  That means I don't have to pay my sister to watch the kid!

I'll keep you updated on my reaction to the Super Suppers experience.