Model Meals Week 3!

Still going strong y’all! 

Still haven’t spent excessive amounts on fast food/eating out, still have room in the fridge (kinda), and still living for these convenient and delicious meals! Model Meals is really changing up my lifestyle in the best way! 

As usual, if you don’t see a photo it’s because I forgot before eating! (But I took photos of the next batch in advance, so week four won’t be lacking!)

Super excited for all of these:

Buffalo Dill Egg Salad

This was actually meant to be a “snack” on the menu, but I used cucumber slices as “crackers” and had some berries and it was a full meal for me that way! Amazing flavor, and a refreshing way to have eggs as my protein.

Lettuce Wrapped Beef Burfer + Root Wedges with MM Secret Sauce 

Root wedges are my new jam. I’ll be making some soon! The burger was tender and flavorful! Still blows my mind how you can taste the difference between factory meat and the grass-fed stuff. So delicious! 

MM McMuffin with Sweet Potato Bun + Fruit Cup

I’ve never been a big McMuffin fan, but this seemed like a fun addition to my week! The “bun” was a good complement to the sausage and egg, and I didn’t feel all heavy and overstuffed after! 

Pork Carnitas Fajita Bowl

Model Meals has the carnitas game on lock! I had the carnitas with salsa verde recently and when I saw this on the menu I knew I had to snatch it up! 

Chinese Chicken Salad with Sesame Ginger Dressing 

This salad was so good! I loved the snap peas in it, and the combo of the cabbage and lettuce made for a satisfying crunch! Chicken was perfect, and the dressing was delicious! They recommend you enjoy the dressing at room temp, and it definitely makes a difference! 

So, another successful week of Model Meals! Still supplementing with Whole30 compliant food at home, and really enjoying the ease of having meals I can grab or go for my shifts at work or on the days I babysit! 

These meals are designed to be Whole30 compliant, which means they’re free of dairy, soy, grain, alcohol, or added sugars. 

I notice a huge difference in the inflammation I normally notice in my body, as well as my general energy levels with this elimination reset, and the relief of being able to have meals ready without hours of shopping and prep is a lifesaver! 

I’ve already ordered my meals for this Sunday’s delivery (my friend Jen cashed in on my hype and started delivery too, so we are ordering together to save on delivery fees), and I’m SO EXCITED! 

There’s still time to order if you’re in San Diego, Los Angeles, Orange County, or Santa Barbara. Just head over to the Model Meals Website, and tell them Sondra sent you! Use this link for $10 off your first order! 

Bon Appetit! 

Model Meals Review Week #2!

Once again, Model Meals came like a thief in the night and left a box of happiness on my doorstep Sunday night! 

I pre-order my meals the Sunday before, so that I can ensure I get what sticks out as the tastiest on the menu! 

This week, I was super excited for the Green Chile Chicken Soup (I love soup and consider it a food group in its own right), and the “Paella,” and Beef Taco Salad! 

Here’s what I ordered this week: 

Shrimp and Sausage “Paella”

BBQ Pulled Pork with Southern Slaw 

I forgot a photo of this. Inhaled it. Whoops. 

Beef Taco Salad with Chipotle Ranch 

Hot Wings with Dill Potato Salad 

Also inhaled…..

Green Chile Chicken Soup 

Same story…..

Scotch Egg with Breakfast Potatoes 

I tried really hard to remember to take photos of all the meals this week! If you follow me on Instagram, or on Snapchat (@ SeeSondraSlim), you probably caught some pictures of my delicious meals there! 
If you’re in Los Angeles, San Diego, Orange County, or Santa Barbara you can try Model Meals and use THIS LINK for $10 off your order! 

I’m really grateful for the stress factor(s) Model Meals deliveries have taken out of my busy life! 

I was originally worried it’d end up costing me more money in my food budget, but having these meals on hand has SAVED me money! I don’t eat out, there’s always food in my fridge, and I was spending the same amount or MORE weekly going to my usual stores. I supplement these meals with some Whole30 basics I keep on hand always in my house (quick meals that are always easy to prepare). 

Also, it’s fun to look forward to new menus on Sunday and to “shop” for my next batch of meals! It’s so helpful to be able to choose food without even thinking about what I can or cannot have…#whole30problems 

Here’s the menu I just ordered from on Sunday for my next delivery: 

Looks like I’ll be sticking to this for awhile. I’m spreading the word, too, because I officially am obsessed with the good food and convenience! 

Have you tried Model Meals, or other meal delivery services? What is your favorite thing about them? I wanna know! 

‘Til Next Time! 

Model Meals Kitchen: My Review!

I’ve been a big fan of Model Meals for awhile now.

I started another round of Whole30 after getting back from Italy and starting to prepare for my upcoming photo shoot in Greece this summer.

In an effort to set myself up for success this time around, I decided to invest in Model Meals meal delivery to save myself some time, money, and sanity.

Working 12 hour night shifts on weekends, I have a hard time getting motivated to meal prep and actually use all of the food I buy. It’s easy enough to get all the shopping done, but then once the food is in the fridge, my life suddenly seems harder.

Enter: Model Meals!

I got my delivery on Sunday, May 7th. Currently the service delivers to Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, and Santa Barbara.

I ordered from the current menu:

• Sonoma Chicken Salad + Market Greens with Balsamic Glaze
• Chicken Fried Veggie “Rice”
• Meatloaf with House Ketchup + Carrot Parsnip Pilaf
• Pork Carnitas Taco with Celery Root “Tortilla”
• Chorizo Scramble + Sweet Potato Hash
• Bone Broth (there was a 2×1 special this week!)

Correct me if I’m wrong, but all of this sounds amazing!

I tried to get a few different items that sounded really good. Due to having my weight loss surgery in 2011, all of these meal portions really equate to 2-3 meals for me. So it’s a perfect way to get through the week, and I have some food on hand to prep for “filler” meals, as needed!

I’m really excited to try the bone broth also. A suggestion was to add a scoop of my Vital Proteins Collagen Powder and a teaspoon of ghee before bed as a “miracle potion,” and I’m ALL ABOUT that life.

So let’s get down to business-because I’m sure you’re wondering how the food was…some dishes don’t have photos…because as usual I was too excited to remember to snap one before eating!

Sonoma Chicken Salad + Market Greens with Balsamic Glaze

This is definitely one of my fave things EVER! It reminded me of my favorite chicken salad I usually buy at Trader Joe’s, but in totally compliant form! Also, the balsamic was pretty good…and I just came back from visiting a Tuscan balsamic estate, so I’m kind of an expert! Lol.

Chicken Fried Veggie “Rice”

I’m a big fan of the “riced” veggie trend, and this was interesting because it was a sweet potato rice! It was the perfect compliant way to enjoy fried rice, and it was a filling and hearty meal! Total comfort food, without the food coma! The flavor was different than I’d expected…really tangy due to I think the lime juice combined with the sweet potato made for a sweet/sour versus savory taste. Different, but still satisfying!

Meatloaf with House Ketchup + Carrot Parsnip Pilaf

Meatloaf is my jam! Oddly, I love tomatoes but despise ketchup. I started scraping this ketchup off and not even trying it, but then considered maybe without a ton of sugar, ketchup wouldn’t be so gross. And I was right! This added a little tang and zest to the meatloaf without that sickly sweet syrup-y taste. And the pilaf? Back to those riced veggies….love!

Pork Carnitas Tacos with Celery Root “Tortilla”

This dish had me at carnitas! The meat was tender and reheated well! It wasn’t bland or flavorless and I was really impressed with the texture of the tortillas! Also, the salsa verde was tangy, delicious, and the perfect consistency. Never in a million years would I have thought of something so clever as using celery root!

Chorizo Scramble + Sweet Potato Hash

I hate eggs. I hate them. I eat them out of necessity because it’s a fast and easy way to get protein and one of the staples for my successful Whole30. These eggs weren’t so bad. My eggs have to be cooked “hard,” but when I put my hash and chorizo in the skillet with some ghee, I added the egg and diced it up fine like the chorizo and it’s like they weren’t there! Also, that hash is an A+! I’m a fan of chorizo, but typically find the grease to be so overwhelming that I can’t eat it. That wasn’t the case with this bad-boy! I ate every bite, and my mouth didn’t feel like an oil slick!

Bone Broth

Every batch I’ve ever made has fallen short-but this stuff is good! With or without the addition of collagen peptides and ghee, it’s great for sipping on before bed, or even as a filler when I’m not totally sure if I’m actually hungry. It’s satiating and comforting and I take extra comfort in knowing it’s good for me.

The Verdict

Model Meals is a dream! It’s convenient. It came right on time, with text alerts when it was en route and again when it was delivered. I don’t have to stress about what is or isn’t in it, and even when not on Whole30, the menu offers a lot of variety and food that tastes great across the board! Also, while the meals may seem pricey, it’s not as pricey as what I spend sourcing organic/grass fed/etc ingredients and driving all over town for them (I’m talking to you grass fed beef knuckle bones), these meals are what I’d spend or less than eating a decent/healthy/compliant meal at a restaurant. And for the added convenience of doing nothing more than pre-heating them-although they’re mostly all created to be eaten cold/room temp if need be-I’m not complaining!

I have a special part of my heart reserved for companies that go above and beyond to really hear their customers, be sustainable, and take pride in the integrity of their product. I love that Model Meals scores high in every aspect, and I’m already looking forward to my latest delivery….especially a Green Chile Chicken Soup! I promise I’ll try to be better about photos next time.

If you head to the Model Meals website and sign up for their email newsletter, you’ll also get a new recipe in each edition!

I got my latest order this week:

• Scotch Egg with Breakfast Potatoes
• Shrimp and Sausage Sweet Potato “Paella”
• Green Chile Chicken Soup
• Buffalo Chicken Wings with Dill Potato Salad
• Beef Taco Salad with Chipotle Ranch
• BBQ Pulled Pork with Southern Slaw

Have you tried any meal services? What are your favorites? How do they help you? I want to know!

Bon Appetit!

Pisa, San Gimignano, Chianti, and Siena!

My first trip to Italy was the type of vacation where we had a lot of ambitious ideas for what we’d like to do, but got there having done so much at home that we ended up truly vacationing. Walking, drinking a lot of wine, eating a lot of food, and then drinking more wine….if it was too late for more caffe.

This time, we wanted to make sure we saw the things we didn’t get to see last time around! One of the main places on our list was San Gimignano in the Tuscan hills!

It turned out, I found this amazing tour for under  on Viator (you get $10 off with that link!), and it took us to Pisa, San Gimignano, stopped in Chianti Classico for lunch and wine tasting, and then to Siena to round out the day before heading back to Firenze.

As I mentioned before, I’m not too bougie to book a tour when it comes to traveling! It’s a great way to cover a lot of ground in a day, and to make sure you don’t miss the highlights!

Speaking of highlights, here is the best of this day tour through Tuscany!

Pisa

We started early in the morning at the Santa Maria Novella Train Station (and got there just in time to grab cappuccino and cornetto before the morning started), and boarded a double decker charter bus on our way to our first stop- Pisa! We were dropped off just outside of the famed Miracle Square, home to the Leaning Tower, church and duomo.

This part of Pisa doesn’t have much to see outside of the main square, which even early in the morning on an overcast day was full of people on the ground, in the air, and just all over the place trying to get their own tourist-y photo with the tower! Pisas beautiful historical center is a marvel with the detailed marble buildings and walkways!

San Gimignano

After we boarded the bus from Pisa, we started through the rolling hills of Tuscany toward San Gimignano.

On the way, our tour guide mentioned that the main piazza there had Gelateria Dondoli, famous for the Best Gelato in the World. I didn’t honestly hear much else after that….oh except something about the Great Pilgrimage, and how the rich built their homes up in tall towers so they could always see who was coming, and how of the 72 original towers, 14 are still there. Whoop, there it is.

San Gimignano is a very picturesque city…every street you take leads to an amazing photo opportunity, and there is an amazing white wine called Vernaccia that is specific to a type of grape only grown in this region! Of course, I bought some.

Also, yes we got gelato! I got organic strawberry and Zainab got a Saffron specialty flavor. Both were definitely amazing, but it’s hard to say the best in the world because all of the gelato in Italy kinda tastes like the best in the world…am I right?

Chianti Classico

Speaking of wine! After heading out of San Gimignano, we headed to Chianti Classico to the Casa Frassi Winery for wine tasting and lunch.

I cannot stress to you how much I love this place. From the moment we pulled in, it was the enchanting scene you dream about when you dream of a winery in Tuscany. The owner walked us through three of his wines as we overlooked the ever-rolling hillside, and then we went into what used to be a monastery (and is now the dining room) to enjoy a three course lunch. I snuck out of lunch a little early to buy some wine and olive oil to ship home, and took the opportunity to profess my love to him in the hopes that he’d let me move there and live happily ever after-which didn’t seem to woo him much. Lol.

Siena

Siena has some of the most breathtaking architecture I’ve ever seen. Grand churches and squares and even the banks are built with crazy details like heads carved into the trim of the building. This part of Italy is also very strict to this day on neighborhoods and family, and being born into your neighborhood. We actually were there on a “Bank Holiday” and got to see a parade, and all of the 14 flags/crests of each commune. It was pretty amazing!

Just before it was time to head home on the bus, we stopped at a cafe and had a coffee granita drink and it was the perfect end to a long day on our feet!

A Day in Cinque Terre

A rainy Sunday was the start to our second full day in Tuscany, and it wasn’t any less delightful!

I’ve seen photo after photo of these 5 coastal villages-and yet I still wasn’t prepared for how amazing they are!

When planning this adventure, I actually opted to book this Day Tour through Viator (new customers get $10 off their order when you use my link!), because it eased a lot of the transportation concerns for us. We left at 7:30 in the morning from the Santa Maria Novella Train Station on a bus and drove just short of 2 hours to La Spezia, an industrial city just at the base of the mountains leading to 5 tiny coastal villages ranging from populations of 300-3000 people.

On this trip, we visited 4 villages: Riomaggiore, Manarola, Monterosso, and Vernazza.

The weather made for some overcast photos, but I like to think they still captured the beauty of the villages and the fascination that surrounds the brightly colored buildings and blue waters.

My favorite thing about taking tours like these, is that there is someone to guide you to the best photos and history in the area, but you also get the opportunity to explore independently and find your own gems. Plus, you’re sure to meet some interesting people-and even make some new friends!

Some of my favorite shots from this trip (PS, all of these photos were taken by Zainab and I on our iPhones!):

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When it comes to shopping, none of these villages really tickled my fancy. There are lots of small, rather pricey shops-which I’m sure ties into the whole “Population: 300” thing.

We did have an amazing blackberry tart at a small cafe in front of the ocean in Vernazza, some super strong caffe correto (espresso+grappa) in Monterosso, where I think we also found the small place that made fresh lemon slushes….and had an option to add vodka.

We added vodka, obviously.

I think moreso than anything, I was too busy taking in how beautiful and well-preserved these little villages were to get too preoccupied with the wares they offered. I saw a lot of the same kitschy and touristy trinkets and small bottles of liquor and oils that you can find most anywhere in Italy…so I stopped worrying about where to shop and what to buy and just enjoyed the ocean instead.

It’s worth noting that there is a train that goes from La Spezia into the villages. It’s very fast, and rather efficient! At the end of the day, there were at least 400 of us piled on the platform waiting for a train that was delayed over 30 minutes…and things got real. People were pushing and arguing and being rude! And it took FOREVER to get off of the train and to the meeting point with our bus because of the crowding and lack of manners!

But I had expected way more tourists and crowding, especially on a Sunday. I was pleasantly surprised at how we had a lot of room to breathe as we made our way through Cinque Terre, moreso during the first half of the day!

This trip really made me want to focus more on the Italian coast on my next trip (although I just have such a love for Florence, and will probably start/end there always), because it really is one of the most beautiful, natural wonders. Sprinkled with history and character, it really draws you into its charms!

Have you been to Cinque Terre? What were your favorite things to see and do?

Happy Travels!