Cooking a meal for my friends and family is something I enjoy, and gathering the people I love for a meal I crafted myself is truly my claim to fame. But sometimes, I don’t have the time or energy to prepare from scratch.
Recently, I discovered a cooking hack that has transformed how I spend my time in my kitchen: Wildgrain.
Wildgrain is a bake-from-frozen delivery service that offers sourdough breads, artisan pastries and fresh pasta—all ready in 25 minutes or less. At first, I wasn’t convinced a frozen product could stand up to my own baking or compare to the items I get from my local bakeries, but I’ve never been so happy to be totally wrong.
Here’s why:
1. Baked goods that couldn’t be easier to prepare
I seriously can’t emphasize this point enough: I just unwrap the breads or pastries I want to serve and pop them into my oven. They’re ready in no time and they look gorgeous—like right out of a bakery window display!
Now that autumn is practically in full swing, I’m already writing holiday menus, and thinking about which Wildgrain items could potentially cut down on time spent in the kitchen. I know my guests will go crazy for all the fresh pastas, english muffins (who doesn’t love holiday brunch?) and sourdough bread.
I always feel practically chained to my oven between Thanksgiving and New Years Day, unable to fully bond with my family. Just the thought of taking some of the prep work off my plate is better than any gift I could receive this year.
2. It’s customizable & convenient
I love that my Wildgrain box is fully customizable, and I can make sure that every family member will have a grain option that suits their diet and taste buds. They even have seasonal add-ons like Maple Belgian Waffles, Wood-fired Bagels, and Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls.
My customized subscription arrives in an insulated box packed with dry ice. The items go straight to my freezer (or my oven) and the convenience of this is off the charts fabulous. I can reschedule, skip, or cancel my subscription at any time I want (fat chance of the latter).
Having delicious, ready to go items in my freezer has been a game changer—even when the only person I have to worry about feeding is myself. 😋
3. We're enjoying items I never have time to bake from scratch
While I like to think of myself as an expert cook, the truth is I don’t undertake recipes with too many ingredients or those that are difficult to prepare. Wildgrain offers me options that I love to serve, but would never make myself.
For instance, my family loves sourdough bread, but I would never take the time to make it. Wildgrain has a big selection of sourdough items, all made with clean ingredients and a long fermentation process. The health benefits are amazing and the taste is fantastic.
4. Everything tastes INCREDIBLE
More on taste: this week I made croissants and strawberry rhubarb turnovers. Both were a huge hit and a big treat. My daughter’s favorite pie is strawberry rhubarb and she couldn’t believe how yummy these turnovers tasted. The croissants were soft, flaky and buttery—truly as good as any I had in Paris and far better than any I can buy at stores here.
Their hand-cut fresh pastas are also ready in a flash and are restaurant quality. Pairing them with my homemade sauces has produced some delicious meals—a big improvement over the flavor of dried pasta from a box.
5. Our family can eat high quality foods while giving back
All of their items are made with unbleached flour, are non GMO and have no artificial colors, which are some of the reasons I often bake from scratch. But I feel really good about the ingredients that Wildgrain uses.
Wildgrain prides itself on supporting small businesses by sourcing their products from the best bakers and pasta makers in the U.S. You can really taste how fresh their products are. And they donate four meals to The Greater Boston Food Bank for every new Wildgrain member.
Wildgrain made me love hosting again
I’m spending so much less time shopping in the supermarket, and far less time in my kitchen when I’m inviting people over for a home cooked meal. For the first time in years, I’m feeling a lot less stressed about the holiday season!
These delicious items all stack up to anything I buy in my favorite gourmet store or make from scratch myself. I might not even reveal my secret source to my guests. 😉
