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Hungryroot

About the service: A meal kit delivery service, only this is all about root vegetables spiralized into “noodles.” The company, which comes from founders Franklin Becker, Ben McKean and Greg Struck — who have, ahem, roots, in the food world including food startup Savored — focuses on getting more vegetables into people’s lives. After ordering, food will typically come in an insulated box in about two days. Earlier this month, the company announced partnerships with Amazon Fresh and Fresh Direct to further expand their reach (they currently only deliver to the coasts). Meals are typically $10-$12, and if you don’t want the added protein (which accounts for the extra $2), be sure to opt out during checkout, as it’s automatically included. Pros: Cooking time is totally accurate. This stuff is ready in 7 minutes or less, as advertised, not to be underrated for a healthy dinner. Also, I love that it doesn’t have to be a subscription because, realistically, how many times a month are you eating vegetables that have been peeled into spirals? If you want to check the subscription box, you have that option. It’s a creative dinner option for people with dietary restrictions or with Paleo meal desires. And the portion sizes are perfect. You wonder how beet noodles are really going to fill you up, but they do. Cons: Someone needs to take a knife to these things before packaging them. At one point I pulled a 3-foot-long rutabaga noodle out of the pan as it was cooking. No really, I measured — it was a yardstick. Try stirring dozens of those around a pan. Not easy. Some of the dishes held up better while cooking than others (see below). And there’s something about the smell of rutabaga noodles cooking in your kitchen that doesn’t exactly scream dinnertime. What we ate: We tried the rutabaga noodles with mushroom pistou, crispy chickpeas and grilled chicken; the sweet potato noodles with falafel, cashew alfredo and crispy chickpeas; and the beet noodles with savory almond sesame and roasted tofu. Oh, and for dessert: some chickpea and almond chocolate-chip cookies. In general, it’s not bad. You’re not ordering this if you’re looking for haute cuisine — the best you can hope for is “Hey, it’s actually not bad for what it is,” especially if you’re not eating it every night. The combinations are inventive and they look pretty. The rutabaga noodles held up better than the sweet potato and beet noodles, which got a little mushy once the sauces were cooked in. And though the cookie dough never turned into cookies that could be held without breaking, they were great eaten with a spoon.