When a friend is experiencing tough times or times of change, it’s often hard to know what you can do to help.

For example, when a friend has…

• a miscarriage
• a baby
• a child in the hospital
• a job loss
• a death in the family
• morning sickness
• migraines
• just moved

Sometimes it’s best to go back to the basics and deliver a meal. Food can mean so much when a person is sad, sick, or smack-dab in the middle of something new (even if that something is a good thing).

One way to be prepared to give meals to friends and neighbors in times of need is to keep a few extra dishes in your freezer. Enchiladas. Lasagna. Berry Cobbler. Etc.

Not sure where to start?

Hot By 6 is an Oregon-based, mom-owned company that is committed to helping people spend less time in the kitchen and more time with their families.

Essentially, Hot By 6 is a database of budget-friendly recipes (searchable by course, category, dietary preferences, and ethnicity) that can all be made ahead and frozen. Currently, there are 12 recipes in the Breakfast category, 15 recipes in the lunch category, and 100+ recipes in the dinner category…plus ideas for desserts, side dishes, marinades, soups/stews, and appetizers.

Once you have created your menu plan, you can easily print out a grocery list, assembly instructions, and labels.

If you want to create meals WITH your friends, there’s a whole separate “group” functionality. Essentially, the site gives you everything that you need to create a Super Suppers or Dream Dinners in your own house.

The service is $6/month and is a great resource to help you get inspired with new recipe ideas for your family.

My suggestions for the company would be to:

1. Add bigger and better quality photos of the recipes.
2. Offer more recipes that incorporate whole and organic foods.
3. “Beef up” the breakfast, lunch, and dessert categories (not necessarily with beef recipes, just more recipes…capiche?).

Summary: Hot By 6 is an innovative concept…well-suited for busy parents looking for a new way of getting hot, nutritious meals on the table.

TRY IT! Hot By 6 is offering all Metropolitan Mama readers one FREE month! You can try it and see if you like it. Take the recipes and the system for a “test drive,” if you will. Just enter promo code “metromama” when you create an account. You have one week to sign up – promo code expires 2/15/2010.

***Please note that you will be asked to enter your credit card information. Your account will be automatically renewed at the end of 30 days unless you cancel it.