Providing a hot meal on the table each night is no easy feat. It isn't just the prepping and cooking that's the hard part; even the simple things, like deciding what to make and ensuring you have the right ingredients on hand can wind up becoming the straw that breaks a back on a busy weeknight.

That's where modern Chicago kitchen remodeling changes everything. From efficient layouts that facilitate the ease of meal prep, to the latest and greatest in the smart appliance lineup, we're finally arriving at that "futuristic" point where automated kitchens can take over some of the work load for you.

Case in point? The Samsung Family Hub Refrigerator

Does Your Chicago Kitchen Remodeling Project Need a Smart Refrigerator?

The Samsung Family Hub Refrigerator is pretty fantastic. In addition to being a staple kitchen appliance, this fridge also serves as a family message center, the household calendar, a home audio system, an ingredient tracker and a means of finding just the right recipes for the ingredients you have on hand.

Here's how it works:

The Family Hub. The refrigerator door doubles as a kitchen-sized, 21.5-inch HD LCD screen. With this screen, you can display the family's calendar (bye-bye white board) which can sync with your other digital calendars. You can choose what will be on display, and you can even send notes. For example, if the original carpool plan changes, you can send a note for the fridge to display, saying, "Susie will be picking you up instead of me. Love you, Mom"

Via a range of apps, your fridge can also help you shop and perform recipe searches. It also allows you to display your latest, digital family photos.

What's do you need for dinner? Every time you close the fridge door, it takes a picture of the contents from three different angles. Not sure if you have enough cheese for the pizza? Wondering if there's enough apples left for the dessert crisp? Check your phone's app and see for yourself - however remotely.

Premium cooling system. The organization of the fridge means the ability to custom-store dinner items up top and favorite snack items and drinks in the flexible outer doors for easy access. The precise temperature and humidity controls mean the ability to select different cooling zones in different parts of the fridge. this includes a flexible lower-right door that can switch back and forth between freezer or fridge depending on your needs.

Create an audioscape. The fridge can also connect to your Pandora or other digital music accounts, and comes with its own speakers - as well as the ability to sync with your household's wireless speaker options. The result in a kitchen that can become a soothing classical coffee zone in the morning and an up-tempo, social hub during dinner prep time.

While the Family Hub Refrigerator comes with a steep, $5,000 price tag, this is only the beginning. These new, smart appliances are - indeed - the wave of the future for Chicago kitchen remodeling.