Tags: frozen

6 Mar 2011, Comments (5)

Kashi 7 Grain Waffles

Author: Healthnuttxo

I think frozen waffles are awesome. Convenient, quick to make, and often quite tasty! I was excited to see these 7 Grain waffles by Kashi at Target the other day (I seem to be doing a lot of food shopping at Target lately…hmm).  The looked delicious, and I loved that they had 7 grams of fiber for 2 waffles, and only 3 grams of sugar.

I popped  these in the toaster oven, and decided to eat them with good ol’ butter & syrup, with some sliced apple for breakfast.

I did manage to try the waffle by itself without any butter or syrup on it, and thought one thing – bland. Very plain, not much flavor. They almost had like an airy and rather dialed down flavor.

However, I did love the crisp edges, and how the middle of the waffles were soft. They absorbed the syrup quite nicely, and were delicious with the butter as well. I also liked how they didn’t have an oily taste.

Overall, these were okay. I do like how there was only 3 grams of sugar! And, I do like how I could probably add any topping I wanted, and how they were rather versatile. Although butter & syrup are classic for me with waffles =) 3 stars

2 waffles is 150 calories, 5 grams of fat, 25 grams of carbohydrates, 7 grams of fiber, 3 grams of sugar and 4 grams of protein.

What’s your favorite brand of frozen waffles?

24 Jan 2011, Comments (7)

Arctic Zero Maple Vanilla

Author: Healthnuttxo

What is Arctic Zero?

According to the  container, “Arctic Zero is an all natural, smooth and creamy ice cream replacement”. The entire pint has “16 grams of whey protein, 8 grams of fiber” and is also “gluten free”.

One serving, 1/2 cup, is 37 calories and 4 grams of protein. Wait….WHAT?!

Yep, that’s what the label says! The entire pint is 150 calories.  And seeing how I happen to love the flavor of maple, I put this little container in my shopping cart, paid, and went off to try it.

The first thing I noticed was the consistency. It was super smooth and creamy like ice cream, it was kind of like a smoothie being frozen, or a harder sherbet. When I placed it into my bowl, it was kind of choppy. I put about half the container in my bowl, and sprinkled a good amount of granola on top for some crunch.

I actually ate some before I took a picture. Whoops! :)

By itself, it had a very artificial maple flavor, kind of like the artificial maple syrup. It also had kind of a funky aftertaste, and an off sweet flavor. I wasn’t really into it by itself.

However, with the granola, it was really quite good. The crunchiness of the granola made the Arctic Zero feel creamier, and I actually enjoyed it. I certainly reccommend a topping if you are going to buy or eat this, because I wasn’t really crazy about it as is. I did like that it had 4 grams of protein and 2 grams of fiber per serving. Overall, 3 stars.

1/2 cup (74 grams) is 37 calories, 0 grams of fat, 7 grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of fiber, 7 grams of sugar, and 4 grams of protein.

Have you ever tried Arctic Zero? Which flavor?

21 Jan 2011, Comments (4)

Amy’s Kitchen Veggie Steak & Gravy Whole Meal

Author: Healthnuttxo

I know when I bought this meal I had a friend turn up her nose when she heard the words “veggie steak”, but please don’t let it dissuade you from trying this meal out! I thought it was actually incredibly delicious :)

First I cooked the meal, 4 1/2 minutes on HIGH and then 2 minutes on 50% power. I also added a tablespoon of water after the 4 1/2 minutes to the green beans because they looked like they needed it.

We’ll start with the green beans. They actually were surprising to me, usually when I eat green beans they have that bite, or that not-quite-done-yet consistency. These, however, were tender and actually very good. Fresh and soft, but still good.

Next up, the mashed potatoes. There was a good amount, and they almost looked perfect sitting there. Smooth on top, white, the perfect size. They were fluffy, and slightly salty with a yummy potato taste, but at the same time they were a bit bland. I guess I was missing that dab of butter that is normally on top of my homemade mashed potatoes  : )

Lastly, the veggie steak and the gravy. First off, the gravy was absolutely delicious. Thick, salty (in a good way), rich and buttery tasting. The perfect gravy! It covered most of the veggie steak, which is kind of hard to explain other than it was delicious. It was very textured, yet soft at the same time. It had vegetables and other things scattered throughout, with an occasional bump that I’m assuming were tiny pieces of walnuts. It was really good. I liked dipping it in the mashed potatoes!

Overall, delicious! I felt the mashed potatoes needed a little extra something, but still a good meal.I also thought it was a bit high in saturated fat, but not too bad (7 grams). 4 1/2 stars.

1 meal is 380 calories, 16 grams of fat, 50 grams of carbohydrates, 7 grams of fiber, 7 grams of sugar and 12 grams of protein.

What’s your favorite veggie-style product?

13 Jan 2011, Comments (3)

Meals to Live Grilled White Chicken with Roasted Red Potatoes & Green Beans

Author: Healthnuttxo

One of the things I love is roasted red potatoes. I’d take them over mashed/baked potatoes anyday. Something about the crisp outside and soft inside and great flavor that always wins me over. So I was excited to get the Meals to Live Grilled White Chicken with Roasted Red Potatoes & Green Beans in the mail the other day and try it. I recently tried the other two Meals to Live frozen meals, and was hoping this one would be my favorite.

So after cooking in the microwave, I transferred it to a plate (I tend to do this a lot. I like eating on plates better than out of a carton or container. Who knows?) Here’s how it looked

I actually thought it looked pretty tasty =)

When I did transfer it to a plate I noticed a rather good amount of liquid went with it. Chicken Broth? Water left over from the frozen green beans? I wasn’t sure, but I just discarded it.

First I tried the green beans. They were a bit disappointing- a little chewy, with a hint of salt flavor to them. Not bad, but not spectacular.

Next up, the chicken. Much better than I had expected! It was a bit salty, chewy, and actually quite delicious! A few pieces were a bit dry, but nothing too serious.

And now, the potatoes! I couldn’t wait to try these. The box depicted them as being crispy, so I was let down to find out my potatoes were mushy. I kind of expected it, seeing as I cooked it in a microwave instead of the oven, but they tasted more like a baked potato than roasted potatoes. However, they were still pretty good. They had a good flavor, and although the texture didn’t live up, the taste certainly reminded me of yummy roasted red potatoes, with a bit of black pepper flavor as well.

Overall, a pretty good dish. More food was put on my plate than I had expected, because I thought the tray was rather small. I wish there was a different vegetable instead of green beans (perhaps broccoli?? =) !), because the texture kind of brought the dish down. However, I would certainly eat it again. 4 stars. This dish is also gluten free, according to the box.

1 package (198 grams) is 200 calories, 3 grams of fat, 27 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of fiber, 1 gram of sugar and 14 grams of protein.

What’s your favorite way to eat POTATOES?

I was provided this meal to try for free from Meals to Live.


11 Jan 2011, Comments (1)

Lean Cuisine Four Cheese Pizza

Author: Healthnuttxo

Browsing the grocery store, all of a sudden I thought Pizzzzzaaa. I want some pizza!! So I decided to try something I haven’t tried before, a Lean Cuisine Pizza. I picked this particular one because the ingredients looked pretty good, and there was 20 grams of protein in one of the pizzas.

I pulled it out of my freezer around 4:45 thinking I could put it in the oven for 40 minutes or so and then have it for dinner, but when I went to refer to the box for directions, it ONLY provided a microwave option! So microwave it was. There were directions to follow on how to open the box with a silver part of the box facing up that I would then put the pizza on. Well, to be honest, it took me a minute or so to figure out how to open the box. I’m also what they call “an eager beaver” and opened up the wrong side of the box before I read the instructions. So. Anyway-

I put my pizza and my steamed broccoli (broccoli? When do I ever eat that?!!?) on a plate. I was impressed that the pizza did in fact crisp up- no soggy bottom! So, first I took a bite of the crust on the outside, expected something tasty, garlicy and delicious. How was it? BLAND. I can’t even describe how bland the crust was. Almost like a flavorless crouton. It really needed something- even just some garlic or a dusting or parmesan cheese.

Moving on to the inside of the pizza, the first thing I noticed when I took a bite was the sauce- it was a sweet tomato sauce that was seasoned pretty well. The cheese was also good, I detected mostly a parmesan flavor. It was a bit salty, not stringy or greasy at all. In fact, this whole pizza wasn’t really greasy at all.

Overall, 2 1/2 stars. The crust was such a let down to me, it wasn’t even really doughy, kind of airy. The cheese and the sauce were pretty good, but the pizza as a whole reminded me of a typical frozen pizza. I did like that my hands weren’t all greasy when I finished the pizza, and that it also had 30% of calcium needs in 1 pizza.

1 pizza was 340 calories, 6 grams of fat, 51 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of fiber, 6 grams of sugar and 20 grams of protein.

Ever tried Lean Cuisine products? Which one is your favorite?

28 Dec 2010, Comments (1)

Meals to Live White Chicken Chili Relleno

Author: Healthnuttxo

Recently, I was asked to do a review of some frozen dinners by Meals to Live. While I love frozen meals for convenience (Amy’s Kitchen has my heart!), I also watch out for preservatives, excess sodium and additives when choosing them.  One of the reasons I agreed to eat Meals to Live as that the ingredient list seemed pretty good, and according to the  box, they were “a fundraising partner of Diabetes Friendly Foundation”.

Last night for dinner I chose the White Chicken Chili Relleno with Ranchero Sauce. It seemed like a large piece, but I also steamed some broccoli to have on the side. There was 15 grams of protein in one package (255 grams), with 480 mg of sodium and 5 grams of fat, so it seemed pretty good to me.

Frozen, it kind of reminded me of fried eggplant for some reason when I looked at it. So I cooked it for about 5 minutes in the microwave (and it sure smelled quite saucy/spicy as it was cooking!) and then sat down to eat.

First of all, I was like, what IS this? From what I could tell, it was a chili poblano that was breaded and covered with sauce and cheese with pieces of chicken, sauce and rice inside. The sauce was slightly sweet at first, and then it had a spicy/salty and oniony flavor. The chili poblano itself resembled a giant spinach leaf, which is what I thought it was at first until I read the ingredients again, and was spicy at some times, but then bland and a bit watery at others. It reminded me of a giant chewy noodle, in a way. The chicken and rice with the sauce was the best part. Flavorful, chewy and a bit salty, but pretty good. There wasn’t a lot of rice or chicken, but the amount given was quite tasty.

Overall, the meal reminded me of a stuffed pepper I ate when I was growing up. It was pretty good, and I am quite satisfied after eating it with some broccoli (ok, and a leftover Christmas chocolate chip cookie…). I wasn’t crazy about the outside chili part, but the insides were good. I do wish it came with a side, like rice or a vegetable, rather than just that alone. Overall, 3 stars.

1 package is 210 calories, 5 grams of fat, 29 grams of carbohydrates, 4 grams of fiber and 15 grams of protein.

I was provided this meal to try for free from Meals to Live

2 Jun 2010, Comments (2)

HappyBaby Happy Bites Veggie Tots

Author: Healthnuttxo

Kiddie food review! Woo-hoo! I love these! Hey, kids need to eat healthy too! But these reviews bring me back to when I was young and Mom & Dad did all the delicious cooking. Aw…

Anyway- HappyBaby has a line, HappyBites, that makes organic meals for toddlers and kids. I was sent a coupon from the company to try a free product in the mail. So, I went to the store, and at the time, I had the choice between “Salmon Stix” and “Veggie Tots” in the freezer section. Hmm.. Veggie Tots sounded much more my style than Salmon Stix. So, Veggie Tots it was!

Each veggie tot is, according to the website, “organic shredded patties packed with ‘hidden vegetables’”, is gluten free, organic, and provides 2 servings of vegetables per veggie tot. The size is about that of a CD, if not a bit smaller. (sorry, I forgot to take a picture when I ate it!)

I took my “tot” out of the freezer and overwrap, and put it in the microwave for a bit, and then heated/toasted it in my toaster oven for some crunch. I believe these are geared to be meals for kids or toddlers, but I certainly couldn’t have just that, so I ate it alongside some applesauce, broccoli, and a soy-style “chicken” patty for my meal.

Looking at the veggie tot, you can CERTAINLY see it was bursting with veggies. There was visible carrots, onions, black beans and corn, all seemed to be mushed together in a potato-like patty. The taste is predominantly potato, a little dry, but overall had a hash brown/tater tot taste. It wasn’t too salty in flavor, with a very mild cheddar cheese and black pepper flavor. The corn and the black beans were also a bit dry, but not bad.

Overall, I can see kids eating these. Especially like I did, I dipped mine in some applesauce which went perfectly with the crispy edges from the toaster oven. I like how it provides 2 servings of vegetables per veggie tot- and, not going to lie, the Cheetah, “Chui”, was cute on the front cover! Kids always seem to love characters- and I’m sure “Chui” will be one of them! 3 1/2 stars

1 Veggie Tot is 110 calories, 3 grams of fat, 18 carbohydrates, 3 grams of fiber, 1 gram of sugar, and 3 grams of protein.

Organic Potatoes, Organic Carrots, Organic Corn, Organic red Peppers, Organic Black Beans, Organic Eggs, organic Palm Fruit Oil, Water, Organic Pea Fiber, Organic Cheddar Cheese (Organic pasteurized milk, salt, enzymes), Organic Corn Starch, Organic Onion,
Organic Garlic, Sea Salt, Organic Chili Powder, Organic Parsley, Organic Black Pepper, Organic Cumin

Still a chance to enter the  NUTRIDEL giveaway!! :)

10 May 2010, Comments (1)

Power of Fruit frozen Fruit Bars

Author: Healthnuttxo

Nothing screams summer like ICE POPS! I used to LOVE those Fla Vor-Ices, the long skinny ice pops that came in bright colors like blue, purple, green, yum!

Well, I’m sure those weren’t the healthiest option, but no worries, I may have found a substitution! The Power of Fruit makes similar ice pops to Fla Vor Ice’s, that have no corn syrup, no HFCS, no added sugar, and no preservatives. Each bar contributes to 1/2 of a fruit serving as well. They come in 3 flavors, Banana Berry, Tropical, and All Fruit, and are a little bit smaller than Fla Vor Ice’s length wise, but are thicker and rounder width-wise. Ron, at the Power of Fruit, sent me some pops to try. Thanks, Ron!

All Fruit- The ice pop is very “piecey”. There are definite visible chunks of fruit, like strawberry, raspberry and blueberry. Blueberry was the predominant flavor I had tasted, and overall, it wasn’t that sweet. It literally tasted like when you freeze fruit and eat it frozen. It had that slushy consistency that isn’t super sweet, but still good.

Banana Berry- this one was better, not as “piecey”, and more solid. It had a good blend of sweet and tangy with the banana and strawberry flavors mixing. You could actually smell the banana which was kind of nice when you opened the ice pop. Cool! This one also, not super sweet, but mellow fruity flavors. Tastes like nature intended.

Overall, 3 1/2 stars. While I love the idea of an all-fruit,  no sugar added pop, I hate to say the taste isn’t as yummy as a Fla Vor Ice. However, they are still pretty good, provide fiber, and super low calorie. I think these would be a good swap if you have no frozen fruit, but want to make a smoothie. Just plop one right in your blender with some yogurt and juice, and your good to go! These are also great for kids- hey, if you start them off without all the sugar, they won’t develop a nasty sweet tooth!

All Fruit- 1 bar is 28 calories, .12 grams of fat, 7 carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, and .3 grams of protein.

Strawberries, Cranberries, Blueberries, Mango Chunks, Pineapple, Bananas, White Grape Juice Concentrate, Water.

Banana Berry-1 bar is 27 calories, .12 grams of fat, 6.5 carbohydrates, .9 grams of fiber, and .36 grams of protein.

Strawberries, Bananas, Strawberry Jucie Concentrate.

26 Mar 2010, Comments (6)

Amy’s Kitchen Sheperd’s Pie

Author: Healthnuttxo

source


Amy’s Kitchen has made a Sheperd’s Pie that is meatless, gluten AND dairy free. Amy’s says this Sheperd’s Pie has ”organic vegetables in a nourishing broth blanketed with smooth mashed potatoes”. This meal also has only 4 grams of fat, no cholesterol, and is completely and 100% natural.

So I followed the microwave instructions and popped this pie in, let it sit for 2 minutes as directed, and popped it on out. I decided to have it with some Trader Joe’s soy nuggets & applesauce, because I had a feeling a little vegetable pie would not be enough to satisfy my raging hunger after an afternoon run.

After 5ish minutes or so, a little bit of the filling oozed out into the packaging, but nothing I couldn’t handle lick off the wrapper. I decided to try just the top first-the mashed potatoes. They were super fluffy with a real homemade taste. The potatoes were nice and creamy, and almost had a whipped-like consistency. There were garlic and onion flavors that also complimented the potatoes nicely. Onto the filling-assorted vegetables consisteing of bits of mushrooms, carrots, celery, garbanzo beans and tomatoes.  It sort of reminded me of vegetable soup- the taste, not the consistency. It had a tomatoey-based taste, mixed with some spices, which included a dash of black pepper. This pie was packed with these veggies, that were all tender and nicely cooked, The carrots were not as tender, and had a bit more of a bite to them. In my opinion, I liked that the carrots were slightly less soft than the rest of the veggies- mushy carrots are for baby food jars! :P The filling also had a slightly salty and garlicy flavor, but overall was very tasty.

Overall, I give this pie 4 stars. Amy’s rarely lets me down- I have yet to encounter a meal I haven’t liked. This pie has a very good flavor- a comfort food for sure. It’s not enough by itself for a meal, but if you pump it up with some protein and veggies (or applesauce!!), you can turn it into a light, healthy and delicious.  However, my favorite part was the crispy edges that formed on the potatoes after being cooked in the microwave. Yum!! :)

What’s YOUR favorite Amy’s Product? Let me know!!

1 pie is 160 calories, 4 grams of fat, 27 carbohydrates, 5 grams of fiber, and 5 grams of protein.


26 Dec 2009, Comments (2)

Cedarlane Three Layer Enchilada Pie

Author: healthnuttxo

I know it’s the day after Christmas, but, who’s craving Mexican!?
I was! Too  many sugar cookies (organic of course :P ) and yummy dishes can do that to a girl. So I was in the mood for some Mexican, and where other did I turn to than Cedarlane’s Three Layer Enchilada Pie?

Cedarlane’s Three Layer Enchilada Pie is layers of organic corn tortillas, green chilis, cheddar cheese, organic black beans, black olives and cilantro all smothered in a tomatoey salsa-style sauce. Taking it out of the freezer it sure looks prettyy (sorry i forgot to take a picture! D’oh! :( ). You could see the cheddar cheese sprinkled on top with about 5 or 6 olives and some scattered green chilis to decorate the dish (and add flavor, obviouslllyyy). When it’s cooked, the cheese melts in with everything else and it has nice and crispy edges. It smells amazing too- saucy, cheesy, onion-y, yumm-y!

I took this “pie” out of the container and transfered it to a plate and put a big heaping of applesauce next to it ( Okay it seems like I eat applesauce with everything!…perhaps that’s true :D ). I sort of destroyed the layers by doing that, but it was one big pile of deliciousness on my plate instead of in an organized stack. But i’m not biased- I can eat messy things. Looking at this meal there were a TON  of black beans, so if you like black beans, you are IN LUCK! I scooped up some of my “mess” and it was actually very good. It wasn’t spicy at all, and had a nice cheddar cheese taste. The cheese had a consistency after being microwaved to the cheese in baked macaroni & cheese, rather than being gooey like the cheese in mozzerella sticks (you know, that  annoying kind that you keep pulling and pulling and never ends…*sigh*).  It gets a little pasty, but still has a nice sharp, cheddar taste. The chilis and olives had a wee bit of a crunch to them, and flavored the dish nicely. The taste of the dish overall is like combining Amy’s Cheese Enchiladas with Cedarlane Vegetable Enchiladas. Both I enjoy very much- so I was a happy camper :) . I was also happy there was no corn in this dish either (aside from the corn tortilla). Every time I buy enchilada/burrito products there are always corn niblets! I prefer other vegetables, so thank you, Cedarlane for omitting it this time! :)

Overall, I liked this. It reminded me of eating a bowl of nachos with the hot salsa/cheese dip in “pie” form. It has a nice tomato and onion flavor, and it was satisfying with the 26 grams of protein it provided. The negatives, however, are that the sodium is a little high (50% Daily value for the whole meal), the saturated fat is a little high (6 grams for the whole meal) and there are 2 servings in one container. I hate that! There’s no way I can cook half or even consider sharing something so delicious. :)

Otherwise- 4 stars for you Cedarlane! Delicious!

There are 2 servings per container. Stats are for both servings.
430 calories, 14 grams of fat, 54 carbohydrates, 6 grams of fiber, and 26 grams of protein. You also get 50% calcium needs. woop!

Enchilada Pie Filling (organic black beans, rennetless cheddar cheese, organic green chilis, organic wheat free tamari, herbs and spices, sea salt), Enchilada Pie Salsa Style Sauce (organic tomato puree, organic tomatoes, filtered water, onion, green chilis, organic safflower or canola oil, herbs and spices, cilantro, corn starch, sea salt), Organic Corn Tortillas, Black Olives.

Hey you-enter to win a fancy robe & slippers! in my giveaway!

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