New Quaker product?

I'm vaguely familiar with Quaker's snacks. Years ago I think I tried one of their Popped chips but I honestly don't remember - guess they didn't make that much of an impression on me. While in the store last week I ran across these Popped chips. They had Salsa Fresco and Sour Cream n Onion. I didn't see them on the Quaker website and I didn't get their nutrition information but I'm sure its comparable to their other similar products. Have you tried these?

New Atkins Products

I hopped off of the Atkins bandwagon years ago. While I did lose weight I realized I love carbs way too much to make a lifestyle change by eliminating them. While in Walmart the other day I saw these new Farmhouse-Style Sausage Scramble meals. They consist of scrambled eggs, sausage, American cheese, green and red peppers and onions. I love the fact they have 22 grams of protein as I've been trying to increase my protein intake. Also 370 calories isn't too bad when you figure that's the average for frozen meals. I'm not a fan of them at all but on rare occasions they do come in handy for the few I can tolerate. I completely forgot to check the price but I'm sure they are around $3.00. If I can find a coupon I may check these out.

I can't say I'm a big fan of baby food, which is what this Happy Squeeze basically is, but I'm now a big fan of the caramel apple flavor . And for the record, I grabbed it without even paying attention. It's actually apple sauce - caramel flavored at that. Of course the texture is that of applesauce but I don't feel like I'm 3 months old while I'm eating it - but let the record also state I have no memory of ever being 3 months old. It is so sweet and the taste of caramel is very distinctive. It was really as if I was enjoying a sweet dessert. You can find these for around $1.50 each at Walmart, which is a little much for me to pay for a snack. The cool thing is each little pack has 1/2 a cup of fruit. They are organic and certified Kosher and are really quite handy to take to work or just stash in your purse or bag for a quick snack. Hopefully I'll come across some coupons for these so I can enjoy them more often.

Still Undecided

I have been a huge fan of Breyer's since I was a little girl. My father always enjoyed a bowl of Butter Pecan after dinner. I grew to like it although I would spit out the pecans. Something about the buttery ice cream I really, really love. Breyer's Blasts are a staple in my home. They taste great and are fairly low in fat and calories. Now Breyer's offers new Butter Pecan for 100 calories per serving. It's sweetened with Splenda so it could go either way as far as taste. It was on sale for $3.00 at Food Lion so I don't know if I would pay any more for it.

The first time I tried it I thought it was really good. There was the recognizable taste of the butter and the nice balance of the pecans. Then the seond time I tried it there was kind of an artificial taste. I'm going to give it one more try before I give up on it. Low fat ice creams have really helped me in terms of weight loss so I always like finding a new flavor. If you really have a taste for butter pecan ice cream I would definitely recommend giving this a try.

I couldn't wait to share this!!

Aldi's never fails me when it comes to new low-calorie/low-fat snacks. I'm having trouble uploading the pictures - I'll keep working on it. You can check them out here. I picked up Clancy's Jalapeno Ranch Garden Veggie Crisps. They are made from potatoes, beans and carrots. I love anything Ranch flavored and jalapeno gives it that extra kick. The great thing is each ounce of chips has one full serving of vegetables. I really didn't know what to expect - since honestly I hate vegetables for the most part. But since tasting these, I have been more open to trying different variations of my old nemesis. I must say these chips are amazing! You get about 20 chips at 130 calories and 7 grams of fat. With 150 mg of sodium, 2 grams of sodium and 3 grams of protein, I can definitely work with them. Each crisp has a perfect amount of seasoning - you feel like you're actually getting a salty, fatty, calorie filled treat. Yum! I would recommend these highly! I can't remember the price and I'll have to find my receipt but I want to say they were around $1.00 a bag with each bag 4.5 ounces.

Worth The Hype?

Everyone's been talking about coconut water lately. There are a ton of health benefits. Personally I hate coconut (I had a really, really bad experience with it in elementary school) so I have never been inclined to try coconut water. However while crusing the aisles at Walmart I ran across this. Since it was pineapple flavored I felt it might be worth a try. It was $1.00 for the bottle, which I felt was reasonable. Upon opening it I smelled pineapple - always a plus. Then to my surprise- it actually tasted like pineapple!

The entire bottle is two servings which equals 140 calories per bottle and no fat. I don't know if I would drink this on a regular basis, but it's good to have it as an option.

New Products from Healthy Choice

While in Food Lion I ran across some new Healthy Choice items that actually looked quite promising. As I stated in a previous post I am now a fan of greek yogurt. Healthy Choice now carries frozen greek yogurt. They come in a four pack for 4/$10.00 with your VIP card and the regular price is $3.49. They had vanilla bean and raspberry. I love vanilla bean anything so these are definitely on my list to try.

They also had Healthy Choice Baked Taste. I wasn't able to find this on their website but Food Lion carries the Four Cheese Ziti Marinara and Lasagna. I did purchase the latter and I'm looking forward to trying it. They were on sale 2/$4.00 regularly 2/$5.00. I'll review the lasagna at a later date.

Now this is a first for me!

I am not really big on vegetables but I do love my salty snacks. In the past I would have preferred keeping them separate. Only out of slight curiosity did I even entertain trying Calbee's Baked Snapea Crisps.

My sister has been on some sort of health kick and insists everyone in the family take part. She offered them to us and because I just cannot turn down any type of snack I tried them. At first, I wasn't impressed. I need some type of nacho cheese or ranch flavoring to my junky snacks. Well, well, well, these things actually turned out to be quite tasty after consuming a few. They have a sort of salty taste but not too overwhelming. I cannot think of any snack to compare them to. I have been snacking on them all week and dare I say I will probably be buying a bag for myself. I'm just really curious as to who thought it would be a good idea to bake and season snapeas? Twenty-two pieces are 130 calories, so not too bad. The moral of the story kids is to be open to trying new things, you might even find yourself liking *taking deep breath*, vegetables!

So the verdict is out

I can't believe I'm actually saying this but I think I may actually like Greek yogurt. I have had it for the past couple of days and it will probably be a staple in my diet. I started because I have increased my protein intake and I really think it has made a difference. I have lost 8 pounds that was previously stubborn and would not budge. I make sure to eat more eggs and chicken. Well after hearing the benefits of Greek yogurt I decided to give it a try. I picked up a container of Chobani Black Cherry. At first it was extremely bitter and just the way I remember it tasting when I tried it in the past. I do have a confession, I added 2 packets of Great Value Sweetener, but it was so much better adding the sugar, even better than sweetened yogurt. I also tried Dannon's Oikos'. I prefer the Chobani. At $1.22 each at Walmart, I think I'll grab a bunch when I find them on sale somewhere.

Ice cream, ice cream.....

I literally eat ice cream every day - 7 days a week. It's not the best thing I know but ice cream is truly one of my weaknesses. While making my regular trip to Walmart I happened to find these ice cream toppings. There was cookies 'n cream and mini chocolate chip. I had to be slick and take a picture since there were two workers right by me so it's not the best angle. These are not yet on Keebler's website and I don't have any nutritional information, but I do remember from glancing at them that they were fairly low in calorie and fat content. Each bag was $2.00 which isn't bad but I'm not sure if you could get a better deal just buying the bags of cookies and crumbling them up yourself. If I could get a hold of a coupon I would definitely try these.

Yet Another Reason To Love Chick-fil-A!!

Chick-fil-A is one of those place I'm absolutely addicted to, but have had to limit my consumption because my favorites aren't exactly suited for regular eating. As I type this I can taste the crunchy on the outside, juicy on the inside sandwiches which are so good only two pickles are needed. Yum! Their ice cream is wonderfully delicious as well and I just received word that they are offering their sundaes in a smaller version. No word on the price. I cannot wait to try this!

Nutrition Info
Calories 150
Fat 3.5g
Fiber 1g
Sugars 31g
Protein 3g
Cholesterol 10mg
Sodium 75mg
Check out this and their other delicious offerings here.
Photo courtesy of http://www.chick-fil-a.com/.

Great Alternative to Wings!!

In my opinion there is nothing better than buffalo wings during a football game or a movie. The downside is that they are often high in calories and fat - so they are a rare treat. Walmart carries Simmons Oven-Roasted Chicken Wings. I paid around $6.50 for 1lb 9 oz. On the box it states, "sauce'm how you want'em", but in actuality you really don't need sauce at all-they were seasoned perfectly. They come fully cooked and I heated them in the oven at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. They turned out so crispy on the outside and juicy on the outside. I used hot sauce on half and honey bbq sauce on the other half. I was so surprised at how good these wings were. I could actually replace my regular fried wings with these on a regular basis. And since I'm reconsidering a lot of my eating habits regarding meat and processed food, I appreciate that they use chicken from independent farmers and are adamant about the humane treatment of their chickens. Check out their position here. Nutrition Info
Calories 160
Total Fat 8g
Cholesterol 50mg
Sodium 870mg
Carbohydrates 3g
Fiber 0g
Protein 19g

Great Price - Okay Taste

Typically when I eat chicken sandwiches I love them with mayonnaise - lots of it. But since I have been on Weight Watchers I have really learned to enjoy them with just a small amount. I also appreciate them even when they are smaller and not the larger sizes I was used to. One day while in Dollar Tree I found these mini chicken sandwiches. I thought they were a pretty good deal for $1.00 for two small sandwiches. I could easily add fat free cheese and pickles to make them seem moreso like a meal. It took about a minute to microwave one of these. The taste does leave a little to be desired and the texture was a little tough but these will do in a pinch.

Nutrition Info
Serving Size 1 Sandwich
Calories 160
Total Fat 2.5g
Cholesterol 15mg
Sodium 330mg
Carbohydrates 23g
Fiber 1g
Protein 7g

Thank you Sara Lee!! Thank you!!

I don't have much of a sweet tooth but when I have my occasional treat I'm very specific. Pound cake is one of my weaknesses. Something about that moist, sweet, buttery tasting slices just gets me every time. Add a cold glass of milk and I am in sugar heaven. I ran across a coupon for $1.00 of a box of Sara Lee's single serve slices. Each slice was 160 calories - which is perfect for me. I really suck at getting my portions just right when it comes to cake, pie and pizza. Luckily I found these in my local Walmart. They were $3.48 a box so at $2.48 with the coupon I thought it was a pretty good deal. Let me tell you - these did not disappoint. The slices were a pretty good size and as far as taste - perfect. Sara Lee is always on point. They were moist - just the perfect texture. I'm not sure I would pay regular price and the point value is a little high for me to eat these often, but they would be great for a treat every once in a while.
Nutrition Info
Serving Size - 1 slice
Calories 160
Total Fat 5g
Cholesterol 25mg
Sodium 25g
Fiber 0g
Protein 2g

More Than a Kid's Snack!!

I can't remember why I originally decided to purchase this - I think I just found them in the frozen section in Walmart and thought it looked good. I'm not a big fan of yogurt - just occasionally. I much prefer frozen yogurt or light ice cream. But when I saw this four pack of Dannon Danimal Crunchers I thought I would give it a try. There are little chocolate chip cookie bits. I am so not impressed with this but I can see why some people may like it. The yogurt is just kind of bland as are the cookies. Mixing them makes it a little better - but not enough for me to purchase this again.

Nutrition Info
Serving Size 1 Container
Calories 100
Fat 1.5g
Cholesterol <5mg
Sodium 70mg
Potassium 140mg
Carbohydrates 18g
Fiber 3g
Protein 3g

INGREDIENTS
VANILLA WITH OTHER NATURAL FLAVOR NONFAT YOGURT (CULTURED GRADE A NON FAT MILK, SUGAR, WATER, MODIFIED FOOD STARCH, CONTAINS LESS THAN 1%% OF MODIFIED CORN STARCH, KOSHER GELATIN, NATURAL VANILLA FLAVOR, AGAR AGAR, VEGETABLE JUICE (FOR COLOR), VITAMIN D3, CITRIC ACID, SODIUM CITRATE), CHOCOLATE CHIP GRAHAM TOPPING: (ENRICHED FLOUR(WHEAT FLOUR, NIACIN, REDUCED IRON, THIAMINE MONONITRATE, RIBOFLAVIN, FOLIC ACID), MODIFIED FOOD STARCH, GRAHAM FLOUR, SUGAR, PALM OIL, SOLUBLE CORN FIBER, CHOCOLATE LIQUOR, BROWN SUGAR, DEXTROSE, NATURAL FLAVOR, SALT, SODIUM BICARBONATE, COCOA, CONTAINS LESS THAN 1% OF COCOA BUTTER, SOY LECITHIN, NATURAL VANILLA EXTRACT)

Dollar Tree Find!!

While at my local Dollar Tree I found Weight Watchers Smart Ones Smart Delights in the freezer. I'm not really a fan of them - I would rather use those points on something else, but $1.00 a box is a great deal and perfect to keep in the freezer when you have a craving for them. They had Peanut Butter Cup Sundae, Turtle Sundae and I forgot the third kind. Hopefully they have some at your local store. Check out their website for more information on the desserts.

So Disappointed....

I may have tasted kettle korn a couple of times and it really didn't move me. Yesterday I just happened to find these Orville Redenbacher's Smart Pop! 100 Calorie Mini Bags on sale at Food Lion - buy one get one free - so I figured "why not"? Well now I know the answer. I took one bag, which is actually pretty small, and threw it in the microwave for the recommended time which was approximately 1 1/2 minutes. The directions say to listen until the popping slows down to about 1 to 2 seconds in between pops. Well that wasn't nearly enough time. I had to pop three bags to end up with a full bag. Also, each time the popcorn was soft and a little soggy. I wasn't able to get the full taste of the popcorn - it was very bland. I definitely will not be purchasing this again.

Nutrition Info Calories 100 Total Fat 1.5g Cholesterol 0mg Sodium 150mg Potassium 105mg Carbohydrate 23g Fiber 3g Protein 3g
Ingredients POPPING CORN,PALM OIL,BUTTER(CREAM,ANNATTO),LESS THAN 2% OF: SALT,NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR, SUCRALOSE, TBHQ AND CITIRC ACID, MILK

I'm On The Fence About This One...

I have heard of Kellogg's Cracker Chips but I honestly haven't really paid attention to them. Today while in Target I passed by a display featuring these and saw the Southwest Ranch flavor and was immediately intrigued. I have probably mentioned before I love anything Ranch flavored or dipped in Ranch plus I love any type of southwestern food or snack. I figured at $2.99 a box it would be worth a try. As soon as I got home I eagerly tore into the box, but I probably could have waited. The texture of these are definitely those of a cracker. The taste is kind of light for me. The spice is not really a southwestern and it's not ranch either. I really can't describe what it is and it leaves a strange aftertaste. The good thing is there are 27 crackers in a serving, but for the number of points they have (2) I would probably rather have a small bag of Doritos.

Nutrition Info
Serving Size 27 chips Calories 110 Total Fat 2.5g Cholesterol 0mg Sodium 230mg Potassium 170mg Total Carbohydrate 22g Fiber 3g
Ingredients
POTATOES, POTATO STARCH, BROWN RICE FLOUR, SOYBEAN OIL WITH TBHQ FOR FRESHNESS, WHOLE GRAIN YELLOW CORN MEAL, OAT FIB ER, MALTODEXTRIN, CONTAINS TWO PERCENT OR LESS OF SALT, WHEY, DEXTROSE, BUTTERMILK POWDER, MONOGLYCERIDES, SOUR CREAM (CREAM, NONFAT MILK, CULTURES), PALM OIL, GARLIC POWDER, ONION POWDER, LACTIC ACID, NATURAL FLAVORS, TOMATO POWDER, SPICES, CITRIC ACID, WHEAT FLOUR, SOY FLOUR, YEAST EXTRACT, CULTURED NONFAT MILK, PARSLEY, DISODIUM INOSINATE, DISODIUM GUANYLATE

New Chip'ins

I love, love, love salty snacks. One thing I love about the Weight Watchers program is that I can still have my fries, onion rings and chips. While perusing my local Walmart I ran across this new product - at least new to me. I'm familiar with the Popcorn, Indiana brand. Their popcorn is pretty tasty. I'm still trying to find their Sweet & Tangy BBQ somewhere. I had never even heard of their chip'ins before today. The bags were $2 each and they had Sea Salt and the flavor I chose - White Cheddar. All of Indiana, Popcorn's products are gluten free, which I know a lot of people are looking for. Snack lovers beware! These chips were so addictive! They are like little triangles of popcorn. They really taste like white cheddar. At first I thought the texture was weird but I quickly got used to it. Every bite was delightfully delicious. They are whole grain but it doesn't seem to make a difference in the taste. The only downside is that I thought they would be a little lower in points, but for the taste and the fact that they have whole grains (which is a good thing), I'll take it. Plus, you seem to get a lot for those points. They also have Hot Buffalo Wing and Jalepeno Ranch which I'm really eager to try.

At $2 a bag I will look for a coupon the next time I purchase them.

Nutrition Info
Serving Size 1 oz. (About 18 chips)
Calories 130
Total Fat 4g
Cholesterol 0mg
Sodium 210mg
Fiber 1g
Protein 2g

Ingredients: CORN, SUNFLOWER OIL, WHEY (MILK), MALTODEXTRIN, CHEDDAR AND BLUE CHEESE (CULTURED MILK, SALT, AND ENZYMES), CANOLA OIL, SALT, YEAST EXTRACT, CITRIC ACID, LACTIC ACID

Photo courtesy of popcornindiana.com

I Am Hooked on These, Hillshire!

I am very picky about chicken breasts. When I cook them at home they have to be sliced thin and marinated in italian dressing. And I hate when they're tough. Well last month while walking through Walmart of course, I spotted these pre-cooked breasts from Hillshire. The great thing was there was a .55 off coupon attached. I picked up the Italian Style and this has been a staple in my fridge since. I usually just put them in a 100 calorie bun but in searching the internet I found a ton of recipes. I love the ease of popping them in the microwave for approximately 1 minute - easy and so tasty. I know the picture quality isn't that great - I'm working on getting a new camera.

They also have other flavors such as Lemon Pepper, Garlic & Herb, and Grilled Essentials. You can check them out here




Nutrition Info
Serving size 1 chicken breast
Calories 120
Total Fat 1.5g
Cholesterol 50mg
Sodium 490mg
Total Carbohydrate 3g
Fiber 1g
Protein 19g

INGREDIENTS: CHICKEN BREAST, CHICKEN BROTH, CONTAINS 2% OR LESS OF: DEXTROSE, POTASSIUM LACTATE (FOR FLAVOR), SALT, POTASSIUM AND SODIUM PHOSPHATE, YEAST EXTRACT, NATURAL FLAVOR, MALTODEXTRIN, COATED WITH DEHYDRATED GARLIC AND ONION, FLAVORINGS, SALT, MALTODEXTRIN, MODIFIED FOOD STARCH, SUNDRIED TOMATOES, SUGAR, YEAST EXTRACT, CORN SYRUP SOLIDS, DEHYDRATED LEMON PEEL, DEHYDRATED PARSLEY, LEMON JUICE SOLIDS, DISODIUM INOSINATE AND DISODIUM GUANYLATE, ASCORBIC ACID

Snackwell - So Good!

While in Walmart recently I found these new snacks from Snackwell's. Overall I am a fan of their products so I was definitely interested. There were two different boxes of popcorn. I honestly can't remember what both were, I was only interested in the Cinnamon Creme Drizzled Caramel Popcorn. It wasn't until I returned home that I realized the packs had 130 calories instead of the traditional 100 calories. I did some research and found an interesting article from the New York Times about this. It does increase the point amount from 2 to 3 but I think it was well worth it. First of all the packs contain a good amount. I felt like I was truly eating a snack instead of just a taste. The popcorn itself was so sweet and crunchy. The creme was truly drizzled over it and I could taste cinnamon distinctly. I didn't taste the artificial sweet taste that I'm used to with other 100 calorie snacks. The box of 5 packs was $2.50 and was so worth it and I will definitely purchase again.

Nutrition Info

Calories 130
Total Fat 3g
Cholesterol 0mg
Sodium 190 mg
Total Carbohydrates 25g
Fiber Less than 1g

Ingredients
BROWN SUGAR, SUGAR, POPCORN, CORN SYRUP, PALM AND/OR KERNEL OIL, SKIM MILK, MILK, SALT, SOYBEAN OIL, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR, CINNAMON, SOY LECITHIN