Food Review Weekly #1

January 20, 2008 | Reviewer: Abi Jones

Welcome to the first edition of Food Review Weekly. What is Food Review Weekly, you ask? It is a biweekly round-up of the best reviews from across the online food review universe. Okay, not universe. More like the online food people in the United States and Canada. The reviews are fresh even if the food isn’t.

Eats

The Healthy Snacks Blog gives you a hand with your resolutions: check out their review of Glenny’s Low Fat Soy Crisps. Now you know which snacks taste like styrofoam and which are delicious.

On the opposite end of the resolution spectrum, Jeremy over at Consumer’s Corner has his own ideas about Freschetta’s Brick Oven Pizza. Does he agree with us here at HeatEatReview.com? Check out his pizza review and decide for yourself.

Over at The Impulsive Buy, Ace’s review of Lunchables Maxed Out Pepperoni Pizza reminds me of why there are so few Lunchables reviews here on HeatEatReview.com.

Cybele takes a look at Snickers Nut ‘n’ Butter Crunch. Does it contain butter? Is it nutty? You’ll have to read her review to find out the answers to both of those questions.

ZOMG! Candy’s intrepid reviewer, Rosa, sacrifices her tastebuds to tell us whether or not Target’s Choxie Key Lime Pie Truffle Bar is worth the cash.

Reading this from an iPhone? At your local convenience store? Before you go any further, read what Paddy O’ Poppycock (no, I did not make that up) has to say about the Pay Day Chocolatey Avalanche.

Drinks

Dr. Patrice over at iateapie.net wonders “Can V8 actually make their LIGHT juice taste just as good as the original, with the same 1 serving of fruit and vegetables per cup, but with 50% less calories and sugar?” Check out her review of V8 Fusion Light Peach Mango Juice. Maybe someone will let me know how the vegetables come into play.

I am not surprised that there’s a Hooter’s Energy Drink. I’m also not surprised that the folks at Screaming Energy managed to find one. I am surprised that they didn’t choose a blonde woman for the can’s image. Way to break those stereotypes, Hooters.

Candy Addict’s Amber reviews not one, but seven different types of hot cocoa on her Hot Cocoa Roundup. Does she test your favorite?

Condiments

If you’re thinking about making your own Buffalo Wings for the Super Bowl, be sure to check out Clint’s review of CaJohn’s Naga Soreass Hot Sauce. Just make sure to wash your hands very, very well after making the wings. Or eating the wings. You laugh now, but you’ll be sorry later.

More Info

If you’d like to see your own review in Food Review Weekly’s next edition (published on Sunday, Feb. 3rd), just submit your review using this handy form. For more information about Food Review Weekly, plus a list of each week’s hosts check out the dedicated Food Review Weekly page here at HeatEatReview.com.

Filed Under Food Review Weekly | 5 Comments

Boston Market Chicken Parmesan

January 16, 2008 | Reviewer: Abi Jones

Boston Market Chicken Parmesan Price: $2.50 on sale
Serving: 1 package, 16oz.
Calories: 620
Fat: 37%, 24g
Cholesterol: 17%, 50mg
Sodium: 66%, 1580mg
Protein: 33g
Carbs: 23%, 69g
Fiber: 26%, 7g
Weight Watchers Points: 14 Points

Boston Market says: We start with white meat chicken, dipped in a seasoned batter and cooked to a golden brown. The chicken is placed over a bed of freshly-made spaghetti and covered in a marinara sauce made with diced tomatoes. A layer of real mozzarella cheese is sprinkled on top to finish the dish.

Abi says: While I’ve been in Oregon (arrived Saturday, leaving today) the temperature has hovered around 45 degrees during the day and well below freezing at night. As a newly minted Californian (okay, so I’m still studying for my driving test), I find this horrifying. Sure, it is fun to be in the hot tub while there’s ice outside, but at the same time that means freezing your buns on the way from the house to the tub.

On days like these, I want a meal that is warm and filling. I want the epitome of heartiness. I want something that is fried and contains pasta. I want chicken parmesan.

Boston Market seems like the right beacon to steer my boat of neeeding food toward, but it turns out that this item is fraught with peril. While I don’t doubt that Boston Market starts out with white meat chicken, I do think they are missing several steps in their meal description. The impressively large piece of chicken is disconcertingly spongy and made an odd sucking noise while I cut it into pieces.

The pasta was ho-hum, floppy, and flavorless. The sauce was never anything more than watery, generic tomato sauce. I know that I shouldn’t except gourmet when I eat a Boston Market frozen meal. But I should expect hearty and hearty this sauce was not. The flipping and mixing required in the cooking process also meant that any hint of melty cheese quickly disappeared.

I’ll definitely stick with the Michael Angelo’s Chicken Parmesan, a clear winner over this dud from Boston Market. Rebecca only gave it three stars, but that doesn’t stop me from picking up a box whenever I see it on sale.

Filed Under Boston Market Reviews, Chicken, Three Stars | 6 Comments

Lean Cuisine Swedish Meatballs

January 15, 2008 | Reviewer: Becky

Lean Cuisine Swedish Meatballs Price: $2.08 + tax
Serving: 9 1/8 oz
Calories: 280
Fat: 11%, 7g
Cholesterol: 17%, 50mg
Sodium: 26%, 630mg
Protein: 23g
Carbohydrates: 10%, 30g
Fiber: 8%, 2g
Weight Watchers Points: 6 Points

Lean Cuisine says: Swedish meatballs with pasta in a savory gravy.

Becky says: When I think of Swedish meatballs, I think of football parties, Crock Pots, and poking at people with the toothpicks that you’ve used to dig out those little morsels of drippy, meaty, goodness…definitely not Lean Cuisine material. So when a good friend, J, told me that this meal was one of her favorites, I decided to give it a try – I’m game for trying (almost) anything once!

Luckily, I know how to work our office microwave – because the package asks you to cook this at 50% power. At home, I’d be outta luck, since the microwave we have is an el-cheapo that I bought when I started college…nearly 12 years ago. It doesn’t have the ability to cook at any level other than high, but I can’t bear to part with it because it just won’t die! Anyway, long story short – know how to work your microwave.

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised in this dish – especially after adding some black pepper. The meatballs were big & juicy (I was expecting tough) – I could easily cut them into 4 smaller pieces and mix them in with the noodles and gravy. They’re a beef/pork combination – but something I’ve been curious about for a while now is why we never see ground turkey in any of these frozen meals. Granted, you’ll never see me eat a turkey cheeseburger, but in dishes where meat is not the main character, turkey is a fantastic replacement.

The gravy was almost savory – it reminded me of beef stroganoff – which in turn made me crave mushrooms. Besides that, the main thing the gravy was lacking was more onion – that would have definitely helped to move this gravy decidedly into the ‘savory’ category. The noodles turned out surprisingly well – a perfect al dente – which I’m found is hard to achieve in a frozen meal.

All in all, I was pleasantly surprised in this meal. You definitely need a veggie side dish (ex. salad or frozen mixed veggies) to round out the meal, but I’ll have to thank J for recommending this meal to me – I’ll definitely buy it again.

Filed Under 6 WW Points, Beef, Four Stars, Lean Cuisine Reviews, Pork | 14 Comments

Trader Joe’s Chicken Burrito Bowl

January 14, 2008 | Reviewer: Abi

Trader Joe’s Chicken Burrito Bowl Price: $3.99
Serving: 1 package, 12oz.
Calories: 470 per serving
Fat: 22%, 14g
Cholesterol: 17%, 50mg
Sodium: 35%, 840mg
Protein: 26g
Carbs: 20%, 61g
Fiber: 44%, 11g
Weight Watchers Points: 10 points

Trader Joe says: Chicken, rice, black beans, salsa, cheddar cheese, and monterey jack cheese.

Abi says: By now we’ve all heard the horror stories about fattening, calorie-laden burritos produced by a company that rhymes with Schmapotle. Their tortilla alone is 330 calories and has 8 grams of fat. Basically, you could have a burrito wrapper or an entire Lean Cuisine.

Wanting to avoid crazy-bad tortillas, I was lured in by Trader Joe’s tortilla-free chicken burrito bowl. Available in the fridge section at TJ’s, these bowls are purported to contain chicken, rice, black beans, salsa, cheddar cheese and monterey jack cheese. Plus, they aren’t frozen, which makes me think that perhaps they are freshly made. I am now aware that ‘freshly made’ does not equal ‘delicious’.

The chicken portion was minuscule and difficult to find, turning my lunch into a game of ‘Find the Chicken’. The cheese, which appears so abundantly in the ‘before’ image, managed to lose any semblance of flavor by the time it became the ‘after’ image, turning into a cheesy version of beans. Great, I had a brick of beans, weighing in at 12 ounces, with the occasional kernel of corn in there to remind me that I could find something better to eat if I tried. Sure, I would have been full if I’d consumed the entire thing, but I wouldn’t have been satisfied.

Newsflash to the world: Instead of paying four dollars for this meal, I could have purchased a can of refried beans for 79¢, opened it, and eaten beans straight from the can. That is just how exciting and delicious I found this overwhelmingly beany burrito bowl.

That blandness, combined with my complete lack of salsa (a crisis in and of itself) meant that I had to venture out into the world to get a sandwich. An $8.00 sandwich. Thanks a lot, Trader Joe’s. From now on, I’ll always have a backup meal on hand.

Filed Under Chicken, Trader Joe's Reviews, Two Stars | 7 Comments