Price: $5.19
Serving: 1 bowl, 9.5oz.
Calories: 390
Fat: 28%, 18g
Cholesterol: 8%, 25mg
Sodium: 33%, 780mg
Protein: 18g
Carbs: 14%, 41g
Fiber: 28%, 7g
Weight Watchers Points: 8 Points

Amy’s Kitchen says: This casserole is based on a popular Mexican dish called “Chilaquiles.” When Amy’s parents first tasted it in Oaxaca they came back and asked Amy’s chefs to find the recipe. One of the chefs (whose family had owned a Mexican restaurant in San Francisco) was already familiar with the dish and adapted it to suit Amy’s Standards . . . organic ingredients, fewer “hot” spices, and less fat. The result is delicious and might remind you of a bowl of “nachos” made with organic baked corn chips and melted cheddar and jack cheeses. Plus . . . an assortment of organic vegetables and our own homemade fresh tofu. On the side are delicately seasoned slow-cooked black beans, making this gluten free meal in a bowl thoroughly satisfying.

Abi says: My apologies for the longest frozen food origin explanation in the world. It seems that the people at Amy’s Kitchen (and hey, if y’all are reading this, can I come visit you and tour the factory? Please?) ate a version of my most favorite hangover food EVER, came back to the United States, de-Mexicanized it, added tofu, and are now selling it as tortilla casserole.

When I saw this at the grocery store I was unnaturally excited about a frozen product. I was so eager to try this that I broke my cardinal rule of frozen food and paid a full $5.19 for this bowl.

As a person of Latin American heritage and a general enjoyer of food, I understand now that I made a mistake. Now I know how Italians feel when they think of Chef Boyardee. Where are the layers of flavor usually evident in Amy’s Kitchen meals? Where is the cheese? Why does the tofu have to be so obviously tofu-looking?

This bowl is full of mushy corn tortillas, bland tomato sauce (it would seem a shame to call it salsa or mole), and a healthy side of black beans. I know that it is possible to make a completely awesome meal out of those ingredients. However, this meal is not awesome. The bowl is filling, but it is also boring. It is so boring that at one point while eating it (during an I-want-to-be-President debate) I said out loud “Wow, this is boring.” and George asked “Hillary?” and I said “Well, her too, but I was talking about this meal.” And then he looked at it in a way that said ‘Yeah, it is not as good as my microwaved mini pizza.’

When something from Amy’s Kitchen is beat by a 79¢ pizza, you know there’s a problem. This meal makes me sad because I worry that an entire generation of healthful frozen food eating Americans are going to think of tortilla casserole or chilaquiles and they’ll think of this bowl.

This isn’t how it is folks and this isn’t how it has to be. If you’re looking for something Mexicanish and in the Amy’s Kitchen line, stick with the Santa Fe Enchilada Bowl, the Cheese Enchilada Meal or the Mexican Tamale Pie (just 2 points). Any of those is a terrific alternative to this dud.

Price: $5.99 (on sale for $4.00)
Serving: 1/3 Pizza, 4.66oz.
Calories: 360 per serving
Fat: 28%, 18g
Cholesterol: 5%, 15mg
Sodium: 28%, 680mg
Protein: 13g
Carbs: 12%, 37g
Fiber: 16%, 4g
Weight Watchers Points: 8 Points

Amy’s says: This variation of our basic cheese pizza has a layer of pesto and fresh tasting tomato sauce atop a whole-wheat crust. Parents will appreciate the extra nutrition of the crust as well as its great taste.

Abi says: I have the remedy for the problem that you don’t even realize exists. The solution is Amy’s Cheese and Pesto Pizza. Last year I complained that Amy’s cheese pizza was that it was all fine and dandy so long and one didn’t mind being bored out of their mind. Well, it is almost as though someone at Amy’s heard me and made a pizza that offered the simplicity of cheese with the oomph of pesto and the heartiness of a whole wheat crust.

Part of why I’m excited about this pizza is that the pest on it is even better than the pesto in the legendary Amy’s Pesto Tortellini Bowl. Yes, I realize that it is probably the same pesto, but the pizza is just so much more amazing because the pesto is paired with a delightfully tangy tomato sauce, cheese, and chewy crust.

Half of this pizza, plus a couple of beers and a couple of chocolate chip cookies will be more than enough to get you through the next round of NFL playoff games or tomorrow night’s primary in New Hampshire.

Price: $3 (on sale)
Serving: One package, 9.5 oz.
Calories: 260
Fat: 12%, 8g
Cholesterol: None
Sodium: 28%, 680mg
Carbs: 12%, 37g
Fiber: 20%, 5g
Protein: 12g

Amy’s Kitchen says: A non-dairy variation of the traditional Mattar Paneer, using tofu along with organic peas in a light, delicately seasoned sauce. On the side are fragrant basmati rice and what we call “Swarn’s Golden Lentil Dal,” which is simmered with organic tomatoes, onions and hand-roasted spices.

Andrew says: When I was a student at a preparatory academy during my junior and senior years of high school, I was "adopted" by some true-school Indian guys. One of them, a residence assistant on my floor, was like the brother I never had, and fed me like I was a member of the family. From samosas filled with curried peas and potatoes to chunks of delicious paneer (Indian cheese) slathered in exotic spices, I was awash in a new world of culinary delights for the better part of two years. And these were homemade meals, so they were accurate, fresh and lovingly made.

The experience kind of spoiled me. Now I live in northern Indiana, in a place where Indian restaurants are, for all intents and purposes, a fantasy. My Indian brothers have moved on to other areas, and so my exposure to the delights of Indian cuisine are far and few between.

I've known Amy's Kitchen makes frozen Indian meals for a while, but I've always been afraid to try them, lest they suck immensely. After all, I've only been exposed to the finest stuff; how could I expect a frozen meal to live up to that standard, or even come near it?

Well, I love frozen food. The advances made in frozen food since I've been born are absolutely astounding. Vegetables stay crisp and flavorful, meat no longer HAS to turn into a gelatinous mess, and even frozen mashed potatoes turn out pretty good more often than not. So, with that in mind, I took the plunge and invested my faith in some Amy's Indian meals.

They were all pretty fantastic. I guess I shouldn't have been so surprised, but the quality of these meals, when prepared properly actually approaches what I had before. In this version of mattar paneer (with tofu chunks standing in for the soft Indian cheese), there's a good, sweet curry flavor that actually reminds me of stuff my friend's mom used to make. It's not quite as spicy as I remember, but it's tasty.

And the tofu works well as a vegan replacement for the paneer. Texture-wise, they're almost identical, and to be frank, paneer's main utility in dishes like this seems to be texture, so there you go. Alongside the curried peas and tofu is golden lentil dal, which is good and spicy as well, but makes me wish I had some naan (flatbread) to sop it up with. Instead of bread, though, we're given the organic rice blend, which I'm sure turns out better in a microwave than flatbread would. And it's easy enough to spork up some rice and then spork up some dal and/or mattar tofu and then spork it into your mouth and say, "that Amy's sure can cook up some mean frozen Indian food!"

I'm giving this five stars mainly because I didn't think it was possible to create something frozen (and totally natural and totally organic) that could even approximate homemade Indian food. It's not quite restaurant or homemade quality, but for frozen food, it's basically the most fantastic thing ever.

[The tofu and cheese versions are loved by all who have consumed and written about them, including Jess of HeatEatReview.com (paneer review) and Tanya at Iateapie.net (tofu review) - Ed.]

Price: $4.09
Serving: 1 box, 9 oz.
Calories: 380
Fat: 26%, 17g
Cholesterol: 6%, 15mg
Sodium: 24%, 580mg
Protein: 21g
Carbs: 12%, 37g
Fiber: 27%, 7g

Amy’s Kitchen says: Our Tofu Rancheros Breakfast will satisfy the heartiest of eaters. Organic tofu scrambled with vegetables and topped with a mildly spiced ranchero sauce and grated Monterey Jack cheese covers an organic corn tortilla along with sides of black beans and roasted potatoes. This dish is nourishing and delicious, and since it’s fully cooked, only takes a few minutes to prepare. If you prefer a bit more spice, top it with one of Amy’s great tasting bottle salsa. Good for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Abi says: I planned on eating this meal for breakfast. Unfortunately, I forgot to retrieve it from the microwave before my professor started lecturing and I ended up eating this meal reheated an hour later.

Though the miniature corn tortilla didn’t fare so well (very hard) and the eggs (um, tofu) became rubbery, this meal was so darn tasty and had such variety that I could help but be excited about eating a fresh one in the future.

Forgetting meals in the microwave is a hard lesson in cold tofu-egg edibleness.

4 weeks later Abi manages to eat the meal in a timely manner…

Yes! Amy’s Tofu Rancheros meal is a hearty, filling, and savory breakfast. It will enamour even those of you who do not relish the thought of tofu for breakfast (or any other meal). If it weren’t for the fact that this meal is significantly more expensive than just making a breakfast of eggs, beans, potato, a mini tortilla, and salsa, I would probably eat it more often.

Now that I think about it, you could feed a family of four Huevos Rancheros for the cost of this meal. That is pretty crazy. I suddenly feel like an evil yuppy. It doesn’t help that I’m typing this at a Starbucks while sipping a tall soy chai.

Consumer guilt aside, if I were to reconfigure this meal, I would do away with the mini corn tortilla and instead introduce mini corn tortilla pieces (they do not require a knife). I would also give the consumer more salsa. Seriously, salsa is the ingredient that takes this meal from ‘a bunch of bland healthy things’ to ‘a fiesta in your mouth’.

Yes, the blurb on the box says that I can add more salsa. If I am eating a microwaveable breakfast meal, I probably don’t just have some salsa sitting around. Why not include a little salsa packet for all of us salsa lovers?