Through Buitoni’s parternership with Foodbuzz and their Tastemaker Program, I received a coupon for a free Buitoni frozen meal.  See, I kinda cheated since I’ve already tried their frozen lasagna.   A couple of weeks ago, my husband had a major craving for lasagna (no, he’s not the pregnant one, I am).   So since he asked for it one night when it was way too late to start making one myself and I had that day coincidentally read a list of reviews of the best frozen lasagnas, I thought I’d take my list of the best ones and go get one for him and try it out for myself!

However, once I got to the store, they of course did not have one of these “best” lasagnas, but I stumbled upon this Buitoni frozen lasagna (not on the list because the testers did not try this kind), which looked very promising.  I figured since Foodbuzz has such a great relationship with Buitoni, and lots of foodie bloggers were raving about various Buitoni products, it couldn’t be too bad.  See, I’m a total Italian food snob.  Unless it comes from an authentic Italian restaurant, my family, myself, or imported, I typically do not like American Italian food.  It’s totally different.  I haven’t tried the Buitoni brand before due to this snobishness.  I’ve turned down other Buitoni Tastemaker opportunities for this reason.  Anyway, the frozen lasagna is all natural and Southern style – which I appreciated the clarification.  My family is from Northern Italy and the lasagna/food styles are totally different.  I do like them all though, just depends on the mood I’m in.  I’ve turned my husband and son into Italian food snobs as well.  I can’t believe my toddler son for the past year will turn up his nose to so-so lasagna but will snarf down the good stuff.  Seriously.  Are kids supposed to be that sensitive?  If we go to a non-Italian restaurant where spaghetti is on the menu, he usually hates it after one bite, and then I try it and he’s always right. 

So, we get home and stick the lasagna in the oven and I get my son ready for bed, because it’s late.  We had already eaten a light dinner a few hours before when my husband wasn’t hungry.  Around 8:30 the lasagna is finally ready!  I take a sliver of it up to bed to watch the one 20some minute ”educational:)” cartoon O watches before bedtime, as part of the nighttime routine.   After taking a teeny bite, he can tell if it’s bad with a little taste, he wanted another bite.  He stole my whole sliver of lasagna.  I had to run down and get a little bigger slice and come back up to shar with him.  Again, he ate almost all of it.  This happened another couple of times and we ended up eating half of it together while my husband ate the other half!  Okay, so it isn’t the best authentic Italian lasagna I’ve ever had, but you know what?  For frozen lasagna, it’s darn good and the flavors are great and not too over or under-whelming.  A nice balance that many American lasagnas can’t ever seem to get right.  I think it’s an excellent staple to have in the freezer when you get that craving but may not have the ingredients on hand or the energy to make it.  I have a feeling this would’ve been somewhere on the top of the best frozen lasagna list, had those testers tried this kind.  My husband was also impressed and his craving was definitely satisfied.

So, when I got the invitation from Foodbuzz to try out a new Buitoni frozen meal for two, I just got another one of  these.  It’s in the freezer now and it’ll be a perfect frozen lasagna to have when my family is home with me with a new baby.  I already know they’ll like it!  Plus, we’re not much of a cream sauce type of family and some of the other options have creamy sauces and/or seemed like too big of a leap to attempt Italian food right – but that’s just my Italian food snob behavior coming out… maybe they’re as good as the lasagna?

Disclosure, I received free product from Buitoni/Foodbuzz

This guest review comes from my friend Megan, who is also pregnant and has Celiac Disease (if you’re new to this blog, I do not have celiac disease but my husband is allergic to wheat so I like to have a variety of foods at my house).  Schar was nice enough to send me a fantastic variety of their products – and I thought it would be fun if Megan, coming from a different perspective than myself, could share her experience with us as well!   I love it!  I think it’s an entertaining review and her personal experiences with the gluten-free products out there may help some of you from wasting your money on certain products!  I’ll give my two cents on the bottom of some of the same products that I have tried.  Oh!  This is Part 1 of the review, more to come with Schar:)

Chocolate Sandwich Cremes

I have never been a huge fan of packaged chocolate cookies so this one probably isn’t the fairest review. I felt a little devoid of chocolate flavor. The chocolate crème center was rich and added another level of yumminess but I have to say that there probably wasn’t enough crème to make me feel like this was a treat. Probably not what I would grab if looking for a chocolate fix. I like that they come two to a package though. I never get through packaged gluten free treats before they go stale. This way if you grab one once a week or so you won’t compromise the whole box.

Hamburger Buns

Okay so me and hamburger buns haven’t gotten along since I went gluten free last year. I’ve tried two store bought varieties – Whole Foods GF Bakehouse and Kinnickinick.  Kinnickinick was terrible – fell apart all over the place, terrible texture – overall very disappointing. Especially when you shell out almost $6 for 4. Whole Foods makes a great product but I think I just about fell over when I read the nutrition panel. At 330 calories and 10 grams of fat, with butter as the 4^th ingredient, I knew I had not met my match made in sandwich heaven. Really? 330 calories for a bun? Really?! The gluten free world is sometimes so deceiving.

I’ve also tried making buns with my gluten free bread recipe (an adaptation of Cinnamon Quill’s vegan bread) with moderate success but without a great baking pan/ring it is tough to get a uniform shape and I don’t always have time to make a batch of bread and buns every few weeks so I need something with a convenience factor.

That brings me to the Schar buns. The bun – at an acceptable 150 calories – that toasts nicely (I’ve yet to meet a gluten free bread, bun or wrap that doesn’t need a torch of heat to make it edible – okay Udi’s bread is close, but still not perfect) and gives me exactly what I am looking for – a sensible, moderately nutritious, convenient alternative for a hamburger, salmon burger, grilled chicken, etc. I am also going to try bringing it to a restaurant so that I can (gasp) actually eat a something with carbs at a meal other than my home! For my family that loves to grill out for all occasions a suitable bun is a must and this one fits the bill!

Pasta

I used the pasta in a new pasta salad recipe and was very pleased with how it turns out. This may be the closest to white, wheat based pasta that I have tried yet. I was glad to see that I didn’t need to add extra salt, something that I have had to do to some of the brown rice pasta dishes I have done. Who would’ve thought that wheat pasta was really that flavorful? The texture was tender and held up well –it didn’t fall apart when tossed with the veggies and dressing! I can’t say I would use it to replace my brown rice tinkayda pasta, because it doesn’t have quite the nutrient value that I am looking for in a pasta, but for a pot luck or for a dinner gathering I wouldn’t hesitate to use the Schar pasta brand again.

Table Crackers

So on a whim the other night I was searching my house for protein, after arriving at a pot luck 4^thof July dinner only to find they weren’t grilling as I assumed but instead bought fried chicken. Bummer. My dinner consisted of the pasta salad I brought and fruit (okay let’s ignore the fact that I stopped at the local ice cream joint on the way home). Let’s also ignore the flip my stomach did when I noticed that my serving spoon (for my adequately marked “Gluten Free Pasta Salad” – there was the possibility of two other Celiacs being there also) had unfortunately found its way into the glutenful pasta salad that was right next to it. Dang! The spoon now residing in my salad bowl was contaminated. I learned my lesson – set the gluten free dish away from other similar dishes when in a pot luck setting. I scooped my salad with a clean spoon and hoped that I wouldn’t feel the effects of that move the following day.

So needless to say, by 9 pm I was in serious need of some protein – being prego will do that to a person. I grabbed a can of tuna and whipped up a tuna salad with egg, celery and capers (with Penzey’s Florida Pepper – my new fave). I was planning on just digging in because I wasn’t in the mood for bread. But then I remembered I hadn’t tried the Schar Table crackers that Ann so graciously shared with me. Perfect! Ignoring the fact that they were completely broken when shipped, I took some pieces and scooped up the tuna salad. I was extremely pleased with the crunch – just enough without being stale tasting. While they on their own didn’t have much outstanding flavor – a little buttery finish, they were a perfect complement to the tuna salad. I could picture pairing well with a variety of cheeses – not sure if a 2 x 4 inch cracker is really ideal for cheese pairing, but considering the alternatives I’ve tried (Mary’s Gone Crackers, Nut Thins & Glutino) I would definitely choose the Schar cracker as the most versatile. I loved Mary’s before I got pregnant and then in the first trimester – desperate for a portable carb that could cure a queasy stomach – I picked up the Herb variety. The flavor just about sent me over the edge with nausea. Since then I haven’t had the courage to try them again! Overall I was very happy with the cracker. Packaging into smaller portions would be nice for traveling, dinner parties etc, but overall a great choice.

Chocolate Sandwich Crèmes (with white filling)

In the summer I love to make an ooey gooey Peanut Buster Bar dessert with an Oreo crust, ice cream, fudge , caramel and peanut topping. Okay so the nuts are good for you right? It’s delicious – quite the treat once or twice a summer! Since I went gluten free last July I haven’t made this so when I noticed the box of Schar Sandwich Cremes in my stash I immediately thought of this dessert – perfect! We had a dinner party to go to – I was assigned dessert – which always works because that way I can make sure I can eat it! I opened the cookies and decided I better try one on its own first to get a proper review. It was okay – again – not a packaged cookie fan. The thing I noted immediately was the smooth texture – as a straight up sub for oreos this doesn’t quite cut it. It didn’t have that crumb that one associates with an oreo. I missed the bumpy exterior and overall wasn’t really satisfied. As I crushed the remaining cookies, I was reminiscing about the quantity. It’s bad enough to note the pricing on some gluten free items, but worse when you really evaluate what you are getting for that $5 box of cookies. My recipe called for an entire package of oreos – I compared the ounces and I was well over half short because of the small quantity in the Schar package. Looks like I would be halving the dessert recipe! In a pinch this cookie worked as a sub for the oreo crust. However, the lack of a tender crumb did affect the ease that one could use a fork and break off a piece of the crust. The butter, combined with the Schar cookies created quite the solid piece of crust – very difficult to break apart with a fork. Probably nearly impossible with a plastic fork in a picnic setting. So that was a little disappointing. I used the correct ratio of oreo to butter in the original recipe crust but I think next time I would opt for less butter in hopes the crust wouldn’t take such a solid form.

Fantastic information!  My comments on the products?  I typically don’t buy pre-packaged cookies either, so the Chocolate Sandwich Cookies aren’t my thing – maybe they tasted a little bitter?  Not sure, but I’m pretty sure it has to do with the fact I just wouldn’t buy them normally anyway.  However, I have bought the Hazelnut Wafers, which is the type of thing that I do typically buy and then gorge on.  The Schar brand ones had a similar effect so I haven’t bought them in awhile since I know I won’t be able to stop!  I have yet to try the Schar pasta and I didn’t keep any hamburger buns to myself, so I couldn’t comment, however, the pasta is made in Italy.  This means it has to be good or I’m pretty sure the Italians would have laughed them out of business- since Schar is the #1 selling gluten free brand in Europe.  I’m excited to try this pasta at some point!  I have tried the Table Crackers, and yes, they had broken up, but the smooth taste and cracker crunch were still there.  I ate them one day when my stomach felt queasy and they helped tremendously!  I’m also going to agree with Megan on the different gluten free crackers I’ve tried – these are by far the most versatile and the ones I’d bring to a party (and my favorite) - but it would be nice if they had them in smaller sizes for cheese trays.  You could serve them and nobody would even know they are gluten free.  Mary’s Gone Crackers has a distinct flavor and are meant to be healthy- but one time I bought them they were totally burnt so I haven’t gotten the nerve to buy any more either.  The nutrition in them is great but they’re not near as versatile as the Schar ones.  Then there’s the Chocolate Sandwich Cremes with white filling, or the oreo replacements.  I don’t typically buy oreos or the natural counterparts (I’ve tried a gross natural substitute once)- and these really weren’t bad!  I would eat them in ice cream!  But, since I don’t typically eat this type of cookie anyway, I keep forgetting to put them in ice cream since it’s not something I normally do – though first trimester it would’ve been nice to have since I craved this type of cookie in soft serve.  I wish I would’ve known Megan needed more for her baking and I would’ve given her the rest!  Then maybe the recipe may have turned out better. 

Well, there’s lots more to say and more yummy products to tell you about, but for now, I think Megan’s review is fantastic and I dont’ want to make this too long- her opinion counts more than mine anyway since she is the target market.  If you haven’t already, you can check out the Schar website for a great source of information on Celiac Disease and to see the fantastic product selection.  Overall, so far, I’ve been very impressed with the quality of this brand.  Actually, as I finish writing this first part of the Schar review, I’m dipping my Table Cracker bits into my crab salad for lunch – perfect!

Disclosure: I received free product from Schar. 

Oops!  In the time it took me to decide between the two diaper bags (open up yesterday’s post if you don’t know what I’m talking about), CSN sold out of the Mrs. Smith flowery one I ultimately decided on!  Instead, I’ll be getting this awesome Okkatots Travel Baby Depot Bag!  See, I could not decide between the two because they both seem extremely functional and easy to organize and I’m done with too-small bags.  This one was more expensive so I am getting the difference on this one- which I’m very happy to do!  I ended up going with Mrs. Smith originally because it’s flowery and since I’m pregnant with a girl this time, I figured it’s time for me to be all girly.  With my boy everything was black or tan. 

This Okkatots bag got fantastic reviews and I guess my husband will be more likely to carry it when I need help!  Although- I recall the last time my shoulder just about falling off every time I carried my diaper bags, so this time, getting a backpack will be a delightful change of pace:)   Maybe I can give up on my over-sized purse for awhile since I seem to pack my son tons of snacks and toys everywhere I go and my shoulder still gets overwhelmed and sometimes it looks as though I’ve been squatting heavy weights but instead it’s just the mark from my bag.  Know what I mean?    With my first, it was all about finding the cutest bag with good reviews.  But then I realized I was only paying attention to the good reviews and ignoring the bad, ie…too small!  So, this time, true functionality and space are my major goals.  Like I said in the last post, I cannot wait to review this!

I have to apologize – I wrote this two whole weeks ago but never got around to final tweaks and adding the photo until today.  Why?  I’m 31 weeks pregnant and nesting big time!  I have not had the time to do much other than work and nest and then of course just be tired!  Also, I haven’t been making anything new lately either, just lots and lots of oat flour crepes.  Now I’m craving my take on Runza Casserole and Warm Quinoa Salad…nothing new.  Okay, on to the review:

My son is down for a nap, I’m hungry and need a snack.  What should I eat?  I’ll go get the mail and think about it.  Fantastic timing!  My Custom Choice Cereal has just arrived!  I’m so excited, my kitchen is a mess and I need to clean, but I ignore the mail piles (sorry husband) and pour myself a nice little bowl of my custom cereal.  And then another bowl.  And now I’m eating it dry out of the bag.  Is it that good or am I just hungry?    A little of both I think. 

I ordered the Good Morning flakes made with corn flakes, flax, quinoa, buckwheat and amaranth.  The flakes alone are crunchy and hearty, and I enjoyed them, but my mom couldn’t get over the flaxy/fishy flavor.  Then again, my mom doesn’t ever buy things with flax or anything too healthy.   I think I may be immune to that, though I detected it – it doesn’t bother me.  I like the nutty/seediness of flax.  Also,  because I’m pregnant and think my body really wants those Omega 3′s!  Normally I don’t like salmon due to fishiness and I love it right now.  Anyway, the crunchy almonds, bananas and coconut all worked really well together and if you’re sensitive to flax, you won’t be able to tell if you have your bite of flakes with any other ingredient.  If you eat flax anyway, then it’s no big deal.  I also got hazelnuts and organic strawberries in the cereal mix.  My custom additions made it all feel so tropical I called my cereal, “La Isla Yummy.”  Fun!  If you have a gluten-free family at home, you will not be confused at whose cereal is whose:)  If I were to order again, I’d get the Good Morning Flakes (love the heartiness), coconut, almond and banana.  The strawberry was great while eating the cereal dry out of the package, but the chewiness of it didn’t work for me in the milk.  Custom Choice Cereal is expanding their ingredients so I’ve suggested freeze-dried strawberries!  The hazelnuts all fell to the bottom of the bag but I was so ravenous I didn’t even notice I wasn’t eating them!  I forgot to shake them up – but everything else was evenly distributed.

A friend of mine, Megan, has celiac disease and so I decided to give her half of the bag to try out for herself.  She said that she loved the flakes, they held their texture in milk significantly better than other gluten free flake cereals she has tried.  Like me, she loved the added ingredients save for the strawberries, which were too big and chewy.  So we both recommend this but without the strawberries! 

The other main cereal choices are regular (gf) corn flakes and (gf) cinnamon granola.  Those strawberries would be perfect in the granola!  Custom Choice has lots of different fruits that you can add to your custom mix, including: goji berries, mangoes, cherries, blueberries, raisins, pineapple, apricots, cranberries, apples and pears.  These fruits are all dehydrated except for the bananas that are fried and crunchy.  Check out the nuts and seeds for yourself!  It’s really fun trying to figure out the perfect cereal mix – and the people over at Custom Choice are happy to hear any suggestions that you may have.

It’s really cool to make your own cereal and see the Nutrition Facts change with each item that you add/subtract.  What was even cooler is that when I received my order in the mail, within the week, my nutrition facts were printed on the back with a complete ingredient list.  It had an order number for easy re-ordering as well.  I love love love this concept and hope it continues to flourish…  Initially, the price is pretty expensive for your first bag – but each additional bag is only $1 (I think?!) – check with the company once you find your mix, because that becomes a great deal!

Disclosure: I received free product from Custom Choice Cereal

Anyone watch The Real Housewives of NYC?  Guilty pleasure…I do.  It’s the only Real Housewive’s that I’ve actually gotten into, though I’ve given the others a chance.  This season is nuts by the way!  The other night I finally saw Kelly go looney on  pregnant Bethenny on my DVR.  Seemingly for reasons mostly made up and intensified in her head.  I won’t get into it since you may not watch the show…but according to Kelly, making lemonade out of lemons is the same as making a mountain out of a molehill and a bad thing.  Hee hee, it  was a nice laugh that I needed:)  Even if you don’t watch the show, you really need to see this!   Well, that and LuAnn’s interesting song…cringe, did she really do that?  And now I’m feeling guilty for saying that… oh, but I’m leaving so much out.

Anyway!  Bethenny Frankel (author of The Skinnygirl DISH) has been my favorite character the whole time, and I bought Naturally THIN when it came out.  I used to buy diet books and advice books back in the day, but haven’t for quite a long time since I’m pretty laid back and mostly healthy – I don’t need them.  I made the exception with this one since I like her funny, direct style.  It was fun to read her philosophy then and make some of the limited recipes she included in that book.  Her philosophy is similar to mine but I definitely eat more than she does!  I’m naturally thin but not as thin as Bethenny!  She’s tiny!  This book came out the end of December ’09 – but I was feeling way too First Trimester sick to think about checking it out then, so this review is a little late.

The Skinnygirl DISH is more of a book for total novice home chefs.  She encourages you to make substitutions and to play with your food- which would be a great thing for my mom to read since she follows recipes to a T and will not substitute anything.  She’s so bad that if an old book says margarine, she’ll buy that instead of butter for that particular recipe even though I have grilled her to stop buying margarine (she buys the hydrogenated kind of course).  Bethenny also tells you what to stock your pantry with- which is good for many of my friends with bare pantries, but mine is filled the the brim (all suggested pantry stockers already included) and also what kitchen tools you should have handy in your kitchen – which of course, I already have as well.  She also clarifies some cooking terms (like what is a sprig) – for those novices that may get intimidated before they start their cooking adventure.  I’m not saying I’m a chef by any means, but the first part of this book is for those that are intimidated in their kitchen and don’t know where to start!

Have you had the internal battle with yourself about using non-stick coated pans?  I have, a lot.  But in order to use my awesome All Clad pans, I end up using a lot of oil or butter so things don’t stick…and sometimes I’d just like to use the non-stick pan with a little spray coconut oil.  I smiled when I saw her highlited section on these very non-stick pans.  She theorizes that the chemicals from the non-stick pans may not be much different than the carcinogens that are released when you’ve heated oil for too long…  If you worry too much about this you’d be stuck at home instead of living your life.  Thanks Bethenny, I feel better, and have had a few eggs on non-stick pans since and feel just fine about it:)

On to the recipes!  Overall, the recipes are meant for you to make them at home easily with the ingredients you already have, or are not afraid to buy.  I like this because I’d be more likely to make these recipes than going overboard and spending tons of time just to find out that my 2 year old doesn’t want to take a bite and my husband maybe had too big of a lunch that day.  I’ve already made my own similar versions to many of these recipes - but they’re great healthy alternatives to most recipes out there.

Of course, I had to try a couple of them out…and I went the baking route.  I love oat flour and so it’s great that most of Bethenny’s baking recipes are with oat flour!  How convenient for you she also has YouTube instructional videos on many of her recipes!  Here’s the oatmeal raisin cookie that I made.  Utilizing Bethenny’s “Use what you have” philosophy (which is what I always do), I only had some  Whole Foods organic cinnamon applesauce in little single serving cups for my son…  I’m thinking, awesome!  I love using cinnamon applesauce in recipes – but I had never tried this applesauce before and in retrospect, would definitely not buy it again.  It’s a very strong tasting applesauce and the cookies, though they came out soft and fluffy, tasted like the applesauce.  Dang it.  Nobody liked them and it wasn’t the recipe, it was the applesauce! 

One business trip my husband took to New York last year, a friend sent him home with some awesome chocolate chunk banana bread from a Brooklyn bakery.    I snarfed it up and have been craving it ever since.  Bethenny’s recipe looked like the perfect solution to me!  Here’s her YouTube version of Boo Boo Banana Bread!  I used Scharffen Berger 62% chocolate chunks – which was definitely the way to go in this recipe- if you can’t find them, I’d definitely opt for dark chocolate chunks in place of chips.  Of course I had to make another mistake though…what is wrong with me lately?!!!  This recipe calls for 2-3 bananas, or 1 cup.  So, instead of measuring and having to deal with cleaning another dish , (I always buy the smallest bananas I can find not the mini variety, but the small traditional ones) – I assumed 2 1/2 bananas would be close to a cup.  Hmmm, it had to have been way more because my bread was insanely moist and just would not cook through more!  Next time, I am using 2 bananas and if it still looks too watery, I’m going to throw in another 1/4 cup of oat flour or so!   It looked too watery to me but I threw it in the oven anyway, I should listen to my gut.   The edges and the outsides were all absolutely delicious though and I ate as much as I could salvage.  I probably could’ve toasted the inside in my toaster oven but judging from the mass quantity of that bread that I ate in one day, I trashed it:(  I am regretting it though since I hate wasting food and I’m still craving that bread and the SB awesome chocolate chunks I threw out!   Anyway, the flavor of this banana bread was spot on excellent and I’ll definitely be making this one again and again…once I figure out the proper amount of banana of course!

Bethenny also includes her Skinnygirl drink recipes- which I sadly cannot consume right now.  Well, I’m really happy to be pregnant but my sweet boy keeps going through some terrible two tantrums and not wanting to sleep lately, so a little evening cocktail here and there would be nice. 

Overall, I liked reading Bethenny’s chit chat style of writing and the relaxed way she goes about her recipes.  The first part of the book is more for a newbie, but there’s great information and recipe ideas to inspire all of us throughout the book.  I usually end up getting inspired by cookbooks rather than cooking from them.   Also, the end of the book has some guest chef recipes as well – from Bobby Flay, and Top Chef contestants Hosea Rosenberg, Lee Anne Wong and Ariane Duarte.  Top Chef is my favorite Bravo show!!!

I’m sure this has been said before, thank you to the kind people at Kind for sending me these fantastic bars to try out! First of all, I’ve always loved Kind bars but seem to always buy the same two bars: Almond & Coconut and Fruit & Nut Delight. The ingredients in these bars are all natural, gluten free and quite simple- but the quality of the ingredients makes for BIG flavor! Every time I eat one of these bars (or half of a bar) as a snack, I feel fantastic – and not dragged down and gross like I do right now for eating too much white cheddar popcorn. Wish I would’ve had a Kind bar instead actually!
I’m a huge snacker- and I already passed that habit on to my almost three year old son! While I’m in charge- his snacks are healthy for the most part although I’ll give him a cookie if it’s all natural. Of course, my mom watches him too and it’s like beating a dead horse trying to get her to feed him what I want him to eat. So, he mostly eats well!!! Also, when in school, the snacks are still terrible. I’m going to try to get involved at his preschool in August. Although…no nuts in schools so Kind bars are out:( Kind Healthy Snacks recently issued a press release with a study suggesting that not all snacking will cause you to gain weight (judging from my crazy snacking habits…I’m living proof).  To read about the study, where one group of people added 350 calories to their diets in the form of  two Kind bars, and their weights remained the same, click here.   Kind also takes their name quite literally - with Do the Kind Thing you can win up to $25,000 for your cause if that cause gets enough attention (you have to do kind stuff)!  Click on the link to see what you can do!   

Now, onto the review of the bars that I tried:

• Walnut & Date: At only 150 calories, this is a perfect snack portion for me – it tastes like sweetened fresh walnuts – excellent!
• Fruit & Nuts in Yogurt: Well, that adds up to 210 calories- but this is my new favorite bar!  The yogurt topping made me feel like I was eating bridge mix in a bar form.  Perfect for sweets cravings when I really just want to eat candy.  I need to go buy cases of these.
• Cranberry Almond + Antioxidants:Hmmm, in theory I should like this but to me it was weird and the aftertaste (I’m assuming the antioxidants?) wasn’t worth it – the only one I didn’t like!
• Mango Macadamia + Calcium:This was great!  It was to me the sweetest tasting of all, with a summery, coco-nutty flavor and the mango pieces inside tasted like perfectly ripe mangoes!  The mangoes I buy are never consistently good- but the mango in this bar tasted perfect.
• Almond & Coconut: My old favorite and staple in my purse.  You can taste the almond, you can taste the coconut – nothing else- it’s fantastic if you like almond and coconut!
• Fruit & Nut Delight: A great basic mix of fruits and nuts where everything just blends in together nicely – although now I like it better slathered in the yogurt (bad me!)- but this is 180 calories compared to the 210 with the yogurt with 5g less sugar.  The healthier choice of the two…
• Almond Walnut Macadamia + Protein:This was the least sweet of the bars that I tried with a tougher consistency.  It seemed heartier and more filling.  The flavor was mild but nice- I hardly detected the protein inside…a teensy bit.  With only 7g sugars, 10g of protein and 210 calories- this makes for  a great snack when you’d like something more filling than usual!

Disclosure: I received free product from Kind Healthy Snacks

Did you read my Part 1 – I Love Amy’s Part I?  Well, I am biased, I just love this company and their products!  When I started to feel a little better during second trimester (I’m 24 weeks now), it took me a little longer to get through the rest of the frozen goods!  However, I am very glad I got to them since the top shelf of my outside freezer, where I was storing them, just stopped working and I had to throw out the food up there!  Luckily, I had already snarfed down all of my Amy’s.  Amy’s disaster averted!  On a side-note, I’m a little miffed that I’ve had the freezer 16 months and of course it pooped out on me already and four months after the warranty expired.  The only appliance in our house we did not do the extended warranty on…grrrr. 

Amy’s is wonderful for anyone with food allergies and non-meat-eaters.  They have very clear packaging and most of their foods end you know exactly what you are and are not eating!  When I originally spoke with the folks over at Amy’s, we were thinking my husband’s food stomach issues had to do with his wheat allergy (though he has tons of food allergies) but come to find out, we’re 90% sure now that it’s actually dairy/mostly cheese!  Though I haven’t yet tried the cheeseless pizza and some other dairy free products, I’m so excited that they carry them!  Of course they would.

• Tamale with Roasted Vegetables (gluten, dairy, cholesterol, lactose, soy, tree nut free, and vegan, kosher): I LOVE the cheese verde and black bean verde tamale, but this one didn’t do it for me, plus my beans got burnt on the lowest setting, this one just wasn’t for me.
• Brown Rice, Black-Eyed Peas and Veggies Bowl (gluten, dairy, lactose, cholesterol, tree nut, corn free and vegan, kosher): My absolute new favorite.  YUMMY! I like ginger but not when it’s overwhelming, the light ginger flavor in here had me excited for each bite, which I savored.  The great mix of veggies and nutrition facts on this make me want to do a dance and stock my freezer with it.
• Chili and Cornbread (soy & tree-nut free, kosher): Fantastic chili flavor, the cornbread is a perfect accompaniment.  Feels like a hearty meal and something I could feed my husband without a complaint!
• Spinach and Feta Pocket (kosher, tree nut free): It’s a convenient little pocket meal, but the oniony flavor was a bit much for me
• Tofu Vegetable Scramble (gluten, dairy, lactose, tree nut, corn free and vegan, kosher): A flavorful breakfast scramble with just the right amount of flavor for me.  The hash browns were good too and I wasn’t sure how they would end up in the microwave!  I like it for lunch.
• Mexican Tofu Scramble  (gluten, tree nut free and kosher): I loved the corn tortilla at the bottom of this but again, at the lowest recommended time limit, the black beans were overdone and so was the tortilla.  I still got a wonderful flavor out of it though and next time will just cut the recommended cooking time. 
• Southwestern Burrito (soy, tree nut free): Simply creamy and flavorful.  A yummy quick meal when you’re in the mood for a cheesy/creamy burrito!

So thanks again you folks over at Amy’s, you rock!  I can’t wait until my freezer outside is fixed…er, or we have to buy a new one, so that I can once again stock up on these healthy and delicious treats.  The past few weeks I have pigged out far too much and I think these are the perfect way to take it back a notch for awhile.  While I wait impatiently for our Farmer’s Market to open, I’m just going to have to buy a million boxes of the Brown Rice, Black Eyed Peas and Veggies Bowl to get in some of that light taste of summer before it officially starts here.  

* If you missed Part I, I included some interesting info on the the company and the founders’ story!

** Oh my, I almost forgot a little tip a friend of mine gave me.  She said you can contact Amy’s customer service and they’ll send you coupons in the mail (she wanted to try the food but since it was new to her she didn’t want to spent too much just in case) - and they were extremely nice to her as well!  However, even if you can’t get coupons, I found it’s the cheapest at Target and quite affordable – a great variety at my Target.  Much more expensive at a couple of other local grocery stores though.

Disclosure: I received free product from Amy’s

Bolthouse Farms has made some heavenly protein beverages.  I could not go another day without sharing my findings with you!!!  I typically make my own shakes and protein drinks but on a mission one day at Whole Foods, I asked an employee for the best protein powder.  She didn’t know so got a couple other employees involved and they both agreed that Bolthouse Farms Vanilla Chai Tea and their Purely Chocolate soy protein drinks were by far the best tasting.  Not what I was looking for (I’m still on my search so if you have any pointers, let me know!) but she sent me home with a small bottle of the Vanilla Chai Tea.  Typically, I do like Chai, but can only handle a little since it’s so sugary.  However, that day I was hungry so on my way home from Whole foods I shook up the bottle and took my first sip bracing myself for a super-sweet chai blast.  Bliss!!!  What a great surprise!  Not too sweet to where I felt sick, and also the added-protein and thickness made me actually feel satisfied.   Typically, if I were to buy a pre-made protein drink, I either don’t like the taste or do not get full and end up eating just as much as I would have with the additional calories of the drink!

More on the Chai in a bit, but on to my real love: chocolate.  The chocolate drink is pretty much perfect.  It’s not too sweet or bitter, and 8oz has 160 calories and 10 grams of protein.  The protein in this actually keeps you satisfied for awhile!  I try to eat soy (and everything else) in moderation, but these drinks are doing me in!  However, this does make me feel okay after watching a Dr. Oz episode on epigenitcs and pregnancy.  Rats exposed to too much BPA could reverse the process of damage to the fetus by eating healthy foods and soy was one of the healthy reversal foods.  The ingredients for the chocolate one are: soymilk, apple juice, soy protein isolate, natural flavors, cocoa, gellan gum, calcium, xantham gum, salt pectin, vitamin B2, Vitamin A, Vitamin B12.  You really don’t get the usual protein OR the vitamin aftertaste.  O took a drink of this (my 2 1/2 year old son) smiled and said, “Mommy, I happy.”   I think that pretty much sums it up:)  I also got my mom and another friend to try it, who both are quite skeptical of the “health” products I take home, and both loved the flavor as well.  My only fear is that this Purely Chocolate flavor is a new product with Bolthouse Farms and I don’t see it on their website.  I hope that it continues to sell and stays on as a permanent part of their product line.  It’s so yummy that I’m considering using it with a frozen banana as a smoothie in the morning but haven’t gotten that far since I keep chugging it down the second I open the bottle.  I buy the 32oz bottles at Target and am hoping they start making a bigger bottle of it!

On to the Vanilla Chai Tea – fabulous!  The ingredients are: vanilla chai tea (soy milk, brewed green tea, natural flavors, vanilla extract), apple juice, soy protein isolate, calcium, carrageenan, vitamin c, magnesium, vitamin b6, zinc, iron, vitamin b12.  Again, you cannot detect any aftertaste.  Like the chocolate, 8oz is 160 calories and 10 grams of protein.  I think this is far better than the coffeeshop version of chai, plus, it’s far more nutritious!  These beverages are sweetened with apple juice but you really cannot taste the juice inside.  I’d like to go kiss the people that developed these drinks.  My mom doesn’t like chai tea and I had her try this and she loved it, after making an initial gross face in anticipation of the overly sweet chai.  Hee hee.  And not surprisingly, my son loved it as well, though not as much as the chocolate!  I’d say the only negative in these drinks is the amount of sugar.  In 8oz, there are 21g per chai and 20g per chocolate.  At least the sugar comes in the form of apple juice, which I deem to be an acceptable sugar and feel better about that than most other forms.  It’s funny since I don’t even like drinking apple juice since it’s so sweet- I can only have a little.  You mix it with other yummy ingredients and it’s perfect!

Since I am pregnant, I did not try their other protein drink flavors: Hazelnut Latte and Mocha Cappuccino.  Yes, I know that when you are pregnant one drink of caffeine a day is fine, but coffee hasn’t sounded good yet so I have pretty much avoided it.  I’ve been drinking decaf green tea everyday.  There is a little bit of caffeine in the Chai version- but hardly any.  Actually, I probably get plenty of caffeine through my chocolate fix!

When the nice folks over at Jer’s offered to send me some chocolates, I said no thank you, I don’t like chocolate.

Actually, are you kidding me?  I LOVE chocolate, I don’t really trust those that don’t like chocolate – obviously, there is something wrong there.  Then, when you combine chocolate with peanut butter, it’s an even greater flavor explosion!  Of course I said yes!  What I love about these chocolates is that all the ingredients are easy to understand and I know what I’m putting into my body.  That’s difficult (or impossible?) to find in the larger, mass-produced chocolates.  There’s none of the yucky stuff that bothers me the most…hydrogenated oils.

The day I received my chocolates in the mail, I tore open the box (literally) and took my first bite of an Incrediball,  crispy peanut butter filled chocolate.  Oops- it was frozen, so I’m not sure about you, but I prefer my chocolate room temperature in the summer, so the 25 degree day sort of rained, er…snowed on my parade.  Then I had to practice some patience so that I could properly taste them.  A good while later, I tried them all one bite at a time.  The balls were surprisingly light and airy.  I believe I tried two Incrediballs, one milk chocolate  and the other white chocolate – the third was the Cara Mella, which of course added some caramel to the center with the peanut butter.  These were my absolute favorite!  Yummy !  Of course, this pregnancy has me craving chewy or nougat based centers with my chocolates, so normally, I’m not sure if this would have been my favorite.  As it is right now; I wish I had a bunch more of those!

I also received a few different flavors of peanut brittle bites, which really tastes like toffee.  It’s not the light, traditional crunchy peanut brittle with the obvious peanut wholes and halves inside – it’s packed hard and has a nice crunchiness set-off by a chewiness like a toffee.  Toffee is my husband’s absolute favorite – and trust me, this is good toffee!  I’ve bought him some expensive toffees before that really were too hard and burnt, but these were just right!  There are four flavors, coconut with dark chocolate, pretzel bites with milk chocolate, toffee with dark, and cayenne with milk.  Normally, I’d be excited to try the cayenne sine sometimes it’s fun to have a little heat in your chocolate, but my pregnant self can’t get me to try them just yet…  The coconut flavor is dusted with the coconut on the outside (you can see it in the picture), which lends a nice, mild coconut flavor to the candy.  The pretzel ones have a hint of saltiness which rounds out the sweet chocolate nicely, and the toffee ones taste just like they say!  I keep finding myself popping the coconut ones.

And to those of you checking in for a pregnancy update, I’m feeling even better but as usual, certain foods sound far better than others.  Right now, I’m really wanting fried or baked “fried” fish.  Also, I even really feel like sardines.  I love sardines but whenever I think about them my husband is around and out of politeness, I wait for him to not be here since he doesn’t like the smell when I open up the can!  But when he’s gone I forget:(  Another thing that keeps sounding fantastic is fried eggs- I really want one on top of some pasta for some reason.  Then, there’s the chewy chocolate – I’d like more chocolate with a chewy center but I ate it all!  And still, I really haven’t been cooking much – though we’ve had some work events and things at night over dinner that have prevented it.  On top of that, my little boy has been sick and really doesn’t want to eat much but cheese crackers.  They must feel good on his tummy.  I wish I could force-feed him some better foods but I know he’ll get better and eat normally again!

And a little announcement: there is a GIVEAWAY coming up real soon, stay tuned:)

Disclaimer: I received free product from Jer’s

I was super-excited to receive some (lots) of frozen meals and treats to try from Amy’s!   See, I had posted a picture from my pregnancy cravings part and in the process of getting their permission to post it, we had a nice little chat and I got some food!  Though I am now officially at week 14 and feeling better- I’m still fairly particular on what I’m in the mood to eat.  The things I’ve tried so far aren’t necessarily the same things I’d normally go for first, but that’s okay, it’s fun!  Currently, I’m craving a good white cake or cupcakes- which is strange since I normally never want cake – I’d pass up a wedding cake any day for a brownie or carrot cake, but here I am, it’s all I can think about.  Wedding cake style cupcakes is what I’m obsessing about- will have to figure something out after this!  But…uh…not healthy.  Amy’s is!

• Roasted Vegetable Lasagna (kosher, corn free, tree nut free, soy free): Delicious!  (not to be confused with their Garden Vegetable lasagna, which I have not tried but a vegetarian friend raves over that one)  It’s got a fantastic blend of tomato sauce and cream sauce that melt together quite nicely with the roasted vegetables.  Since eating this one – I can’t stop thinking about how I’d like another one asap.  Also, there’s a nice flavorful crunch to finish it off from the bread crumbs on top. 
• Mexican Casserole(Gluten-free, kosher, soy free, peanut free):  I love this one, however, my husband tends to steal it before I get to it.  That’ s okay though since he’s super-picky with his frozen meals and this is one of the few he’ll eat without complaining about it!  The corn tortillas mixed with the sauce (in this case, a great chili flavor), reminds me of my favorite Mexican dish when done well: Chilaquiles.  Though it really isn’t like chilaquiles, you can’t beat the tortillas in the casserole!
• Kid’s Meal Baked Ziti(gluten/dairy/cholesterol/lactose free, kosher, vegan):  I’ve actually been buying this one for quite some time now.  It’s funny because I think after the third time eating it I realized it was gluten free!  What a huge bonus- the noodles are fantastic, you really can’t tell they are gluten-free at all.  It has a nice mild sauce for kids.  My son’s favorite part is the apples, which he does not allow me to eat any of.  I love that there is broccoli on the plate – usually my son takes one bite of the broccoli and spits it out, but at least he keeps doing it, one day he’ll eat it!  And the foccacia is good for me to dip up the leftover sauce.  Yes, we always end up sharing as he only seems to eat half of the ziti, which is fine by me.  Also, there is a nice little picture to color on on the inside of the box, as well as a temporary tattoo or little gift for the kid.  How cute! 
• Baked Ziti Bowl(gluten/dairy/cholesterol/lactose free, vegan, tree nut free, kosher): Similar to the kids meal ziti but with the addition of peas.  It’s a large bowl of ziti, very mild flavor. In this case, I also split this with my son and this time he ate plenty of peas, very nice! 
• Mexican Tamale Pie(gluten/diary/cholesterol/soy/tree nut/lactose free, kosher, vegan, lower-fat): I’ve been buying this one forever.  It has a more mild sauce than the Mexican Casserole, actually, I wish I could get that sauce in this dish!  Anyway, I love the small portion size and the fact that it’s only 150 calories.  I eat this on the days where I am literally eating  like a hog and just cannot stop myself.  I’m feeling like  I need a whole meal at 2:30 after a large lunch and can’t figure out why I’m not full and must eat.  When a granola bar just won’t do.  I’d never eat this for a meal, definitely not filling enough, but it tricks my stomach into thinking I’ve had more of a meal rather than just a snack when otherwise I could’ve been a huge piggy.  This has saved me many times.
• Shepherd’s Pie (gluten/dairy/cholesterol/lactose/tree nut/corn free, kosher, vegan):  Same deal as the Tamale Pie, it’s a perfect stomach tricking snack when I want a meal at inappropriate times!  I won’t lie, I prefer pub-style shepherd’s pie with lamb or cottage pie with ground beef, but hey, this is a fantastic and healthy snack and it’s served me well many times. 
• Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake (gluten/dairy/cholesterol/lactose/tree nut/corn free, vegan, kosher):  First I’ll say that I love reading the stories on the side of the boxes.  I read them all.  I’m kind of a sucker for these stories and hope they’re all true!  This goes for whatever story comes on my food, if there’s a story, I’m curious because then I feel like I know a little more about where the food came from.  Anyway, for me, this cake needed something, like strawberries, a little something moist and sweet to add to the flavor. 
• Orange Cake (dairy/cholesterol/lactose/tree nut/corn/soy free, vegan, kosher):  This moist and heavy cake has a fantastic orange flavor with a little nuttiness to it.  As I write this, I’m planning on making some butter-cream frosting to top it off.  I know this will be snarfed up by my family very soon…or if it isn’t, I will gobble it up myself, no problem!

Here’s something really cool.  You know how when Oprah likes your product, you’re pretty much gold?  Well, Oprahs’ producers did a nice video about Amy’s founders, click here for the link.  You get to meet Amy’s parents who tell you how the concept all started (I’ve read the boxes, I already knew:) and you actually also get to meet Amy- who is now a beautiful young woman very proud of her parents’ accomplisments.  Watching the video, it’s pretty obvious why I trust this brand and since they came out in stores here; it has always been my number one frozen meal company!

I love how sensitive Amy’s is to people’s various food sensitivities as well as being mostly organic!  I feel like by feeding this to my family, I’m not going to stir-up any potential allergies by removing some of the major allergens in the diet beforehand.  My philosophy, a little bit of everything is fine.  Though I do not know if my son has food allergies yet, I wouldn’t want to over-do the wheat and other allergens just in case, since my husband does have a wheat allergy (among many other food allergies).  Also, I always think of those stories of the kids whose parents thought they had autism, but changed their diets to gluten and casein free which basically solved their behavioral problems.  Okay, so maybe it’s not that cut and dry, but I think of those kids when I read the ingredients in many of these Amy’s items.  I’ve got lots more to review so expect a round II!!!

Disclosure: I received free product from Amy’s