Review: Nature's Own Double Fiber Wheat Bread

There are two things that are always red flags about bread for me, even as someone who isn't a carb counter.  The first is when nothing about the bread is particularly nutritious.  The second is when the calorie count (especially for the non-nutritious types) is through the roof.  I personally don't want to be eating a hundred or more calories a slice for it to not fill me up and keep me full.

Luckily, Nature's Own Double Fiber Wheat solves not only both those problems but also tastes good.  Each slice only has 50 calories and each brings 5 grams of fiber to the table.  Meaning that in a two slice sandwich you are getting 40% of your daily fiber intake.  Thats 4 grams of soluble fiber (to keep you full) and 6 grams of insoluble fiber (intestinal health).  It also carries with it 25mg total of Omega-3 fatty acids per slice (heart/brain health).  You also get 3g of protein per slice to help keep you full for longer.

Now I know what you are thinking, all that health stuff is great but how does it taste? The good news is that I think it tastes great.  It has a mild wheat flavor, the bread is soft, and the crusts are just the right amount of chewy/wheaty.

If you want a filling lunch with this try it as a PB&J.  I've done this quite a bit at work and I'm always amazed at how long I stay feeling full.  It is very versatile and can work with any lunch-meats or sandwich combinations as well. This is a great bread to start your morning off right with, even if all you have time for is toast.  Add a bit of butter and for around 100 calories you've got a surprisingly filling breakfast...made even better if you have time to add an egg or piece of ham.

Try this bread out, it retails for about $2.50 a loaf and has become my mainstay bread because of its low calorie count, high nutritional value, and great taste.

Review: Snyder's "Pounder" White Corn Tortilla Chips

One reason for this review post is that I have had a crazy work week and been living off of PBJ's and Caesar salads the past few days...ergo not much cooking.  The second reason is because these chips are great.

If you had asked me two weeks ago what Snyder's made I would have only said pretzels, little did I know they also made chips.  These white corn tortilla chips are crisp and sturdy with just enough salt to give flavor but not overwhelm the chip.  This works well with dips too as the chip accentuates the dip without taking away from the flavor.  It is also strong enough to get a good scoop without fracturing into the dip leading to sadness and frustration.  The bag also feels weighty given that there are a pound of chips and I felt that I got my money's worth, especially at 2 bags for $5, remember that some chip bags can cost $5 on their own so this was a great deal.

The only negative I had was completely superficial.  Being used to either yellow tortilla chips or white tortilla chips with a bit more flecking the chips do look rather bland, though they also look like they actually were cut from tortillas and fried which is nice.  Also, the look belies the taste so don't turn them away because of it!

Outside of their taste they are also seem fairly...or I should say comparatively.... healthy.  One serving (~13 chips) has 140 calories, 4.5g of fat, and only 5% of your daily sodium.  The chips are fried in Canola Oil and purport to have 40% less fat than regular tortilla chips.  They also pack 2g of fiber and 2g of protein so combined with a hummus, bean, or guacamole type dip you could easily make a filling snack without feeling guilty.

Review: Alexia All Natural Sweet Potato Julienne Fries

I love sweet potato fries.  At this point in my life I think I love them more than regular fries so I am always looking for a way to have them at home instead of having to go to a restaurant to find them.  Problem is that many stores either don't carry them or they are expensive.  I also don't have the proper kitchen equipment or fortitude of will to buy my own sweet potatoes and cut them into fries.

The other day I was walking through the store and I saw the Alexia brand Sweet Potato fries for $2.09.  The bag isn't huge but I got 4 servings out of my bag, which is not a bad deal on sweet potato deliciousness.  The fries couldn't be easier to make either.  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and cook, flipping once or twice.  For the first serving of them I cooked it the recommended amount of time- around 22 minutes.  The fries had a great flavor but weren't as crispy as I tend to like them, a problem that oven cooked fries will often have.  For the second cooking I let them cook closer to 30-35 minutes.  The fries were a little crispier but I don't think they would ever get the crunch of an oil fried fry.

That being said the fries themselves have a great flavor and taste like sweet potato.  The insides even manage to retain a bit of the "stickiness" that sweet potatoes have which gives a great mouth feel to them.  If you are watching your sodium these fries come with either very little or no salt on them so they are a great alternative to heavily salted potato fries.  Whats more is you probably won't even be wanting to put that much salt on them.

All in all I would definitely recommend everyone to try these if you can find them.  The ease of preparation, cost, healthiness, and flavor outweigh the lack of total crispiness.

4 out of 5 sweet potatoes