General
Flat Out Breads – I buy the Light Original, Italian Herb, or Sun-Dried Tomato (1 point each for a large flat tortilla type bread). They are very versatile. You can use them like any wrap/tortilla to make wrapped sandwiches or tacos/fajitas/burritos. I have also made quesadillas (I sometimes do these in the George Foreman) and my favorite thing to make is pizza. Bake the bread in the oven for a few minutes, then put the toppings on and bake again. They crisp up very nice and you can be so creative with the toppings/fillings. I have also made pita chips. Spray with cooking spray or brush with oil and season to your liking and bake. I like them with cinnamon and Splenda (tastes like an elephant ear!) or some savory or spicy seasonings with dip. The website (www.flatoutbread.com) has more information and ideas for recipes if you are having trouble thinking of ways to use them. I find them at Meijer/Wal-Mart, usually by the deli.
Laughing Cow Cheese Wedges – I buy the Light Garlic and Herb and Light French Onion. I don’t really like the Light Original. They are wedges of creamy cheese spread in little individually wrapped foil packets and are 1 point each. They also make Mini Babybel in Light, which are also 1 point and are wax encased cheese wheels that are a little firmer. I haven’t had much experience with these though. I like to spread the wedges on crackers, bagels, English muffins, sandwiches, celery sticks, rice cakes, you name it. They are a great replacement for cream cheese in just about anything. I have heard that people make alfredo sauce out of them too, but I haven’t tried it. If I do, I will post all the dirt on here. I have found them pretty much everywhere, usually in the specialty cheese case, not with the shredded/sliced cheese.
Sturm’s Whole Grain Oatmeal – I found this at Super Wal Mart recently. It is 2 points for a packet and full of good for you stuff like fiber and flaxseed. I bought the blueberry and it tasted like a blueberry muffin. There was also cranberry. There wasn’t as much sugar as a lot of other instant oatmeal and it had a really nice flavor.
President Fat Free Feta Cheese – This comes in regular, tomato basil, and Mediterranean herb. It is 1 point for 1 oz. (which is a lot of cheese – I usually only use ½ oz. or less). I think it tastes just as good as regular feta, and you can’t beat the 30 calories per serving (regular feta has 90 calories and 7 grams of fat per serving). I use this mainly on salads, but have put it on Flat Out Pizza or in pasta dishes. It does have quite a bit of sodium, but I think all feta cheese does. The good thing about feta is that it has a lot of flavor, so a little goes a LONG way! I find it in the specialty cheese case at Meijer and Kroger.
I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter Spray – This is NOT a 0 calorie food. If you open the bottle and dump it on your food, you’re going to be consuming fat and calories. But used sparingly, it can add a bit of butter flavor. I use it on vegetables, popcorn, or toast/English muffins/bagels. If you just use a couple spritzes, it’s 0 points.
Wishbone Salad Spritzers – Same kind of deal as with the butter spray. This is about 1 calorie per spray and is a great way to get salad dressing lightly covering your leafy greens. It comes in a variety of flavors, although some are harder to find than others. I have the Italian and just found the Caesar. I spray them on other stuff too – vegetables (after cooking or before roasting) or meats (before cooking) are good.
Uncle Wally’s Smart Portion Muffins – These I found at Super Wal Mart. There are little twin packs of muffins for 2 points per pack. They had banana nut, blueberry, and cranberry almond. I got the blueberry and banana nut. They were good, the perfect size to have with a yogurt for breakfast. They satisfied my craving for baked goods, especially when I warmed them up in the microwave for a couple seconds. They also had 3 grams of fiber per serving, which is good. Uncle Wally also supposedly makes fat free, sugar free, and all natural low fat varieties of muffins which might be good too. Haven’t found them yet, although I am on the lookout.
Krusteaz Fat Free Muffin Mix - you can use this to make 1 point muffins. I made apple cinnamon bran muffins with the apple cinnamon mix and they were very good. Moist and yummy. You soak 3 cups of Fiber One cereal in 2 and a half cups water for 5 minutes. Mix this with the muffin mix and 1 and a half tsp. baking soda. Pour into sprayed muffin tins and bake 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees. It made 18 muffins at 1 point each. Good with some yogurt and fruit for breakfast.
Snacks
All Bran Crackers – These are like Wheat Thins, but way better. They are 2 points for 18 crackers and come in multigrain and garlic herb. They have 5 grams of fiber per serving and the first ingredient is whole wheat flour. I like them spread with Laughing Cow cheese. I also am thinking about crushing them up to make a coating for oven fried chicken. We’ll see how that goes!
Wasa Crispbread – These are large crackers (about the size of a full sheet graham cracker) that come in a few different varieties. I have only tried the fiber rye. They are kind of bland on their own but make a great base for different toppings. I like them spread with Laughing Cow cheese and topped with cucumber slices or roasted cherry tomatoes. They are also good dipped in soup. The Fiber Rye is 3 crackers for 1 point. The ingredient list is also very natural – no crazy hard to pronounce ingredients here. They have a lot of fiber, which is good for you! The website (http://us.wasa.com) has ideas for what to put on them.
Guiltless Gourmet Baked Tortilla Chips – These are a great find. They come in a bunch of interesting flavors that you normally wouldn’t find in baked chips and are 2 points for 18 chips. I like to make taco salad or nachos with them, or just eat them with salsa or guacamole. They come in flavors like blue corn, chili lime, smoked cheddar, spicy black bean, and more. They also make potato crisps apparently, although I haven’t found them.
Baked Tostitos Scoops – Another good baked tortilla chip. These are also easier to find than the Guiltless Gourmet. You get a pretty decent serving size and the scoop shape makes them a great accompaniment to salsa.
Baked Cheetos – These are 3 points, which is higher than my usual snack max of 2 points, but you get 34 Cheetos and sometimes, you just need something cheesy. They taste JUST like regular Cheetos, so every once in a while, they’re worth it.
Quaker Rice Snacks – They come in mini-cakes, called Quakes, and regular size rice cakes. I like the caramel corn and chocolate a lot. The points vary, but are pretty low. They also make multi-grain cakes and minis, and new Mini Delights. I tried the chocolatey drizzle Mini Delights and they were very good. They come in little 2 point pouches and actually have a decent amount of little tiny chocolate covered cakes in the pouch. They also come in cinnamon strudel and buttered popcorn. The buttered popcorn I have tried, but I prefer the chocolate. The website (www.quakerricesnacks.com) has ideas for topping your rice snacks to make them more delicious.
Kettle Brand Bakes - these are baked chips, pita chips, and pretzels. They are REALLY good and only 2 points. They come in a variety of flavors and are worth the points. The chips don't taste like baked chips (which often look like processed potato gunk) and you get a pretty good size portion. Great product!
Sweet Stuff
100 Calorie Packs – I am kind of iffy on the 100 Calorie Packs. I do like some of them:
· Planters Cookie Crisps – good peanutty flavor. Almost like a Nutter Butter.
· Keebler Right Bites Fudge Stripes – really satisfying for a chocolate craving.
Basically, I only like some of the cookie ones. The crackers/chips are not satisfying to me. I would rather eat something like the All Bran Crackers or some baked chips or something. But the cookie type ones tend to be just enough to satisfy my sweet tooth. I like to make a little pudding parfait by crushing up the cookies and adding them to some sugar free pudding.
Edy’s Slow Churned Ice Cream – this stuff is so good. They make a bunch of different flavors and they vary in points, but the Take the Cake is my fave. It’s 3 points for half a cup, but it is so good its worth it. It is cake flavored with a frosting ribbon and candy sprinkles. The frozen yogurt is also good. This doesn’t taste like diet ice cream, which I like. They also make a no sugar added variety, which I haven’t tried.
Skinny Cow Ice Cream Treats – Skinny Cow makes ice cream sandwiches in a few different flavors and sundae cones. They range from 2-3 points and are very good. I really like the strawberry shortcake, but they are hard to find.
Philly Swirl Pops, Sugar Free – These are like slushy popsicles. They come in a variety pack with flavors like cotton candy and hurricane. They are only 10 calories per bar and make a great summer time treat. I have found them at Meijer and Sam’s Club.
Smart Ones Desserts – I really like the cookie dough sundae the best. They range from 3-4 points and are a nice indulgence every once in a while. They are kind of expensive, but make you feel like you are really getting something decadent.
No Pudge Brownie Mix – You make this brownie mix with vanilla yogurt, and I think it’s about 2 points per brownie. It comes in raspberry, mocha, mint, and original. They are very rich and there is even a recipe on the box for an individual serving you make in the microwave! I have found them at Meijer with the other baking mixes.
Fiber One bars - I love Fiber One in the morning with my yogurt, but now I have a new reason to love it. Their oats and chocolate snack bars are to die for. 2 points each, with only 140 calories and 4 grams of fat, you get 9 grams of fiber! They make a great mid morning or mid afternoon pick me up and really satisfy the sweet tooth. They are a decent size too. The peanut butter ones (haven't tried yet) are three points, though, so make note.
Guiltless Gourmet Dessert Bowls - These are like the Betty Crocker Warm Delights Dessert bowls. Basically, they have a little pouch of cake mix and a little pouch of sauce and you mix the cake mix with water and microwave and pour the sauce on. They are kind of small and 4 points, but when you need some cake, they hit the spot.
O'Coco's Chocolate Crisps - These little chocolate cookie crisps come in three flavors - original, mocha, and cinnamon. I have only tried the original, but they are SO good! Only 2 points per packets, and you get a lot of little cookies per packet. They are really chocolatey so they really hit the spot. And best part - they are all organic, so you can prononce every ingredient in the short ingredient list. I am trying to eat less "artificial" foods (slowly trying) so finds like these will continue to pop up! Good stuff. They are kind of hard to find, and expensive, but I plan to continue to buy them. I want to try the other flavors next.
Frozen/Convenience Meals – I don’t eat these much anymore, but I will list any that I have really liked. I have found that my own home cooking is more satisfying to me, but they are nice to have on hand for certain situations. I try to keep them to around 4 points or less unless they’re REALLY good!
Lean Cuisine
· Paninis – these are so good. They are kind of higher in points (6-7) but I have liked all the kinds I have tried.
· Pizzas – Lean Cuisine makes the best pizzas, by far. I like their brick oven pizzas (BBQ Chicken is awesome!) and the Margherita and Spinach and Mushroom are really quite good.
· Skillets – these come in a bag and make multiple servings. They would be good for a family and are pretty low in points. They have chicken, veggies, pasta and sauce and make a complete meal. I have only tried the Chicken Alfredo.
Lean Pockets
Boca
Smart Ones
Soup
Chicken
Pizza Hut