Frozen Food Series: Amy’s Tamale

I said goodbye to Kashi for the next frozen food test and welcomed Amy’s (natural and organic) into my freezer. First up: Tamale (when great, can send the average eater into a dream-like state.) The pillow-y, steamed corn masa packed with salty meats or beans is what I consider the best thing to come out of Mexico.

at this point it could go either way

The uncooked meal.

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No matter how you slice or dice it, the food is not picture perfect. But how important are looks when you’re eating out of a plastic container and a microwave? To me, not that important. Most of these meals will be consumed in my living room, on my couch, in my pajamas, with the lights off, and the TV on. It’s the taste that counts. And the tamale portion of the plate was good, not great: the corn masa was sweet and soft. The interior roasted vegetables were only slightly salty (could use a bit more, which is common with “health” food). The biggest misstep were the black beans. A pungent onion-y flavor overwhelmed the beans. In fact, it pretty much ruined the beans for me – I could only eat a few bites. It’s a shame because this could have been a cheap, healthy, eat-in-the-dark comfort food for the upcoming winter months. Instead, Amy’s tamale is moving to the bottom of my frozen dinner list.

Frozen Meal Series: Kashi Vegetable Pizza

boxed food

I need more frozen food in my life – high quality, low cost, healthy, and delicious frozen food. There are more nights than I care to admit where dinner in a combination of pantry/fridge odds and ends. These meals leave me unsatisfied and most likely overfed. I’m looking for brands I can trust – brands with commercials that show people cycling, hiking, looking healthy, and most importantly smiling about their food. Kashi is one such brand. Known for their cereal (think GOLEAN (crunch)), Kashi has won over countless Americans aiming to eat healthy on a budget/time constraint. Let’s see how the hot food fares:

uncooked

I'm thin, are you jealous?

hot stuff

closer look

First, let’s cover expectations. My last pizza dinner was at Antico Pizza Napoletana – that just ain’t gonna happen in my kitchen, coming from a box in the freezer. Second, let’s cover the positives. Kashi does not lie – the crust is THIN, the cheese covers enough ground, and the sauce is decent. Third, let’s get to the negatives. Vegetables are not the highlight of the pizza – the ‘trio’ of mushrooms consisted of 7 or so mushrooms that all looked like the same type while the spinach would not be Popeye approved. Also, we(Lauren) burned the crust so a fair assessment could not be made.

While this meal would not fall under the Dreaming About category, it was sufficient and it succeeded in meeting all of my requirements (although maybe slightly south of delicious). I would eat it again, but I won’t be craving it.