Supermarket Sleuth | Microwave breakfasts
Posted on Tue, Jul. 15, 2008
BY GIGI LEHMAN
JIMMY DEAN
Jimmy Dean D-Lights Turkey Sausage Breakfast Bowl ($2.87 per bowl)
The Sleuth knows that, despite what Mother advised, many of you are skipping breakfast. Or you're getting it at the drive-through and starting your day with lots of fat, sodium and calories. (A typical example: McDonald's regular bacon, egg and cheese biscuit has 430 calories with almost half of them from fat, and half a day's worth of sodium.)
Enter several food companies that promise a better-for-you breakfast from the microwave. But we had to wonder about taste: Eggs and bread are, in our experience, two of the more difficult foods to microwave successfully. Here are our tasters' takes on three alternatives to fast-food breakfasts.
Jimmy Dean D-Lights Turkey Sausage Breakfast Bowl
Cost: $2.87 per bowl
The label says: Less than ½ the calories, less than ½ the fat compared to the leading breakfast bowl.
Nutrition per 7 ounce serving: 230 calories; 70 calories from fat; 7 g total fat (11 percent daily value); 3 g saturated fat (15 percent daily value); 20 mg cholesterol (7 percent daily value); 730 mg sodium (30 percent daily value); 19 g carbohydrates (6 percent daily value); 23 g protein.
The verdict: Surprise! This combo of scrambled egg whites, potatoes, turkey sausage and reduced-fat cheese was pretty good, and the nutritional profile, except for the high sodium, is decent, too. Tasters liked the flavorful but not greasy sausage; and the scrambled egg whites, colored yellow with annatto, look and taste amazingly like whole eggs. The disadvantage for folks who are eating in the car: This is breakfast in a bowl, not a napkin. But you could always microwave it at work.
Grade: B+
Lean Pockets Bacon, Egg & Cheese
Cost: $2.46 for 4 pastries
The label says: 4 ½ g fat, 140 calories, 0 g trans fat per serving.
Nutrition (1 piece): 140 calories; 45 calories from fat; 4.5 g total fat (7 percent daily value); 2 g saturated fat (10 percent daily value); 40 mg cholesterol (14 percent daily value); 230 mg sodium (10 percent daily value); 18 g carbohydrates (6 percent daily value); 6 g protein.
The verdict: The nutritional profile is pretty praiseworthy, but the taste is nothing to brag about. One taster found the pastry to be pretty bland; another didn't fault the taste but said there was too much bread and not enough of the other ingredients. No one liked the fake-tasting cheese sauce; the bacon bits were almost non-existent, and the chunks of egg were rubbery. Also, hearty eaters will find these pretty small: Each is about 2 ½ by 3 ½ inches.
Grade: C-
Smart Ones English Muffin Sandwich with Ham and Cheese
Cost: $3.88
The label says: 4 points value (for Weight Watchers system); 200 calories; 5 g of fat.
Nutrition (for one sandwich): 200 calories; 45 calories from fat; 5 g total fat (8 percent daily value); 15 mg cholesterol (5 percent daily value); 480 mg sodium (20 percent daily value); 27 g carbohydrates (9 percent daily value); 13 g protein.
The verdict: After choosing this product, we found out that Smart Ones is coming out with a new Morning Express line, including a new English muffin sandwich. The current version has room for improvement: The only ingredient our tasters really liked was the ham.
Grade: C
The bottom line: Only Jimmy Dean woke up our taste buds.
Have a product you want tested? E-mail glehman@MiamiHerald.com.
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