For the most part, I cook our dinners from scratch. But for those times when things don’t go as planned and I’m in a bind, I like to have a frozen dinner or two around. Usually, I choose something from Kashi, so I was glad to see some of my faves on the new ratings from Consumer Reports (CR). CR panelists taste-tested their way through 24 microwaveable diet meals – 22 frozen and two shelf-stable – from top brands like Healthy Choice, Lean Cuisine, and Weight Watchers.

The results? CR recommends these eight frozen diet dinners – they scored “very good” for taste and each one has 600 milligrams or less of sodium:

Kashi Chicken Florentine – 290 calories, 9 g fat, 4.5 g saturated fat, 440 mg sodium, 5 g fiber

Healthy Choice Cafe Steamers Roasted Beef Merlot – 230 calories, 8 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 600 mg sodium, 5 g fiber

Lean Cuisine Cafe Classics Steak Tips Portabello – 160 calories, 7 g fat, 2.5 g saturated fat, 450 mg sodium, 3 g fiber

Lean Cuisine One Dish Favorites Santa Fe-Style Rice & Beans – 300 calories, 5 g fat, 24.5 g saturated fat, 590 mg sodium, 5 g fiber

Kashi Black Bean Mango – 340 calories, 8 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 430 mg sodium, 7 g fiber

Kashi Garden Vegetable Pasta – 300 calories, 7 g fat, 1.5 g saturated fat, 600 mg sodium, 9 g fiber

Healthy Choice All Natural Entrees Portabella Spinach Parmesan – 270 calories, 7 g fat, 2.5 g saturated fat, 600 mg sodium, 5 g fiber

Lean Cuisine Cafe Classics Shrimp Alfredo – 260 calories, 5 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 590 mg sodium, 3 g fiber

I always like to augment my frozen dinners with lots of veggies because there usually aren’t enough in those meals! I add frozen broccoli or a veggie mix to make them more filling. Have you tried any of the dinners that made the list? What are your favorites?

Check out these other food and beverage ratings:

Best light beers for your Super Bowl party
Top hot chocolate brands
The best (and not so good) microwave popcorns
5 healthy store-brand foods as good as (or better than) big brands

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Reaching for comfort foods is one way to cope with this financial crisis. Saving a few cents by getting free food samples by mail is another. It’s comforting in its own way, right? So, I scoured the web and found 5 free healthy-ish food samples for everyone. Now these are not the types of samples where you have to fill out a crazy long survey (HATE those!) or anything like that. To get these, you just fill out your name and address:

1. Bear Naked Fruit & Nut granola
2. Kashi Oatmeal Dark Chocolate Chip Cookie
3. Bertolli’s Premium Pasta Sauce
4. Fiber One Honey Clusters Cereal AND Oats and Chocolate bar
5. Seattle’s Best Coffee blends

Oh, since Fiber One is giving away 2 samples, there are actually 6 total – Enjoy! And don’t wait to sign up – these offers may not be around for long.

***UPDATED**** Please note this post is from October, 2008 so these samples may no longer be available.

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Have you had Kashi’s new thin crust pizzas yet? I just bought one last weekend and finally got to try it. Yum – I loved it! My husband and I split a Tomato Garlic Cheese pie.

I especially liked the new thin crust – it was flaky and whole grain-y and satisfying in a healthy pizza kind of way. The entire pizza has 780 calories, 27 grams of fat, 87 grams of carbs, 12 grams of fiber, and 42 grams of protein. I had half, so divide all that by 2 and it’s not too bad at all.

Anyone else tried them yet?

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Seriously, I love saving money and I’m always on the lookout for Kashi coupons. But an even better find – free Kashi granola. Yep, Kashi is giving away free samples of its new Mountain Medley blend.

The description I found on the company’s website sounds yummy: “Mountain Medley will remind you of your favorite trail mix. Toasted seven whole grain clusters are mixed with: a touch of honey and maple; chewy cranberries and raisins; crunchy almonds and pecans; and delicious sunflower seeds and coconut flakes.”

A one-half cup serving has 220 calories, 6 grams of fiber, and 6 grams of protein.

I’m a big fan of Kashi’s concept – no refined sugars, artificial additives, or preservatives. The products are filled with fiber, protein, and whole grains… plus they are tasty.

You can get your free sample of Kashi granola here until May 18, 2008. With the high costs of groceries lately, this is a nice treat. Enjoy!

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