Hamburger Helper Microwave Singles. Cheeseburger Macaroni, Cheesy Beef Taco, Stroganoff and Cheesy Lasagna. $3.29 per 5.6-ounce to 7.4-ounce box containing four pouches.
Bonnie: I've never been a fan of Hamburger Helper, the dry mixes that require adding your own chopped meat. I'm even less a fan of Hamburger Helper Microwave Singles with freeze-dried beef. My first objection is their unappetizing fake-orange color. Next is their salty taste, probably from all the additives, including disodium guanylate, yeast extract and monosodium glutamate, just to name a few.
One tiny serving provides one-quarter to one-third of the daily suggested sodium limit, with about 200 calories, 4 to 6 grams of fat and little fiber. This is not what I'd call a healthy snack.
What would be? Fruit, cheese and whole-grain low-fat crackers, or leftover homemade macaroni and real cheese.
Carolyn: Seventies-era Hamburger Helper is finally doing something to acknowledge the modern problem of families not sitting down together for dinner. Like the similar Kraft Easy Mac and Ragu Express products that preceded it, these new Microwave Singles are also convenient and quick — all you need to add is water. But since these contain meat, they should probably not be called Hamburger Helpers, but just plain old Helpers.
The taste is comparable to their traditional multiserve boxes but — here's the important part — is much better and fresher than single-serve microwavable canned pasta.
The main problem is with the preparation. I cooked the Cheesy Beef Taco noodles for a conservative five minutes and 15 seconds and ended up with dried noodles and a blazing hot bowl. Although box instructions warn about this burn hazard, I'd still be worried about preteens cooking one of these on their own (as you know they will if it's in the house). That's why I think these would make an even better adult work lunch than kid snack, especially the mildly upscale Stroganoff.
Caffe Sanora Antioxidant Coffee. Breakfast Blend, House Blend, Dark Roast, Espresso and Decaffeinated. $9.99 to $11.99 per 12-ounce bag of ground coffee or whole beans. Available in supermarkets and at www.caffesanora.com.
Bonnie: I start my days with delicious, full-bodied cups of freshly roasted, ground and brewed coffee. I've yet to find a flavored or otherwise manipulated coffee that tastes as good. This supposedly antioxidant-loaded Caffe Sanora is no exception.
A few loyal readers may recall our recent review of Folger's Simply Smooth, a coffee that Folger's claims contains fewer polyphenols to make its coffee "stomach friendly." Caffe Sanora claims just the opposite — to be high in good-for-you antioxidant polyphenols.
So what's the story? Coffee beans off the plant are naturally high in antioxidants. But most of these antioxidants are destroyed by traditional coffee roasting methods. Yet both of these companies claim to have fiddled with the antioxidants in their coffee, using their "top secret" (of course) patented process. Neither makes a really good cup of coffee.
As reminder, a diet rich in antioxidants helps prevent the risk of heart disease and certain cancers. Most research links that reduced risk to the antioxidants in fresh fruits and vegetables. Green tea is also high in antioxidants, and Caffe Sanora claims to match it in antioxidant content.
But red beans, kale, prunes and berries all contain more antioxidants than either coffee or green tea. They are also rich in fiber, minerals and other vitamins that coffee lacks (as much as I may like it). That's why I'd look for my antioxidants there, not in my morning brew.
Carolyn: I don't know if it's because the organic, fair-trade coffee beans that Sanora selected just aren't that great, or if the special handling given them (in order to keep the antioxidant levels high) somehow hurts the taste. But these new Caffe Sanora Antioxidant Coffees are not as tasty as Starbucks, Trader Joe's or even Eight O'Clock supermarket coffee. And that's not good enough for something that can cost up to $16 a pound.
Nevertheless, it does tickle me to see antioxidants turn traditional "horn and pitchfork" foods like coffee and chocolate into doctors' darlings. If the decline in quality is only because of the beans Sanora has chosen (my guess, based on a Sanora spokeman'sperson's statement that their roasting process "can be used with any type of coffee bean"), Starbuck's and other fine coffee purveyors had better wake up and smell the future — because it's in this sanctifying process.
Bonnie Tandy Leblang is a registered dietitian and professional speaker. Carolyn Wyman is a junk-food fanatic and author of "Better Than Homemade: Amazing Foods That Changed the Way We Eat" (Quirk). Each week they critique three new food items. For previous columns, visit www.supermarketsampler.com.
© Universal Press Syndicate