Hot Pocket SideShots Mini Sandwiches. Buffalo Chicken, and Cheeseburgers. $2.49 per 9-ounce box of four or $12.99 per 49.5-ounce box of 22 mini sandwiches.
Bonnie: SideShots are two mini sandwiches on a bun that you heat in the microwave, break apart and eat. One's filled with buffalo-spiced diced chicken; the other has ground meat and cheese (or at least part cheese — it's actually a blend of "part skim mozzarella cheese with modified food starch" and imitation cheddar).
The buns bake up soft but chewy, typical of microwaved bread. Both versions are also filled with preservatives, flavor enhancers, hydrogenated oils and more on their long, unpronounceable ingredient lists.
Given those ingredients, SideShots are not something I can recommend, although I imagine teenage boys might like them. In fact, I'll bet many of them could down one of these without even biting.
Carolyn: Sliders mini sandwiches are a popular restaurant appetizer offering — probably because of their cuteness and the promise they offer of not overindulging.
One problem with Hot Pockets' take on this trend: SideShots come frozen as conjoined slider twins that must be cooked before separating. That commits you to eating two or snacking with a friend. The meat in the Cheeseburger is low quality and, probably not coincidentally, loose rather than formed into a patty.
The meat in the Buffalo Chicken is better and really captures the buffalo taste, hotness included. But only buy them if you are OK with eating two at a time and don't mind your kitchen smelling like McDonald's (a side effect of their microwave cooking).
Tostitos Natural Blue Corn Restaurant Style Tortilla Chips. $3.99 per 9.5-ounce bag.
Bonnie: With only three ingredients — blue corn, oil and salt — this is my kind of product. And it's made with organic corn. The corn gets its blue color naturally from the antioxidant anthocyanin, found in greater quantities in blueberries, raspberries and grapes. Blue corn is often slightly higher in lysine (an amino acid), zinc and iron and has a lower glycemic index (the effect on blood sugar levels) than regular yellow- or white-corn chips.
A 1-ounce serving provides 140 calories, 6 grams of total fat (only 0.5 saturated), no sugars and 1 gram fiber, or similar to regular Tostitos Restaurant Style Chips. If you want chips, I can recommend these, but for the antioxidants, reach for fresh fruits and veggies instead.
Carolyn: Blue corn tortilla chips once were the exclusive province of tiny, weirdo natural food companies. Now, they're being made by snack-food giant Frito-Lay, which for years limited its tortilla chip production to the highly processed, powder-covered Doritos.
What a difference 20 years makes.
But is there much difference in how these taste versus white tortilla chips from Tostitos and competitive brands? Not really. But they do taste as good as white and could add some color to your buffet table.
Kellogg's Special K Low Fat Granola. $3.89 per 19.5-ounce box.
Bonnie: Kellogg's Low Fat Granola without raisins is one of a select few cereals we've tried for Supermarket Sampler that I continue to buy. I use it as a topping for my bran cereal. This new Special K Low Fat Granola contains less sugar and more protein and fiber than the original Kellogg's granola. It also has a lighter texture.
For a granola, the calories, fat and sugars are modest — 190 calories, 3 grams fat and 9 grams sugar — in a hearty 3/4-cup portion (many granolas have that or more in a mere quarter cup). This cereal also provides 5 grams fiber (2 grams of soluble fiber and 3 grams insoluble fiber) and an impressive 31 grams whole grains, or almost two full servings. I can recommend this.
Carolyn: You might rightly expect that Kellogg's new Special K Granola would feature Special K cereal. It doesn't.
This new cereal is instead apparently Kellogg's attempt to put a diet Special K marketing spin on granola. This mainly features oats, rice, soy grits (whatever they are) and lots of added fiber. The result is two-thirds again as much fiber and also fewer calories than other low-fat granolas, including one made by Kellogg's. Special K Granola also has fewer granola clusters and more solo toasted oats than other low-fat granolas.
Special K Granola is also not as rich or tasty as Quaker or Kellogg's own low-fat granola, but it's also not half bad.
Bonnie Tandy Leblang is a registered dietitian and professional speaker. She has an interactive website (www.biteofthebest.com) about products she recommends. Follow her on Twitter: BonnieBOTB. Carolyn Wyman is a junk-food fanatic and author of "The Great Philly Cheesesteak Book" (Running Press). Each week they critique three new food items.
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