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Taste Test Tuesday: Green Giant Healthy Heart
We all need to eat more whole grains and vegetables. Almost everyone who has been paying attention even a little to science news over the past 5 years knows that. Green Giant brand (the king of frozen vegetables) has come up with a few new single serving frozen side dishes. I picked up the one labeled "healthy heart" and it contains:- Pearled barley
- Sugar snap peas
- Julienne carrots
- Herb infused extra virgin olive oil sauce
Aha! I thought..."herb infused extra virgin olive oil sauce,"sounds suspicious! The ingredient label reveals that the sauce is innocent enough, made from water, extra virgin olive oil, canola oil, garlic powder, salt, modified corn starch, spice, and monoglycerides).
Each individual serving - a 7-ounce box - adds up to 140 calories, 3 grams protein, 28 grams carbohydrate, 3 grams fat, 0 g saturated fat, 0 grams trans fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 4 grams fiber, 2 grams soluble fiber, 420 mg sodium. Calories from fat: 19 percent.
If I could have a one on one with the Green Giant 's people, I would recommend adding half as much salt so the sodium per serving would be in the 200 milligram ballpark instead. Because if someone at risk of heart disease is trying to follow the newer sodium suggestion of 1500 milligrams of sodium per day, one serving of this side dish would put a major dent in that total.
How did it taste?
It was a little "saucy" for my liking but the flavor and combination of textures was definitely pleasant.
Related Topics:
- Healthy Cooking with Elaine Magee, RD
- Healthy Cooking Newsletter - recipes, kitchen and shopping advice in your inbox
Labels: healthy diet, heart health, Taste Test Tuesday
2 Comments:
I bought this product last weekend because I can't say no to barley, but I, too, was a little taken aback by the sodium count. As a person trying to follow a heart-healthy diet, I find packaging like this misleading and am continually frustrated that even products with the AHA heart-check mark aren't always the healthiest choices for me! Some days I feel I spend more time reading nutritional labels than I do eating :)
On what planet is "modified corn starch" an innocent ingredient? Give me a break. It would be much, much healthier (not to mention less expensive, and have less of an environmental impact due to packaging) to buy your own damn barley, sugar snap peas and so on, and dress it with real olive oil and real spices. It's not rocket science to make whole grains and vegetables, folks -- or even to put a sauce on them.
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