MARGHERITA PIZZAS



Amy's Margherita Pizza: Calories: 250, Fat: 12g, Sat. Fat: 3.5g, Sodium: 550mg, Carbs: 32g, Sugars: 3g, Fiber: 2g, Protein: 11g, WW PTS: 6, Cals/Gram: 2.03

If you look at the picture of this pizza, you will see white cheese blobs. These cheese blobs are pretty much the tastiest pizza topping ever in the history of pizza. When you bite into the blob it is like a flavor explosion in your mouth. The crust on this is flaky, buttery, and insanely delish. I LOVE this pizza, and although South Beach pizzas are better on calories/gram (or calorie density) and WAY better on fiber and protein (even their vegetarian option), it is the best all natural one I have found.

Kashi Margherita Pizza: Calories: 260, Fat: 9g, Sat. Fat: 4g, Sodium: 630mg, Carbs: 29g, Sugars: 4g, Fiber: 4g, Protein: 14g, WW PTS: 5, Cals/Gram: 2.30

If you look at the picture of this pizza, you will see no cheese blobs...in fact, you won't see much of a topping at all. Apparently, thin crust = thin topping. And the crust itself is pretty flavorless. I love Kashi, but I absolutely did not like this pizza. Nutritionally, Kashi has more fiber & protein and less fat, but Amy's has fewer calories/gram (or lower calorie density). Also, Kashi's pizzas cost $1 more. Yikes!

WINNER: Amy's, hands down. Given the negligible differences in nutrition and the big difference on price...go with the one that is cheaper and insanely delicious! BTW, the Margherita variety is the lowest calorie pizza both brands offer.

VEGGIE POCKETS

Amy's Vegetable Pie Pocket: Calories: 300, Fat: 9g, Sat. Fat: 1.5g, Sodium: 490mg, Carbs: 45g, Sugars: 5g, Fiber: 3g, Protein: 8g, WW PTS: 6, Cals/Gram: 2.11

Have you ever stumbled across an old sweater you bought during a fuchsia angora phase and asked yourself "What was I thinking"? That's what came to mind when I started eating this. Amy's Foods has to bite into this and wonder what they were thinking. It's kind of a mess! The shell is doughy (and not like their new pizza crusts AT ALL) and the inside is a weird gel-like filling with tasteless potatoes, peas and carrots. It is also very small for 300 calories and 9 grams of fat. It is SO unlike Amy's to have such a bad food faux pas.

Kashi's Veggie Medley Pocket: Calories: 280, Fat: 7g, Sat. Fat: 1g, Sodium: 570mg, Carbs: 49g, Sugars: 6g, Fiber: 6g, Protein: 10g, WW PTS: 5, Cal/gram: 1.79

A soft, thick whole grain bun is stuffed with a combination of roasted red bell peppers, onions, zucchini, mushrooms, yellow carrots, broccoli and sun-dried tomatoes in a vinegar and basil sauce. Deliciously different, and with fewer calories and fat than Amy's as well. Kashi's is quite a bit higher in sodium and more expensive, though.

WINNER: Uh, Kashi. I think no further explanation is required on this one.

OATMEALS

Amy's Rolled Oats Hot Cereal Bowl: Calories: 220, Fat: 3.5g, Sat. Fat: 0.5g, Sodium: 220mg, Carbs: 42g, Sugars: 14g, Fiber: 5g, Protein: 6g, WW PTS: 4, Cals/Gram: 0.86

Returning back to Amy's normalcy, these rolled oats are thick, rich, and you can feel the hearty individual oatmeal flakes as you eat. I did need to add some cinnamon to it, as there is no added flavor. But no doubt this contains very high quality oats, and is high in fiber & protein. However, 220 calories is a pretty steep caloric price for oatmeal, given that most others come in around 150 calories. One big question I have: why pay for one frozen bowl when you can get a box of 8 (that you add water too) for a lower price, with fewer calories, and which tastes almost as good? Amy's tasted slightly better than Kashi's, but not enough to account for the exponential price difference: 8 bowls of Amy's would be around $32 versus Kashi's $3. Am I missing something here?

Kashi's Heart to Heart Oatmeal: Calories: 160, Fat: 2g, Sat. Fat: 0g, Sodium: 100mg, Carbs: 33g, Sugars 12g, Fiber: 5g, Protein: 4g, WW PTS: 3, Cals/Gram: 0.83

Kashi's oatmeal is a tiny bit mushier than Amy's, and does not have the thick, rich oats that Amy's has. It has the same amount of fiber, but 2g less protein. However, you still get an all natural flavor and stay at about the average of 150 calories for oatmeal. It also has heart healthy benefits: way less sodium and it's full of antioxidants. This has a nice maple flavor, in contrast to Amy's which I had to add cinnamon to, as it has no added flavor.

WINNER: Kashi. I can't imagine buying Amy's oatmeal by the bowl when the difference in taste is negligible, it is WAY higher in calories (70 more), higher in fat, and is more than 8 times the cost.

Again, both of these brands are among my top favorites, which goes to show that even the best brands vary in quality from product to product. Unfortunately, there were no frozen entrees that were similar enough to compare head-to-head. Amy's is usually a winner with the ethnic dishes. However, Kashi usually does a better job of keeping the calories down, the fat lower and the fiber higher.