This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Healthy Choice. All opinions are my own. Thanks for supporting the brands that support this blog!
Lunch is something I take very seriously, especially when it’s during the workweek. It’s a glorious hour to indulge in not working and not thinking and just spending time doing anything you want. And of course, anything I want includes eating, especially a good meal that will keep my brain ticking for a few more hours. As often as I try to pack leftovers, or a nice salad for myself, some weeks are just overwhelming and it ain’t happening. So when Healthy Choice offered me the chance to try some of the new offerings from their Simply Cafe Steamers line, I thought that this would be a great way to have something on hand that I could grab and take for lunch rather than having to go waste money and calories.
I tried out four of their new organic steamer bowl meals and wanted to give a solid review of each one in case anyone is trying to find ways to save themselves some stress over lunch too.
Three Cheese Tortellini
This is a tortellini with spinach and mushrooms in a sweet marinara sauce. I took out some of the bigger mushrooms because I don’t like to have to chew mushrooms, even though I like the flavor they add to dishes, so I go for the small pieces when it comes to fungi. Sometimes frozen meals that are heated up smell amazing but don’t follow through with the taste, but this one really did. There would be no lunchtime disappointment with this one, which is a win in my book. I liked that the added spinach gave a good dose of dark, leafy greens in a meal that I find often lacks those nutrients that are needed to stay awake through the 3 o’clock slump.
Creamy Spinach & Tomato Linguine
The first thing I noticed after heating it was that the sauce had separated a bit. It wasn’t nearly as cheesy as I was imagining it would be, but maybe I was setting myself up to think it was cheesy because the packaging doesn’t say that it is- just that it’s creamy.
It may have been the anticipation of cheese where there wasn’t any, but this one wasn’t doing it for me. I passed it off to my husband to finish.
Sweet & Spicy Asian Style Noodle Bowl
I could tell my the smell that this one was going to be my favorite! I love noodles, especially Asian style ones. Normally I don’t love sweetness in my savory foods, but this had the perfect twinge of sweet to knock off a little bit of the spice but not much. WOW this one is not one you’d want to eat right before a meeting where you were stuck without a water bottle! It’s pleasantly spicy, but the heat does linger and sparkle across your tongue. Actually, this one would be GREAT if you were looking to increase your water consumption while working! There’s a great ratio of vegetables to noodles to sauce. I seriously wouldn’t have thought this was a microwavable meal if it was served to me elsewhere. Plus, the steaming method that these use really keep the noodles al dente and from getting oily.
Unwrapped Burrito Bowl
Reading pays off ya’ll… I was super surprised to see a green sauce in the bottom of this bowl when I lifted the steamer basket off to mix everything together. It’s a tomatilla sauce, which is really nice, I’ve never really gone for tomatilla sauces when there is the option of a hearty red salsa around. But wow, this one packs a hot punch too! Again, it’s a pleasant spice, but definitely one that’ll have you hydrating frequently for a few minutes afterwards. The fact that it loads in 9 grams of protein is a huge plus for me too.
Overall I really did like three out of the four of these meals, and definitely look forward to more lunches that include these steamer bowl options!
Looking for other microwavable lunch options? Try blender tomato soup, spaghetti pie, and Cuban black beans with coconut rice.
