The search begins!

So I'm a little crazy- I've always been the kind of person who gets things when other people said it couldn't be done. I like being able to find a way to do it. Of course, in weight loss, this is usually a good thing- I find a healthy way to make things that I like. With Nutrisystem, some of that is coming out, but the crazy in me is trying to find a way to get hold of discontinued meals. I think I'm nuts, because even if I find something I love, odds are that I'll never be able to find it again! But, I want to try as many things as possible, so there it is. Since Nutrisystem food has such a long shelf life, maybe I'll be finding discontined items for a while. I hope to keep finding the Beef Tacos, now that they are gone from the Canadian site. I have to ration the few I have left!

Florentine Sauce with Chicken Fettuccine (Dinner):


This was my first discontinued find, and it was delicious. Why on earth did Nutrisystem get rid of these??? The chicken and noodles were in a rich, creamy sauce with spinach. It tasted too decadent to be a weight loss entree! I am trying to hunt down more of these as well.


Peppermint Cookie Patty (Dessert):


I was expecting to love this since I adore mint and cookies, and it got good feedback on the Nutrisystem boards. It just didn't do it for me, though. It is basically a chocolate coated soft, chewy mint patty- there was no crunch from a cookie. I was expecting the mint to be more of the soft, melty kind like in After Eight bars. Having to chew the mint really made me think of bad mint bubble gum. With so many great desserts to choose from, I'm not going to waste any more time on this one.


Apple Granola Bar (Breakfast):


OK, this was the first item I've actually taken one bite out of and thrown in the trash. It tasted dry and crumbly, and the fake apple taste was just overwhelming. I couldn't possibly eat it. I used to read posts about people throwing away items and I said to myself, at about $3 a pop, I wouldn't be that wasteful, but I guess everyone has their breaking point! I am really not a fan of the fake flavours- would it have been so hard to put in some dried apple chunks?


Apple Strudel Bar (Breakfast):


I had some trepidation about this, since I'd had the Apple Granola Bar the day before. I took a bite and the icing and heavy sweetness of the strudel bar seemed to mask most of the fake apple taste. I'm not crazy about this and I won't order it again, but I was able to eat it. It was much better than the other bar.


Sloppy Joe Mix (Dinner):


I decided to try the Sloppy Joe Mix with pasta instead of a bun, like I speculated in my last post. OMG, this is diet food??? You've got to be kidding me. I prepared the Sloppy Joe Mix following package directions except that I only microwaved it once- I didn't want it to thicken up too much. In a saucepan, I added chunks of my favourite veggies- onions, bell pepper, mushrooms, and tomatoes, and added the Sloppy Joe Mix on top. There didn't really seem to be enough sauce, so I got the idea to add a half cup of fat free cottage cheese for my protein serving. I prepared my pasta serving (I use Catelli Smart), and dumped it into the saucepan to mix, and then served it. It was rich, cheesy, and delicious. Dan had a bite and he wanted to eat it himself! I am definitely adding more of these to my next order.


Beans and Ham Soup (Lunch):


When I first opened the can, this looked very unappealing. The soup had separated, leaving a clear liquid floating on top. Fortunately, I had a recipe up my sleeve to try with this! Cut up two fat free/low fat hot dogs (no more than 100 calories total), and dump the soup on top. Then add a tbsp of Splenda Brown Sugar Substitute, and a few squirts of ketchup and mustard. Stir until blended, then microwave for two minutes. It tastes like weiners and baked beans. I was sure I took a photograph of the finished product, but I can't seem to find one so I suppose it smelled so good that I was too eager to dig in! I'll get one next time. This was delicious and I'll be ordering more!