Top 5! Brought to You By Stevo, the Birthday Boy

Each day brings a new viewing record for my blog, and I'd be lying if I said it hasn't gone to my head. We're probably just days away from Weight Watchers Magazine syndication. At least part of this is thanks to Sarah Allen-Short, who I believe has sped-read my rags over the past day or so. To address your comments, yes I'm using the Points Plus system, and no, I don't count points for fruit.

But with success comes pressure. Not only must I ratchet up the weight loss, but I must raise the content bar. My buddy Stevo had the brilliant idea of rating my microwave meals, and I'll probably create lists for various meals and snacks. My first list, though will rank the microwave lunches I've consumed since the start of my diet. Clearly, there are better options out there than the ones mentioned, and I'll count on you to point those out. Considering Kristy does the bulk of our grocery shopping, the freezer is a sometimes exciting, sometimes dreadful grab-bag of frozen dishes. Here we go:

Top 5 Microwave Meals:

1. Smart Ones Thai Style Chicken and Rice Noodles

Microwave meals tend to lack flavor and variation in texture. That's what makes the Thai Style Chicken so surprising. It's got a lovely peanut sauce that marries sweet and savory, and there's a nice texture contrast between the soft, spongy rice noodles and carrots. Plenty of protein, which is key during a diet, but the real jewel is the sauce.

2. Lean Cuisine Chicken Enchilada Suiza

Again, your best bet is to stick with ethnic food, as it provides the most flavor of all your options. Now, the enchilada itself is pretty horrid, as it resembles tasteless chicken mash wrapped in a band aid. However, the secret is in blending the side bowl of rice and corn in the fake cheese soup upon which the enchilada rests. I find that when dieting, I really miss cheesy, rich foods. This scratches that itch. Mix in about 10 shakes of Texas Pete and you have yourself an extremely adequate meal.

3. Smart Ones Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

Microwave pasta is pretty easy to pull off, and Smart Ones does just fine with this dish. Spaghetti provides that comfort food fix that I tend to miss when dieting. The sauce is bland, but the meal is filling, thanks to the meat product and mushrooms. Again, a few shakes of hot sauce makes the flavor tolerable.

4. Lean Cuisine Cheese Ravioli

Pasta, cheese stuff, marinara, what's not to like? The meager portion, that's what. This one comes through in the umami taste category. Just wish there was twice as much.

5. Lean Cuisine Sesame Chicken

Honestly, this one probably belongs at or near the top. Ample chicken portions, fried breading, sweet sauce, it's really a renaissance meal. It gets ranked this low because I've probably eaten this thing a couple hundred times in the last three years. Still, eat this if you haven't yet.

I eat one of these probably 3-4 times a week, and it's a testament to the convenience and adequate quality that I've stuck with them this long. Each of these dishes equates to 6-8 WW points, so I really should be eating two of these over lunch. Also, the flat-bread and pizza options are quite tasty, but I'm not sure how many points they cost, and we just haven't had them in the freezer for a while. In the coming weeks, I'll probably rank my bottom 5 microwave lunches.

Food Log:

Breakfast:
yogurt - 2
South Beach bar - 4

Lunch:
Trader Joes chicken burger on wheat bun - 8
baked Cheetos - 5
Cinnamon snack bar - 3

Snack:
apple

Dinner:
basil chicken - 5
1c rice - 5
2x fresh spring rolls - 10
bourbon - 12

54/49