Showing posts with label Whole Grains. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Whole Grains. Show all posts

Monday, June 6, 2011

Nabisco Newtons Fruit Thins - Where Good Meets Good For You!


Happy Monday Butterflies! Did you miss me this weekend? I spent this weekend away from all things electronic, and spent the weekend where I'm happiest, at the Beach! It's the only place where I feel completely relaxed and can re-charge. Beach trips have always held great memories for me, family, friends, sun, food, music, sand castles.

Spontaneous and entirely un-planned Beach trips usually mean relying on food vendors when you don't bring something of your own. And most food vendors are selling high calorie, not so good for you fried foods. My trip this weekend wasn't entirely un-planned, but the beach we were going to was very far, making me bringing food more of an inconvenience than anything else. So I grabbed some waters and low cal snacks, sunscreen and my ipod and headed out.

As many of you know I have been making very simple, small changes in my life and have lost quite a bit of weight. My biggest weakness is late night sweet snacks like ice cream, and I'm actively trying to substitute my favorite late night treat for healthier snacks!

A trip to the supermarket a few weeks ago, led to a great discovery. A cookie from a brand I already knew quite well and trust, has a brand new line of cookies on the market with 8 grams of whole grain! This definitely caught my eye and I opted to try it in the Chocolate Raspberry flavor. And I'm super happy I did!

When I was little I used to share Fig Newtons with my grandmother, she loved them and passed that love to me. So I had a feeling I would like these too!

Shortly after trying these for myself after a supermarket visit, I was contacted by One2One Network who asked if I'd be interested in trying out Newtons Fruit Thins and share about it with my readers. And needless to say I jumped at the chance! I love sharing about products I already buy for myself. And I was also super lucky because I was sent a different variety than the one I had already purchased myself and tried out!

Newtons Fruit Thins

For more than a century, Newtons has been one unique cookie - wholesome goodness made with real fruit and a taste all its own. Now, with the creation of Newtons Fruit Thins, Nabisco is breaking the mold again with a cookie unlike any other with real fruit in unexpected combinations packed into a thin and crispy cookie

The four delicious varieties include:

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Cranberry Citrus Oat - I plan on trying this one next!
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ -Blueberry Brown Sugar - This is the one I tried via One2One Network, YUM!
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Chocolate Raspberry -This was the one I purchased, YUM!
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Fig & Honey  - I bet this one will remind me most of traditional Newtons

And because Newtons Fruit Thins are made with real fruit and 8 grams of whole grain per serving you can feel great knowing you’re having a deliciously wholesome snack. 

Nutritional Information

Serving Size - 3 cookies
140 Calories
5 grams total fat
1-1.5 grams saturated fat


My Take:

I've had the chance to try 2 out of the 4 varieties, the first I purchased when I happened upon them in the Supermarket, and the second I tried via One2One Network. I greatly enjoyed both varieties, and I plan to purchase the other 2 as well.

If you are totally tired of cereal, these make a great substitute for cereal for breakfast, they are great to have in your pantry for an anytime of day snack. 3pm doldrums at work? These are perfect! Unlike the traditional Fig Newtons, these are actually crisp, so they give you that crispy crunch, and with the chocolate raspberry variety you can also get that chocolate taste, but still have a healthy snack.

I totally think Newtons Thins are where good meets good for you! It is possible to make healthy snacking choices that don't make you feel like you are sacrificing great taste.

I brought my bag with me to the beach, and friends and family enjoyed them as much I did. My niece and nephews already like traditional Fig Newtons, and they enjoyed these as well. They also have a variety called Fruit Crisps which I haven't found at my local supermarket yet, but I will try it once they carry it, have you tried either Fig Newtons, Fruit Thins or Fruit Crisps yet?

I had a wonderful weekend at the Beach, and I hope you had a great weekend too!

Our annual Dads N Grads Buying Reco Guide, where you have the chance to win everything you see will launch this week!

What did you do this weekend?

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FTC Disclosure Info: This post offers me the chance to win a Gift Card from the One2One Network. I was provided with samples of Nabisco Fruit Thins to help Facilitate this review. All opinions about Nabisco and the Fruit Thins products I sampled are my own. No monetary exchange has taken place. This is not a sponsored post and no compensation has been received in exchange for my opinion.

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Not So Wordless Wednesday - It's Sandwich Night!

Photo Credit: Butterfly by Hailey Lommen, Dallas

The Grain Foods Foundation and The Deen Brothers (yes, that's Jaime and Bobby, Paula Deen's sons) want you to make one night a week sandwich night! I don't know about you, but Wednesday tends to bring out the 'blah's' in me. It's not yet Friday but just smack dab in the middle of the week and I usually never want to cook an elaborate meal mid-week.

While I tend to think of sandwiches more often for lunch, and it's not always my first go to choice for dinner, I will admit that attending this recent event hosted by the Grain Foundation and the Deen Brothers,  made me want to accept the challenge of incorporating more whole grains into my diet. So long as it's in such a way that it is not harder or more time consuming for me, yet still tasty, I'm all for it! (I'll let you in on a little secret, the Sandwich Night Event was actually held during the day, LOL) Below is a pic of me posing with the Deen Brothers! They were very gracious hosts, I'm sure Paula would have been very proud!

 
Photo Credit: Tracy, Ascending Butterfly's Founder with Jamie and Bobby Deen (C) 2010

To help bring out your inner 'sandwich-ista', the Grain Foods Foundation has created an Endless Sandwich recipe database at gowiththegrain.org where you can download recipes and add your own sandwich favorites. The Endless Sandwich database also features exclusive recipes created by the Deen brothers!


“Any night of the week can be Sandwich Night,” says Bobby Deen. “Making sandwiches for dinner is a nutritious and convenient solution to the age old question of ‘what’s for dinner?’”

The USDA dietary guidelines recommend eating six one-ounce servings of grain foods each day, with half of those servings coming from whole grains. Bread and grains provide many of the essential nutrients needed to stay healthy and help fight diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, some cancers and birth defects.

“Enjoying a sandwich at dinnertime ensures at least two of the required six servings of grain foods each day,” says Judi Adams, MS, RD and Grain Foods Foundation president.

“Better yet, sandwiches taste good, no matter how you build them!”
There were tons of great sandwiches prepared and you go to the website to get more recipe ideas, but there was one particular stand out that was my favorite, so I thought I'd share the recipe with you!



The Deen Brother's Grilled Bacon Pimento Cheese Sandwich

Ingredients:

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - 8 Slices White Bread (or better still WHOLE GRAIN)
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ -1/4 cup butter, softened
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ -8 slices bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ -pinch of garlic powder
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ -1/4 cup mayonnaise
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ -1/2 cup grated Monterey Jack cheese
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ -1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ -2 oz. cream cheese
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ -1 (4 oz.) jar of pimentos, drained and diced
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ -1 teaspoon grated onion
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ -salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

In a medium mixing bowl using a hand held mixer, beat cream cheese mayonnaise and garlic powder until smooth. Add in Jack and Cheddar cheese, pimentos and grated onion. Beat until well blended. Stir in crumbled bacon. Salt and pepper to taste.

Butter one side of each slice of bread. Top 4 of the slices with bacon pimento cheese spread. Top with the remaining 4 slices of bread (butter side out).

Heat grill pan or griddle to medium. Grill sandwiches until golden brown on one side.

Flip to other side and continue cooking until golden brown. Serve warm. 

I will admit I was a bit reluctant to try this one, but it turned out to be my absolute favorite sandwich of the night! (well, technically day!)
 
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - And for reading my entire 'Not So Wordless Wednesday' all the way through, I have a special treat for YOU! Fans of GoWithTheGrain on Facebook can also enter to win a chance to Share a Sandwich with the Deen Brothers in their hometown of Savannah, GA! How cool is that? Hurry, go like Go With The Grain on Facebook for a chance to win!
 
Can't get enough Deen Brothers? Check out their website TheDeenBros.com!
 

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This is a non-compensated post. I attended a local event. No incentives, compensation or merchandise was provided to attendees other than Sandwich Samples! Special thanks to Jennifer James (mom bloggers club), the Deen Brothers, the Go With the Grain Foundation, Bimbo Bakeries and Pepperidge Farm for a great event!