Day 19 started with berries and multigrain flakes from the shelf-stable box. This was another of those breakfasts that were better than what you buy in the supermarket. The cereal had a rich berry flavor and crunchy flakes (9/10). The portion size was about 1/3 of what I’d normally put in my bowl if I were opening a huge box of cereal. But I was satisfied, so it was another good lesson in portion control.
For lunch, they had pizza at work, so I decided to forego the usual lunch, have a slice, and go back on the wagon. The snack that day was another chocolate brownie.
For dinner, I chose the macaroni and cheese in a cup from the shelf-stable package. I’d call this a 9/10. It was prepared like instant noodles again–just add water and stir. It was creamy, had good taste. The side vegetable that night was sauteed spinach and garlic again, and the dessert was the herb snack mix.
Day 20 (April 29)Breakfast on Day 20 was “Nutrifrosted crunch cereal”. This is the kind of cereal you’d find if a Kellogg’s truck turned over on the highway. It was a combination of something that looks liked “frosted flakes”, mixed with bran flakes, mixed with puffed cereal pieces that looked like rice krispies but was a bit more dense (I’m sure soy was involved again). I’d give it a 6/10, probably higher if not for the puffed pieces.
Lunch was Tomato and Corn Chowder in a can. It was thick and rich and had a great taste. (7/10)
Snack in the afternoon were pretzels, but I snacked on some Costco snack mix in the office too.
For dinner, I went to the freezer and chose the tender beef with portobello mushrooms. As with all the frozen entrees, the veggies were tender and fresh again, not like a TV dinner at all. It included carrots, green beans, potatoes. The beef was tender but it wasn’t as flavorful as I would have liked, and I couldn’t find the portobello mushrooms. (7/10).
Snack that night was “chocolate chocolate chip pudding” from the shelf-stable box. This came in as powder in a pouch, with instructions to add 1/2 cup cold water and stir. As a nice touch, they put real chocolate chips in. The texture was fine, but the taste was not very pleasant. (4/10)
Day 21 (April 30)Day 21 started with Nutricinnamon Squares cereal. It was like a combination of Cinnamon Chex and frosted flakes, and crunchy bits. Like the last cereal, it was pleasant tasting (7/10).
Lunch was chicken noodle soup. In a bit of bad discipline, I helped myself to CostCo snack mix again.
For dinner, I had chicken pasta parmesian (7/10). Like the other shelf-stable dinners, it was a lot like what you’d get in a can of Chef Boyardee. The star of the evening was the vegetable. I went to AllRecipes and made sauteed asparagus, which was very, very good, especially with the little crunchy bits of garlic. Of course it can be argued that anything with butter and garlic is going to be good.
Snack that night was a bag of “Nutrichocolates”. These were interesting little penny-shaped chocolate discs. The taste was pretty good taste, but not sure how healthy it was–reading the label, one package had 37% of the USRDA of saturated fat. I was going to joke that this was the one snack I found that didn’t have soy, but upon closer examination, I see it does have soy lechithin (an emulsifier).
Having been somewhat sedentary, I went on the Wii and did Golds Cardio for an hour.
Day 22 (5/1)
Breakfast on Day 22 was cereal again. This time, it was Nutriflakes in the built-in bowl again. Still loving that built-in bowl.
For lunch, I decided to go my own way again and have my own lunch. My dear coworker will from time to time give me her extra food 🙂
Dinner that night was from the frozen box–the Ravioli Formaggia. This one was easily a (10/10). It was incredible, restaurant-quality ravioli with fresh pasta and a texture as if the dough was just made. The ricotta filling was tasty, the very fresh tomato sauce perfectly seasoned.
For the veggies, I prepared braised carrots from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone
Day 23 (5/2)
For Day 23, I started with Two and A Half Pancakes from the shelf-stable box. Like the meatload review below, I’m going to bump the rating down a few notches just because I’m comparing it to something I make pretty well. The pancakes came as a powder which was mixed with water. The texture was fluffy enough, but the taste was a little off, and a little dry. Maybe it’s because it wasn’t loaded with eggs and butter like I usually make them, but they managed to make an amazing pancake with the frozen version, not so much with the shelf-stable version (6/10). Grapes and apple juice rounded out breakfast.
From 5/3 to 5/10, I’m going to be off the Nutrisystem diet. This is because when I’m not writing this blog, I work at an online flower delivery company. We’re starting to ramp up for Mother’s Day which of course means two things. First, I am going to be working 12, 14, and up to 16-hour days at the office. This means no biking, no Wii…I’m pretty much going to be sedentary. Secondly, during the holidays, they will bring in very good food to the office. In a way, this will be my first test of eating in “the real world”. Stay tuned to see how I do!