by Marianne Plunkert
Overall rating: 3 of 5
Meal Description and Cooking Instructions
The eDiets dinner entrée on Day 5 consisted of 3 reasonably-sized slices of turkey with raisin sauce dribbled on top, 1/3 cup of almond couscous, and 6 large broccoli florets. I provided fresh fruit (apple slices) and an item from eDiets’ nonfat dairy list (plain nonfat yogurt).
The meal came packaged in a 2-compartment plastic tray. The turkey with raisin sauce and almond couscous shared one compartment, and the broccoli was in the other one.
The heating instructions said to microwave the meal on high for 1 to 1 ½ minutes. I cooked mine for 1 minute 45 seconds since my microwave oven seems to require more time than the directions indicate. This ended up being an appropriate amount of time.
Savory Turkey with Harvest Raisin Sauce
My General Impressions
With the addition of my bright red apple slices, the meal was very colorful and looked very appealing. Unfortunately, it wasn’t that pleasing to the palate.
It contained a variety of different textures, which I always enjoy, but the savory turkey didn’t prove to be all that savory. It was a bit on the dry side, even with the sauce, and a couple of the bites I took tasted a bit moldy. I examined the turkey breast itself and saw no signs of spoilage. The taste may have come from the raisin sauce. I’m uncertain.
The broccoli tasted like it had been steamed fresh just moments before being served, but it was a bit bland. It could have used some seasoning. I personally like a dash of lemon juice or a sprinkle of lemon pepper on mine.
The couscous saved the meal as far as I was concerned. It was delicious. It had just a bit of tang and was topped with crunchy almonds.
Nutritional Content
This entrée contains 230 calories, 50 of which are fat calories. It supplies 23 grams of protein. Total carbs are 23 grams, with 4 grams each of dietary fiber and sugars.
It’s rich in Vitamin C, supplying 45% of the recommended daily intake of that nutrient. It also contributes 10% of the recommended amount of Vitamin A, 6% of calcium and 10% of iron. And, including the dieter-supplied components, the meal provides a healthy serving of each of the essential food groups: protein (turkey), starch (couscous), fruit (raisins and apples), vegetables (broccoli), dairy (nonfat yogurt), and fat (canola and virgin oils).
Food Rating/Quality
Despite the couple of bites that tasted a bit like mold to me, overall, I considered the meal to be “fair,” so I rate it as a “3” on a scale of 1 to 5. The couscous was particularly good, and although it lacked flavor, the texture of the broccoli was very good—crisp, but tender.
The food looked very attractive on the plate, too, for the most part. Some of the couscous had spilled onto the turkey with raisin sauce, however. This could be remedied if the meal were served in a 3-compartment instead of a 2-compartment tray.
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