by Marianne Plunkert
Overall rating: 2.0
Meal Description and Cooking Instructions
This egg frittata breakfast entrée came packaged in a 2-compartment container, with a generously-sized wedge of the frittata in one section and about 1/8 cup of mild salsa in the other. I was to supply a non-fat dairy product to accompany the meal. I went with my old standby–nonfat plain Greek yogurt.
The heating instructions indicated to microwave the meal on high for 30 to 40 seconds. As usual, I added 10 seconds to accommodate my microwave’s lower wattage. I noticed it was still cool to the touch when I was putting it on my plate, however, so I cooked it for an additional 10 seconds. This also proved insufficient.
I continued to heat it for an additional 10 seconds until the frittata seemed to be palatably warm. In all, I microwaved it for 30 seconds longer than what the directions indicated.
Egg frittata
My General Impressions
This was one of the worst meals I’ve tasted in my life. I spooned the salsa over the frittata wedge when I arranged it on my plate, and it was the only decent tasting element of this eDiets’ entrée.
The texture of the frittata was good, but each bite was so overwhelmingly bitter that I wondered if the cook had substituted escarole for the spinach when preparing it. I checked the list of ingredients, which included whole eggs, spinach, jalapeno peppers, green and yellow chiles, pepperjack cheese, Canadian brand ham, and diced potatoes. Not a trace of escarole or anything else that explained the bitter taste.
In forking through the mixture, I identified the diced potatoes, eggs, and bits of meat that didn’t resemble Canadian ham to me. But the flavors of these ingredients were lost in the bitterness, and I couldn’t detect any of the other ingredients on the list.
Nutritional Content
This breakfast entrée contains 140 calories, 30 of which are from fat. Protein weighs in at 12 grams, and total carbs are 13 grams, with 3 grams of dietary fiber and 2 grams of sugar.
It is a good source of Vitamin A, supplying 25 % of that vitamin’s average daily requirement. It also provides 10% of the calcium, 8% of the iron, and 6% of the Vitamin C recommended doses.
There is no fruit component to this meal. The milk used in its preparation and my nonfat yogurt comprise more than 1 serving of dairy. The potatoes, spinach, and peppers offer 1 serving of vegetables, and the eggs and ham provide the protein.
Food Rating/Quality
I can only justify giving this entrée a “2” on a scale of 1 to 5. It was barely tolerable, which was disappointing because it sounded like it would be delicious. It had a number of ingredients that I particularly like, such as pepperjack cheese, but the individual flavors were totally masked by the entrée’s bitter taste.
The texture of the frittata was good, however, and the flavor of the salsa was decent, although it tasted pretty much like any salsa you can purchase in the grocery store. I would be surprised to learn that it had been freshly prepared.
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