The Healthy Choice Roasted Beef Merlot Cafe Steamer is Good but Not Great

I love Healthy Choice Cafe Steamers. They are delicious; they don't cost an arm or a leg and they contain just the right amount of calories for those of us who are watching our weight.

My latest foray into Cafe Steamers is their Roasted Beef Merlot. I liked it well enough but it isn't as good as their Whiskey Steak. That one is still my all time favorite.

The Healthy Choice Roasted Beef Merlot Cafe Steamer is made with beef, potatoes and various vegetables in a delicious Merlot wine sauce. Rest assured; however, that the wine flavor is very light. In fact, it is almost undetectable. That makes the dish safe for nearly everyone.

This dish contains no preservatives and it boasts 5 g of fiber and 15 grams of protein; all for just 210 calories. That's hard to beat.

The meal contains just 6 g of fat. Of that amount, 3 g come from monounsaturated fat; 2 g from saturated fat and .5 g from polyunsaturated fat. The Healthy Choice Roasted Beef Merlot Cafe Steamer contains no trans fat.

It also includes 23 g of carbohydrate, 5 g of sugar, 600 mg of sodium and 35 mg of cholesterol. That is important to note for individuals who are trying to watch their carb, salt, sugar and/or cholesterol intake.

In addition to good protein and fiber, this Healthy Choice meal also offers 1000 mg of potassium. It also has 50% of the daily-recommended amount of vitamin B12, 40% of the needed vitamin A, 25% of the required phosphorus, 15% of the recommended amount of folic acid and zinc and 10% of the needed magnesium and iron. Finally, it offers 8% of the daily-recommended amount of thiamin, 6% of the needed calcium and riboflavin, 4% of the required amount of vitamin B6 and 2% of the needed vitamin E.

Ingredients include beef, beef fat, beef flavor, canola oil, black pepper, carrots, corn syrup, dried cauliflower, dried whey, garlic, green beans, Merlot wine, milk, modified corn starch, onions, salt, roasted red potatoes, rosemary flavor, soybean oil, sesame oil, spices, thyme, vegetable juice concentrates, and water. It also includes caramel color, dextrose, maltodextrin, potassium chloride, potassium phosphate, autolyzed yeast extract, maltodextrin, lactic acid, citric acid and mono-diglyercides with datem.

The Healthy Choice Roasted Beef Merlot Cafe Steamer comes in its own double bowl, known as the duotray steamcooker. The top bowl holds the ingredients within a vented tray. The solid bottom bowl holds the sauce. Once the food is steam cooked, the two are combined into the bottom bowl and eaten.

To fix this meal, remove it from the cardboard carton sleeve. Place the duotray steamcooker into a microwave. Do not pierce the top cellophane cover at any time. Microwave the dish on high for at least 5 minutes.

Once it is finished steam cooking, let the bowls sit to cool for about 1 minute. Then carefully remove the plastic cover to check and make sure the food is cooked completely. If so, mix the ingredients together and eat.

If the food isn't thoroughly cooked, place the container back into the microwave for 1 more minute. Remove, cool, mix and eat.

The Healthy Choice Roasted Beef Merlot Cafe Steamer equals 4 Weight Watcher Points. With regard to diet exchange programs, it represents 1 starch, 2 lean meats and 1 vegetable.

The Healthy Choice Roasted Beef Merlot Cafe Steamer is a product of ConAgra Foods out of Omaha, Nebraska. ConAgra is part of the Feeding America Program. By signing on to Child Hunger Stops Here and putting in the meal's code printed on the carton sleeve, you ensure a monetary donation will be made to provide one meal to the hungry of America.

The Healthy Choice Roasted Beef Merlot Cafe Steamer is good. Many other Healthy Choice meals; however, are even better. I give this one 3 out of 5 stars. I don't believe it has the taste of some of its other inhouse competitors.

RATING SCALE:

5 stars = outstanding

4 stars = good

3 stars = average

2 stars = below average

1 star = poor