Seeking healthy but conventional TV dinners
View Full Version : Seeking healthy but conventional TV dinners
Hi, all. I'm getting older, and my doctor says I need foods
with less cholestoral, lower fat, low salt, etc. What a
pain. Hope someone can help me out here.
I am accustomed to eating foods that I like, and making them
quick and dirty. I eat a lot of frozen dinners, frozen
ravioli, stuff like that. Swanson TV dinner type foods. The
doctor says those dinners contain tons of crap, which is not
good for me.
I went to my nearest "healthy foods" type of supermarket,
here in the DC metro area. The TV dinners I found there fall
into one of two categories:
1. Vegetable matter, masquerading (poorly) as meat. That
is, lots of Tofu type products, dressed up as
meatloaf and such.
2. Frozen dinners based on exotic cuisines, such as Thai. I
don't eat Thai. I eat American, Italian, and Chinese.
And American. Or did I say that already?
My tastes are very plain American. I like chicken, beef,
turkey, mashed potatoes, rice, familiar garden vegetables,
lasagna, plain Jane American foods (and a food ethnic foods,
like a lot of Italian dishes, that have become Americanized
over time). I want to find low-fat, low-salt TV dinners that
still have real meat and real potatoes.
So, I asked the guys at the healthy foods supermarket if
they could find some low-salt, low-fat, low-cholestoral TV
dinners that have the same types of food as Swanson TV
dinners, and they keep saying they'll do something about it
-- and they don't. So, I thought I'd help them out.
Therefore, and to get to the point: Can anyone recommend
some brand of TV dinners that tastes and looks like Swanson,
except it's not poison for a guy in his early 40s with high
blood pressure and high cholesterol?
Thanks, sincerely, in advance, for all ON TOPIC, ON POINT
replies that don't try to tell me to change my shabby
American eating habits.
Steve O.
Steven AATT Domain DDOOTT com To send an e-mail, substitute
@ for AATT, a . for DDOOTT, and OpComm for Domain
Standard Antiflame Disclaimer: Please don't flame me. I may
actually *be* an idiot, but even idiots have feelings.
I pledge allegiance to the Constitution of the United
States of America, and to the republic which it
established, one nation from many peoples, promising
liberty and justice for all. Feel free to use the above
variant pledge in your own postings.
why don't you just learn to cook? That way you'll have
better control over how much fat, salt, and whatever goes
into your food. You can trim off excess fat, buy lean ground
beef, skin chicken and turkey before cooking etc. bake fish.
there's many recipes for healthy cooking online, might be
worth your while to look into it.
"Steven O." <null@null.com> wrote in message
news:vp8ee09stbpvujk8rgc8rt4t9eheee1j3a@4ax.com...
> Hi, all. I'm getting older, and my doctor says I need
> foods with less cholestoral, lower fat, low salt, etc.
> What a pain. Hope someone can help me out here.
>
> I am accustomed to eating foods that I like, and making
> them quick and dirty. I eat a lot of frozen dinners,
> frozen ravioli, stuff like that. Swanson TV dinner type
> foods. The doctor says those dinners contain tons of crap,
> which is not good for me.
>
> I went to my nearest "healthy foods" type of supermarket,
> here in the DC metro area. The TV dinners I found there
> fall into one of two categories:
> 1. Vegetable matter, masquerading (poorly) as meat. That
> is, lots of Tofu type products, dressed up as meatloaf
> and such.
> 2. Frozen dinners based on exotic cuisines, such as Thai.
> I don't eat Thai. I eat American, Italian, and
> Chinese. And American. Or did I say that already?
>
> My tastes are very plain American. I like chicken, beef,
> turkey, mashed potatoes, rice, familiar garden vegetables,
> lasagna, plain Jane American foods (and a food ethnic
> foods, like a lot of Italian dishes, that have become
> Americanized over time). I want to find low-fat, low-salt
> TV dinners that still have real meat and real potatoes.
>
> So, I asked the guys at the healthy foods supermarket if
> they could find some low-salt, low-fat, low-cholestoral TV
> dinners that have the same types of food as Swanson TV
> dinners, and they keep saying they'll do something about
> it -- and they don't. So, I thought I'd help them out.
> Therefore, and to get to the point: Can anyone recommend
> some brand of TV dinners that tastes and looks like
> Swanson, except it's not poison for a guy in his early 40s
> with high blood pressure and high cholesterol?
>
> Thanks, sincerely, in advance, for all ON TOPIC, ON POINT
> replies that don't try to tell me to change my shabby
> American eating habits.
>
> Steve O.
>
>
> Steven AATT Domain DDOOTT com To send an e-mail,
> substitute @ for AATT, a . for DDOOTT, and OpComm for
Domain
>
> Standard Antiflame Disclaimer: Please don't flame me. I
> may actually
*be* an idiot, but even idiots have feelings.
>
> I pledge allegiance to the Constitution of the United
> States of America,
and to the republic which it established, one nation from
many peoples, promising liberty and justice for all.
> Feel free to use the above variant pledge in your own
> postings.
The TV dinner type food that I know of that would be low in
fat is Healthy choice, smart ones (weight watchers), lean
cuisine , but all kind of high in sodium. Probably not as
high in sodium as conventional types of TV dinners, but up
there nonetheless. The fat is pretty low and the portion
sizes are on the small side.
http://www.leancuisine.com/Product/ViewFoodForThoughtCommen-
ts.aspx?ProductID=54
http://www.healthychoice.com/index2.jsp
http://www.kvbc.com/Global/story.asp?S=1803495
"Steven O." <null@null.com> wrote in message
news:vp8ee09stbpvujk8rgc8rt4t9eheee1j3a@4ax.com...
> Hi, all. I'm getting older, and my doctor says I need
> foods with less cholestoral, lower fat, low salt, etc.
> What a pain. Hope someone can help me out here.
>
> I am accustomed to eating foods that I like, and making
> them quick and dirty. I eat a lot of frozen dinners,
> frozen ravioli, stuff like that. Swanson TV dinner type
> foods. The doctor says those dinners contain tons of crap,
> which is not good for me.
>
> I went to my nearest "healthy foods" type of supermarket,
> here in the DC metro area. The TV dinners I found there
> fall into one of two categories:
> 1. Vegetable matter, masquerading (poorly) as meat. That
> is, lots of Tofu type products, dressed up as meatloaf
> and such.
> 2. Frozen dinners based on exotic cuisines, such as Thai.
> I don't eat Thai. I eat American, Italian, and
> Chinese. And American. Or did I say that already?
>
> My tastes are very plain American. I like chicken, beef,
> turkey, mashed potatoes, rice, familiar garden vegetables,
> lasagna, plain Jane American foods (and a food ethnic
> foods, like a lot of Italian dishes, that have become
> Americanized over time). I want to find low-fat, low-salt
> TV dinners that still have real meat and real potatoes.
>
> So, I asked the guys at the healthy foods supermarket if
> they could find some low-salt, low-fat, low-cholestoral TV
> dinners that have the same types of food as Swanson TV
> dinners, and they keep saying they'll do something about
> it -- and they don't. So, I thought I'd help them out.
> Therefore, and to get to the point: Can anyone recommend
> some brand of TV dinners that tastes and looks like
> Swanson, except it's not poison for a guy in his early 40s
> with high blood pressure and high cholesterol?
>
> Thanks, sincerely, in advance, for all ON TOPIC, ON POINT
> replies that don't try to tell me to change my shabby
> American eating habits.
>
> Steve O.
>
>
> Steven AATT Domain DDOOTT com To send an e-mail,
> substitute @ for AATT, a . for DDOOTT, and OpComm for
Domain
>
> Standard Antiflame Disclaimer: Please don't flame me. I
> may actually
*be* an idiot, but even idiots have feelings.
>
> I pledge allegiance to the Constitution of the United
> States of America,
and to the republic which it established, one nation from
many peoples, promising liberty and justice for all.
> Feel free to use the above variant pledge in your own
> postings.
Steven O. <null@null.com> wrote
<snip>
> Standard Antiflame Disclaimer: Please don't flame me. I
> may actually *be* an idiot, but even idiots have feelings.
I like your disclaimer.
I feel that *any* prepackaged TV dinner is going to be miles
removed, healthwise and tastewise, from virtually anything
you could cook yourself.
Here's my suggestion (and I'm a firm believer in the idea
that you *can* teach an old dog new tricks): go to your
local community college, etc. and take a cooking class or
two. They'll undoubtedly have a heavy focus on "healthy"
eating/cooking.
Step Two: invest in a lot of Tupperware.
Take these newly-learned cooking skills and make up batches
of your favorite dishes, divide them into single-portion
sizes, and freeze them.
It'll be easy to pick out an entree and two side dishes that
you, yourself, have prepared (in a "heart healthy" way), pop
them in the microwave, and eat whilst you watch TV. Presto!
Homemade, healthy TV dinner.
Plus, it's a hell of a lot cheaper to cook from scratch than
it is to buy premade meals from the store.
AND...I'm just going to assume that you are unattached. I
imagine that, as a fella asking about TV dinners, you don't
have a lady around doing that traditionally feminine thing:
cooking for her man. (Please don't flame me, readers.) Just
in case you're unattached, and just in case you're the
dating type...it seems to be an attractive character trait
in a man if he is able and willing to cook.
Best of luck.
Mark, MD
It wasn't a dark and stormy night when Mark wrote:
> Take these newly-learned cooking skills and make up
> batches of your favorite dishes, divide them into single-
> portion sizes, and freeze them.
Years ago I knew a father with a teenage son who used to do
this, once a month or so they'd spend the weekend cooking...
the great thing about doing this is that you can make up a
*huge* pot of tomato sauce and use it to make up lasagna,
for with pasta(quick and easy), pizza and anything else you
fancy. Now and then I make up a large batch and freeze it
for lazy days, especially whenever I find some fresh bay
leaves. Yum!
:)
Vashti
On Sat, 3 Jul 2004 18:33:56 -0400, "Janna" <jannajones4545@yahoo.com>
wrote:
>why don't you just learn to cook? That way you'll have
>better control over
If I was interested in healthy cooking, I would have asked
for a cookbook. I'm interested in healthy TV dinners, which
is why I asked about that. Your intentions, I know, were
good... thanks anyway.
>how much fat, salt, and whatever goes into your food. You
>can trim off excess fat, buy lean ground beef, skin chicken
>and turkey before cooking etc. bake fish. there's many
>recipes for healthy cooking online, might be worth your
>while to look into it.
>
>
>"Steven O." <null@null.com> wrote in message
>news:vp8ee09stbpvujk8rgc8rt4t9eheee1j3a@4ax.com...
>> Hi, all. I'm getting older, and my doctor says I need
>> foods with less cholestoral, lower fat, low salt, etc.
>> What a pain. Hope someone can help me out here.
>>
>> I am accustomed to eating foods that I like, and making
>> them quick and dirty. I eat a lot of frozen dinners,
>> frozen ravioli, stuff like that. Swanson TV dinner type
>> foods. The doctor says those dinners contain tons of
>> crap, which is not good for me.
>>
>> I went to my nearest "healthy foods" type of supermarket,
>> here in the DC metro area. The TV dinners I found there
>> fall into one of two categories:
>> 1. Vegetable matter, masquerading (poorly) as meat. That
>> is, lots of Tofu type products, dressed up as
>> meatloaf and such.
>> 2. Frozen dinners based on exotic cuisines, such as
>> Thai. I don't eat Thai. I eat American, Italian, and
>> Chinese. And American. Or did I say that already?
>>
>> My tastes are very plain American. I like chicken, beef,
>> turkey, mashed potatoes, rice, familiar garden
>> vegetables, lasagna, plain Jane American foods (and a
>> food ethnic foods, like a lot of Italian dishes, that
>> have become Americanized over time). I want to find low-
>> fat, low-salt TV dinners that still have real meat and
>> real potatoes.
>>
>> So, I asked the guys at the healthy foods supermarket if
>> they could find some low-salt, low-fat, low-cholestoral
>> TV dinners that have the same types of food as Swanson TV
>> dinners, and they keep saying they'll do something about
>> it -- and they don't. So, I thought I'd help them out.
>> Therefore, and to get to the point: Can anyone recommend
>> some brand of TV dinners that tastes and looks like
>> Swanson, except it's not poison for a guy in his early
>> 40s with high blood pressure and high cholesterol?
>>
>> Thanks, sincerely, in advance, for all ON TOPIC, ON POINT
>> replies that don't try to tell me to change my shabby
>> American eating habits.
>>
>> Steve O.
>>
>>
>> Steven AATT Domain DDOOTT com To send an e-mail,
>> substitute @ for AATT, a . for DDOOTT, and OpComm for
>Domain
>>
>> Standard Antiflame Disclaimer: Please don't flame me. I
>> may actually
>*be* an idiot, but even idiots have feelings.
>>
>> I pledge allegiance to the Constitution of the United
>> States of America,
>and to the republic which it established, one nation from
>many peoples, promising liberty and justice for all.
>> Feel free to use the above variant pledge in your own
>> postings.
>
>
Steven AATT Domain DDOOTT com To send an e-mail, substitute
@ for AATT, a . for DDOOTT, and OpComm for Domain
Standard Antiflame Disclaimer: Please don't flame me. I may
actually *be* an idiot, but even idiots have feelings.
I pledge allegiance to the Constitution of the United
States of America, and to the republic which it
established, one nation from many peoples, promising
liberty and justice for all. Feel free to use the above
variant pledge in your own postings.
Weight Watchers has introduced four low carb dinners now
also.
"Janna" <jannajones4545@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:i_JFc.2373$PO3.723@fe39.usenetserver.com...
> The TV dinner type food that I know of that would be low
> in fat is Healthy choice, smart ones (weight watchers),
> lean cuisine , but all kind of high in sodium. Probably
> not as high in sodium as conventional types of TV dinners,
> but up there nonetheless. The fat is pretty low and the
> portion sizes are on the small side.
>
>
http://www.leancuisine.com/Product/ViewFoodForThoughtCommen-
ts.aspx?ProductID=54
>
> http://www.healthychoice.com/index2.jsp
>
> http://www.kvbc.com/Global/story.asp?S=1803495
>
>
>
> "Steven O." <null@null.com> wrote in message
> news:vp8ee09stbpvujk8rgc8rt4t9eheee1j3a@4ax.com...
> > Hi, all. I'm getting older, and my doctor says I need
> > foods with less cholestoral, lower fat, low salt, etc.
> > What a pain. Hope someone can help me out here.
> >
> > I am accustomed to eating foods that I like, and making
> > them quick and dirty. I eat a lot of frozen dinners,
> > frozen ravioli, stuff like that. Swanson TV dinner type
> > foods. The doctor says those dinners contain tons of
> > crap, which is not good for me.
> >
> > I went to my nearest "healthy foods" type of
> > supermarket, here in the DC metro area. The TV dinners I
> > found there fall into one of two categories:
> > 1. Vegetable matter, masquerading (poorly) as meat.
> > That is, lots of Tofu type products, dressed up as
> > meatloaf and such.
> > 2. Frozen dinners based on exotic cuisines, such as
> > Thai. I don't eat Thai. I eat American, Italian, and
> > Chinese. And American. Or did I say that already?
> >
> > My tastes are very plain American. I like chicken, beef,
> > turkey, mashed potatoes, rice, familiar garden
> > vegetables, lasagna, plain Jane American foods (and a
> > food ethnic foods, like a lot of Italian dishes, that
> > have become Americanized over time). I want to find low-
> > fat, low-salt TV dinners that still have real meat and
> > real potatoes.
> >
> > So, I asked the guys at the healthy foods supermarket if
> > they could find some low-salt, low-fat, low-cholestoral
> > TV dinners that have the same types of food as Swanson
> > TV dinners, and they keep saying they'll do something
> > about it -- and they don't. So, I thought I'd help them
> > out. Therefore, and to get to the point: Can anyone
> > recommend some brand of TV dinners that tastes and looks
> > like Swanson, except it's not poison for a guy in his
> > early 40s with high blood pressure and high cholesterol?
> >
> > Thanks, sincerely, in advance, for all ON TOPIC, ON
> > POINT replies that don't try to tell me to change my
> > shabby American eating habits.
> >
> > Steve O.
> >
> >
> > Steven AATT Domain DDOOTT com To send an e-mail,
> > substitute @ for AATT, a . for DDOOTT, and OpComm for
> Domain
> >
> > Standard Antiflame Disclaimer: Please don't flame me. I
> > may actually
> *be* an idiot, but even idiots have feelings.
> >
> > I pledge allegiance to the Constitution of the United
> > States of America,
> and to the republic which it established, one nation from
> many peoples, promising liberty and justice for all.
> > Feel free to use the above variant pledge in your own
> > postings.
mlowry3@bellsouth.net (Mark) wrote in message news:<5ee850fe.0407032125.324965d0@posting.google.com>...
> Steven O. <null@null.com> wrote
>
> <snip>
>
> > Standard Antiflame Disclaimer: Please don't flame me. I
> > may actually *be* an idiot, but even idiots have
> > feelings.
>
> I like your disclaimer.
>
> I feel that *any* prepackaged TV dinner is going to be
> miles removed, healthwise and tastewise, from virtually
> anything you could cook yourself.
>
> Here's my suggestion (and I'm a firm believer in the idea
> that you *can* teach an old dog new tricks): go to your
> local community college, etc. and take a cooking class or
> two. They'll undoubtedly have a heavy focus on "healthy"
> eating/cooking.
>
> Step Two: invest in a lot of Tupperware.
>
> Take these newly-learned cooking skills and make up
> batches of your favorite dishes, divide them into single-
> portion sizes, and freeze them.
Another product that makes cooking ahead/freezing meals easy
are the vacuum seal devices that allow one to reheat the
food several ways -- microwave, boil-in-bag, or taking the
food out of the bag & popping it in a pan for the oven or
toaster oven. The bags take up less room in your freezer (no
air taking up space) & they can be stacked flat, one on top
of the other. Just be sure to label whatever you freeze with
the date & the contents -- lots of food looks alike when
frozen & it sucks to look forward to a stir fry dinner only
to find out you're actually having stew!
> It'll be easy to pick out an entree and two side dishes
> that you, yourself, have prepared (in a "heart healthy"
> way), pop them in the microwave, and eat whilst you watch
> TV. Presto! Homemade, healthy TV dinner.
Horrors!! Eating while watching TV -- not much better than
eating over the sink....<G>
> Plus, it's a hell of a lot cheaper to cook from scratch
> than it is to buy premade meals from the store.
>
> AND...I'm just going to assume that you are unattached. I
> imagine that, as a fella asking about TV dinners, you
> don't have a lady around doing that traditionally
> feminine thing: cooking for her man. (Please don't flame
> me, readers.) Just in case you're unattached, and just in
> case you're the dating type...it seems to be an
> attractive character trait in a man if he is able and
> willing to cook.
Both my husband & my ex cook better than I do. I can put
together a respectable meal, but I suppose my lack of
interest in the process keeps me from being a *really* good
cook. My willingness to clean up afterwards has always been
appreciated more than my playing chef.
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