As you know, I am on a constant quest to find foods that I can eat in bulk without getting my butt bulky! I think I may have discovered the most perfect, low calorie, crunchy, salty snack...
Yup, it's Freeze Dried Green Beans! If you're on Weight Watchers like me, these are basically a "free" food. Veggies are no points and these are not fried or otherwise processed - they are simply freeze dried.
To try them out, I picked up a couple of bags at my local Amish Market. They're tossed with a little salt and they are a joy to crunch! At $12.50 per pound, they sound pretty expensive, but this one is easy to justify because it's for your health and a pound of freeze dried green beans is an awful lot of beans! I mean, I just think about how much money I've spent on junk food over the years, and the cost of these beans doesn't seem so bad.
What if green beans aren't your thing? I also discovered
North Bay Trading Co. which sells nearly every kind of freeze dried fruit and veggie you can think of. I am going to order the
freeze dried spinach - I think it might be like the texture of potato chips! I'll let you know how they taste when they arrive.
(Oh, I have no affiliation with North Bay Trading whatsoever...just telling you all what I'm trying!)
I also heard that these may be available at Whole Foods and Fresh Market if you don't have an Amish Market in your area.
Please share your experiences with Freeze Dried Foods and any other low-cal snacks that you enjoy! The more ideas, the merrier!
I'm hungry!
Fake-It Yourself Breakdown:
Freeze Dried Green Beans: 0 Points Weight Watchers, 102 Calories per ounce, 1 Cup of beans.
Compare to
Ruffles Potato Chips: 4 Points Weight Watchers, 160 Calories per ounce, about 12 chips.
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If you're looking for something sort of like potato chips, check the local Asian market for dried seaweed! It's not freeze-dried; but the kind I like is ground up and rolled out in paper-thin sheets, then coated with a little corn oil and salt. Sounds weird, but it's deliciously crispy, healthy, and reasonably priced. I cut mine up into strips and keep them in ziplock bags.
ReplyDeleteLove all your frugal tips. I will have to look for freeze dried green beans. Never heard of them before. I am a new follower visiting from Kids Get Crafty. Vicky from Mess For Less
ReplyDeleteI've never seen them before, I'm hoping to find them in my area sometime soon. Sounds yummy!
ReplyDeleteYou should try roasted kale "chips" - simply spritz some olive oil on torn or cut fresh kale leaves sans the woody stem, salt and bake for about half an hour. Light and crunchy and absolutely addicting - this coming from an avowed kale-hater. I originally found the recipe on a recipes blog and skipped the vinegar completely. YUMMY and better yet, low calorie!
ReplyDeleteYup! Just finally tried the Kale Chips last week and they are awesome! Posted them here: http://fakeitfrugal.blogspot.com/2011/10/being-frugal-on-weight-watchers.html
ReplyDeleteI have been buying freeze dried food from shelf reliance and basically make up a freeze dried "trail mix" and it it a little different but I am really enjoying it and have lost a little weight because I am not eating junk
ReplyDeleteshelf reliance??
DeleteIf you are fortunate enough to live near a Fresh Market, they make their own freeze-dried green beans, though they do use a dash of canola oil. It's not much, and I think you'd have to eat a whole bunch to gather points from the canola on them. I'm addicted to these. They also have freeze-dried zucchini, root veg (not WW-friendly, but super-delicious), and other stuff. <3
ReplyDelete