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Pre-Made Payoffs
Frozen Mango Chunks
Ready in two to three minutes
Peeling and chopping a fresh mango takes what, five minutes tops? Of course, that is if you have a ripe mango on hand, but frozen mango chunks, available in many supermarkets in 16-ounce bags, are always ready. They thaw in the microwave in two to three minutes.
Luscious dessert: Top fat free vanilla ice cream with one-half cup of frozen mango chunks and one-half cup of frozen raspberries (thawed in the microwave). This mango-raspberry combo is spectacular!
Your Payoff: Cancer Insurance. People who eat the most fruits and vegetables have about half the risk of cancer, says the National Cancer Institute.
Fresh Matchstick Carrots
Ready in four minutes.
After you peel and slice them, carrots can take ten minutes to cook, even in the microwave. But one cup of slender matchstick carrots will microwave to tender in about four minutes. Add 2-teaspoons of apricot jam to make them divine for about 90 calories total and five grams of fiber.
Your payoff: Breast cancer protection (men need it, too!). People whose diets highest in beta-carotene have less breast cancer, and carrots are the richest source of beta-carotene.
Salmon in a Pouch
Ready instantly
Poached salmon for salads takes ten minutes to cook and then you need to chill it. Chicken of the Sea skinless, boneless salmon in a pouch - fresher tasting than canned - is ready as is. For a healthy switch, use salmon to replace the tuna in tuna salad: Mix one pouch of salmon (7.1 ounces) with one-quarter cup of reduced-fat mayonnaise, 1-cup of chopped cucumber, one-quarter cup of chopped onion and one-quarter teaspoon of dried dillweed. Makes two scant cups. Per one-half cup serving: 105 calories, 4 grams fat, 485 mg sodium, 1 gram fiber.
Your Payoff: Less risk of stroke and fatal heart attack. Salmon is rich in omega-3 fat, a good fat that helps keep heartbeats from developing fatal arrhythmias.
Canned Chile Beans
Ready in four minutes
No need to measure seasonings or sauce; they are already in the can with the beans. For "Cannot wait chile", mix a 15-ounce can of chile beans, a 14-1/2 ounce can of no-salt added diced tomatoes and 1-cup of precooked chicken (such as Perdue Short Cuts). Microwave for about four minutes until hot. Makes three servings. Per serving: 229 calories, 4 grams fat, 882mg sodium and 8 grams fiber.
Your payoff: Alzheimer's protection. Beans are dense with the B vitamin folate, which tamps down blood levels of a substance called homocysteine. New research suggests that people with higher homocysteine levels are more likely to develop Alzheimer's. Folate fights colon cancer, heart attack, stroke and birth defects.
Canned Sliced Pears
Ready instantly
These are so useful when there are no ripe pears in the house. For a delicious dessert, try Chocolate Pears: Place one-half cup of drained canned pear sections (in light syrup) in a dish. Top with 1-tablespoon of Hershey's Syrup. Per serving: 130 calories, 0 grams fat, 23mg sodium and 2 grams fiber.
Your Payoff: A big bite of fiber. Each one-half cup serving delivers 2 grams of fiber toward your 25-g daily minimum. Studies repeatedly show that people who eat more fiber have fewer strokes and heart attacks.
Cold-Brewed Iced Tea Bags
Ready in three minutes
A 16-ounce bottle of sweetened iced tea has 200 calories. To get no-calorie non-sweetened iced tea, until now you have had to brew hot tea, and chill, or steep in the refrigerator overnight. Enter Lipton Cold Brew tea bags, regular or decaf. Put one bag in a tall glass with 2-cups of cold water. Three minutes later, you have fresh, no-calorie-iced tea. A packet of zero-calorie Splenda mellows the flavor. (See Healthy Tea Recipes).
Your payoff: A flavonoid infusion. In a Dutch study, people who drank about 1-1/2 cup of tea a day had half as many heart attacks as non-tea drinkers. Flavonoids in tea help stop blood clots, which trigger heart attacks.
Fully Pre-Cooked Bacon
Ready in ten seconds
Forget artificial bacon bits. Crumbled bacon adds incredible flavor to vegetables. With fully pre-cooked bacon, you can take just one slice, zap it for ten seconds in the microwave and boom - you have crispy bacon to sprinkle on Brussels sprouts, broccoli or cauliflower.
Your payoff: You will eat more vegetables. Big vegetable eaters have lower rates of heart disease, cancer, diabetes and stroke. One slice of Ready Crisp Fully-Cooked Bacon adds only 23 calories, 2 grams of fat and 90mg of sodium.
Canned Sliced Beets
Ready instantly
Peeling and roasting beets takes more than an hour. Instead, open canned beets and make Instant Borscht: In a food processor, puree a 14-1/2 ounce can of sliced beets (drained), one-half cup of low-sodium chicken broth, 1-teaspoon of sugar and one-quarter teaspoon of pepper. Serve at room temperature. Makes two three-quarter cup servings. Optional: Dollop with sour cream and chopped chives. Per serving: 71 calories, 0 fat, 620mg sodium and 3 grams fiber.
Your payoff: Antioxidants galore. Among vegetables, beets are topped only by cooked spinach and kale in antioxidants per serving. Antioxidants help protect you against heart disease and cancer.
Cook-in-the-Bag Fresh Spinach
Ready in three minutes
Ready Pac Spinach is cooked in the microwave right in the bag - no pan! Slit the top, microwave for three minutes and get 1-1/2 cup of perfectly cooked, emerald-green baby spinach leaves. Try one-half cup of cooked spinach plus 1-tablespoon of Parmesan. Only 43 calories.
Your payoff: Eyesight that lasts. Spinach is the richest source of lutein, a natural compound that appears to protect your eyes from cataracts and retinal degeneration.
Pre-Cooked Pot Roast
Ready in six minutes
Low fat cuts of beef such as pot roast need slow cooking (think hours) to make them tender. But the pre-cooked Thomas E. Wilson one-pound beef pot roast (complete with juice) heats in its own container in the microwave in six minutes. Each three-ounce serving (size of a deck of cards) has only three grams of fat and one gram of saturated fat.
Your payoff: Tougher immunity. Each serving has four milligrams of hard-to-get zinc, nearly one-third of your Daily Value. Zinc is vital to the production of infection-fighting white blood cells.
See also: Belly Bytes
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