Amy's Indian - Palak Paneer (7.75/10)

Summary

• Price: ~$3.50
• Overall: 7.75/10.   Palak Paneer means pureed spinach and (sort of) cheese.  This version is not spectacular if you're looking for authentic, raging spicy Indian food.  Good if you're looking for a relatively small, low intensity, vegetarian Indian meal. 
• Healthfulness: 10/10.  You can't beat the simplicity of Amy's ingredients.  Organic everything.  No artificial flavors or preservatives.  No GMOs.  No MSG.  Gluten free.  High protein, rare for a vegetarian meal, and fiber. 
• Portion Size/Filling:  7/10.  As with all of the $4 or less Amy's meals, the portion is small (300 calories, about the same as a 6" turkey sandwich at Subway).  Perfect for those occasions when you want something larger than a snack but smaller than a gut-busting meal.
• Flavor: 6/10 (Spiciness: 4/10).   Nothing bad to say about the flavor.  I just didn't feel like I was transported to the backstreets of Delhi.  More like downtown San Francisco.  
• Texture: 8/10.  Although it is not mentioned in the main title, if you read the sub-title or look at the picture, you'll see the meal also comes with Rajma (Kidney Beans), which is a nice firm counter to the pureed spinach.

Beer Pairing - Taj, Kingfisher (when eating Indian food...)

Numbers

• Calories: 300
• Fat: 11g (0g Trans Fat)
• Carbs: 38g
• Fiber: 6g
• Protein: 12g
• Sodium: 680mg

Details

Healthfulness:  It's hard to imagine a better frozen entree when it comes to the quality of the ingredients.  When you've eaten as many frozen meals as I have, you can really tell the difference.  The vegetables actually taste as they should, not overpowered by a chemical flavor.  The fact that they are all organic is a bonus. Amy's seems to really strike a good balance with fats, carbs, and proteins and this meal has the perfect balance of the three.  Add in the fiber and you've got a grand slam.  Another bonus is that the serving dish is paper, not plastic.  (10 out of 10)

Portion Size/Filling:  The portion is relatively small though not tiny (300 calories; compare with 230 calories in a small fries from McDonald's), but this meal keeps you full for 3-4 hours.  The high protein and fiber content keeps you full despite the small portion size.  Good for a light lunch if you have a sedentary desk job, or a early light dinner if you're working late.  (7 out of 10, more like a large, healthy snack than a meal)

Flavor:  I was expecting a lot having eaten this dish about a billion times in many different places including many excellent versions.  For me, the taste was a bit of a let down.  It didn't have the intensity or punch that you might expect at a decent Indian restaurant.  It wasn't just the lack of heat, it was the lack of spices in general.  Having said that, if you're in a shared office space and you don't want to overpower your cubicle-mates yet still get your Indian fix, then this may be a good option.  It reminded me of what Indian food tasted like in California.  (6 out of 10 for overall flavor. 4 out of 10 for spiciness.)

Texture:  The texture was very good.  The spinach was well blended and the cheese and kidney beans were firm.  The rice is not quite as light and fluffy as the Central Market frozen meals, but it wasn't soggy or dry either.  All ingredients come in one integrated container, so there could be some blending of the vegetables with the rice while heating, making the rice soggy.  However, that wasn't an issue in my experience.  (8 out of 10)

Amy's Bowls - Brown Rice and Vegetables (8.5/10)

Summary

• Price: ~$3.50
• Overall: 8.5/10.   A vegan's delight, and not a bad mid-day snack for the rest of us. Though vegetarian, very healthy and flavorful.  Avoid eating before quiet boardroom meetings or long drives, due to the high fiber content.
• Healthfulness: 9/10.  Simple, organic ingredients. More protein would've made it perfect, a common drawback to vegetarian meals.
• Portion Size/Filling:  7/10.  Relatively small portions (260 calories) will keep you satisfied for 2-3 hours of sitting at your desk or watching TV.
• Flavor: 9/10 (Spiciness: 0/10).   Brown rice was flavorful and not overpowering.  Could taste all of the wide, pleasing assortment of vegetables and a light mustardy sauce.
• Texture: 9/10. The brown rice was moist and soaked with the flavor of the sauce, not the usual difficult-to-swallow, eat-only-with-three-glasses-of-water brown rice meals. The many vegetables were finely chopped and blended well with the rice. Tofu was firm, not slimy.
  

Beer Pairing - Wolaver's India Pale Ale, Butte Creek Brewing Pilsner


Numbers

• Calories: 260
• Fat: 9g (0g Trans Fat)
• Carbs: 36g
• Fiber: 5g
• Protein: 9g
• Sodium: 550mg

Details
Healthfulness:  Almost perfect balance of fats, carbs and proteins.  A little more protein would've made it perfect.  The ingredients read like a best-seller list from Whole Foods.  There is an array of organic vegetables with very little or no artificial preservatives or flavoring.  (9 out of 10, only lacking slightly in protein)
Portion Size/Filling:  The portion is small (260 calories; about the same as a 6" turkey sandwich from subway), but this meal keeps you "full" for 2-3 hours.  The full feeling comes from the relatively high protein and fiber content, but not the bloated feeling that you normally get from brown rice.  This is a perfect size and balance for a light lunch or a late afternoon snack to hold you over until a late dinner.  (7 out of 10, more like a large, healthy snack than a meal)
Flavor:  The picture on the box does not look too appetizing, and it looks even worse after removing the bowl from the microwave and pulling the film off.  However the taste was surprisingly good.  The abundant amount and variety of vegetables could all be tasted.  Most surprisingly, the brown rice was soft and soaked with the flavor of the light sauce.  I'm not sure what flavor the sauce was, but it was good. (9 out of 10 for the variety of vegetables. 0 out of 10 for spiciness.)
Texture:  If you like vegetables, which would seem like a good assumption if you're buying a vegetarian meal, then you'll love the textures.  The brown rice is soft and soaked with the sauce.  There is an assortment of crunchy vegetables, leafy vegetables and soft vegetables, combining to create a texture party in your mouth. (9 out of 10 because of the texture variety)