Fake stuff that's pretty good, actually

Having two small boys I find myself often looking at Whole Foods for slightly more healthy versions of the junk I ate as a child. Here are two that I was genuinely impressed by. I make no claims as to the actual nutritional value of these products, but they taste good-- better, in fact, than the real fake thing.

Barbara's Cheese Puffs are what Cheetos ought to be-- they have a pale orange color that doesn't dye your fingers the color of a Halloween pumpkin, and a lighter, less greasy flavor that doesn't leave them laying at the bottom of your stomach like Cheez-Krete.

Whole Foods Organic Rainbow Rings are simply known to my boys as "Froot Loops." I like to think that if they actually tried Froot Loops, though, they'd be disappointed that they lacked the tart real fruitiness of this product, which are tasty enough that I munched a couple of handfuls late last night.

Along similar lines, we are big fans of "Annie's Homegrown" Cheddar Bunnies. Not quite as cheesy as goldfish crackers, but no trans fats, still quite tasty, and still in animal form.

Annie's mac & cheese is pretty good too, and a bit healthier than the Kraft brand of my youth. One option is to go with the whole wheat mac & cheese and finish it off with a little bit of a nice aged cheddar to give it some extra sharpness to help with the "blandifying" factor of the whole wheat, without taking away too much from the health benefits of the whole wheat.


Note: Apparently Pepperidge Farm is making a move to get rid of all their trans fats (sort of).

http://www.bantransfats.com/products.htm

Edited to add parenthetical "sort of" remark in light of Pepperidge Farm using some hydrogenated oils but still little enough to legally be able to advertise trans-fat free.