Yay: Very Green 100% Juice Smoothie

This drink is a light, refreshing way to consume fruits and vegetables. It is sweet, hydrating and filling. The price is right compared to some other more well-known brands of bottled smoothies, and makes a great addition to breakfast, or as a mid-day snack. It is also a good solution when you are stuck with limited access to fresh fruits and veggies. PS -- Yes, I realize the best buy date; I wrote the review right after I bought it last year and didn't get around to posting it until now!

Nay: Fusilli with Vegetables & Basil Pesto

"Terrible" is a massive understatement for this frozen pasta. When cooked, it looks nothing like it does in the photograph. The pasta is tiny and inedible, the veggies are soggy and bland, and there is no fresh sprig of herbs laying on top of the dish. Do yourself a favor and take an extra ten minutes to boil a pot of water, cut up some veggies and make your own pasta with veggies.

Yay: Creamy Spinach & Artichoke Dip

This is a delectable and delicious dip, and highly recommended. It rivals any overpriced chain restaurant appetizer, and can be served with a variety of munchables including tortilla chips, pita chips, bread or veggies. It is even tasty with TJs Organic Corn Chip Dippers. Serve as a side with a meal or a snack all for yourself, or share at a party if you are feeling generous!

Yay: Bean So Green

I expected these to be disgusting, particularly since frozen broccoli is rarely tasty (it contains so much water that frozen versions are usually mushy). The veggies were surprisingly crisp (for being frozen), and the garlic butter sauce was not nearly as synthetic and heavy as expected. While this won't make the rounds at my regular dinner table, it was a nice change up, and I would recommend it.

Yay: Shelled Soy Beans Edamame

These are found in the refrigerated produce section of Trader Joe's. They are slightly salted and must remain chilled. While I prefer shelled edamame because a mouthful of soybeans all at once is just too much and I like the act of getting them out of the shells, these are easy to pack in lunches and take on the go because they do not require thawing (frozen shelled edamame require thawing/microwaving). They come in a small, resealable plastic package to keep them fresh.

Nay: Roasted Seaweed Snack

Some people love seaweed as as snack; if you do, then ignore this review because it probably doesn't apply to you. For those who are unfamiliar with seaweed as a snack, this stuff isn't so great. While it has the earthy, salty, healthy taste found in seaweed salad or around the edge of a sushi roll, once you eat a piece of this it becomes a texture nightmare. Its gooey, slimy consistency and bizarre lightness (it is sliced paper thin and dissolves in a few seconds) leaves little to be desired.

Yay: Broccoli Florets

TJs makes cooking easy because they package fresh vegetables that are ready to go. Sure, you'll pay extra for these beautiful florets because they are cut and ready to use, however each floret is perfectly fresh, giving you about the same amount as two full heads of fresh broccoli. These can be microwaved in the bag, however I have not cooked them this way because microwaved broccoli is mushy. Toss them into stir-fry, add to salad, eat as a healthy raw snack, or steam and season as a delicious side dish.

Yay: Vegetable Gyoza

Frozen gyoza found in standard grocery stores is typically disgusting because they are easy to overcook, filled with preservatives, and generally end up mushy or rubbery. These vegetable gyoza are super easy to cook on the stove top, using a few teaspoons of an oil of your choice (such as peanut or canola), browning them for a few minutes, adding a few teaspoons of water, and covering them for steaming. Outside of a restaurant or homemade, these preservative-free bites make a quick and easy accompaniment to any stir-fry dish or as a snack by themselves.

Yay: Fire Roasted Red Peppers

Another staple for any culinary pantry, these fire roasted red peppers are a quick alternative to roasting your own red peppers. The lack of sodium is remarkable compared to standard grocery store brands, giving these peppers a fresh and sweet taste to complement many different dishes. Use them in pasta primavera, use as a topping for making your own pizza, add to pasta salad, or impress your friends by adding them to an antipasto plate.

Yay: Kale for Cooking

This kale is conveniently pre-washed and cut for easy steaming and sauteing. Always fresh and crispy, TJs makes it easy to include a powerful punch of vitamins in your meal. This kale can also be used in salads, although it is highly recommended to wash it beforehand and consider ripping the leaves from the meaty stalks (it is harder to chew and digest the raw stalks).

Nay: Spinach & Kale Bites

Surprisingly, these taste much better than they look. They are small lumps of spinach, kale some cheese, and onion. The texture was decent for a frozen food; it was not mushy but it left something to be desired. Maybe a dipping sauce would help? These earn a "Nay" because it is not something I'd recommend to others or willingly serve to friends and family. Also, they are not very convenient for a frozen food: they have to bake for 15-20 minutes and cool for another 10. You're better off spending that 30 minutes making a salad with fresh spinach, kale, cheese and seasoning to achieve the same flavor.

Nay: Vegetable Birds Nests

These look much better in the packaging photo than they do after cooking them. In fact, eating the box packaging would be preferable to eating this soggy, flavorless "veggie" appetizer. The nests each allegedly contain zucchini and carrots, but most of the nests were a small lump of onions with a morsel of carrot and/or zucchini. The onion flavor completely overwhelms any other flavors, and the crunchy panko-like topping seen in the packaging is merely a soggy dusting of stale crumbs.