Working at a place with a break-room table constantly cluttered with a box of doughnuts or jumbo muffins, snacks are a must to keep my diet on track. Crackers are a favorite of mine, as they're healthy, don't need to be refrigerated, and are easy to pack. I tend to buy Pepperidge Farm Whole Grain Cheddar Goldfish Crackersfor a cheesy pick me up, but a coworker gave me a baggie of Reduced Fat Cheddar Cheez-It crackers to try. Feeling like I was betraying my childhood friend, I heated some tomato soup and floated the yellow squares on top.
Now, Cheez-It has been marketing their crackers as "seriously cheesy" for years, and I really thought it was just a goofy commercial campaign - but these things really are seriously cheesy! A topping of coarse salt adds just enough "oomph" to their sharp flavor. I found myself buying these in lieu of certain other previously mentioned cheddary crackers. The extra cheesy flavor makes them superior for out-of-hand snacking, as well as with soup or even peanut butter. The only thing I disliked about these crackers is that they're so darn addicting, which is probably the reason that pre-apportioned snack bags are available at the grocery store as well.
Each serving of 25 Reduced Fat White Cheddar Cheez-It crackers provides 140 calories, 6% of the daily value for total fat, 290 mg sodium (12% DV), 3 grams of protein and no fiber, sugar or vitamins. I didn't think this was a "healthy" snack, and was actually surprised to see that the ingredients list actually includes cheddar cheese - I thought it would be a flavoring agent. But it also includes MSG.
Overall, the taste of Reduced Fat White Cheddar Cheez-It crackers is cheesy good, but the ingredients do leave a little to be desired. Surprisingly, this variety has 30 calories less than regular Reduced Fat Cheez It - and less sodium and less fat.