Snack Chat

Get Your Plate In Shape With National Nutrition Month!

Did you know it's National Nutrition Month®? Every March, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics campaigns to educate Americans about nutrition by encouraging them to make informed food decisions and developing healthy eating patterns. This year’s National Nutrition Month theme is “Get Your Plate in Shape.”

One resource I encourage all of you to use to help “Get Your Plate in Shape” is MyPlate. MyPlate was launched in June 2011 and serves as a tool to help Americans think about making healthful food choices within all the food groups. MyPlate highlights five food groups with tips such as the following:

• Enjoy your food, but eat less.
• Make half your plate fruits and vegetables.
• Make at least half your grains whole grains.
• Switch to fat free or low-fat milk.
• Compare sodium in foods like soup, bread, frozen meals and choose the foods with lower numbers.

Frito-Lay is proud to announce we are a MyPlate National Strategic Partner. As one of many National Strategic Partners, Frito-Lay will work with the MyPlate network to promote MyPlate and the Dietary Guidelines for Americans consumer messages.

I encourage all of you to visit http://www.choosemyplate.gov/ to start taking the first steps to “Get Your Plate in Shape!”

- Katherine, Registered Dietitian

Turn Up the Flavor with Two Hearty New Varieties of Ruffles

2012 is shaping up to be another great year for the Ruffles brand. Last year, Ruffles debuted bold new flavors including Loaded Chili & Cheese and Molten Hot Wings, then outdid itself by letting consumers choose the newest Ruffles flavor through its "Ruffles Next Flavor Fever" contest.

This year, even though it's only March, Ruffles has already introduced two great new flavors, now available in stores nationwide: Ruffles Smokehouse Style BBQ flavored potato chips and Ruffles Loaded Bacon & Cheddar Potato Skins flavored potato chips. Ruffles Smokehouse Style BBQ flavored potato chips are hearty ridged chips made with dry-rub style barbecue flavor in every bite, while Ruffles Loaded Bacon & Cheddar Potato Skins flavored potato chips offer the great taste of potato skins piled high with ingredients.

Making barbecue ribs or loaded potato skins at home is a long process -- preparing the ingredients, grilling or baking them, and then going through napkin after napkin while eating. So why go to all that trouble when you can get the great taste of smokehouse style barbecue or loaded potato skins in a thick and delicious, easy-to-eat chip from Frito-Lay?

Have you had the chance to try these new Ruffles flavors? Which one is your favorite?

- Michael

Six-story Vending Machine Unveils Doritos JACKED at SXSW!

When Frito-Lay has a new product like Doritos JACKED, which is bigger and thicker than traditional Doritos flavored tortilla chips, it has to be unveiled in a big way. That's why the Doritos brand hosted a larger-than-life exclusive launch party for the snack at the SXSW Festival & Conference in Austin last night. After the big reveal inside a 56-foot-tall vending machine that also doubled as a stage, attendees were treated to performances from hip-hop icon Snoop Dogg and music duo Ghostland Observatory, among others. The JACKED Stage by Doritos will host several more musical acts this weekend, and event attendees will have the opportunity to earn giant Doritos-branded quarters to insert into the vending machine and redeem product samples and special prizes. Check out a video of how the Doritos team constructed the stage below, followed by pictures from last night's kick-off event. Don't forget to tell us in the comments which Doritos JACKED flavor you will try first when it starts arriving in stores March 26: Enchilada Supreme or Smoky Chipotle BBQ?

Above: DJ Cisco Adler plugs in the Doritos JACKED vending machine.

 
Above: The Doritos JACKED vending machine at night and hip-hop artist Mystikal on the JACKED Stage by Doritos.

Above: Ghostland Observatory on the JACKED Stage by Doritos.

Above: Hip-hop icon Snoop Dogg on the JACKED Stage by Doritos.

 - Joe

Meet our Frito-Lay Fan of the Month: Lisa Collins!

Every month, we’re highlighting a new Frito-Lay fan and sharing the fan’s fun facts and snacking tips. If you would like to be part of our fan program, sign up here, and you just might be featured as a Fan of the Month in the future!

Say hello to our March Fan of the Month, Lisa Collins (pictured below)! This tap-dancing fan loves to “party” with her Frito-Lay snacks or simply enjoy them while watching her favorite TV show. Read on to learn more fun facts about Lisa in her Q&A below!

• Favorite Frito-Lay snack: I love munching on Tostitos Scoops! tortilla chips with Tostitos Creamy Spinach Dip.

• Favorite dip recipe or way to enjoy your chips: My favorite dip recipe is Fritos Bean Dip topped with salsa and sour cream.

• If you could be a Frito-Lay chip, which would you be and why? I would be a SunChips Garden Salsa flavored multigrain snack -- crunchy and full of fresh flavor!

• What extreme ingredient would you like to see our chef use in a Fritos Pie Remix recipe? I'd love to see the chef use chorizo. (Lisa and fellow chorizo fans will love our recipe for Mighty Migas Fritos Pie! -- Joe)

• Which chips would you pair together to make a new snack mix? Cheetos Crunchy Cheese flavored snacks and Rold Gold Pretzel tiny twists. A crunchy yet light and airy, cheesy pretzel snack.

• What are some tips you can share for snacking smarter or living healthier? Use fresh, in-season ingredients like tomatoes and avocados to give Frito-Lay dips an added kick. Also, have your favorite chips separated in snack-sized bags to make them convenient and perfectly portioned.

• If you could work at Frito-Lay for a day, what role would you want to be in and why? I would be a graphic designer for Fritos bags. It would be fun to design a new chip bag and really bring the flavor to life from the outside.

• Give us 3 fun facts about yourself: 
  • I am left handed.
  • I love to tap dance.
  • I love to visit garage sales and hunt down treasures.

• Most memorable Frito-Lay snacking moment: Every Thursday night you can find me curled up in front of the TV, taking in the latest episode of my favorite show and having a taste-bud party with SunChips Garden Salsa flavored multigrain snacks. Best combination for a relaxing evening.

• Tell us why you are a Frito-Lay Fan: I am a Frito-Lay fan because a party isn’t a party without Frito-Lay. Whether it is chips or dips, they are a must at my get-togethers. Fresh tasting, perfect texture and easy finger foods make me a happy hostess and my friends happy guests.

A big thank you to Lisa for being our March Fan of the Month! You can learn more about Lisa on her blog, Sweeties Freebies, and by following her on Twitter. And, come visit us again in April to meet our next Frito-Lay Fan of the Month right here on Snack Chat. 

- Joe

From The Bayou to the Bowl with Crawfish Etouffee Fritos Pie!

Having grown up only a few hours away from Louisiana, I'm no stranger to Cajun food. Spicy gumbo, andouille sausage, catfish, and red beans and rice were common dinners when I was a kid. To this day, one of my favorite parts of Spring is getting together with friends and family for a crawfish boil. For me, there's nothing better than hanging out around a table piled high with corn, potatoes and pounds upon pounds of freshly boiled, spicy crawfish.

Of course crawfish can be enjoyed a number of different ways, and you can add one more to your recipe index with our latest Fritos Pie Remix episode -- Crawfish Etouffee Fritos Pie! In this episode, Chef Stephen Kalil swaps Fritos Original corn chips in place of rice and adds a savory, spicy mix of crawfish tails, garlic, Cajun seasonings and even a crawfish-infused butter! Check out the video below and let us know what you think in the comments.

- Joe