Best Packaged Foods of 2010: Magazine Highlights Best Grocery Picks of the Year

Thanks to Women's Health Magazine grocery shopping just got a whole lot easier. The magazine recently highlighted the best packaged foods that you can currently find in your grocery store aisles. This is the second year that they have given this complete list of “power foods” that will help anyone take the guesswork out of their next trip to the store to find healthy choices. Their team of nutritionists tested aisles' worth of items for their annual roundup of the healthiest, tastiest, and most convenient supermarket finds.

Try foods in each of these categories to create the best meals for you and your family:

Breads: Whole grain bread, whole wheat bread, pita bread, English muffin, fiber cereal, Special K cereal, pomegranate cereal, oatmeal, granola, bagel.

Meats: Organic chicken, deli meat, bacon, barbecued beef, roast beef, roast chicken, chicken strips, chicken brats, salmon, salmon burger.

Pasta: Fiber pasta, whole wheat pasta, elbow noodle, tortellini, wide noodle, Asian noodle, risotto, instant rice, flavored rice, best couscous, polenta.

Dairy: Whipped cream, Greek yogurt, fruit yogurt, organic yogurt, smoothie, string cheese, cheddar cheese, Muenster cheese, cottage cheese, farmer cheese, soy milk, skim milk, eggs, egg whites, sour cream, butter substitute.

Fruits and Vegetables: Fruit salad, organic applesauce, plum, mixed fruit, mango, sweet potatoes, green beans, salad, diced tomatoes, black soy bean, vegetable mix, Brussels sprouts, Asian vegetables, stir-fry medley.

Soup: Broccoli soup, steak and noodle soup, Italian soup, chicken gumbo, red pepper and tomato, acorn squash and mango soup.

Snacks: Natural bar, probiotic bar, peanuts, almond, rice snack chip, tortilla chip, pretzels, popcorn, crackers, grain crackers.

Frozen Meals: Chicken primavera, turkey medallions, macaroni and cheese, vegetable lasagna, pizza, black bean burger.

Condiments and Spreads: Mayonnaise, peanut butter, almond butter, jam, fruit spread, maple syrup, hummus, salsa, marinara sauce, berry dressing, organic dressing, garlic dressing, ginger dressing, mustard dressing, ketchup, light mayo.

Sweets: Chocolate cookies, peanut butter cookies, brownie, chocolate bar, marshmallows, pudding, dark chocolate, dark chocolate blueberry, ice cream sandwich, fudge bar, cookie dough ice cream, ice cream cone, ice cream.

Drinks: Orange juice, diet drink, hot tea, cold tea, breakfast drink, hunger-tamer, hot chocolate, vegetable juice, grapefruit juice, plum juice.

While not all of these food items will work for you and your family, these suggestions can lead you in the right direction the next time you are “in the market” for making healthy meals. By being a smarter and more informed shopper you can choose the best meals each and every time you visit the grocery store.