What's New? Crispy fruit and veggies

Review: Crispy Green Freeze-Dried Kiwi and Crispy Cantaloupe, $1.59 for single-serve bag, available at The Fresh Market

Review: Seneca Crispy Apple Chips and Sweet Potato Chips, about $1 for 2.5-ounce bag, available at major grocers

There's absolutely no way to carry fresh fruit around all day and expect it to be at its peak for eating. That's especially true if you're outside a lot, or need to leave your snacks in the car.

And if you're anything like me, you can't stand fresh fruit that smells remotely over-ripe. (Yes, I'm talking to you melon family.) I'd rather – gulp – eat a greasy cheeseburger.

Dried fruit is a logical and legitimate option for busy people who want to make sure they get the optimal nine half-cup servings a day of fruit and vegetables. Of course, you have to be willing to forgo the freshness and think of dried fruit as its own snack family.

There are two directions these kinds of fruit snacks tend to go. There are the pure, dry-the-fruit-and-add-little-else options, or the corn-syrup-and-oil-rich fruits with enough taste to hold their own against mainstream (and far less nutritious) snacks.

Crispy Green's line of fruit snacks falls into the first group. Its packets of Asian pears, pears and cantaloupe are all-fruit and nothing else. The brand's kiwi and strawberries include one addition -- cane sugar, to offset bitterness.

The kiwi and cantaloupe are newer entries into the market, while bananas, strawberries and pears are freeze-dried favorites. All are fat-free and low in calories, a big plus for dieters.

But the new fruits are not for those who are uninitiated in the ways of freeze-dried products. The kiwi is extremely tart, while the cantaloupe has a dusty, melon-like flavor and aftertaste. Keep a bottle of water nearby, just in case the flavor is too much.

Seneca's apple and sweet potato chips are far more eater-friendly. The apples, in particular, are sweet, crispy and full of flavor. It could qualify as a dessert chip. The sea salt in the sweet potato chips dulls the sweetness a lot, but the chips are a fresh and pleasing alternative to a bag of Ruffles.

There is one huge downside to the Seneca chips: They're full of fat. One bag of apple chips has 350 calories and 17.5 grams of fat. (It's supposed to be 2.5 servings, but most people will go through a bag in one sitting.) The nutrition facts on the sweet potato chips are similar.