Doing this whole review and blog thing has been really helpful is passing time up here during my Summer classes, which fall on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. Since I couldn't get a job (for reasons such as not having a car, or not being here long enough to merit training and a hire) I usually go home or to Rhode Island for the weekend but inevitably come back for the (sometimes Monday) Tuesday-Wednesday-Thursday gauntlet. It's nice knowing that only 3 classes stand between me and a week and half Summer 'vacation' but let me tell you does time pass SLOWLY being cooped up in dorm room with no TV and hardly anyone you know within an hour's drive radius.
Since this was actually my last frozen meal I had stockpiled in the freezer, I was thinking of hitting up the grocery store later. Much to my chagrin, only Smart Ones are on sale this week (6 for $10 isn't bad, but I remember how awful their Chicken Carbonara was...) and I have no other (easy) way to get to Market Basket or any other retailer but Whole Foods. I know Kashi has some supposedly great tasting low-calorie frozen options, but I'm not ready to take the $4+ dive on one meal that's probably a little too sticks and grainy for my tastes. Seriously, I can't stand brown rice or grainy pilafs! The thought crosses my mind that I might be making my own dinner tonight, but with my limited amount of ingredients (ok I have the chicken and the pasta, but no marinades/sauces/spices makes for a nasty dinner) I'm not sure if that's the best route.
Enough with the chit-chat, on to the review!
First Impressions: Smells pretty good as I walk to the microwave to get the pouch and pour it into my bowl. As with the first review of this product line I did, I notice the sauce looks like a little thin and the color is too orangey-yellow for me, but it still coats my fork a bit and ends up getting just the tiniest bit thicker after a few minutes. I was a little disappointed at the size, feeling that a few more veggies could have been tossed in.
Taste: I took a bite of the green zucchini and it was as it should taste, but I warn you I'm not a huge zucchini supporter. Veggies are veggies, so the real test here is for the tortelloni. One of them alone is a mouthful, so I try half of one as to draw out the eating process and savor it, which is a known technique for eating less. It's not as outright cheesy as I'm used to, but it has a deeper, almost richer cheese flavor than traditional ricotta/mozzarella filled pasta is. It was difficult to get a little bit of everything into one bite, as the veggies are pretty chunky, but once I did the combo was delicious! The veggies on their own I don't love, since they're some of my least faves all together, but they balance each other out well enough and you get a nice asiago hint from the tortelloni. The only gripe I could have is that Lean Cuisine advertises this as a 'vodka' sauce which leaves me hanging; I've had many different vodka sauces before and this doesn't qualify to me as one. (Which is not to say the sauce is bad, I just feel like 'tomato cream' sauce or something would have been better)
Texture: Everything is as should be - the veggies are steamed soft but still have some crunch left in them with the exception of the tomatoes, which are stewed. I hate raw tomatoes, and since these still have a slight taste of rawness to them, I try to avoid eating them by themselves but I imagine if you enjoy a tomato in any format then that would be a great thing. So far every dish I've reviewed has had pasta in it, including this one, so I don't know what else to say about the tortelloni. There's really no way to cook filled pastas wrong except if they are underdone and gummy or overdone and mush. This dish has neither problem, so I think on all fronts the textures are about as perfect as you can get.
Usually the photo goes here, but I took the picture without having my flash card inserted and it's on my camera's physical memory... and I have no idea where my cable is. Sorry guys!
General Thoughts: So I must caution that this dish was absolutely fine -- the only 'flaws' with it have to do with my personal tastes. I'll be giving this a rating a little lower than it might actually deserve because of that, but it probably deserves a solid 4.5 stars. Food tasters are supposed to be impartial, but taste is something so personal and unique that I don't see how one can't include their own biases!
Anyways, Lean Cuisine did very well on this entree and it left me fuller than I excepted based on the portion size. My only wish now is that I could find (if it's even out there) a low-fat garlic bread to enjoy all these Italian dishes with! Mangia!
Rating: 4.5 stars (My personal taste rating is about 3 stars)
Calories: 270
Fat: 7 grams
Lean Cuisine Website with Complete Nutrition Info
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