Freschetta PizzAmore 10-Topping Supreme

We had an errand to run last evening and we stopped off for a quick slice of pizza in Yonkers, NY. I'd had the pizza before because Steve wanted me to try it. He thought it was pretty good. But when I had it, it was just okay. Last night, he took a piping hot, fresh pie out of the oven for us. I almost burnt my tongue. It was better this time than the last and I was better satisfied. Well, our appetite for pizza didn't end so when we got home, we threw in the Freschetta frozen pizza. It smelled pretty good as it was baking away on its exclusive tray that they claim bakes the crust evenly. Steve & I adore pizza. Neither of us could live without it.

This was our first time trying this variety of Freschetta pizza. I once rated the taste as being 7 out of 10 for one of the varieties I can't seem to remember. My least favorite frozen pizza so far is DiGiorno's. Anyway, here are the 10 toppings: Mozzarella, Parmesan, pepperoni, spicy sausage, bell peppers (green, yellow and red), roasted red onions, garlic and oregano. Phew. I don't think I've ever had a pizza with so many toppings. No, I definitely haven't. The crust was "interesting". It was supposed to rise as it baked. According to Steve, it did not rise. He did, however, confirm that the pizza was pre-sliced. Steve didn't like that. He's the pizza cooker and the cutter with his little pizza cutter that he's wanted for years.

The verdict. Steve thought it was alright. He ate 3/4 of it. I, however, found that there were too many peppers. Also, I didn't hate the taste of oregano in it - you know I don't love oregano in some Italian foods. Anyway, the rest of the toppings were sparse (the meats) and it didn't satisfy me. A word about the crust. I didn't like it. I'll tell you why. Despite there being no mention of cornmeal in the ingredients list, the crust had the texture of a pizza coated with cornmeal on the bottom. I'm not opposed to cornmeal like at Two Boots Pizza in NYC (East Village). I really enjoy their pizza. But on this frozen pizza, the effect of the cornmeal-like texture was not pleasing to me. The outer crust was no better. More of that weird texture. The sauce wasn't outstanding. Again, the peppers and oregano altered the taste a little . The cheese was good. It was slightly above average for frozen ones. I won't be buying this variety of pizza anymore but I will continue to buy faves and try different ones. You can do the same and Eat Something Good!

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Weight Watchers Chicken Parmesan

Once again, frozen entrees went on sale at my supermarket and I decided to buy some. Yesterday, I decided to have one for lunch. I had Weight Watchers Smart Ones - chicken parmesan. They describe it as a hearty dish of herb-seasoned, all-white meat chicken breast and tender pasta in a zesty marina sauce, topped with melted mozzarella and parmesan cheeses. It doesn't sound too bad, does it? Well, let me tell you. Okay, so I ate it. In fact, I ate the entire thing and let Sid lick it clean afterwards. The chicken was satisfactory and no more. I tolerated the texture because it wasn't as bad as can be. It was doable, it was tender. It was a weird kinda tender though. Like if you cooked it yourself, it probably would have a better texture. Anyway, the sauce. It wasn't as zesty as they claim. It was herb ee. And I didn't love the herb combination but with the non-descript sauce, it blended tolerably. Wow, I sure tolerated a lot of things about this meal. The pasta. Yes, it was tender as they described. But frozen entree spaghetti is usually tender/mushy but not as much as a Chef Boyardee product. (And I like some varieties like Beefaroni. Don't ask. I grew up eating a lot of trash.) Anyway, bottom line. I would not buy this product again even if it was on sale. I would, however, get a variation of the product. I'm interested in trying all frozen foods available on this earth. And that's all she said. Eat Something Good!

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Stouffer's Veal Parmigiana

Last week I bought a couple of frozen dinners. I normally try to eat only Lean Cuisine or Weight Watchers. (I'm biased against Healthy Choice because when they first came out and I tried it - it had no flavor. I was not pleased.) Being off my healthy'ish kick, I decided to buy Stouffer's (the red box.) And with all the calories it has to offer. I was surprised. It wasn't too bad. 430 kcals. I can live with that as being my total caloric intake for lunch.

The veal parm was actually a breaded patty. Yes, a patty. Less than an inch thick. I thought it was pretty good sized. Steve loves veal patties. And one day we decided to try a super cheap brand that happened to be on sale. They were made by On-cor or En-core. I don't recall. I still see it in the supermarkets. Anyway, as you may have already guessed, it was pretty gross. Stouffer's veal patty is thicker and it's topped with marinara sauce and mozzarella cheese. (I don't remember seeing any cheese on the other brand's.) On the side, they gave you spaghetti with marina sauce.
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Stouffer's veal parmigiana. The idea of a veal patty is unappealing to me. Nonetheless, I got a craving. Once I came to terms with its texture, I was alright with it. I actually enjoyed the flavor of it. It tasted like it was breaded with one of those italian herb-cheese flavored breadings. I didn't love the spaghetti. I expect frozen (or canned) spaghetti to be overdone. I knew it going in. And though I didn't love the flavor of the sauce (which tasted like Prego with that dried basil & oregano combination that I don't love.) Don't get me wrong, I love oregano but I prefer it in Greek dishes like chicken oreganata over italian dishes though it definitely does have a place there. So the sauce, didn't love it but that's just me. But for some reason, when I was eating it - I would twirl a little pasta onto my fork and then stab the veal patty and tear off a piece - when I was doing that, I didn't mind the sauce at all. It worked for me. So once in a while, I'll be buying Stouffer's veal parmigiana if it's on sale. I usually only buy frozen foods when they're on sale. This was a nice change from sandwiches for lunch. Ok guys, you don't have to cook to Eat Something Good!

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Marie Callender's

Remember TV Dinners? I used to love the chocolate brownie dessert they used to have in some of them. Anyway. I was wondering. What do they call them today? Steve suggested frozen entrees whereas I just call it frozen stuff. Well, whatever they're called, I think Marie Callender's makes some very good ones.

We each had two dinners. I had the Meat Lasagne (with ricotta & mozzarella in a hearty marina sauce) and the Meat Loaf and gravy (with creamy mashed potatoes and vegetables (green beans, carrots & corn.)) Steve had two of the Fettuccini with Chicken & Broccoli ( which is chicken breast in creamy alfredo sauce.) They were both of decent size and portions. Oh, and they were on sale. 2 for $4. That's a great value especially for Marie Callender's.

I enjoyed the meat loaf though it could've used more brown gravy (with mushrooms & onions supposedly - I didn't see any.) The meat had a good texture and thickness. They gave you two nice pieces. The mashed potatoes were creamy in texture, but not flavor. It, like the meat, needed salt. The vegetables were good. I liked them. They looked and tasted fresh. The lasagna, on the other hand, was not good. I was disappointed. It had a good amount of beef and pork. Ya know, sausage ee, fennel ee flavor. The sauce. I didn't like. It was a deep red with both dried basil & oregano. I generally don't like that herb combination. They were sparing with the ricotta & mozzarella cheeses. All in all, I will not buy this again even if it's on sale. (It tasted a little like Stouffer's (orange ee/ red box) lasagna which used to be pretty good but is now not so good. Ick.

When Steve and I were at the checkout. The cashier commented on how good the ones Steve got were. And I tasted it. With a little salt, it was pretty darn good. Nice pieces of tender, white meat chicken with not overcooked broccoli and a not too rich alfredo sauce. I liked it. Next time, I might want to buy one for myself. Steve, of course, loved it. He really enjoyed it and got quite full eating two servings.

Alrighty guys, you don't necessarily have to cook to Eat Something Good!

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Boca Chik'n

We haven't had boca burgers in a couple of months. During the summer and while we were trying to be healthy, we ate a whole bunch of them. Then the last time around, Steve decided that he didn't really like them anymore. (We were off of our diet at that point.) He said they have an aftertaste. True, they are a little weird in flavor but I didn't mind their texture. It was almost meat-like. And I like meat. So we have a few boxes in the 'fridge that'll probably go untouched for a long while.

But last night I had the Boca chik'n patties as a sandwich on whole wheat pita with lettuce and mayo. They weren't bad. The texture isn't exactly reminiscent of chicken. It's more like a fake crab - not the imitation crab stick kind. But as a sandwich, I think it gets away with it. I got the plain kind not the spicy. Though I like the spicy ones. They have a little kick to them. Steve had a toasted multigrain bagel with butter and reduced fat cream cheese. Then I remembered that we had leftover beef bourginon. Yes, we hit that hard! It was still sooo delicious. (I didn't even give Sid any.) *oink* Steve said that if there were a little more herb flavor in it, he'd say it's restaurant quality. I did add thyme as the recipe called for - but next time I'll need to add a little more. We only had a little left. I wonder if potency decreases with time. It probably does but how much time? Need a food scientist. And I bet the scientist would tell you to Eat Something Good!

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Swanson's Swedish Meatballs

It was frozen food night yesterday. My mother used to buy these swanson dinners. The small ones. Not a full meal. This was back in the day that frozen foods came in tin (or whatever metal it was) trays. One side had meatballs in brown gravy and one side had mashed potatoes with some butter on it. Or something that mimicked butter. My mom has an aversion to ovens. Everything she cooks (which she seldom does) is stove top. Everything. And half the time it's fried. Anyway, she used to take the metal tray of food and heat it directly on the burner. Gas. Yes, with flames and all. Tell me how crazy that is.

So the swedish meatballs. I got them hoping they'd be like the ones my mom used to get but they weren't. I might have to say that they were better. It was Stouffer's (regular) swedish meatballs with pasta (fettuccine) in a sour cream sauce. I actually really enjoyed it after I hit it with some salt. Well, as you might have figured, one was not enough to satisfy my hunger. The next one I had I got out of the healthy section. They push it as being all natural but not low in calories. They were, however, low in calories. Only 170kcals. It was called Ethnic Gourmet which made me laugh a little. Don't know why exactly. Anyway, it was chicken tandoori with spinach served with brown rice with peas. Even though I wasn't really in the mood for indian food, it was good. They were pretty sparing with the chicken and it didn't quite meet my expectations for a good tandoori. I've only had it fresh from the tandoori oven with that oven ee flavor. The rest was good. The rice with peas surprised me a little. It wasn't at all wet or mushy. And though the super dark green color of spinach in indian foods sometimes frightens me, it always tastes pretty good.

Steve's selections were as follows. They were both Banquet Select Recipes. One was a smothered burrito served with rice and beans and the other was an enchilada combo meal. I tasted both. They were edible though I would never buy it again for myself. Steve was really digging it though. He liked the smothered burrito better than the enchilada.

We grazed all afternoon on bad for you things like pop tarts, kettle corn, chocolate...Things of that nature. Whatever you do today, Eat something good!

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Lean Cuisine Salisbury Steak

I labored for hours this morning making salisbury steak with portobello mushroom gravy, sour cream & chive whipped potatoes and honey glazed carrots. I had it for lunch and it was pretty okay. Hehehe. I'm just having fun with you. I didn't make any of that. Not after making sauce last night. It tuckered me out. Yes, it was a frozen thing and yes, it had the words Lean Cuisine on it. Really, it wasn't that bad. The carrots, though, didn't really taste honey glazed. I mean they were sweet but not super sweet. They just tasted like pretty decent carrots. And I have to admit, I liked the whipped potatoes. Maybe it was the sour cream & chive thing. I don't know. The salisbury steak itself was not that bad. I've had "meatier" kinds that you got a good chew out of. This stuff was on the soft side like they'd ground up the meat fine with plenty of ingredients to cut it. The portobello mushroom gravy wasn't that bad. It was doable. They were pretty sparing with the mushrooms tho. All in all, I'd buy it again. I'm trying to be good today so 270kcals is really good. Whisper. I had Life cereal with 1% milk. Still I'm hovering around 500kcals. I'm happy with those figures. Oh, by the way, the Lean Cuisine entree needs to be hit with a little salt. Otherwise it's a little bland especially the steak and gravy part. Okay, pray for me that I won't eat again til dinner though I have a feeling that tortilla chips and hummus will make an appearance later this afternoon. Ciao for now. Eat something good!

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Steak Tips Dijon

It sounds all fancy doesn't it? I suppose they were trying to attract the gourmet crowd. What is it? It's Lean Cuisine steak tips dijon, red skin potatoes and green beans. It wasn't that bad but it wasn't good either. Yes, edible. Doable again? No. I won't be buying this kind anymore. The brown sauce was a little too sweet for my liking. Even though I hit it with a little kosher salt, it was still a little too sweet. I didn't really taste that dijon part. Maybe I did but it was just bad tasting and I didn't question it. It wasn't til after I'd eaten did I realize that it was dijon.

For breakfast, almost back to back with lunch, I had a Fiber One multigrain bagel with reduced fat cream cheese. I really wanted to add butter, but I want this to be one of my good days. On a half though, I added a little low sugar strawberry jam. Yum! So far my caloric intake is about 600 kcals. Not bad. If I can keep dinner under 1000 kcals then I'll know my day wasn't that bad. It's hard. Putting the breaks on eating. I'm sure you've all figured out that I have an eating machine inside me and that once it gets turned on, it's really difficult to turn off. So play nice today and Eat something good!

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Plain Ol' Boca Burgers

I was so psyched yesterday. I went to the grocery store expecting to be disappointed when I spotted them. Beautiful red boxes with the words Boca on them. There's a short story. The previous five, no less than, five times I went there they were always wiped out of Bocas. All kinds including the fake chicken patties. Anyway, I finally put my foot down and decided to call Stop n' Shop (our preferred grocery store.) I was transferred to the frozen foods manager and he said he didn't know what the situation was either. He'd been ordering two cases of them every time he ordered. *scratch head*. So, we thought the factory or something couldn't keep up with the demand. So, yesterday. Ah, yesterday. We had them for dinner with a little salad. Steve had his on a pita and I had mine on multigrain bread with lettuce, red onions and ketchup. Steve also put mayo on his. And the side - what else but salad these days. And the usual salad. I bought an Italian mix salad bag this time and added grape tomatoes that'd been cut in half lengthwise and red onions. Oh, I also added some leftover shells and tossed it all in my usual salad dressing (balsamic vinaigrette.) I felt satisfied by dinner. And it was quick & easy. Ok guys, Eat Something Good!

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Trader Joe's Spinach Pie

Thank goodness for frozen foods. When ya don't feel like doing any real cooking, heating up a box of stuff is a good way to go. Trader Joe's - what else? Spinach pie with feta cheese in filo dough. It's pretty good. I've liked it enough to buy it again and I will be buying it again in the future. I served it with a mock greek salad. I used a mediterranean salad bag with halved grape tomatoes, half moon cucumbers, thinly sliced onions and a dressing made with red wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, dijon mustard, sugar, olive oil, oregano, s&p and most importantly mashed feta cheese. I agitated the mixture in a tupperware container with the top on. It produced a chunky and creamy dressing. I tossed it in with the fixings and we had a nice salad. At first I used just red wine vinegar w/o the balsamic. Bad move. Way too acidic. That's why I added the sugar to try to cut the tartness. Anyway, I really would've liked some kalamata olives and dolmades (stuffed grape leaves) to go with it but it was satisfying on its own. Eat something good!

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Palermo Pizza

We went grocery shopping last night. Finally. We bought almost $200 worth of goods. They were promoting a new thin crust pizza. They were selling it for $2.50 a pie when the regular price is $4.99. Well, the pizza. We got two of them. One was margherita and one was grilled chicken cesar. The flavors of both were good, pretty good. Not really, really good. The chicken cesar one was a little better than the margherita. The crust. It was thin alright. But it was like eating pizza on a matzo. For real. I wasn't loving it. I don't think we'll buy this pizza again because of the crust. So you guys, buy a better frozen pizza and Eat Something Good!

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Trader Joe's Veggie Burgers

Last night we had masala veggie burgers made by Trader Joe's. It had potato in it and other veggies and it had that oh so familiar taste of indian food. We had it on a pita with mayo, red onion and alfalfa sprouts. Which reminds me, I really have to get some of that Rusk green tea and alfalfa shampoo. It cleans so nice. Such light, airy foam. Anyway, we had the burgers with what else but salad. A nice spring mix with honey french dressing for me and bleu cheese for him. It was a very satisfying meal as was the previous nights. Eat Something Good!

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Trader Joe's Eggplant Parm

So, last night for dinner we decided to try one of those Trader Joe's baked eggplant parm dishes. I served it with a side of sauteed escarole (lemon juice, red wine vinegar, garlic, salt and pepper.) The eggplant. Much to my surprise, Steve thought it was good. I say this because when I first met him he made it very clear that he does not eat eggplant. Like maybe it wasn't manly enough. Come to think of it, I've never seen him eat quiche either.

So, the first time he had it was at one of my regular restaurants, Pizza & Brew. It was good food, good service and reasonably priced. (It's a chain restaurant.) There are always people there, but you can always get a seat. So I ordered the eggplant rollatine there. And I made him try some. He was was all, oh my god. And then the next few times we went there, that's all he'd order and he'd love it.

Eggplant story number two. I thought we'd conquered his fear of eggplant. Not so. I had to twist his arm for months and months to get him to try an eggplant parm wedge. I think it was more like years then months. Finally one day, out of nowhere, he agreed to take a bite. And from judging on the expression on his face, he was either very surprised or very pleased. Or perhaps both. He could not get enough of it. Subsequent trips to our favorite pizzeria involved eggplant parm wedges.

Now, so you figure he's had eggplant parm as a wedge that he'd have no issues with trying to eat it without the wedge part. Nope. He resisted yet again. And finally, last night he took the dive. Head first. And I was, golly gee, surprised especially because it wasn't one of the better eggplant parms I've had over the years. Trader Joe's doesn't bread and fry theirs, it's baked. Fine and dandy an' all but not quite as good as the traditional way. Wanna make your belly smile? Eat Something Good!

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Trader Joe's Frozen Food Review

Last night we went a little crazy at dinner. We decided to make it a frozen food night and sampled some of Trader Joe's food. First we had their Roasted Vegetable Pizza. And it was sorta like a pizza except there was no cheese. I was skeptical at first and I was wise in doing so. The pizza is a thumbs down for me. First a highlight. The crust. It's the best pizza crust I've ever had - amongst frozen pizzas. The dough looked like it was about 1/4" thick. And the bottom had a nice crisp that lead into a well-risen dough. It was just the right texture. Soft and semi-light and not doughy. Now if you were to put sauce and cheese on that, I'd have given it a high rating. I just wasn't loving the caramelized onions. Way too many and way too sweet. The shitake mushrooms & red peppers didn't do too much to help either. My favorite little nugs were the artichoke hearts. But they weren't plentiful.

Despite the lack of cheese, it was a lot more filling than we had anticipated and we thought twice about heating up the lasagne just as I put it in. We decided to go ahead with plans. The thing took about an hour to heat completely so we had some down time. Unfortunately, a jar of salsa and blue corn tortilla chips (yes, Trader Joe's...) were calling to me and I had myself a little munchfest. Steve busted me. Then he joined me. We were bad.

So the lasagne, Roasted Vegetable Multi-grain lasagne. Steve really, really, really liked it; I thought it was okay. Left to my own devices, I would not buy it again. But because Steve likes it so much, I know it will be dinner again some time soon. And I don't mind. It had a lot of tomatoes in it and lotsa veggies like broccoli bits, cauliflower bits, grated carrots..And the multi-grain part wasn't too bad. At worst it was too slimy and mushy. At best, it was a nice thickness of lasagne noodle with a little chew. The flavor, to me, was masked by all those darned tomatoes. Oh, there was a little bit of mozzarella cheese on top. So, nay on the pizza. And okay on the lasagne from me; really, really good from Steve.

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Self-Rising Crust Pizza Review

So who doesn't like pizza? Everybody likes it. Grandmas, adults, small children and dogs (and my dead cat Sonny - he was usually a very picky eater. He didn't eat stuff that you'd think cats did. But when it came to pizza, he'd sit on top of the box until I gave him a piece of crust.)

And not too long ago, my brother and sister-in-law asked me to review frozen pizzas. I wrote a couple of reviews but never blogged 'em. From what I remember, I disliked DiGiorno's and I liked Frescetta. These pizzas are the ones with the self-rising crust. (The one I liked best so far is an ultra thin crust white pizza made by California Pizza Kitchen.) So, the rising crusts. The one we had tonight was, *hold your breath*-a store brand. Yes, Stop n' Shop was having a sale. We got a couple (well, 3). Tonight, we baked some up with freshly grated pecorino romano on top. Afterwards, I tore up some fresh basil and we were in business. Okay, the crust rose alright. It was a lot denser than I expected it to be. It just barely made the cut off for being too doughy. Actually, I think maybe it didn't - it was doughy. The sauce was a little on the sour side. Not too much flavor there. It was doable tho' - it didn't gross me out the way DiGiorno's does. The cheese was nothing special. It was okay. It was the extra romano we grated on top that did the trick.

All in all, with 5 being average, I'd say it's about a 5. (DiGiorno's gets a 1; Frescetta gets a 7.)

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