Kraft Spaghetti Dinner

Back when I was a very young kid in the 1960s.  Ready made food and easy meal preps were becoming more popular in the late 1950s until the early 1970s due to more households acquiring televisions (think TV Dinners) and more mothers going to work.

Mom's needed quick and easy ways to prepare meals.  When you go to the grocery store now, an entire aisle is dedicated to pasta and various brands upon brands and abundant varieties of pasta sauces.  However, in the 1960s, you didn't have those options and foods like "spaghetti" (believe it or not) was considered kind of unusual for most Americans.

 

 Kraft decided their Kraft Dinner (aka: Macaroni and Cheese) was a hit so decided to bring something new to the market....Kraft Spaghetti Dinner. Originally, there were 2 kinds..."Mild" (which apparently was more sweeter, probably to fit kid's taste) and "Tangy", which provided a more authentic Italian tomato taste.

It appears that all you can get now, is the Classic Tangy Spaghetti Dinner.

 

It couldn't be easier.  It comes with everything you need except for the tomato paste.  Today, you can get a box for about $2 and a can of tomato paste for about $0.79.  So for about $3, you can serve  your family of four! It even comes with grated Parmesan cheese to sprinkle on top. 

Of course most people would add a side salad or maybe some garlic bread to complete the meal, but you don't have to.

Apparently, at some point in time, Kraft made a spaghetti dinner with meat sauce too, but I can find no evidence that is still available.

Recently, I found a box of the Classic Tangy Spaghetti Dinner at Publix and since I haven't had in about a  hundred years, I decided to get a box.  

Personally, I thought it needed a little extra "oomph" so I added a pound of cooked ground beef.

It was so easy to make, I boiled 3 cups of water in a saucepan and added the noodles and let them boil until they were al dente.  Meanwhile, I browned the ground beef, drained it, added a 6 oz. can of tomato paste and 2 cans of water along with the seasoning mix. It took less than 10 minutes.

I admit, the word "Tangy" kind of threw me because I didn't want it to taste "Tangy" or like Chef Boyardee and to my happiness and joy, it didn't. It tasted like most jarred pasta sauces, such as Ragu, Prego, etc. It was very good. I liked that it came with the grated Parmesan which gave it that special little extra.

I also like, that it made enough for me to have for dinner plus enough for left overs for a couple of meals.

The verdict - actually pretty good and tasty. Great value and something I would definitely make again!

 

Product Review - Gordon vs. Guy

Like most people, I'm a Food Network fan.  So I like several Celebrity Chefs. I admit, that I don't know a lot about Chef Gordon Ramsay, only because he's not on the Food Network, which is where I watch most of the cooking shows, along with some PBS shows.  Plus, when I have seen him a few times on Fox, he always seemed to be yelling at someone...so I don't really watch the show's he hosts.

Chef Guy Fieri, on the other hand...well...you could practically rename the Food Network to the Guy Fieri channel.  He's on there ALL THE TIME!!

He got his start on Food Network when he won the 2nd season for "The Next Food Network Star" and his show "Guy's Big Bite" (seems to be primarily a grilling show) was born from that.  Well, he must have been a hit with people, because that developed into other shows, Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives (where he doesn't cook at all but goes around and tries food from other restaurants all over the country). He also host "Guy's Grocery Game", which is a competition show (again he doesn't cook on this one). He also has a cooking show called "Guy off the Hook". He also appears on other shows from time to time, such as "Dinner Impossible", "Paula's Party", "Ace of Cakes" and the "Best Thing I Ever Ate".  He doesn't cook a lot on Food Network, but he sure is featured a lot.  

They both own restaurants and have locations in Las Vegas. I haven't eaten at Gordon Ramsay's place, but I have eaten at Guy Fieri's and it was pretty good!

Well...onto the point....

Walmart is carrying some new lines of Frozen Dinners, by Celebrity Chef's and I decided to give a couple a try.  The retail at $5.99. 

(Click on photos to enlarge)

First up:  Gordon Ramsay's Lasagna with Bolognese Meat Sauce

 

 Straight out of the box:

 

 

 

After Microwaving

 

 

 

Nutrition Information

 Next up: Guy Fieri's Flavortown Cheesy Lasagna with Pepperoni & Marinara Sauce

 

Straight out of the box

 

After Microwaving

 Nutrition Facts

 

 

VERDICT: Gordon Ramsay for the win!

 

Nutritionally, (not that it matters when  you are eating a frozen celebrity chef dinner), Guy's is a little better, less calories and carbs, but more fat.  Also note, the product weighs a little bit less.  

Looks, I thought Gordon's looked more appetizing after cooking.  Plus, as on the picture on the box indicates, there are only 3 pepperoni in Guy's, which looked a little like Hamburger Helper after cooked.

Taste, Guy's was good and tasty and I enjoyed every bite, but Gordon's was REALLY good.  The cheesy filling was plentiful and tasted more like a good lasagna roll up.  It left me feeling more satisfied and I just liked the flavor of Gordon's better.

Note:  in case you are wondering, I tried these on 2 different nights, I couldn't eat 2 of those at the same time - Ha Ha!!  I think they are both good but if you only want to spend the money on one....go with Gordon's.  I've since bought his again, but didn't really have a desire to get Guy's again.  Not that I wouldn't but given the choice, I just would chose Gordon's.

Have you tried any celebrity chef frozen dinners?  What did you like or not like?

Product Review - Trader Joe's Gnocchi

 In general, I love Gnocci...it can be difficult to find good Gnocchi and the best is always at a good Italian resturant.  But I have had good luck with Trader Joe products and an employee there mentioned that this was her favorite thing they sold so I decided to give it a try.

Trader Joe's Gnocchi al Gorgonzola.

This is Gnocchi with a creamy Gorgonzola cheese sauce.  

It is SUPER easy to cook..you just put it in a microwave safe bowl and cook for 4 minutes (I stirred about half way through and again when done).

Each bag has 3 servings but I managed to get 4 out of it because it is a pretty generous sized bag. Not bad for $2.99.

My thoughts...it was good.  The sauce was very good.  The Gnocchi was a little bit dense and chewy to me though.  It also seemed to be missing something so I added a bit of Italian seasoning to it, which helped but still seemed like something was missing.

 Later, I found that someone took it and doctored it up a bit by adding some spinach and nuts.

Would I buy again...hmmm...I'm a little on the fence.  While it had a pretty good taste, the gnocchi texture wasn't quite right - just a bit too chewy for me.  I might give it another try by adding some different ingredients to it to boost it up a little but I won't be in a rush to purchase it again.

Product Review - Trader Joe's Chicken Soup Dumplings

I love soup dumplings...but let's admit it, they are time consuming to make.  Also, you typically need a bamboo steamer to steam them.  While I have a bamboo steamer, for exactly that reason, I would love an easier and faster way to make soup dumplings....enter Trader Joe's

I found these Chicken Soup Dumplings in their freezer section.  There are 6 in a box for $3.29 and there is one serving in a box - which is plenty.  It has 250 calories and 7 grams of fat...so for a whole serving, that is not bad diet wise or price wise.  

They are called Chicken "Soup Dumplings" not "Chicken Soup" Dumplings - does that make sense?  In other words...they are Soup Dumplings (also known as Xiao Long Bao) filled with chicken...not chicken soup inside a dumpling. 

You have to be careful eating a soup dumpling.  You put it on the spoon, take a bite and drink out the soup and then eat the dumpling.  That is challenging for me.  What I typically do, is put them in a bowl, cut them in half and eat the soup and dumplings together.  

So...here is how they are packaged

And here is what they look like when you open the box

6 cute and perfectly sized frozen dumplings.  The best part...they come in a steamer package.  So all you do is cut off one corner and pop it in them microwave for 2 minutes.  

Then they come out...looking almost like they looked when they went in...but just not frozen

 I typically eat soup dumplings with some kind of soy/vinegar sauce but I wanted to taste the true flavors of these and not have them masked by anything else.

Photo Courtesy of Two Cousins Haul It All 

Verdict: Delicious and filling.  They are a great light supper, especially after a long day when you don't feel like cooking, but you want some good comfort food. 

Product Review - Trader Joe's Peanut Butter Cups

Danger...Danger...Will Robinson!!!  These Trader Joe's mini Peanut Butter Cups are SO GOOD!  

They come in Dark Chocolate and Milk Chocolate.  I'm more of a Milk Chocolate kind of girl so got a container to give them a try...I won't be buying these again.  Not because they are bad, but because they are AMAZING and I could eat them all day long.  

If you have good self-control, help yourself to these next time you go to Trader Joe's.  If you find peanut butter cups challenging to resist - don't buy these...you will become addicted to them.  Seriously!

Note: Container says the serving size is 3 pieces and there are 13 servings - so roughly 40 in a container.

Product Review - Trader Joe's Almond Croissants

I made a recent trip to Trader Joe's for a particular product and ended up picking up a few things.  The employee at the check out commented on every purchase I had made (except for one) and said "Oh, you picked all my favorites" and proceeded to tell me why she liked each item and even how to prepare some of them.  She was super friendly!!

So...I decided to do a product review on some of them.

First up...Almond Croissants.

Now...I have had the Chocolate Croissants before and they taste so similar to the ones I have had at the French Bake Shop in Las Vegas. I had never seen the Almond version before so decided to give them a try.

It is really cool how these bake up.  You lay them out the night before (or at least 9 hours before you plan on eating them) and you let them rise overnight.  Here they are from the frozen state. They look puny and flat and you you might be thinking - "uh...I'm not to sure about this"

 But after letting them sit overnight - you wake up to THIS - they double in size!!

 

It is impressive to see how much they rise.

The packages says to bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes.  My experience with the chocolate ones told me to go with 20 minutes and I am glad I knew that.  They were just the right amount of brown.

They have sliced almonds on top and some kind of almond (maybe marzipan) filling (which seeped out a little bit while baking).

Verdict! Very easy to bake, impressive looking, but a just a little bit on the sweet side for me.  I would get them again, especially if I were to have overnight guests. 

Chocolate Crossants - A Comparison

When in Las Vegas, my friend and I always go to Paris and have breakfast at Café Belle Madeleine.  

We get a Cheese Danish and a Chocolate Croissant and split them and each have half of each...mmm, très bien!!

We love both, but especially love the Chocolate Croissant, so I was happy to find some frozen varieties in the freezer cases as local grocery stores.  

I decided to do a comparison of two that I found

One at Walmart and one at Trader Joe's.  

Trader Joe's (like everything) is a little more pricey than Walmart.  Trader Joe's is $4.99, while Walmart is $3.98, so roughly a $1 difference.  Both come in a pack of 4 and they have the same baking time and temperature.

 

 

 

There is one MAJOR difference in these 2 brands.  Trader's Joe's brand needs time to prove.  The box recommends setting out the frozen croissants the night before and allow to prove overnight.  This allows the croissant to double in size.  While this is great, if you need instant gratification, you may not want to wait 8 hours or so before you bake your croissant.

The Walmart brand is ready to bake, right out of the box.

When you compare the frozen size, they are about the same.  The Walmart brand seems slightly bigger than Trader Joe's while in the frozen state.

 

Trader Joe's is on the right and is lighter colored than the browner Walmart version on the left.

 

 

However, after proving, the Trader Joe's is twice the size of the Walmart brand. You can see from this state that the Trader Joe's brand (R) is a bigger and looks flakier than the Walmart version (L)

 

 

I baked them both together at 350 degrees F for 22 minutes.  After baking, the Trader Joe's version was very brown and appeared flakier than the Walmart version, which didn't brown as much but it was fully done.

A cross-section cut shows the difference in height between Trader Joe's (top photo) and Walmart (bottom photo) - I admit that Trader Joe's looks more like what you expect a croissant to look like - flaky, fluffy and light.

BUT...how do they compare in taste?  Well...even though it doesn't look very flaky, the Walmart verson was actually quite flaky and had a good tastes.  It tasted how you expect a croissant to taste, but...honestly, it wasn't very chocolaty.  The filling almost reminded me of chocolate chip cookie dough but didn't have a strong chocolate flavor.

The Trader Joe's version also tasted flaky and you could pull the layers apart and it had a VERY strong chocolate taste...there was no denying the abundance of chocolate in this one.

 Final Results:

Trader Joe's for the win!  If you want an authentic looking and tasting Chocolate Croissant, buy Trader Joe's.  While it does require some forethought, since you have to allow proofing time, the flavor is pretty close to the fresh made croissants from Café Belle Madeleine. If serving to guest, you can impress them with your amazing croissant baking skills (hey, you don't have to tell them your secret)

If you need a quick fix and don't want to wait, the Walmart brand is pretty good, especially since you can have one in about 20 minutes, but they are not something I would be proud to serve to guest. 

It's Peanut Butter Jelly Time

I was at Walgreen's the other day and just before checking out, I went down the candy aisle.  I saw this interesting Candy Bar and since I LOVE anything with Peanut Butter & Jelly.  When I was checking out, even the cashier was oohing and aaahing and saying he was going to have to try that.

Well...I must say - it doesn't have any "jelly" taste -it is all peanut butter.  I was kind of surprised when I opened it to find that they were kind of little kit-kat shaped bars - cute.

It was just good but just OK - I don't think I would spend the calories on it again.

Product Review - Batiste Dry Shampoo

One blog I regularly follow is Kevin & Amanda.  I first discovered Amanda when she was an active member of Two Peas In A Bucket.  She had some cute scrapbook recipe cards and I really liked her style.

One day she offered (for free I might add) to make fonts for many of the "peas" (what we call ourselves there).  They are fonts of their own handwriting - pretty cool!!!  She made a lot and I've used many of them. (I sent her mine but there must have had some problems with the way it was submitted or perhaps she didn't have time because she never created one for me - boo hoo).  It was super nice of her to do this for us!

She started posting recipes on her blog and before you know it, she was more known for recipes and cooking than for scrap booking and her blog really took off and is very popular.  I haven't seen much scrap booking from her in a while - I am sure she just doesn't have the time anymore.  Her website is really her "business" now.  She also has the more adorable Boston Terriers, but I digress.

Annnyyyyyywaaaayyy......
One day she posted a review of Batiste Dry Shampoo and said it was sold at Walgreens, among other places so I decided to give it a try.  I have used Psssssst before and like it well enough but it is so hard to find and I usually can't find it at a retail outlet (once in a while I find it at CVS but not always), so I thought since I can find Batiste at Walgreens, I would check it out.

At first I thought I was out of luck, but I finally found it - all they carried was the 1.6 oz Travel Size and that was okay, especially since I was just trying it out.

Let me tell you I LOVE this stuff.  I don't have a need for Dry Shampoo often but on those mornings, when I am in a rush and don't have time to shampoo, this is great !

They only had Original and Blush scent in stock, I got both.  I used Blush the first time.  I was really impressed with it.  Basically it is rice starch and it removes the oil from your hair and gives it volume.  The only thing I was a little put of by was the scent - it was a little strong for me and smelled like flowers (reminded me a bit of Personal Feminine Spray).  But I loved how my hair looked and unlike Psssssst, I didn't need to use it again the next day - it still looked great. So it lasts longer than Pssssssst.

The next time I needed to use it, I tried the original scent.  I like it much more - not as strong and sort of smells like Fruit Loops to me. 

So my overall review - a big THUMBS UP