If you’ve been following my blog for a while you know I am big on cooking from scratch. I try to avoid as much packaged foods as possible, but even I run out of time some days and need a quick fix meal. Being a stay-at-home mom to 3 young kids has me pulled in every direction. Now that we have started school and activities things are even busier. Plus my lil guy is in the pre-walking stage so any extra time I once had is now spent chasing him around the house and keeping him out of trouble. Getting dinner on the table has gotten a lot more challenging!
When I was asked to try Barilla’s new microwavable meals I was hesitant. I promote homemade foods so how does this fit into to my philosophy? Then I thought about my current schedule. I am only human and I can’t always cook dinner how I’d like to. Sometimes the family just needs to be fed in a hurry so I looked up the nutritional info on these meals and immediately knew they would work.
(Yes that top photo is their whole grain fusilli with vegetable marinara and it was ready in 1 minute. As the pasta heated I chopped up some veggies and dinner was done).
They have 5 varieties including two whole grain versions.
Upon receiving the package I microwaved one for the kids and I to sample (and it really only takes 60 seconds because the pasta is already cooked). How do they taste? Great! I started with the basic penne with traditional marinara and we all gobbled it up within minutes. I was shocked at how fresh the pasta tasted.
The sauce comes in a separate container so after heating you just pour it over the pasta yourself. I love that you can control of how much you want to add.
I was also very impressed with the ingredients list. I could pronounce everything! They aren’t full of a bunch of preservatives like some frozen meals. They are shelf stable for 12 months due to the revolutionary packaging, but I liked that they weren’t good for years like some processed foods.
More on nutrition, each 9 ounce meal contains 1 serving of pasta and provides the follow benefits:
- 320 calories or less
- No added preservatives
- Between 9 and 11 grams of protein
- Provide an excellent source of fiber
- Provide an excellent source of vitamin A
- Offer a good source of iron in the whole grain varieties
Sometimes you simply don’t have 15 minutes to boil pasta so these can be very handy in a hurry. Add some leftover chicken and veggies and you’ve got a balanced meal! These microwave meals aren available in stores now and cost around $3.29 per package. I would buy these over frozen meals personally due to the lack of preservatives and simple ingredient list.
I literally could not get their forks out of the shot long enough to snap the photo
Barilla Meal Varieties:
- Mezze Penne with Tomato & Basil Sauce
- Mezze Penne with Traditional Marinara Sauce
- Mezze Penne with Spicy Marinara Sauce
- Whole Grain Fusilli with Vegetable Marinara Sauce
- Whole Grain Mezze Penne with Tomato & Basil Sauce
I really liked all the varieties! In terms of convenience foods, I would definitely purchase these to have on hand when I don’t even have time to boil pasta!
Question: Do you buy frozen meals or convenience dinners? If so what are your favorites?
FitFluential LLC compensated me for this Campaign. All opinions are my own
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These sound really good!! I also stay away from packaged dinners because usually the content is so bad for you! I love that you can read all the ingredients on the list and that the calorie count isn’t through the roof. It looks like you get a nice sized portion too! Sometimes you just need a quick dinner that you don’t have to spend a ton of time on. 🙂
I totally agree Lora. It really is a good sized portion! Thanks for the comment 🙂
Thanks for keeping it real, Melanie. We all have to be realistic some days, and I appreciate the review. We do sometimes rely on Amy’s organic frozen meals, because I feel like they’re not too bad, and the kids meals are relatively low in sodium.
Thanks for the comment Meredith. I have had Amy’s in the past and have always like them too. Sometimes it just isn’t going to be a cooking night! 😉
just wondering how you feel about the amount of sodium in them?
Great question Lindsay- I almost included info but I felt like my post was getting too long. Perhaps I will add in my thoughts. So at first I thought it sounded high, but then I gave it some thought- the truth is that most frozen entrees run around this amount and this was quite a large portion. Plus the whole bowl in the top pic with the veggies would be a filling lunch or dinner (more filling than a frozen meal in my opinion). Then if you had up the sodium in a sandwich (bread, meat, cheese and condiments) you can easily be at the same amount! So in all honesty, if this is all you eat for the meal, plus maybe a salad you’ll be in pretty good shape! My kids can easily share the portion so again, I felt fine with the sodium for them. Plus they don’t like a lot of sauce which is where the sodium is. 🙂 thanks for asking such a great question!
Wow! It’s great to hear about these! I will have to try! We are constantly on the go and this is much better than the unhealthy options out there!
I totally agree Mindy and love that they have the whole grain options.
I, too, was hesitant to try Barilla Microwave Meals since I don’t buy pre-packaged meals. But once I saw the ingredients I thought I’d give it a try. I was pleasantly surprised! It’s a great option for something quick when you’ve got kids wanting dinner 5 minutes ago. I just added a side salad or extra veggies and dinner is done!
GREAT review. The pictures were wonderful and I kept forgetting it was a review and thought it was just you talking about the product. Also thank you for the large pictures of the back. As someone with very strange food allergies and intolerances it’s often hard to find what things are made from. They might say they’re “nut free” or “gluten free” but that isn’t what I need to know. And WOW on the 5g of fiber. I will certainly be grabbing these for when I’m in a pinch.
Thank you so much Julie for your sweet comment.
I love the idea of adding in a little extra something to complete the meal. While it does look like there is a lot of sodium in the meals, the rest of the ingredients are pronounceable and that is a huge selling point for me. Can’t wait to find them in stores. My daughter is a huge pasta fan and these types of meals are perfect for her on-the-go days.
I agree Carrie, pronounceable ingredients is important. I plan on keeping a few on hand especially for when my kids are going from activity to activity. I am always happy with a salad, but them… not so much. 😉
I’m looking forward to trying these; I need to keep my eyes peeled at the store this week!
A few years ago, when I lived on my own and wasn’t as into “healthy living” as I am now, I bought frozen meals quite often! Now, I RARELY buy them. I’ve been loving what I’ve been seeing with these Barilla meals though, so I can’t wait to try them. It’s nice to have a healthier convenience option!
It’s good you haven’t relied on frozen meals in a while but it is nice to have a backup plan on hand. It’s better than going through a drive-through for fast food!
These look like great options for the crazy, mid-week dinners when I’m running from soccer, to Cubs to Tae Kwon do. Thanks for the review!
Thanks Tamara- yes I will keep a few on hand as well when they come out in stores.
Looks YUM! I would definitely try it
Thanks Jenelle. I was impressed (and I kind of liked that it was just basic pasta and sauce- nothing too crazy)!
I too was hesitant because we don’t often eat packaged meals in our house. But like you, I looked at the ingredients and the nutritional stats and felt that they were good and much better than other packaged food options. And it’s good! But as a working mom of 3 kids, it IS hard to get dinner on the table many nights during the week. I like having some good options out there to help me out.
I totally agree Christine. I can’t imagine working full time and trying to get a family fed (the way I like to eat at least). It definitely takes a lot of thought.
I have used frozen dinners in the past… Lean Cuisine and Smart Ones… now I am gluten-free so cannot use them… my husband likes them once in a while in a pinch. Convenient and usually tasty – he tends to use them more at noon.
Nice review. Looks like you covered it all very thoroughly.
Thanks for your comment Elle! Those the brands I used to use back in the day, but it’s been so long. I have tried Kashi brand last year and those were pretty good.
I am so busy heading straight from teaching all day to night class that something like this would be amazing, but I was scared to try at first. Thank you for the honest review. I’ll be checking them out.
Thanks for such a great review. I am going to have to add these to my grocery list. Might make a great lunch when time is rushed at work.
I would have never bought these because of the whole prepared foods thing you mentioned, but they actually sound pretty good. Thanks for the review! I can’t wait for you to try my Superfood Italian Dinner Starter! 🙂
Ya know, I’m wondering if I couldn’t still find a way to remove some of the salt. For instance, did you know that you can slice a potato and cook it with ‘whatever’ to help absorb some of the excess salt? Maybe this could be done. I don’t know; I haven’t tried making this yet. But I’m betting so.
Also, someone complained that their dish of noodles was still hard. I thought, “Well, what if I put them in my steamer instead to cook?” What do *you* think? Oh, I also read that the packages are difficult to open. Do you agree?