Glutino Penne Alfredo

This week, when my husband brought home a new gluten free product to try, D.D. and I were both stoked. This new product moment just may be our favorite time of the week. When Poj says, "Oh yeah, I picked up something new for you to try." D.D. and I both rush to read the box and exclaim over the contents and wonder what new experience is in store. (I have mentioned that we're total food geeks, right?)

This time the product was Glutino Penne Alfredo. It was a gluten free frozen T.V. dinner that boasted alfredo sauce on brown rice penne. We LOVE alfredo! And, it was from Glutino, a gluten free company that has provided many hours of food happiness in the past. Which is why I'm a little sad about today's review of Glutino Penne Alfredo. To be honest, I considered not writing it, but I started GFPR to do honest reviews- So here goes...



Ease of Use

I love the ease of this product. You open the box, take it out of the wrapper and throw it in the microwave. Heat it for four minutes, give it a stir and heat it for one more minute. Pretty simple.

Appearance

Okay, this is where I started to encounter problems. When I stirred it to mix the penne with the alfredo sauce, the pasta began to shred. Most of the pieces that didn't shred were stuck in large clumps. Also, the alfredo sauce is almost translucent, which is a bit off-putting to me.






Taste and Texture

True to appearances, the gluten free pasta was gummy and overcooked. Once it began to cool it started clumping together even more. The sauce was a bit bland, more like a white cream sauce than alfredo. I added some pepper and a lot of grated parmesan to improve the flavor.

Versatility

Gluten free frozen dinners are never very versatile. They kind of just are what they are:)

Overall Value

Glutino Penne Alfredo costs $5.79 for a 10.6 ounce box. That is a bit much to spend on a single serving meal (in my opinion) but is really not that much more than most gluten free convenience meals. The thing with this is that by spending a little more I can buy the pasta, parmesan and butter needed to make penne alfredo for the whole family. It definitely wouldn't be ready in five minutes, though.

Rating

It pains me to say it, but I cannot recommend this product based on the fact that I would not purchase it again myself.