Archive for the ‘Oven’ Category

Pillsbury Crusty French Loaf

Saturday, October 31st, 2009

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Pillsbury French Loaf (Whole)

Pillsbury French Loaf (Sliced)

Looks: As you can see, my loaf was lopsided. Maybe that’s intended, to make it seem more authentically homemade, but I found it offputting. Who wants to eat a lumpy loaf? Nobody. Besides that, the bread didn’t brown to the same tone of brown as the bread on the packaging did, but that could have been due to cooking time. 4 out of 5

Taste: Good for coming out of a can. The crust was flaky, and the bread was chewy and not too dry or too moist. However: there’s something off about Pillsbury bread products thought that I always taste – maybe it’s a preservative or whatever they use to keep it from sticking to the can, but every time, there’s a slightly-off aftertaste. It’s not enough to spoil the taste itself though, so I give it 4 out of 5

Asian Style Sensations Pork & Shrimp Egg Rolls

Wednesday, October 21st, 2009

Asian Style Sensations Pork & Shrimp Egg Rolls - Ad

Asian Style Sensations Pork & Shrimp Egg Rolls

Looks: As you can see, the egg roll filling lacks the vibrant greens and pinks depicted on the box but instead displays all the liveliness of day-old baby food. Neither do the egg roll crusts match their advertised color; they didn’t hardly darken at all from freezer to oven. 2.5 out of 5

Taste: I would be hard-pressed to tell the difference in a blind taste test between these egg rolls and egg rolls from any nearby Chinese restaurant. (Whether this indicates that these are quality egg rolls or that I have never eaten truly delicious Chinese takeout is unknown.) The outside is crispy and the inside is meaty and flavorful, but the rolls do drip quite a bit of oil as you eat them. (Side note: I have also tried the chicken version of these rolls. They don’t suffer from the excess oil problem; rather, they are exceedingly dry. Stick with the Pork or Pork/Shrimp versions if you decide to buy them.) 4 out of 5

Totino’s Pizza Rolls (Combination)

Sunday, October 18th, 2009

Totino's Pizza Rolls (Combination) - Ad

Totino's Pizza Rolls (Combination)

Looks: If Totino’s hadn’t felt the need to show off the bursting guts of the flying pizza rolls, this product would have gotten 5 out of 5. However, there’s no way that the amount of filling inside will overflow the crust like they depict on the box, unless you peeled away half of the roll rather than cutting it. Besides that though, the size and color are perfect. 4 out of 5

Taste: Except for being a little bit oily, these Pizza Rolls taste great. They have a rich flavor, and the bits of meat are actual tangible, unlike some other “meat” flavored products I’ve tried. Make sure you let them cool off for about five minutes before eating them, or your burnt mouth won’t be able to taste their delicious flavor. (Side note: I can’t look at the real-life picture without picturing the open pizza rolls singing a little pizza roll song.) 4 out of 5

Smart Stuffers Turk’y with Cranberry Stuffing

Friday, October 16th, 2009

Today’s Food In Real Life is LightLife’s Smart Stuffers, comes courtesy of my brother Aaron. (You might remember the LightLife brand from their previous appearance on FoodIRL via SmartBacon. You probably don’t remember my brother Aaron, since you’ve never met him.)

Smart Stuffers Turk'y - Ad

Smart Stuffers Turk'y

Looks: The colors are pretty much spot-on, but there are not nearly enough cranberries in the cranberry stuffing. The ratio of turk’y to stuffing is as advertised. 4 out of 5

Taste: I was pleasantly surprised by how much the stuffing actually tasted like real stuffing. I mean, that sort of thing can’t be easy to fake. I expected it to be really dry, but it wasn’t. It also had the right texture and an appropriate amount of spices. I bet you could give it to someone who eats stuffing every day, and they wouldn’t know the difference. Oh, and the turk’y tasted more like chik’n, which was fine with me. 5 out of 5