Ziti is a wonderful thing, isn’t it?
Smart Ones makes an attempt at a lightweight version of this classic dish with their Three Cheese Ziti Marinara. This dish only has about 300 calories, and Weight Watchers values it at 9 SmartPoints. It’s not the most diet-friendly item in the Smart Ones line, but it’s not a calorie monster either.
In case you can’t tell from the picture on the box, this isn’t a ribbed ziti; these noodles are smooth. These are like giant, straight macaroni noodles. While we acknowledge that plenty of ziti noodles are ridgeless, we really would have preferred some texture.
If you compared our photo above with the photo on the packaging, you’re probably wondering where all the cheese went. Well, some of it sifted downward when we stirred it, but even then, there’s quite a bit less cheese than we were promised on the box. It’s a blend of part-skim mozzarella with cheese cultures, monterey jack, and parmesan, but it doesn’t have the holding power or stretchiness of a traditional mozzarella. If you can find any of it in your meal, you’ll also notice that it’s a bit weak on flavor too.
There also isn’t much sauce on this, and what’s there is pretty dull. The whole time we were eating this, we were tempted to shake some parmesan on top (we’re told there’s already parmesan mixed in, but we certainly couldn’t tell).
Smart Ones’ Three Cheese Ziti Marinara needs a little something extra in order for it to work — perhaps a little parmesan, some more mozzarella, or even some ranch dressing for all you midwesterners. As is, it’s a bit bland and unsatisfying.
To learn more about the nutrition info or ingredients in this frozen pasta dish, check out our package scans below.
