Is it a lasagna or an alfredo? Why not both? These are the difficult, soul-searching questions addressed by Michelina’s Lasagna Alfredo with Broccoli & Mozzarella, a budget-priced frozen meal with lofty ambitions. Yes, we said “budget-priced.” Our local grocery store has this priced at $1.39, and we got ours on super sale for $1.00. And who can beat lasagna for a buck?
Anyway, one of the biggest giveaways that this is a budget-priced frozen meal is that it doesn’t contain an inner tray; the cardboard box it comes in is also the tray. The benefit is that you pay less for your food, but the drawback is packaging that is less safe, and a little more susceptible to spoiling in the freezer. You get what you pay for, we suppose.
Anyway, cooking this is a cinch. Peel back one corner of the package, then chuck the whole thing into the microwave. Heat it for three and a half minutes, give it a lovely little stir, then heat it for another 60 to 90 seconds. This process should be familiar to anyone who’s ever cooked a frozen dinner. (If you want to read these instructions straight off the back of the box, check out the package scan at the bottom of this review.)
This comes out of the microwave smelling a little bit like sour milk that someone’s trying to cover up with garlic and parmesan. It’s the sort of smell where the parm and garlic hit your nostrils first and it crankfires the appetite, but then you start to notice the sinister underbelly of that same scent. It’s a strange emotional journey, folks.
Despite how potent this smells, it doesn’t really have a lot of flavor. Yes, there’s a muted parmesan undertone, but we’d never stand up in court and accuse this of being loaded with flavor. The sauce is also a bit runny — we can tell it’s trying to be a creamy sauce, but it falls just a little bit short.
The pasta has that crinkly lasagna shape without actually coming in the standard sheet-with-ruffled-edges shape. It’s actually a pretty wonderful shape, all things considered. This is certainly not the first time we’ve had it, and it does seem to be the standard for “frozen lasagna but not actually a lasagna,” but we do appreciate it.
The broccoli is kind of rubbery, which is a super weird consistency for frozen broccoli. Sometimes, when frozen and reheated, it gets soggy. Other times, it heats super well and has a soft crunch to it. Here, it ends up rubbery, which we think might be a new one for us. Even so, the broccoli is small and infrequent, so this isn’t the worst thing in the world.
So how about calories, Valerie? (That’s totally an expression, right?) Well, this is no gut-buster, with just 250 calories. Of course, this isn’t a substantial meal, and it’s not very filling. With that in mind, the 670 mg of sodium does seem a little high.
The Michelina’s Lasagna Alfredo with Broccoli & Mozzarella is pretty mediocre. It’s not very filling and it has some glaring problems, but it also costs a dollar. Then again, Michelina’s has much better offerings at that same price point, so we’re not sure this is a necessary addition to their lineup.
Oh, and we’re reporting back to let you know that our office smelled like this meal for hours after we made it, even with the windows open. It packs a potent scent!
To learn more about the nutrition content, ingredients, or cooking instructions for this frozen meal, check out our package scan below.
Thanks for the review!