Real Kato Blog: Today's Frozen Meal: Healthy Choice Chicken Parmigiana

"Breaded Chicken Breast in Marinara Sauce with Cheese, Whole Grain Penne, Broccoli & Caramel Apple Multigrain Crisp". (You know, I notice that most of these meal descriptions avoid the serial comma. I think that in this case, I'd like to see a comma after "broccoli" so it doesn't seem like we're getting a "broccoli & caramel" dessert. Though then again, sometimes a piece of broccoli does find its way into the dessert section, so maybe they're just covering their bases.)

Box

Huh, it's been a full month since the first frozen meal posting. I can tell you, there's no danger that I'll run out of meal choices; I feel like I've barely made a dent in the available offerings.

This thing looks like a mess because it requires you to stir the pasta and rotate the chicken in the middle of cooking.

Taste: This chicken is surprisingly tasty for a low-sodium meal: it actually tastes like it has some salt in it. The sauce is a bit thick and reminds me of canned tomato paste, but it isn't awful. The broccoli is, as usual, plain. And whoo, apple caramel crisp for dessert... I guess I should never expect to see cheesecake or tiramisu in any of these meals. I do remember that back in the old days, TV dinners always used to have a dry, chewy brownie for dessert, so I guess we're at least beyond that. Score: 3.0/5.0

Nutrition: Slightly higher in fat and lower in vitamins than I'd like, but a good amount of fiber. Score: 2.5/3.0

Packaging: Slit the film, stir the pasta, rotate the chicken... sigh. I much prefer the "set it and forget it" method of preparation. Score: 1.0/2.0

Total Score: 6.5/10.0

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