1 | amanda

June 21st, 2009 at 8:25 pm

there's 47 grams of fat in olive garden's lasagna classico and macaroni grill's dinner portion of lasagna has 59 grams so i guess 31 grams isn't that bad(?)… too bad lasagna is soooo tasty! i honestly can't pick just one favorite lasagna. i pretty much love them all!

2 | Dan Blomquist

June 21st, 2009 at 10:50 pm

Greg, let me shed some light brotha
Sodium is not as bad as some people will lead you to believe. Unless you already have high blood pressure due to being pre-disposed to it (certain ethnicities) or for weight reasons, eat salt will not affect you adversely. I eat so much salt, way above recommended daily amounts, that I should be a pickle by now, but my blood pressure is absolutely perfect. Some people are salt-sensitive, like people will diabetes, the elderly, and I believe African Americans, and salt will cause their blood pressures to rise. Other, it will not have any effect or may even lower blood pressure. So unless you eat a lot of salt and notice your blood pressure rise significantly, it doesn't matter. I'm sure you're just letting people know beforehand so that if they are battling HBP, then they can avoid it.
Just thought I'd throw a little sodium-related info your way =)
I may definitely have to try this one. I've had the other Bertolli meals, but I haven't seen this one.

3 | freezerburns

June 22nd, 2009 at 4:03 am

Amanda, That is true. When you compare the nutrition facts to similar items at popular restaurant chains it is tough to compare. That being said, part of the discrepancy is the portion size. If this Bertolli meal was similar in serving size to the Macaroni Grill portion, it would probably be at the 60 or so gram level.

4 | freezerburns

June 22nd, 2009 at 4:06 am

Dan, great info here, thanks for sharing. Yes it is true that sodium levels affect people differently. But thats also true for people who have smoked 2 packs of cigarettes a day for 80 years and have not one hint of emphysema, lung cancer, mouth cancer, etc.

I think that it is ok to indulge every once in awhile but I would guarantee if I ate this type of meal every meal, my currently normal blood pressure would not remain normal for long!

5 | celticheart

June 22nd, 2009 at 5:05 am

Thank you for doing this Randy and I were thinking of trying them. We wont now, with the nutritional info and all that oil, that is gross!

By the way the nutritional info for a lasagna at Olive Garden:
850 cals 47 Grams of fat 25 Grams sat fat 2830 MG sodium 39 Carbs

It's just the oil I mean oil on pizza is one thing but a puddle of oil in a pasta dish?

Anyway my favorite lasagna was my Grandmothers. She was such a great cook. I'm sick because her recipe book got lost after she passed away.

Thanks for saving me from eating this Greg!

6 | BearSilber

June 22nd, 2009 at 5:36 am

That bag would make Sir Mix-A-Lot blush “Baby got BAG and it ain't no lie…”

That's weird, the calorie content isn't too high but man alive on the fats especially the saturated fats….and the sodium. I'm glad you mentioned it before the commenting began cause you know how people like to get down on you about it. You're spot on about receiving similar nutrition from a restaurant.

I'm with Dan too. As always with dietary advice, there is much debate and everything has a different effect on different people.

Favorite “mini” thing? ….would probably have to be Frosted Mini Wheats!!! Ohhhh, Micro-Machines!!!!! Absolutely. Those rocked!!! Do they still have them?

My favorite lasagna honestly was the first one I baked myself (I made two, veggie and a meat), it was amazing. I cooked everything myself…sauce, veggies, etc. Oh man that was scrumptious.

7 | meg

June 22nd, 2009 at 5:51 am

I'd be a little worried about the puffy package. Were all the packages in the store puffy? If not, then it may be “bad”, otherwise, I guess it is to protect the product. You'd think they go to a box instead of a bag. In regards to the sodium comment below, even if your blood pressure is ok, you still have to worry about the “bloat factor”. Eat too much sodium and you'll look like a puffer fish.
I've never had lasagna in a restaurant…but frozen wise, I do like Amy's and this one italian brand, Michael's Angelo's.

8 | Pat

June 22nd, 2009 at 8:20 am

Saw this in my feed & I just bought it last week! $6.00 on sale. Will try it tonight
before watching. Did you microwave?

9 | tod

June 22nd, 2009 at 8:49 am

I was curious to watch this cause I like Berotolli sauce for spaghetti. Olive garden is my favorite lasagna.

10 | Pat

June 22nd, 2009 at 7:20 pm

Pat here again: So, my wife & I DID have the microwaved (13.5 min in our high power) version. We both rated it 4-star (before viewing Greg's video). Had a tossed salad and a beer and some fresh raspberries for dessert. Delicious dinner! We are fans of SOME of the Bertolli meals for quick dinners. We almost always have a Vodka Chicken with Farfelle in the back of the freezer for when all cooking or carry out fails. But we only buy them when on sale (originally $5 or $5.50, lately $6), not at the list price of $6.99 or $7.50.

QOTD2: Best ever lasagna? Our own homemade, homebaked, 4-hour special, made with sweet Italian sausage from our local grocer (“Dr. Beef”), and a tomato sauce that is simmered on the stove for a couple hours.

QOTD1: mini-muffins (Peg), Hershey's nuggets: a mini-candy bar (Pat)

11 | Isabella

June 25th, 2009 at 12:15 pm

Something about the fact that this sauce comes in little cubes kinda scares me. : ( I admire your bravery when faced with strange frozen food items. Great Review!
QOTD: I'd probably have to say bagel bites! Yum!

12 | Rob

June 27th, 2009 at 10:43 am

Would it be possible to deep fry this stuff?

13 | Rob

June 27th, 2009 at 5:43 pm

Would it be possible to deep fry this stuff?

14 | crosswalkernest

May 7th, 2010 at 1:30 am

I lol'd at “I want to just take a knife and go BOOM!”.

Also, the best minis are those little mini candybars, if you have self control, they aren't completely gut-exploding like their larger cousins.

15 | Tru

August 7th, 2010 at 10:46 pm

By far my favorite of this line. I always cook these in the oven in small round deep corning ware dishs. The pastas in these line are heavy and usually need longer cooking times than stated. It takes about 45 minutes in the oven but well worth the wait. I cook them covered with foil for the first 30 minutes and then add the packaged shredded cheeze and cook uncovered for the remaining 15 untill the dish bubbles. I then let is rest for about 10 minutes. This is a no brainer dish for about 3 to 4 dollars a serving. This is restaurant quality and the ice cube sauces are outstanding. You will not be disappointed. Love this line of food and it's great for italian night. 2 servings per bag. So families look for two for or bogo sales to take advantage of savings. The oven cooking time allows you time to make a nice tossed or Ceasar Salad or bag salad and garlic bread. I would give this meal 5 stars.

Tru