Barilla Microwaveable Meals

After a ten days on the West Coast my body needed a recovery day. I can’t believe that I’ve been up and down the West Coast for the past ten days! While Los Angeles was a great work trip, I’m so happy to be back on East coast, aka #thebestcoast in my opinion!

I slept until 11:30, ran 3.5 miles without music or my Garmin, deep cleaned and organized my closet, enjoyed Fall scented candles, relaxed on the couch with Bo watching Notre Dame and Georgia football, and finally enjoyed an easy pre-long run dinner. Though, I have to admit, the highlight of my day was watching Bo enjoy his first post long run ice bath!

Neither of us were in the mood to cook tonight. Bo was heading out for a birthday party and I didn’t feel like peeling myself off the couch for more than a water refill. Luckily, while I was traveling the gang at Barilla sent me their new Barilla Microwaveable Meals to test.

I have never been a fan of microwave meals as they are normally filled with preservatives, almost a day’s worth of sodium, and lack flavor. Therefore, the first thing I did when Bo grabbed two of these from the pantry was to check out the nutrition facts.

I was pretty impressed by the nutrition facts especially the protein and fiber.

Nutritional Info in The Mezze Penne with Traditional Marinara Sauce: 320 calories; 11 grams of protein; 58 carbs;5 grams of fat (0 trans fat); 6 grams of fiber.

While the sodium is almost 1/3 daily value, this is far less than some other microwave meal options and is actually perfect for me since I’m running 18 miles outside tomorrow and know that I’ll be sweating A LOT! A little extra sodium is actually good for me!

I thought the ready in 60 seconds advertisement had to be too good to be true. But, much to my surprise in just 60 seconds the pasta was steaming and the sauce was bubbling hot. The sauce container easily lifts out so you can combine the sauce with the pasta in the provided dish. To make this feel a bit more like a Saturday night dinner, I used a pasta bowl and added some grilled chicken, steamed cauliflower and goat cheese before mixing everything together.

Bo and I both enjoyed these for dinner and were really impressed. While I had the traditional marinara sauce flavor he tried the spicy marinara sauce which was a perfect dinner before hitting the town with friends for birthday celebrations. He added some thinly sliced prosciutto to the mix for a perfect, flavorful bowl of pasta goodness.

 

There are five flavors available for around $3.29 per package in major grocery stores.

• Mezze Penne with Tomato & Basil Sauce
• Mezze Penne with Traditional Marinara Sauce
• Mezze Penne with Spicy Marinara Sauce
• Whole Grain Fusilli with Vegetable Marinara Sauce
• Whole Grain Mezze Penne with Tomato & Basil Sauce

These are great options for nights when I don’t get home until late or as easy lunch options. I think I’ll always add some protein and vegetables to the pasta and sauce for a more filling and nutritionally well rounded meal. But, for the price and flavor it can’t be beat! How often do you have half used jars of sauce or boxes of pasta sitting around in the house? This package will stay fresh for a year in the pantry!

I hope y’all have a great rest of your weekend. I’m heading to the bedroom to enjoy the rest of this UGA football game before running 18 miles tomorrow morning! I’m doing 6 miles solo before heading up to the Bronx with Gia for the NYRR Bronx 10 miler and then 2 miles solo after the race. Afterwards Meg and I are going to take my mother-in-law to the Wanderlust Yoga Festival on Pier 63!

Question: Do you ever eat microwave meals? If so, what is your favorite? 

FitFluential LLC compensated me for this Campaign.All opinions are my own