This
is a fancy review, because not only does it include a product review, not only
does it also include a STORE LOCATION review, but it also includes a GUEST
REVIEW!!! One of my readers, who is also
a friend, WARD, asked a looong time ago if I would consider a guest review from
him and his wife. I answered with a
resounding YES, because he is a fun guy, a great writer, and because it would
be something new and different for the blog!
A fresh point of view!!
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| May I present Ward and Ann - the guest reviewers! |
So here it is – let’s start with what Ward and Ann have to say about Trader Joe’s Sweet
Corn, Burrata and Basil Ravioli:
“This is one of those
meal items that has me saying, “It’s good, but it needs … something…” I am
talking about Trader Joe’s Sweet Corn, Burrata & Basil Ravioli. The
subtitle on the package says, “Creamy ricotta and burrata cheese ravioli filled
with sweet corn and basil.” It comes in
a sealed, refrigerated eight-ounce plastic tray with two servings per
container. It is not a gluten-free product, nor is it vegan, but it qualifies
as vegetarian.
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| Here is the package |
Ann loves ravioli and
loves to impulse shop at TJ’s. So, this came into our kitchen, and I made the
meal. The ingredient list is long, including mostly recognizable things like
durum wheat, cheese, canola oil, sea salt, turmeric, cayenne powder, and
microbial enzymes (which I believe are used in cheese-making as a vegetarian
substitute for rennet.) At our Trader Joe’s in Rochester, NY, this ravioli
package sells for $3.49. (Editor’s note:
Rochester, NY is where I met my sweetheart David! And on our very first date we went to a
grocery store, Wegman’s! I wish I could
say we went to Trader Joe’s, but I don’t think there was one in Rochester at
the time, and besides, Wegman’s is a quintessentially Rochester experience…)
Before adding anything
else to it, I sampled a plain cooked raviolo. (Yes, raviolo is the singular of
ravioli!) It was good, but not very
exciting. The filling was mostly corn, and the corn was fairly coarse and
unsweet. Maybe I am spoiled by having the luxury of choice when it comes to
seasonal sweet corn in upstate New York. If we get corn that is not tender or
sweet enough, it goes into the freezer for soups or stews. The corn in these
ravioli would have barely met my soup standards. The cheese and basil part of
the filling was fine, but there could have been more of it.
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| Pretty good price for this item |
Now, about the pasta -
the casing of these ravioli was rather fragile. As a result, a few of the
ravioli spilled their guts in the cooking water (and I was very careful not to
overcook – the package directions are clear about not boiling.) So, if this
happens when you cook it, make sure you drain through a sieve or colander that
will catch all the interior bits that have escaped into the cooking pot.
So, here are my secret
magical additives to bring this dish from a 2.5 to a 4.5: greens, chickpeas and
garlic. These are my basic go-to additives for many pasta dishes. Sauté some
chopped greens like chard, spinach, or rabe until tender. Add minced garlic and
cooked chickpeas (canned is okay, but I prefer cooking dry beans in a pressure
cooker – less salt and more flavor.) When the veggies are tender, melt in
plenty of butter (yes, real butter)
and add red pepper flakes and salt to taste. The chickpeas will add a nutty and
creamy protein factor. The greens will add a fresh garden goodness. And, well, garlic is garlic.
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| Ahhh, with Ward's magical enhancements it looks delightful, no? |
Drain the ravioli (and
whatever filling has spilled out) and add them to the skillet with the other
ingredients. Toss and serve onto warmed plates (editor’s note: warmed plates?? Remind me to eat dinner at Ann and Ward’s
house next time we are in Rochester – fancy!) with grated parmesan to sprinkle
on top. Ann suggests a wine pairing of Pinot Noir. Since
we live near the Finger Lakes, we poured one from Ravines Winery.
Rating: without Ward’s magical enhancements – 2.5
Rating: with Ward’s magical enhancements – 4.5 "
And
now let’s look at what David and I thought of Trader Joe’s Sweet Corn, Burrata & Basil Ravioli, shall we? We
served it with fresh basil (from our garden) and grated parmesan on top. It will be interesting (to me anyway…) to see
if our tastes are similar to Ann and Ward’s!
David: “These ravioli are very nice. They are light, a little bland, but the cheese
inside is a nice choice to give them some flavor. I would personally prefer – I mean – the pasta
itself is VERY tasty, so it is nice that the sauce doesn’t obfuscate that, but I
like a little bit more taste, so I would recommend serving this with sprinkled
bacon bits, or a tomato and sausage sauce.
Something that would bring a little more zing to the flavor palate. But,
that is not the ravioli’s job! Their job
is to be the best pasta ravioli they can be!
And since the ingredients are corn and a kind of bland cheese, I think
it does a great job. I give it a 4.0.”
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| David looks a bit unsure of this product before we tried it... Aren't the stripes on the raviolis pretty? |
And here is my take: I am
glad we added the fresh basil and parmesan, I think those were good with this
dish. The label said that the ravioli included
basil, but I couldn’t taste that in it at all (and neither could David). We served this with just olive oil for a “sauce”,
and I think that is the only way to go with it, because the taste is so mild
that any other sauce would overpower the ravioli.
The corn is chunks of corn, which I thought was nice. This pasta has the problem that other TJ’s
raviolis have – how do you safely get them OUT of the pot after they are
cooked? You really need a large slotted spoon to
gently remove them, and when we had these we were not in a kitchen that was
stocked with one of those.
Overall, I like the taste of these. I agree with David’s score of 4.0.
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Look - we are visiting YET ANOTHER Trader Joe's!
I think this brings the total to around 33 locations visited in 12 states so far. |
And finally, a note about a new to us Trader Joe’s location – the store
on West Sand Lake Rd in Orlando: This
was a very nice store. It was clean,
well lit, and well laid out. The employees
were friendly (although none offered to help us). I did not notice anything really unique about
the store, but they did have some cool flamingos at the check-outs. I asked if those are always up and they said
that they had put them up months earlier and just left them, because customers
liked them. 😊
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| Flamingos make anything look more "Florida", even check-out lanes |
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| Orlando Trader Joe's signage |
Here is a recap of ravioli scores:
Price: $3.49
Rating: (average of 6 raters, since Ann and Ward rated it using 2
different cooking techniques) 3.75
