Wednesday, June 30, 2010

The Best Frozen Lasagna From Toronto Grocery Stores...




I made a discovery a few months ago, and I've been keeping it on the low, I don't know why... Maybe I didn't want everyone out there to find out and start buying all of it, leaving me with none the next time I look for it...

It's this Frozen Lasagna called The Village Kitchen - Vegetable Lasagna (900 g). I have to say, it is the best frozen lasagna you can buy out there. At least here in Toronto, and from a regular grocery store (I'm not going to give out the name, but you can find where to buy it at this link: The Village Kitchen - Locations).

Now, just to be clear, this isn't me trying to sell a friend's products. I don't know who they are, it's just, damn, they make an amazing lasagna! So amazing that I actually had to take the time to write a post about it...

And I've tried them all... You know the ones. They're stashed in the freezers all together in one place. There are those big family ones, and the smaller 2-people ones... Meat Lasagnas, and 4-Cheese Lasagnas, and Vegetable Lasagnas. Lots of different brands and types, but all taste pretty much the same. They all have that generic tomato sauce, the veggies all taste the same, and yada yada, you know what I'm talking about. Don't get me wrong, I will buy and eat them if there's no Village Kitchen Lasagna there, as a Lasagna in the oven is the easiest dinner to make after work. Just unwrap and pop in. Simple.

Anyway, this Lasagna is in a deceptively small container, but it fills 2 people (at least myself and my girl) 100% completely. Sometimes there's a small tiny quarter-of-a-piece left, but most of the times that's dealt with as well, as you really can't just look at it afterwards and not want to eat it -regardless of how full you are...

Everyone's oven is different, so you can figure out how long it takes for you. For us, it takes about an hour and 15 mins or so. We basically come home, pop it in, go settle down and stuff, and it's ready.


Again, this Lasagna does not have that typical generic taste that all of the other frozen Lasagnas have. It really does taste good. And the tomato sauce that they use, oh, it's something else. For me, the sauce in the Lasagna is probably the most critical part about it. That generic sauce just kills it for me...

The one thing about this Lasagna, is that it's not cheap. It actually costs what it should cost given the taste. It's as expensive as the family size Lasagnas, maybe a tiny bit more. But it's worth it to have a nice, easy, filling meal that requires no work. And looking at the overall cost for 2 people, that's a cheap dinner.

If you don't have the pleasure of being able to get fresh home-made -and I mean made fresh from scratch in your home- Lasagna, then this Lasagna is the way to go. It's definitely the best Frozen Lasagna that you can get from a regular grocery store.

If you've had The Village Kitchen's Vegetable Lasagna, it would be great to hear your thoughts on it. I know I'm not the only person who is secretly enjoying this Lasagna.

And hey, if you know of any other Frozen Lasagna that you think is really good, let us all know. I'm sure all of us non-chef busy people would appreciate the tip.

--jackandcokewithalime

PS:  My pictures definitely don't do it justice...

PPS: For you meat lovers, I know you must have already dismissed this vegetable lasagna as some vegan crap (how dare I, right?!!), but trust me, try it, you'll see. You won't miss the meat. (Yes, yes, make your jokes, joke-makers...)

PPPS: Here are the ingredients for those of you who are interested:

Noodles, tomatoes, mozzarella and parmesan cheese, onions, garlic, peppers, eggplant, zucchini, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, mushrooms, celery, butter, flour, canola oil, whipping cream, sugar, salt, pepper, herbs and spices.

Made around the corner up in Markham, ON, I believe (as per their website).


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All images taken by jackandcokewithalime
)

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