Double Deal Of The Day - Stuffed Pastas & Blog Talk Radio Interview

Thanks to Annie & Burl of blogtalkradio for being the perfect host to The 99 Cent Chef last night -- what a fun time. Click here to hear all about it. The Chef's call is taken about 15 minutes into the show and lasts half an hour. Look for the player icon on the right side to pause/play. Or just hit play button below:

Listen to internet radio with Annie and Burl Live on Blog Talk Radio

Italian gold today: the great finds of cheese tortelloni in a tomato cream sauce and mushroom ravioli in a mushroom cream sauce; both frozen entrees made by Bertolli, and each sell for 99.99 cents. Now, a bag of uncooked plain pasta will go for a buck on sale, but a chance to get luscious ricotta cheese-filled pastas with fresh (not dried) flecks of parsley in intensely flavored sauces, and in one pound bags, does not come around enough for this chintzy chef.

The Chef microwaved a serving of each type at his free-lance job yesterday. The stove top is always preferable, but these frozen entrees held up quite well, as the sauce kept the stuffed pasta moist.

First is Mushroom Ravioli in a Mushroom Cream Sauce. The raviolis are plump, not overcooked, and filled with beige-flecked mushroom and ricotta cheese. The savory sauce is intensely fungi flavored with a light milk and cheese combination. But you may have to dig around in the bag to find frozen mushroom slices if you are spreading out the bag over a few servings.

Next up is the Chef's favorite, Cheese Tortelloni in a Tomato Cream Sauce. Combining cream and tomato makes for a tasty and complex sauce. Bertolli gets the balance right -- one does not overpower the other -- and the fat tortellonis have a creamy, sweet ricotta filling. It's a great vegetarian meal.

Now, the Chef does not pay enough attention to the calorie content (sorry ladies), but one of his female workmates paused, grabbed the bag and asked: "How many calories does this bag have?" (reading the back label) "Why I could eat a whole bag, no problem!" I guess that means it's low in calories and fat.

Both Deals of the Day will have your family or friends looking over your shoulder, as the fragrant flavors of cream and real fresh frozen herbs fill the kitchen after a few minutes of heating in the pan. You can easily get a couple of servings per bag. Check out your local 99c only Store for these great Deals of the Day, and definitely get a few 1 lb. bags. This is the store

I picked mine up from. On the Chef's deliciousness scale of 1 to 9, both stuffed pastas get a solid 9!