Fasta pasta When he saw ads for Stouffer's new Easy Express family-size frozen Cheesy Garlic Lasagna With Meat and Sauce ("18 minutes in a new microbake tray"), Mr. Tidbit (not much of a lasagna buyer) was puzzled: 18 minutes doesn't sound all that fast. How long does it take to make Stouffer's regular family-size not-quite-as-cheesy or garlicky frozen Lasagna With Meat and Sauce?
A trip to the store reveals that heating these five-serving products is indeed a fairly time-consuming business: The regular version takes 85 minutes in the conventional oven or 34 minutes in the microwave; Easy Express zips by in 75 minutes in the regular oven or 171/2 minutes in the microwave. (Actually, for both products, heated either way, you are supposed to wait 5 minutes before serving.) At the discount supermarket where he bought them, both versions cost $6.59.
To Mr. Tidbit's unsophisticated lasagna palate, the only differences seemed to be that the Easy Express version was indeed cheesier and garlickier, but the products are different: Mr. Tidbit has no idea whether that difference contributes to baking speed, but the Easy Express lasagna is heavier on the noodles.
There are two other differences, both of which surely permit faster cooking: The Easy Express pan is longer, narrower and shallower than the regular pan, and of course (as they sell for the same price) there's less Easy Express lasagna in the pan -- 35 ounces instead of 38.
The sad truth A few weeks ago Mr. Tidbit enthused about the chocolate gooeyness of Pillsbury Sweet Moments Triple Chocolate Molten Cake, a small refrigerated item you warm briefly in the microwave. He hopes you haven't been spending every waking moment trying to find it: Apparently he bought the last of the little devils. He just learned that they were only being test-marketed, and they're gone. (Too bad; they were really good!)
AL SICHERMAN
