Italian Creations: Tomato, Red Wine & Balsamic product reviews

I needed a quick meal tonight so it was time to try out another Watties Creation meal - I've had hits and misses with these, but I'm a huge balsamic fan so was keen to try this one.

The picture on the front shows it served as pasta and meatballs, but this is only one of the suggestions on the back. I went with a simple mince mixture served on pasta (well actually it turned out that I didn't have enough spaghetti, so I stirred spiral pasta though before serving).

The way I served it of course, meant stretching the sauce a lot further than intended, but I think it worked well with the 300g of pasta I used, and after serving 2 adults and a 5 year old, we still have enough for a second night so I'm happy with that for an economic meal!

The sauce has 4.5 servings of vegetables but I added some mixed veges too. You could easily grate carrots or courgettes into the mixture to pump up the vegetable content without being too obvious too. Taste - yum! I liked the taste and my 5 year old didn't object to the kick you got from the balsamic vinegar. She normally hates balsamic vinegar too, but it is fairly mild, especially diluted with pasta.

I'd happily buy and use this again and would try some of the other options such as meatballs or using it in lasagne, especially if I noticed it on sale which would make it even more economical. It's just that little bit different than the regular pasta sauces out there. Great for an easy, quick meal.

I absolutely love the new Watties creations range, they are my new favorite. I love the bargain price, the easy to open packets, the simple easy to read instructions with hints and tips. These are simple easy to use sauces that do not require a great deal of thought, energy, or extra ingredients if you are using the sauces for their intended purpose. With this in mind, these sauces are also perfect for uses not what the packets suggest. In fact they are only limited to your imagination.

Intalian Creations: Tomato, Red Wine & Balsamic is a thick tomato based sauce. The packet is jam packed with the sauce so you definitely get a great amount. I have been impressed with just how much sauce is in these packets. This one has a good strong aroma to it and is one of the quicker from packet to table ones available. We just used it in a simple pasta dish and as we are a family of 5 we often need to use more than the recommended amount of everything to ensure everyone actually gets fed lol There was more than enough of this sauce to make sure our dish was nicely covered.

Once served I admit I was really impressed that all of my family loved this sauce. Well all of them except for me. This would be my least favorite of all the Watties sauces I have tried. This one had to strong of a flavor forme, the red wine came through much to strong. My review score is based on my families opinions with the personal choice being my own personal opinion.

Having tried the Tomato and Basil Pesto last night I was really looking forward to trying this tomato, red wine and balsamic tonight. I decided to follow the suggestion on the packet of meatballs so quickly made up my meat ball mix and browned the meatballs before adding the sauce and simmering for 20 minutes. As we had eaten with pasta last night tonight we had rice so I didn't add cheese to the topping when I served it up to the family.

I think the balsamic gives this sauce a flavour that wasn't to the kids liking. Miss Seven managed one meatball and some sauce but the other two declared it to spicy and refused to eat anything the sauce had touched! Hubby and I didn't enjoy this sauce as much as the Tomato and Basil Pesto (which we loved) and hubby didn't think we should buy this again. I would probably buy it one more time to try with a Moussaka or aubergine parmigiana and see if that changes the taste but really as a straight sauce I did prefer the tomato and basil pesto flavour. This sauce is one that would probably be a great base when making lasagne or other dishes that have more ingredients to give a depth to the dish as just as a straight sauce on meatballs I think it was a little to overpowering.

I do like that this is gluten free and that is a huge plus for it as a cooking sauce in our house and that it is natural so I don't need to worry about nasty little additives. I would buy this again to try in different dishes and I would definitely recommend trying this sauce to see how it works in your household.

I like experimenting with various sauces and ways to use it and serve it, I liked the sound of this sauce. We have all had a grumpy day (just the kind when everything goes wrong) so wasn't really in the mood for cooking. Browned the mince and put the sauce with it while the pasta was cooking and it filled my kitchen with a very delicious smell. I was thinking that it smelt nice and hoping the taste would live up to what I was expecting. It was really yum, even my kids liked it and two can be very fussy eaters.

I served it with pasta topped with the mince and cheese for those who wanted. It is the first meal in a while that nothing was left over and there were some muttered comments about there should have been a bit more so I guess this is going to be a regular purchase in my shopping.

I can't really find fault, it was tasty without adding too many spices, I find if I add too many spices then the kids tend to eat a few mouthfuls and tell me that they have had enough, in fact I never added any spices at all and the taste was really good and so easy to use.

I will be trying some of the rest of the range for days when I just can't be bothered cooking but would like the food to taste like I have spent hours in the kitchen.

After last nights Watties Italian Creations "Tomato and Basil Pesto" I was really concerned that this was not going to be enjoyable. Exactly the same preparation and ingredients. Cooked the pasta, while that was happening fried some onions and mince and added the mushrooms and then the sauce, while everything is cooking the girls grated some cheese and in less than half an hour had the meal prepared. It looked like last nights meal so I was not that excited, but I was so completely wrong - this was fantastic.

It had a real nice homely taste to it and could imagine using this sauce as a base to a pie or even a really nice savoury mince with mashed potatoes. I think the ingredients are perfectly combined together and it really was yummy. I had cooked spaghetti and meatballs couple weeks back and this sauce would of been perfect for that dish. Actually, there really are numerous uses you can do with this.

Both of my girls loved it and asked for a second helping, and even I had a bit more mince. Definitely one that I will keep in the pantry for those nights where I want a quick meal or even to add some extra flavouring to something. Really great price, especially considering its so versatile.

Yum, yum, yum! This is by far the best premade pasta sauce I have ever tasted! Usually when it comes to pasta sauce I like to make my own or use a premade as a base and throw lots of extras in it to get the perfect sauce. With the Wattie's Tomato, Red Wine & Balsamic sauce nothing needs added to it.

I got home from work late tonight and was ready just to sit down and relax but needed to cook dinner first. within 20 minutes start to finish we were sitting down to the most delish spag-bol ever! It was so simple and easy to do cook some pasta and while that is doing brown some mince and onion throw in the sauce and simmer, when it's all done throw it on a plate!

The flavour of the finished dish was just amazing when I first opened the packet I could smell the vinegar and I was worried it would be over powering but I'm pleased to say it wasn't. The balsamic was a very slight flavour the rich tomato and the red wine were the more punchy flavours in the sauce.

The sauce will be making it on to my shopping list for sure it will be one of the easy to grab and throw together at the last moment back ups in the pantry.

Top marks from me for this awesome sauce, I absolutely love the red wine taste. I cook a lot of mince stuff and this sauce was by far the best taste I have ever been able to add to a mince concoction. Usually I go with the sauces in a can or in a jar or occasionally I will make it from scratch with tomatoes, thyme, rosemary, pepper, oil, garlic etc. BUT I have never had a pre made sauce taste so good. This is my next best go to sauce and my current number one favourite.

I used it for our meal as a bolognaise base with just some pasta and a little bit of pepper to taste. I didn't really need to do anything else to the meal though. There are a few other flavours in this range but being a huge "red wine in food" fan but not a "red wine to drink" fan, I was so pleased to taste the red wine essence in this sauce. To be honest it is the amazing part about this sauce. It adds a different edge to the otherwise potentially boring sauce. I would highly recommend this is the sauce that you buy if you are going to buy a sauce from this range. Excellent price, excellent value for money - easily covering 1kg of mince. You won't go wrong.

I occasionally like to use premade sauces for meals, generally I do this when extra busy or tired, or on Saturdays for lunch after church to make a quick and easy lunch to share with friends.On one of the occasions that I used the Wattie's Creations Tomato, Red Wine & Balsamic sauce, I made bean nachos. I do home-based childcare and for my Job I occasionally do cooking and baking with the children. On one of these times we made pizza, using the Wattie's Creations Tomato, Red Wine & Balsamic sauce for the base.

When I used this sauce for nachos, I found that it added a new element that blended nicely with the beans, adding an Italian flavour to the mix . My friends enjoyed the combination, and it disappeared quickly. Even my sister who normally won't eat it because she doesn't like the beans ate it, and had seconds.

This sauce is also amazing on pizza. One of the kids that I made pizza with decided that they didn't want anything on their pizza but cheese. Even on that pizza the sauce added a lot more flavour to the pizza other than cheese. My pizza had more than just cheese and even then it went well with everything.

I would use this sauce again, and maybe next time actually use it with pasta. My family like it so it would make things easier for those times I don't really have the time or energy for cooking. I would however still prefer to make my own sauces. I would also normally buy the cheaper pasta sauces, but if this one was on sale I would buy it.

"Oh dear lord, you have blessed my tastebuds with magic, flavour and delight!" OK, maybe I said something more like "Er mrfkngwd, ymmm ohgwdyss!" or something like that... I can't recall exactly, because I was too busy enjoying one of the best Spag-bols I have made in a long time. SO simple!

Set the spaghetti cooking in lightly salted water with about a teaspoon of rice bran oil to help prevent it clumping as it boils, then fry off some onions and capsicum, then about 400-500g of lean mince. When it's well browned and broken down well, empty the packet into the pan and let it simmer for about 7-8 minutes while the pasta finishes off... drain the pasta, toss with some chopped parsley and serve.

So easy! So delicious! So... all gone before I thought to grab a photo.

This is, so far, my favourite from the range, and though I get a lot of pleasure from making my own sauces from scratch, I will be keeping a couple of packets of this in the pantry at all times for those occasions when I am late home and dinner needs to be made in under 20 minutes. This could be my new go-to meal saviour!

Overall, an excellent member of the range and well worth trying out if you enjoy food with plenty of flavour, but not too much. I can easily see me using this to make many other favourite Italian dishes - lasagne, ravioli sauce, alla puttanesca - and even as a base for some Mexican dishes too, such as cannelloni, enchaladas, and probably in my next low-spice nachos - suitable for those who enjoy exotic flavours in small, milder doses.

Yum! This is a quick, easy and very tasty pasta sauce which it makes a MEAN spaghetti bolognese!

We started by putting the spaghetti on to cook in a pot of boiling water and then putting some mince in a frypan and browning it. We had run out of onions otherwise we would have added them too. Once the mince was browned we added the pasta sauce and left it to simmer while the pasta finished cooking. Too easy, plenty of time to wipe down the benches and empty the dishwasher.

Once all was done and cooked we drained the pasta and served it up into our two dinner plates and two lunch containers (meals that provide lunch for the next day are a huge bonus and are more likely to be repeated in this house) and added some parmesan cheese to top it off.

Mmmmmmmm I can still taste the delicious tomato taste with a hint of vinegar. The flavour was definitely present but was, in now way, overpowering.

I can see this sauce packet being used in other pasta type dishes such as a pasta bake or lasagna as well as spaghetti bolognese which makes it a great packet to keep handy in the cupboard. Very easy to use and follow the directions, I would recommend this to anyone needing a quick, tasty meal.

Spaghetti Bolognese is a staple in our household. We have is about once a week. My husband is the one that cooks it and he is also the one the does the main grocery shopping so it is usually made with a cheap can of pasta sauce. Our kids (5 and 4 years old) usually eat the spaghetti and hardly touch the meat sauce. I eat the meat only because it is in front of me. It is hardly the most appealing meal.

When I was given Watties Italian Creations Tomato, Red Wine & Balsamic Pasta Sauce to review we were all pleasantly surprised. The recipe on the packet was for bolognese and said to add the sauce to browned onion and mince and add mushrooms if you wanted. It couldn't be easier. It was so fast I didn't even have time to put the dishes away while it was cooking. Since Miss 5 doesn't eat onion if she can see it, I cooked it separately to add to the adult's meals upon serving. I also cooked some mushroom for me with Miss 4 stealing a few.

The sauce had a slight vinegar smell but the flavour was very subtle. It was really a sauce that brings out the flavour of the meat. It had a smooth texture which really helped as the fussy eaters couldn't see the onion and it didn't have any chewy bits. We all really loved the taste and the girls ate all their meat and complemented me on the meal (a very rare event). For this reason alone I will be buying this again.

I am trying to lose the extra kilos that have snuck on over the years so I was very pleased to see that it was 85% vegetables with only a little salt and sugar. My waistline approved of that. It is such a versatile sauce too. The packet suggested using it for meatballs, lasagne or cannelloni but I also think it would make a great pizza sauce too as it is a good consistency to stay on the base.

This is the first of the Watties Creations range I have tried and I am keen to try the others I have for review. If they are as popular with my family as this one I will be tempted to try some that we normally wouldn't touch like curries. If they are are hit with my family then they will be popular in my other families too.

When we got the Watties Creation sauces, this is the first one I decided to cook with. Now my challenge was that my husband is very picky and he especially hates the taste of cooked tomatoes. This Italian pasta sauce can not hide the tomato, that is for sure! I decided to make a macaroni pasta bake.

I boiled my macaroni elbows and then made a simple white sauce, with added cheese to top my pasta bake with. In a frying pan, I browned some mince and then added this sauce. The smell was strong, and acidic but not unpleasant to me. A guest arrived for our weekly games night. As he walked in, he asked if I was cooking with some kind of vinegar and when I confirmed it he was relieved. He thought it was either dinner or someone had been sick. It's not that bad!

Into a baking dish, I poured the macaroni, and the meat sauce. I mixed this together so the pasta was covered. Then I topped with the cheese sauce and grated cheese. I baked this for about 20 minutes and then served it up. This as very popular and even my husband commented that it was nice.

My eldest daughter was happily eating her dinner. My youngest finished her whole bowlful. Then when she was let out of the highchair, she went and sat with her sister and proceeded to try and have her dinner too! We had to rescue the eldest, because she couldn't keep her sister out of her bowl. So the toddler had a second helping. Our guests sneaked a few mouthfuls out of the dish as well while I wasn't looking and then declared it delicious (they had brought their own dinner with them). And the toddler ended up having three helpings of dinner altogether. So I think we can call this one a success. We would definitely get this again.