Conte’s Gluten Free Pasta – Review and Giveaway!

Recently, I was discussing with some friends how many gluten free pastas simply weren’t very good.  That same day, I found Conte’s Gluten Free Pasta on Twitter (contespasta), and went to have a look at their website (http://www.contespasta.com/).  Their heart shaped cheese ravioli were about the cutest pasta I’ve even seen, and the rest of their raviolis look equally gorgeous (check out the Conte’s ravioli page to see what I’m talking about).  On a whim, I contacted Conte’s to see if they’d be willing to host a review and giveaway, and they said yes!  It’s taken us a bit of time to work our way through the very generous sample box they sent, but I’m finally ready to roll with our review of Conte’s gluten free pasta.

Where is Conte’s Pasta located, and how long have they been making Conte’s gluten free pasta?

Angela Conte opened Conte’s Restaurant in 1978, in Vineland, New Jersey.  The restaurant was very popular, and customers requested pasta to make at home.  Several years later, this demand led her son, Mike, to open Conte’s Pasta Company.  Conte’s pasta developed a wide array of products, including gourmet ravioli, shaped pasta, garlic bread and pizza.

In 2007, Conte’s Pasta Company introduced their Conte’s gluten free pasta. Their gluten free product line includes raviolis, pierogis, stuffed shells, lasagna, gnocchi, pizzas and plain pizza crust.

Are Conte’s Gluten Free Pastas Really Gluten Free?

All Conte’s gluten free products are produced in a dedicated gluten free facility, certified gluten free and “No WBRO”, which means “No Wheat, Barley, Rye and Oats”.  You can view full ingredient lists online on their Specialty Products page (you can also purchase the pastas online if you can’t find them locally).

What do Conte’s Gluten Free Pastas Taste Like?

The frozen dinners (cheese lasagna and stuffed shells) featured a good balance of sauce, pasta and cheese.  Portion size was comparable to most frozen dinners.  The sauce was very good, with a fresh tomato flavor.  The pasta held up well in the microwave.  Here you can see a bite of the stuffed shells:

The Margherita pizza with Roasted Garlic and Olive Oil had a fair amount of garlic kick and an ample amount of cheese.  I think we could have cooked ours a hair more, as the center did end up just a bit doughy.  The untopped crusts would be great for a quick weeknight meal paired with your choice of homemade toppings.

The raviolis cooked up nicely and held together well.  No skimping on the filling!  You can see these little pasta pockets are stuffed with cheese and spinach.  In this photo I’ve got them paired with some of my homemade pasta sauce.

I shared some of the pierogis with a friend of mine because she was very curious about them, and here’s what she had to say:

The pierogis were boiled in salted water for 7 minutes, drained and topped with butter and salt/ pepper. After cooling a bit, we tasted and were impressed with the flavor. None of us detected off texture or flavor. (I was looking because of the GF status.) This pasta passed our taste tests- two teen girls, one other youngster and mom.

No gumminess in the pasta and excellent filling of potato and cheese. Would not recommend using them the next day after cooking as they did change appearance and texture then.

We recommend this product as a hot pasta treat and would purchase them!

There are many more online reviews at The Gluten Free Mall of these and the other Conte’s gluten free products (in case you want a few more opinions  ).

There is one thing I would warn you about with these pastas – don’t overcook or undercook – watch your timing and the rate of cooking.  If you undercook, they will be a bit gummy in the center (like any pasta).  (Yes, we did this with one batch.)  If you boil them too vigorously, they will fall apart.  (Yes, we did this with one package, too.)  Follow the directions and gently simmer for 6-8 minutes, and you’ll be fine.

Where can I buy Conte’s Gluten Free Pasta?

As I mentioned above, they are available online.  Conte’s also has a list of retailers on their website, but I found some of their products locally at a retailer that was not listed (Festival Foods).  If you don’t see it at your preferred grocery store, it doesn’t hurt to ask, as they are expanding their availability.

Win Conte’s Gluten Free Pasta

Conte’s has generously offered to provide on winner chosen at random with a sample pack of Conte’s gluten free pasta.

This prize package will include:

1 Margherita Pizza 10”
1 Cheese Ravioli
1 Spinach/Cheese Ravioli
1 Potato/Cheese Pierogi
1 Cheese Lasagna Microwave Meal
1 Pizza Shell 2pk

Approx Retail Value: $40.00

Just use the Rafflecopter widget below to enter (those who are reading this post via subscription, please visit the site).  For your first entry, please leave a comment on this post and let us know which Conte’s gluten free product you would most like to try, or suggest a new idea for a product.  Bonus entries can be earned for those on Facebook and Twitter.

Good luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

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