Review: Kraft - Homebake 425/30 Chicken Parmesan, Loaded Scalloped Potatoes, and Italian Style Cauliflower

Kraft's Homebake 425°/:30 is a line of frozen dishes that are meant to feed about four people (it's aimed at families). The concept is that you can purchase an main entree, a side, and a veggie dish and bake all three in the oven at the same temperature (425° F) and for the same amount of time (30 minutes).

I received Chicken Parmesan (main), Loaded Scalloped Potatoes (side), and Italian Style Cauliflower (veggie) courtesy of Kraft. I haven't seen these at any of the supermarkets that I frequent but I searched online and the main entrees go for $12.79 at Meijer, while the sides and veggie dish costs $7.79 each.

Each of the Homebake 425/30 came in the same sized metal tray with sealed plastic on top. You just slide each tray out of its paperboard sleeve and place them all in the oven (all three trays just managed to fit on the same rack).

The Homebake 425/30 Chicken Parmesan comes in a 19.8-oz tray and features "crispy Italian style breaded white meat chicken bites layered with sweet marinara sauce, gooey mozzarella cheese, and grated parmesan cheese."

The chicken bites were basically breaded large boneless chunks of chicken. They were juicy inside and just slightly crispy as far as the lightly seasoned breading went. They sat in a thickened shallow layer of caramelized-to-burnt cheese and marinara sauce. The marinara was sweet and tangy, while the caramelized cheese added an extra toasty flavor and crispness but not much in the way of a cheese pull. The parmesan added a salty bite.

Except for the lack of gooey cheese, the Homebake Chicken Parmesan turned out pretty well. The chicken itself turned out well if, expectedly, not crispy and the caramelized cheese made up, to some extent, for the lack of stretchy cheese.

The Homebake 425/30 Loaded Scalloped Potatoes also comes in a 19.8-oz tray and features "thinly sliced potatoes in a gooey cheese sauce topped with crispy applewood smoked bacon, cheddar cheese, mozzarella cheese, and green onions.

The Loaded Scalloped Potatoes offered a similar flavor to loaded baked potato skins but with more of a rich creaminess. As such, they offered a baked potato flavor along with mild cheese, smoky bacon, and a few green onions notes.

In terms of texture, the thin and tender potato slices were a bit of a novelty as I don't eat scalloped potatoes very often. There were a few edges that were dried and chewy from baking. The bacon was soft rather than crispy and the cheese mostly melted into a creamy sauce. The green onions were a bit sparse and, along with the bacon, were mostly found in the center of the dish.

Basically, the flavors of the Loaded Scalloped Potatoes were familiar and enjoyable but the textures and quantities could use some adjustments.

The Homebake 425/30 Italian Style Cauliflower comes in a 15-oz tray and features "tender cauliflower florets and red peppers tossed and seasoned with basil, parsley, oregano, and garlic. Topped with a blend of grated parmesan cheese and perfectly toasted breadcrumbs."

This dish was pretty much soft and tender all around. There was some lightly seasoned, vague notes from the cheese and herbs. The breadcrumbs were soft like the rest of the dish and probably would have been better in a separate pouch to add once the dish was done baking.

The Italian Style Cauliflower turned out decently but didn't really get any benefit from being baked.

Overall, Kraft's Homebake 425/30 frozen meal solution worked out nicely enough in terms of flavor and convenience but the textures weren't all that much better versus the microwave. The main benefit here is that you toss everything into the oven at the same time and it will all be done after 30 minutes so that you don't have to worry about any one dish going cold as you wait for any of the others to cook.

Nutritional Info - Homebake 425/30 Chicken Parmesan
Serving Size - 5 oz (140g)
Calories - 200 (from Fat - 90)
Fat - 9g (Saturated Fat - 2.5g)
Sodium - 650mg
Carbs - 16g (Sugar - 3g)
Protein - 15g

Nutritional Info - Homebake 425/30 Loaded Scalloped Potatoes
Serving Size - 3/4 cup (130g)
Calories - 240 (from Fat - 110)
Fat - 12g (Saturated Fat - 7g)
Sodium - 570mg
Carbs - 25g (Sugar - 2g)
Protein - 8g

Nutritional Info - Homebake 425/30 Italian Style Cauliflower
Serving Size - 3/4 cup (89g)
Calories - 90 (from Fat - 60)
Fat - 7g (Saturated Fat - 1.5g)
Sodium - 240mg
Carbs - 6g (Sugar - 1g)
Protein - 3g