Heinz Princess Pasta Shapes > Reviews (1)

I have two nieces, both almost 5............one has a hearty appetite, the other eats like a sparrow and this product appeals even to the latter.

It actually encourages her to eat as she looks at the princesses, tiara, star and castle shapes, the other needs no encouragement which is great!!

~ Packaging ~

This is a 205g tin that comes with a easy opening handle, so no need for a tin opener.

The pictures and colours used are very appealing to any little girl who is obssessed with princesses, which is a great marketing tool by Heinz as their eyes are drawn to the dark and light pink shades and the pictures of Cinderella and Snow White looking oh so pretty!!

It has HEINZ along the top with Disney Princess underneath but it's the pictures of the princesses that grabs their attention.

~ What's inside ~

Basically there are little bits of pasta in the following shapes:

• 2 styles of castle
• Cinderella
• Snow White
• A tiara
• A star

These are all in a tomato sauce.

~ My experience ~

The girls love eating them and I do find that they are handy to have for a quick snack when they come to stay but I certainly wouldn't say that they constitute a 'proper' meal.

There is an awful lot of sauce in the tins which I tend to drain off before serving them.

It smells unsurprisingly very tomato based which isn't awful but a tad strong.

The colour is very rich..........reddy / orangey colour and be warned, if they 'slop' a little bit on to their clothes it's a bit of a pain to get out, particularly on lighter coloured clothes.

As an adult I'm not overly keen on the richness of the sauce. I love Heinz Baked Beans and was hoping for something that I could tuck in to if they didn't finish the tin, but one little morsel was enough for me.

Having an Italian father, I'm a stickler for pasta al dente so I don't like the sogginess of the pasta shapes but then again they are aimed at children who aren't quite as critical of the amount of time required to cook pasta etc...........they did seem happy enough with them, perhaps it's because no real chewing is involved as they easily slide down your throat.

The shapes are however great fun for children as they discuss what they are going to devour next, the princesses are usually first as they are their favourite characters!~ Cooking Instructions ~

• Heat gently in a pan, stirring.
• These are microweavable

~ Nutritional Values Per Can ~If you aren't interested in these please skip this section, I just thought that some of you with children may be interested in them before serving them to your little ones! I have just included the main ones.

• Energy ~ 114kcal
• Protein ~ 3.8g
• Carbs ~ 23.7g
• Fat ~ 0.5g
• Fibre ~ 1.1g
• Salt equivalent ~ 0.8g

No artificial colours, flavours or preservatives.
Contains Gluten and Wheat.
Suitable for vegetarians.

~ Additional Info ~

I bought these in January 2006 as Asda were having a 3 for 2 offer and I'm a sucker for offers. They do stay in your cupboards if unopened for a year as the Best Before Date on the base of the tin states Jan 2007.

Any unused contents should be emptied in to a tupperward type container with a lid, refrigerated and used within 2 days.

(This is something I have never had to do as the girls 'wolf' them down!)

For more information about Heinz products visit www.heinz.co.uk or call free on 0800 5285757.

~ Price ~

The current price in Asda is 34p per tin but as I said earlier they do sometimes have a 3 for 2 offer.

To conclude, these are a great little snack when you haven't much time inbetween feeding the ducks and going to the Sea Life Centre, but I would certainly not rely upon them on a daily basis as there are so many other healthy foods for growing children. They do make eating more fun for children and encourages those with smaller appetites to eat at least something during the course of the day.

I wouldn't choose to eat them, too much of a rich, tomato flavour, although I love fresh tomatoes and the pasta shapes are soggy but in Heinz's defence they aren't aiming these at adults and they definitely get a 10 out of 10 from my nieces!