It isn’t exactly a secret that Schär is my go-to brand for wheat and gluten free essentials. In fact, looking back, I have reviewed 13 items but probably eaten more. Foods I deem essential include bread (for emergency quick lunch between teaching), pasta (frequently) and a packet of good biscuits ready for surprise visitors. I’m not actually much of a bread eater but it’s interesting to see me morph into solely a bread eater should the mollases-rich Deli Style Sourdough five-slicer or equally decadent Wholesome Vitality Loaf make an appearance. If you are yet to try them, please do not do yourself a disservice by failing to treat your taste buds any longer than you need!
Today’s post is about the latest development in gluten free trends: fresh pasta. Not just fresh pasta but filled fresh pasta too. From the age of eighteen I have enjoyed – encountered – filled pasta just twice, firstly upon delivery of my first box from Coori. It was so beautiful! A year on, unbeknownst to me, things changed at Coori; the pasta tasted different, the ravioli shrunk and it just was not what I had awaited and expected. My second filled, fresh pasta was from Evexia Thrive and not bad at all, if a bit soft and generally lacking the magical something. Maybe this fresh tagliatelle and fresh ravioli will offer what I am looking for.
What does one want from a fresh pasta?
Texture
I am a pasta person and have been perfectly content with bog standard wheat and gluten free supermarket own brand options. But… that fabulous first order from Coori heightened a thirst for texture, that thick, slightly dense, wholesome bite that makes the pasta a separate entity rather than something that disappears beneath its accompaniment.
Consistency
Are you a little bit miffed by pasta pieces that adhere in clumps or cook unevenly? Yes, farfalle, I spake of you, aesthetically pleasing though you are.
Grip
Whether stirring through a pesto or topping with bolognaise or ragu, good pasta will allow the sauce to cling to it, ensuring masses of flavour with every bite. So if you notice little grooves or a subtle sandpaper texture, chances are it’s a deliberate design choice.
TAGLIATELLE
I doubt a more neatly wrapped bundle of pasta has been seen before. Gorgeously thick cut – evenly cut – tagliatelle, enough for two if serving with something big, looks as though it could have been made that very morning!
What’s in it?
A lot! Well, more than I was expecting.
Much as you know I have swayed toward veganism over the last few months, this tagliatelle is not intended for vegans, aiming instead for the classically Italian ‘flour, egg, oil’ makeup.
Three types of flour – maize, pea, rice – plus starches and things – maize starch, potato starch, vegetable fibres – make up what Schär describe as ‘Pasta Preparation’ and I would probably describe as ‘Flour’. After this, hopefully not in descending order of quantity, is guar gum (a thickener) and modified maize starch, then whole egg – 20%, water, egg white and extra virgin olive oil – 1.2%. I assume the guar gum and maize starch act as preservatives to justify the pasta’s three-week shelf life.
So how is it?
After a simple simmer in a pan of lightly salted, boiling water, my tagliatelle is ready to serve with my usual Monday Quornaise and rocket. Draining is easy; a jiggle of the spaghetti spoon does the trick!
The texture is absolutely what I desire from fresh tagliatelle. Centimetre-wide strips cut nice and thick make me crave more before I even touch my favourite Quorn bolognaise. There is a slight flavour of something one does not find in dry pasta, how I imagine a floury preservative to taste, but it is important to note that it disappears upon adding a little extra virgin olive oil and coarsely milled pink Himalayan salt… heaven, and definitely the simple way in which to enjoy the other half of the pack for midweek lunch.
Aside from glorious texture, this pasta possesses the essential grip! Yes, Quornaise clings to every forkful, with crisp rocket and a few drops of olive oil completing my superbly healthy Monday dinner.
I would rather eat a less egg-rich pasta, ideally altogether vegan, however I felt a wickedly naughty satisfaction as the ‘I’ve really indulged!’ warmth filled my tummy, reminiscent of the first time we visited Chichester and spontaneously tried out Carluccio’s, initially to my profuse disappointment then polar opposite thrill upon discovering Carluccio’s got good! It was an enormous bowl of gluten free pasta with a veg-rich sauce and every piece melted!
My partner tried just a little and said ‘Oh wow!’ Pretty much sums it up.
SPINACH AND RICOTTA RAVIOLI
I am pleased to note the pasta itself appears exactly the same, a rich yellow resultant from a high percentage of fresh egg and more thinly rolled to accommodate both the filling and crimped, double-thickness edge.
Despite these being smaller parcels than I think many people would expect, half a pack appears substantial for a lunch or light dinner.
What’s in it?
Again, there are more ingredients than I would expect to list, however the shelf life (refrigerated of course!) is lengthy, almost three weeks. Looking at just the filling (a healthy 40% of the pack) it contains vegetarian ricotta cheese 40.7% (milk, milk cream, salt, acidity regulator: citric acid), potatoes, spinach 20.3%, sunflower oil, vegetarian Italian cheese, bamboo fibre, salt, nutmeg, natural flavour.
So how is it?
I am pleasantly surprised by the texture and flavour of these four-minutes-from-fridge-to-plate parcels! Don’t get me wrong; my crunchy, raw, vegan salad lunches will always be my ultimate joy but this dairy-rich ravioli, served with delicate ribbons of raw courgette, light shavings of Ocado’s truly excellent Grana Padano and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil – not forgetting a twist of both pink Himalayan salt and coarse black pepper – is the perfect treat lunch at a fraction of restaurant cost.
For an al dente result, I can confirm the pieces drained at three and a half minutes have steaming hot middles and the squeezed together edges are cooked through. A few pieces 
began to stick so I recommend a dash of oil in the water prior to adding the ravioli. Only one piece failed to survive the quick-simmering water.
From my not-particularly-elegant cross section, you can see the ideal balance between pasta and filling. Having initially felt half a pack at 125g may be unsubstantial, even for my small appetite, the 
deceptive little parcels soon fill me up!
I adore nutmeg and will grate fresh nutmeg over most Italian dinners but the filling of Schär ravioli has tons of flavour already. Actually, the seasoning is excellent – not too salty, not too peppery – and the spinach tastes good and fresh.
What would I change? Firstly, the removal of flavourings, even if they are natural; why enhance an already-decent filling in this way? Secondly – and this is a biggie – I would hope Schär to use only free-range eggs in the near future. During a movement of change within the food industry, largely fuelled by questions and demands from the public, the most ideal outcome is to cut out use of barn eggs altogether.
Dinner in a flash
The option of a three minute dinner – okay, five minute if I am to count kettle-boiling time – is extremely appealing, more so with Schär now being the front runner for me. Not only does it beat the revamped Coori ravioli hands down, it is available in Morrison’s (£3.75) therefore does not have to be ordered (or collected from London) and offers the option of a firmer pasta than that offered by Evexia Thrive for the al dente fans.
I am yet to mention another big surprise as far as nutrition is concerned. Both fresh pasta options are low in fat and so, so low in saturates that this can be enjoyed on the strictest of diets.
There is an additional bonus for households of one or anyone looking to use just half a pack at a time; the tagliatelle freezes – and cooks from frozen – really well! It may not be mentioned on the packaging and I do not know whether the ravioli can withstand freezing but it’s handy to whip up a healthy veggie tagliatelle bowl in next to no time!
iamthegfb 