Apparently us Brits get through about 10 lb of pasta a year,each. As that is clearly nowhere near enough, Dell’Ugo have launched a new tempting range called Pasta Plus to increase consumption

We’re all able to cook a bit of pasta and it’s quick too, even the dried stuff takes little more than ten minutes and the chilled even less time.

The thing is though, the sauce. Now, like many people I have got home, pulled out some chilled stuffed pasta, cooked it and then drizzled over melted butter. It works every time. If I can I add some chopped herbs, sage is a favourite, then that’s a bonus but it’s usually just butter.

The new Dell’Ugo Pasta Plus comes with infused butters in the pack. What a good idea.They say they make their butter from freshly churned Somerset milk and the pack comes with the simple instruction’Melt me’. So as Dell’Ugo sent us a couple of packs to try, we did.

We first served Dell’Ugo Ricotta & Spinach Ravioli with Sage Butter, it didn’t look a large helping but they turned out to be  rather filling  so there was well enough for two.The  pasta was silky smooth and the ravioli taut with plenty of the creamy cheese.

Having just come back from Emilio Romagna on a food-filled press trip I felt these would not have disgraced any family restaurant I’d visited. And that’s praise.

Next day it was on to the Goats’ Cheese & Beetroot Fiorelli with Mint Butter. To be honest Fiorelli look the same as Ravioli to me, except circular and not square. I hope Italian’s will forgive me my ignorance.

Perhaps there is a difference though as we had a bit of a problem with these bursting during cooking.

Now it may have been that we had the water boiling too fast, or the fact that these really were crammed tight with filling and ready to go off at the slightest rough treatment. Probably a bit of both, but next time we will simmer them far more gently.

Those that survived were sweet with the glowing beetroot but the cheese could perhaps have been more’goaty’. The mint butter was also a bit fibrous, dried mint does not reconstitute well but then few dried herbs do unless slow simmered for ages.

Overall, we liked these new pastas though,the price is right, the qualty solid and the idea is sound; no one has ever complained about melted butter on their pasta after all.

The complete range is

  • Ricotta & Spinach Ravioli + Sage Butter
  • Butternut Squash Fiorelli + Herb & Garlic Butter
  • Tomato & Mozzarella Fiorelli + Basil Butter
  • Goats’ Cheese & Beetroot Fiorelli + Mint Butter
  • Asparagus & Mozzarella Ravioli + Lemon Butter

Dell’Ugo Pasta Plus is 275mg Pasta + 25 mg Herb Butter, and has an RRP of £3.99 per pack and you can find them in the chilled cabinet.