Battle Aldi – Part 2 of 3
Battle ALDI was really fun, and it reminded me how fun it is to do projects with my husband. We each created our own menus, knowing we could only use ALDI ingredients. Our friends, the judges, had a hard time figuring out who cooked what, which makes me think we did a really good job!
Here’s Battle Aldi: Part 1 of this series.
Here’s menu A:
Appetizer: Caprese Bites
Entree: Broccoli Rabe & Sausage Pizza
Dessert: Honeyed Apples with Vanilla Ice Cream
Here’s menu B:
Appetizer: Tricolore salad
Entree: Homemade Potato Gnocchi in a Pink Cream Sauce
Dessert: Chocolate Mousse Cake
Here are a few action shots of the prep work:
Appetizer A: Caprese Bites
These were technically supposed to be done with cherry tomatoes, but ALDI only had grape. The grape tomatoes were sweet and tasty, so this worked out well. ALDI sells Babybel cheese, and this cook decided to slice it to put under the bites for a more beautiful presentation.
Taster 1 said: “Flavor in cheese mix”
Taster 2 said: “Love the cheese mix. Balsamic drips a bit sloppy”
Appetizer B: Tricolore Salad
This cook had trouble because the first ALDI did not have endive or radicchio. The other ALDI magically did though! This was put together with the Tanimura & Antle Artisan Lettuce they sell, a little balsamic vinegar, olive oil and salt.
Taster 1 said: “Cold, fresh, flavor, crisp”
Taster 2 said: “Nothing special. Nice blend – but simple dressing doesn’t have enough flavor for me”
Entree A: Broccoli Rabe & Sausage Pizza
Just like the endive and radicchio, the one ALDI location did not have broccoli rabe, but the other did. There was one lonely bunch next to some other vegetables, so we grabbed it and hoped for the best. This chef cooked the mild sausage and broccoli rabe first, then assembled individual pizzas and grilled them.
Taster 1 said: “Even taste of rabe, cheese, sausage”
Taster 2 said: “Boring plating. Great flavor”
Entree B: Homemade Potato Gnocchi in a Pink Cream Sauce
I already mentioned that the sauce made with the Happy Harvest Whole Peeled Tomatoes tasted better than our usual sauce. ALDI does sell a pre-made gnocchi under the Priano brand, but this chef chose to make potato gnocchi from scratch. We bought a 10 lb bag of potatoes for less than what 3 potatoes costs at our usual market. The gnocchi came out perfect, and these were easily the highlight of the evening. ALDI did not have fresh basil, but we snagged some from our porch garden to complete the dish.
Taster 1 said: “Like onions in the sauce, ‘clean’ look”
Taster 2 said: “Delicious sauce – love the onions”
Dessert A: Honeyed Apples with Vanilla Ice Cream
What a perfect fall dessert! This chef decided to highlight ALDI’s Belmont vanilla ice cream. Both ALDI stores we visited had several varieties of apples, so this chef used a combination of two different types.
Taster 1 said: “apples made it”
Taster 2 said: “Sloppy. Nothing Special. Boring”
Dessert B: Chocolate Mousse Cake
This cook made this dessert for the very first time. It didn’t look perfect, but it tasted great. This chef used both the Choceur brand chocolate and the Moser-Roth brand chocolate for the mousse. The crust was made with ALDI’s Benton chocolate sandwich cookies.
Taster 1 said: “Wow! Love the bottom crunch, chocolate shavings. Nice layers of taste”
Taster 2 said: “Sloppy, rich. Been there, done that.”
Now that you see all of these dishes and what the tasters said, which dish would you pick to win each category? The tasters judged based on presentation, taste, originality, and overall rating.
In the next post I will announce the winners! There might be something sweet it in for you too…
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10 Responses to “Battle Aldi – Part 2 of 3”
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All looks delicious! My choices, which were difficult to make because it all looked so appetizing and creatively prepared, Appetizer: Tricolore salad Entree: Broccoli Rabe & pizza Dessert:Chocolate Mousse Cake
I’d pick menu A for appetizer and menu B for entree and dessert, this is so fun 🙂
Who are the tasters? Taster 2 is quite critical!
They are apparently critical people ha!
Menu B. Gnocchi and dessert sound great!
Caprese Appetizer, Gnocchi, Mousse Cake would be my picks
Everything looks amazing! I volunteer to be the taster next time! Haha! Whoever made the Moose cake would be my winner:)
***Mousse
It’s close, because it all looks good, but I’ll go with the salad, the pizza, & the apples.
I’d say B because I love Gnocchi, and the mouse cake looks delish!