I always keep a box of spaghetti and a jar of tomato sauce in my pantry. I know there will come a night sooner or later in the month when I’m all out of fresh ingredients, or I’m just craving a big bowl of noodles. For those nights, all I have to do is boil a little water and dinner is made.
Just because it’s easy doesn’t mean the meal isn’t delicious. In fact, it’s so tasty that I’m always craving it. That’s because I’m normally pouring Rao’s Homemade Creamy Marinara Sauce over the noodles. It’s creamy, cheesy, rich, and delicious.
And it looks like my beloved bowl of noodles is only going to get better. Rao’s just announced that it’s expanding its fan-favorite creamy sauce line with two brand-new flavors: Creamy Roasted Garlic and Creamy Peppered Parmesan. I got to try them before they were even released — here are my thoughts.
Rao’s New Creamy Roasted Garlic Sauce
I’m a self-proclaimed garlic girl, so I could not wait to try this new flavor. It sounded right up my alley, and it definitely lived up to my expectations — it’s so good!
You get some punchy garlic flavor, but it’s not too overwhelming. I’ve definitely tried sauces and snacks over the years that have a strong raw garlic flavor, but this sauce is more subdued. The roasted garlic really gives the sauce a sweet, mellow, and almost nutty flavor.
Along with the mascarpone cheese that the original Creamy Marinara sauce is made with, this new flavor also features two of my favorite cheeses: Parmigiano Reggiano and Pecorino Romano. I think I might have just found my all-time favorite pasta sauce. Now I don’t have to add my own minced garlic or garlic powder to “doctor up” a jar of sauce — because this one does it for me.
Rao’s New Creamy Peppered Parmesan
The name of this new creamy sauce really intrigued me. It sounded like a delicious combination of creamy marinara and cacio e pepe — and it mostly matched what I was imagining it would taste like.
Right when you open the jar, you can see lots of pepper speckled through it (and you can even smell it!). There is also enough black pepper in the sauce that you can feel the warmth and a slightly burning taste on your tongue when you taste it, but, similar to the roasted garlic flavor, it’s not too overpowering. I wish I had gotten more of the Parmesan cheese flavor, like the cacio e pepe taste I was expecting, but the sauce is still super-creamy and rich (which I think is from the mascarpone cheese more than the Parmesan).
As with the roasted garlic flavor, I like that you can see small chunks of tomato in the sauce. I know the label says “homemade,” but having a more rustic texture like this makes me feel like I am eating a fresh Sunday sauce with hand-crushed tomatoes. I definitely will be eating both of these sauces again, but the roasted garlic one really takes home the prize for me.
Both Rao’s Creamy Roasted Garlic and Creamy Peppered Parmesan will be available online and at retailers nationwide starting today at a suggested retail price of $8.99.
