Within the past few weeks, I have had the opportunity to eat two different brands of frozen pepperoni pizza. The two varieties of pizza that I am referring to are Red Baron Classic Crust Pepperoni Pizza and Freschetta Brick Oven Pepperoni Pizza.
These two brands of frozen pepperoni pizza are similar in size and appearance, but they are also different in some ways.
Presented here, in an effort to assist the consumer, is one food writer’s product comparison review of Red Baron Classic Crust Pepperoni Pizza and Freschetta Brick Oven Pepperoni Pizza.
Size
The net weight of the standard sized Red Baron Classic Crust Pepperoni Pizza is 22 ounces. According to the product’s nutrition facts label, the product contains four 1/4 pizza (142 grams) servings.
The standard sized Freschetta Brick Oven Pepperoni Pizza weighs in at 21.75 ounces. This frozen pie also contains four 1/4 pizza servings.
In physical size, both of these pizzas are fairly large and require a decent amount of storage space in one’s freezer.
Price
The regular retail price charged for one 22 ounce Red Baron Classic Crust Pepperoni Pizza at Hartford, Connecticut area supermarkets is approximately $5.29.
The regular retail price charged for one 21.75 ounce Freschetta Brick Oven Pepperoni Pizza at Hartford, Connecticut area supermarkets is roughly $6.49.
Texture
While both the Red Baron Classic Crust Pepperoni Pizza and Freschetta Brick Oven Pepperoni Pizza feature basically thin crusts, their textures differ somewhat.
When cooked according to instructions, the crusts on both pizzas are crispy on the bottom, but they are also each fairly soft and chewy. The crust on the Freschetta pizza seemed a little thicker and chewier to me, than the Red Baron pizza.
The pepperoni slices on each brand of frozen pizza are real and tasty and are similar to pizza parlor style pepperoni. The Red Baron Classic Crust Pepperoni Pizza and Freschetta Brick Oven Pepperoni Pizza both feature real, creamy mozzarella cheese, but the cheese on the Freschetta pie seems more like pizza parlor style cheese to me.
Nutritional Facts
Red Baron Classic Crust Pepperoni Pizza contains 370 calories, with 150 calories from fat, per 1/4 pizza serving. This pizza also contains 8 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams trans fat, 16 grams total fat, 30 mg of cholesterol, 740 mg of sodium, 230 mg of potassium, 40 grams total carbohydrates, 2 grams of dietary fiber, 10 grams of sugars and 16 grams of protein, per 1/4 pizza serving.
Freschetta Brick Oven Pepperoni Pizza contains 410 calories, with 180 calories from fat, per 1/4 pizza serving. This pizza also contains 8 grams of saturated fat, 0.5 grams polyunsaturated fat, 20 grams total fat, 40 mg of cholesterol, 1,120 mg of sodium, 38 grams total carbohydrates, 3 grams of dietary fiber, 4 grams of sugars and 19 grams of protein, per 1/4 pizza serving.
Taste / Flavor
Both of these frozen pies offer pleasing flavors that taste better than many other brands of frozen pizza. Because the ingredients in each of these pies are so similar, it is hard for me to declare one of them as being the better tasting of the two.
Red Baron Classic Crust Pepperoni Pizza and Freschetta Brick Oven Pepperoni Pizza each possess tasty tomato pizza sauces, but I think the sauce on the Red Baron pie offers more flavor. Although its flavor is pleasant enough, the sauce on the Freschetta pie tastes like mostly tomatoes and is lightly seasoned. The sauce on the Red Baron pie offers more of a robust flavor that is a little sweeter than the Freschetta sauce.
As far as the pepperoni on these two brands of frozen pizza is concerned, both varieties are quite tasty, but I think I prefer the Red Baron variety. It seems to have a little more flavor and it reminds me of the pepperoni served on pies that I sometimes order from a Hartford, Connecticut pizza restaurant. The mozzarella cheese on both of these pizzas is pleasant tasting and authentic, but the cheese on the Freschetta pie seems to be more elasticized, or stringy than the Red Baron variety.
On a flavor scale of one through ten, I would rate the Red Baron pizza a nine and the Freschetta pizza an 8.75.
Packaging
Red Baron Classic Crust Pepperoni Pizza and Freschetta Brick Oven Pepperoni Pizza are both packaged in fairly heavy duty cardboard boxes. Each variety of pepperoni pizza is further packaged in plastic wrap. The front label on each box features a close up illustration of the enclosed pizza and the rear labels list all relevant ingredient and nutritional information.
Overall Rating
All things considered, both Red Baron Classic Crust Pepperoni Pizza and Freschetta Brick Oven Pepperoni Pizza are tasty and filling products. The regular retail price charged for the Red Baron pie is significantly lower than that of the Freschetta pie and in this reviewer’s humble opinion, the Red Baron pizza was an overall more satisfying pie to eat.
Sources :
Personal experience with
The product labels
