I was excited when I recently heard of this new product from Kraft because I thought it might finally be a source of Italian cooking cream (panna da cucina, see my original post here). While panna is often poo-pooed by the pretentious poo-bahs of Italian cuisine, I enjoy it greatly in moderation. Especially on tortellini with prosciutto, another item that is hard to find in the US.So I bought the small container in the original flavor. Alas, disappointment awaited me. It was not like Italian panna. At any rate, I went ahead with my planned recipe of spaghetti with smoked salmon, and it was satisfactory, but I would not buy it again. I also found it rather too salty and the taste did not stand well on its own, as panna does (you can just eat it out of the container, yum).
Well today while I was downtown (Boston, Copley), they were giving out free samples. I said I wouldn't buy it again, but I won't turn down a free sample. I got two, which were savory garlic flavor. Better-tasting, but highly reminiscent of a sour cream and onion dip. Which is how I intend to use them. Thanks, Kraft.
The company is putting a lot of effort and money in promoting this new product, which they seem to hope will be a sort of new Philadelphia cream cheese. I don't really think it will have the general appeal of the latter, which is even well-liked in Italy. They are also suggesting that it be used in Italian cooking, with pasta, for example, but I would not advise its use if you like authentic Italian cuisine.
