This past weekend I was chained to my desk, working on closing out a project by Monday morning. This was a time crunch of epic proportions and so I felt that maybe this is what all those frozen meals and convenience foods are made for. Instead of spending time making everything from scratch, I decided to buy everything ready-made; most of it frozen.

I bought several items that looked interesting, but not too complicated. Burgers, pork ribs, pizza and a chicken pie. I also bought some sides, like frozen roasted sweet potatoes and grilled vegetable mix, some instant single serving rice, and the only fresh items were eggs and tomatoes.

Friday morning I made good use of the eggs and made a batch of soft-boiled eggs to use throughout the weekend work blitz. Cold soft boiled eggs are one of my favorite snacks, topped with a little salt and pepper, and balance on a piece of toast, I could easily down a dozen.

By early afternoon, I was ready for my first test subject, the Juicy Sirloin Burgers from Presidents Choice. You cook them from frozen which IS very convenient, no thawing, no thinking, just plop it into the pan and cook. This was the simplest preparation of everything I made this weekend. It takes about 8-10 minutes from pan to plate. They were actually very good, I could and will keep these stocked in my freezer.

For dinner, I just couldn't get excited for anything in the freezer, so I ordered sushi from Sushi Yu Mi, it would allow me to get a little fresh air and I couldn't fight my mood.

By Saturday afternoon I was ready to try the pizza. I am very picky when it comes to pizza. I like a very bread-like crust and according to Panebello, that was exactly what I was about to get. I like that you can bake these from frozen, again, it doesn't require me to plan ahead, I can decide I want pizza and be baking it by the time the oven reaches the proper temperature. I didn't particularly like this pizza (Vegetables & Goat Cheese), though the topping was good, the crust is too flaky for my taste and not as bread-like as I would have hoped.

Saturday evening I chose to make the Pork Ribs, another Presidents Choice product. The Slow-Cooked Smokin’ Stampede Pork Back Ribs are fully cooked, which is good because you don't have to worry about the temperature too much. The caveat is that you have to thaw the ribs before you bake them, so it requires a little planning the night before. That said, it was easy (but a little messy) to prepare and they were fall-off-the-bone as ribs should be.

With the end of the weekend drawing near and the project deadline looming, Sunday afternoon was just about a write off. I just snacked on various junk foods, until I realized it was almost supper time!

Supper was served within an hour of realizing the time. I pulled out the Chicken Pie from St. Hubert and was pleased to see I could bake the pie and fit in another hour of work before it would be ready. I hate to admit it, but that pie was very good. I liked the crust, it wasn't soggy or too "stiff" and there was just the right amount of filling. You bake it from frozen, so again, it is something I could think of and just take and bake.

Overall, I don't think I would want to have these convenience foods often. Once in a while, as back-up plans, or if it's something I really liked and wouldn't make myself, like the Chicken pie. It did cut down my prep time, but overall, I didn't find there to be that much of a time savings. I could just as easily stock my freezer with homemade versions of many of these items.