Italian Ingenuity

Dinner planning is a cinch if you’ve stocked up on the ravioli made for Roma Italian Deli in Pasadena. Stuffed with beef or cheese, the pasta squares come in sacks that you can store in the freezer for use as needed. Drop them frozen into boiling water and boil 10 minutes while you heat up a sauce in the microwave. Roma recommends Cirio brand sauces from Naples. Try the sugo al basilico (tomato basil sauce) for starters.

Frozen beef or cheese ravioli, $3.99 a pound (sacks contain more than two pounds); Cirio sugo al basilico, $1.99 for a 12 1/4-ounce jar at Roma Italian Deli & Grocery, 918 N. Lake Ave. (at Mountain Street), Pasadena, (626) 797-7748.