Product: Health is Wealth Gluten-Free Chicken-Free Nuggets – $5.99+
It was the first time I ever cried out of happiness while standing in a grocery store. This is no exaggeration. Before I went vegetarian, I had chicken nuggets. Then, for health reasons…vegetarian happened and I could still have chicken-less nuggets. But then…it happened. My gluten-intolerance reared its head and away went the vegan/vegetarian proteins that I normally would grab for an easy meal. Why? Most of them contain ingredients that have gluten in them. So, I was left with what little was on the market for the gluten-free vegetarian.
Vegetarian burgers…yeah…those were easy to find.
The void in my life was with the nuggets. No company I could find made gluten-free chicken-less nuggets. I checked them all. Morningstar, Gardein, Quorn, Boca…and each time had to place them back in the freezer at the grocery store.
Then…a little ray of sunshine happened. It all started at my local natural foods store. I was in there one evening and my roomie and I spotted…gluten-free mozzarella sticks. YES! Those came home with us that instant. I mean…those were too good to be true and I had never seen them prior to then. Come to find out, the company that made them, Health is Wealth, has a line of gluten-free products. SWEET!
So, when I discovered they made gluten-free chicken-free nuggets, I immediately knew I had to have them. I had been craving, craving, craving them. Oh…yeah…I had been craving them. The problem was, none of the local health/natural food stores around here kept them in stock. So, I asked about ordering them. The same response came back to me at each store…only if I bought a case, and that would run me $85.00+. Now, I wanted my vegan gluten-free nuggets as much as the next girl…but I live in a small apartment with a small fridge/freezer, and don’t have $85.00 to just blow on nuggets, no matter how bad the craving is. So, I gave up and just continued to check every time I went into the stores…just in case.
Fast forward to this week. I’m visiting my parents in Birmingham, Alabama. And while I’m out and about, my roommate and I stop into Earth Fare, a super market that just opened there…and we just got one in Louisville, Kentucky as well. As we are wandering the aisles, taking in everything that our store might have, we find ourselves in the freezer section. And there…there they were…shining like a beacon from the gluten-free vegetarian gods…Health is Wealth Gluten-Free Chicken-Free Nuggets.
I literally started to cry. And then I vowed that if our local Earth Fare didn’t carry these, I’d be driving back to Birmingham with a cooler. I was that happy.
Upon returning to Louisville, we hit up our newly opened Earth Fare…and THEY HAD THEM! I did a happy dance of joy, cried some more, and snagged two boxes from the freezer section, not even caring that I had never tried them before. These were vegan nuggets that I could actually eat. My craving would be satisfied. I was moments away from true gluten-free food nirvana.
And so…for dinner…my roommate and I each had some vegan nuggets by Health is Wealth. She had the regular vegan nuggets while I cooked up, and drooled over my gluten-free, vegan nuggets. I cooked up some Alexia Yukon Gold Oven Baked Julienne French Fries. And I served them…with Stubb’s Barbeque Sauce.
I couldn’t wait to dive in. And I didn’t. I settled down to eat…and took my very first bite…without any sauce or anything. I just needed to taste them.
Health is Wealth had done it again in my book. These vegan, gluten-free nuggets are delicious. Scrumptious. Amazing. They are light, and packed with flavor. These soy based vegan nuggets are breaded with gluten-free corn and rice breading. And you don’t have to be gluten-free to appreciate the texture and taste of these. My roommate was given a taste of mine to compare to her Health is Wealth Vegan Chicken Free Nuggets…and she couldn’t tell the difference.
Yeah…craving more than satisfied. And what makes these even more amazing is the nutritional information and how it stacks up. These gluten-free vegan nuggets are only 170 calories for 4 nuggets. They have 3 grams of fat, but zero saturated fat and zero cholesterol as well. Not only are these good, but they are good for you. It’s hard to find any sort of processed food with those kinds of nutrition factors.
My taste buds, my heart, my stomach…they all are singing the praises of Health is Wealth once more. I am totally going to need to stock up on these and try some of their other gluten-free and vegan options as well. They haven’t let me down yet. And I think might be the first company to actually bring tears to my eyes while I’m standing in the grocery store. Tears of joy…of course.
Health is Wealth is gluten-free happiness…in a freezer box.
The Celiathlete 