Product: Tonya’s Gluten Free Kitchen Original Soft Pretzel Bites – $9.99+
There was a time in my life, when I worked retail at the mall, that at least one of my meals consisted of a soft pretzel from Auntie Anne’s Pretzels. Because, really, there is nothing quite like feasting on a soft pretzel with that delicious buttery and salty flavor. Mmmm…
Don’t make me crave…
Or, actually…go ahead.
Because, with a little help from The Raisin Rack in Columbus, Ohio, I was introduced to the most amazing and fantastic convenience gluten-free soft pretzels ever. Now, they aren’t my local bakery’s soft pretzels (which they offer only in July and September…on Wednesdays only), which are freakin’ fantastic. But for something that I can dig out of my freezer and feast on whenever I want…well…these are where it is at, my friends! Just…trust me!
On one of my many trips to Columbus, Ohio, and one of my many stops at The Raisin Rack, I have snatched up some items that I can’t find anywhere else around where I live (and I shop at 5-6 different stores each week). I often crave soft pretzels (especially when Annie May’s Sweet Café in Louisville, KY, isn’t doing Soft Pretzel Wednesday), as is bound to happen each time I go to a shopping mall and have to walk by Auntie Anne’s Pretzels. Because…they flood the mall with their delicious smelling pretzels…and I can’t have them. Not one. Not even a sample. It’s sheer torture. TORTURE!
But…now I know…there can be pretzels whenever I want. When those weird cravings hit.
Because of Tonya’s Gluten Free Kitchen!
Tonya’s Gluten Free Kitchen was created when Tonya and her daughter were diagnosed with celiac disease. Tonya began searching for gluten-free bakery foods that tasted up to par with their gluten equivalents. After many disappointments and a lot of frustration, she set out to create her own recipes. She started simply by baking in her home kitchen for friends and family and even fellow Celiacs in Central Pennsylvania. Soon, they expanded to selling to local grocery and health food stores. Then they outgrew the home kitchen in 2010 and opened up a gluten-free bakery in Newmanstown, Pennsylvania. Tonya and her company believe that quality and taste do not need to be sacrificed in order to make something gluten-free. They take great care, using a dedicated gluten-free facility to make their products, to ensure that everything they churn out is of the highest standards.
I can get on board with that.
So, after a day of grocery shopping and walking around the farmer’s market and shopping malls, I wasn’t really feeling standing around in the kitchen and cooking something for dinner. So, I opened up the freezer and decided that what this day called for was…soft pretzels. And, yes, I happened to have a box of Tonya’s Gluten Free Kitchen Original Soft Pretzel Bites in my freezer. I opened up the package and laid out the bites on a baking sheet to cook up. I patted each bite down with water and gave them a light sprinkle of the enclosed pretzel salt. Then, they were placed in a pre-heated oven to allow to cook. These can be done in the microwave, but to get crustier pretzels, the oven is the way to go. And I like that initial crispy outside with the doughy and soft middle. As my oven never heats right, the normal 5-7 minutes these would cook was actually 9-10 minutes for me. I left them in for 9 minutes. And when I removed them from the oven…they looked like pretzel perfection…and smelled like the buttery good aroma that comes from Auntie Anne’s.
My mouth was watering.
I split the entire box with my roommate (this was dinner…not a snack) and served them with some vegan cream cheese for dipping. Because, seriously, soft pretzels and cream cheese are a match made in heaven. Delicious heaven.
I served up my roommate’s plate first. And as I was just getting back to the kitchen, she had already taken a bite and said, “OH MY GOD!” I wasn’t sure if this was a good thing, so I had to ask. She told me to take a bite and look at the center. I did just as she said.
OH MY GOD!
Seriously…OH MY GOD!
The Tonya’s Gluten Free Kitchen Original Soft Pretzel Bites are JUST like the Auntie Anne’s Pretzels I ate almost every day I worked in retail. Holy goodness. The pretzels themselves are rich and buttery on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside. The inner part of the pretzel are a thick white middle…nothing that looks dense or heavy or packed with bubbles of air. They were perfection. Soft…gorgeous centers surrounded by the golden crust with the dash of salt on the top. Yeah…these were fantastic. These were light and buttery and amazing. AMAZING!! These made me happy on so many different levels.
So, let’s talk ingredients. At Tonya’s Gluten Free Kitchen, they believe in using all-natural ingredients. And these amazing Original Soft Pretzel Bites are made from rice flour, cornstarch, tapioca flour, milk, sugar, butter, eggs, potato flour, baking soda, xanthan gum, yeast, and salt. They are all-natural, gluten-free and wheat-free.
As far as nutrition goes…well…they aren’t bad. Not at all. A serving of Tonya’s Gluten Free Kitchen Original Soft Pretzel Bites is 5 of the little pretzel nubs. Now…I ate half the box and I feel no shame. HA! A serving contains 220 calories and 8 grams of fat. One serving would also provide 35 mg cholesterol, 230 mg sodium, and 7 grams of sugar. Also, you will be consuming 1 gram of fiber and 2 grams of protein.
The Tonya’s Gluten Free Kitchen Soft Pretzel Bites are something that I intend to keep in my kitchen freezer forever. For LIFE. They are that good. They are so worth keeping on hand for those nights where you just want something that doesn’t resemble the food you eat all week. Maybe you want snack food for dinner. Maybe you’re having a party and need some finger food. These are the perfect treat and the perfect item to keep on hand. Even gluten eaters couldn’t tell these were gluten-free. SO GOOD!
Soft pretzels…whenever I want them…that taste great…that are just as good as the “real” thing?
Tonya’s Gluten Free Kitchen delivers with these Original Soft Pretzel Bites. Oh yes…it doesn’t get better than this!
The Celiathlete 