Products – Page 31 – The Celiathlete

June 15, 2014

Product Review: Annie May’s Sweet Café Gluten Free Vegan Garlic Bread

Product: Annie May’s Sweet Café Gluten Free Vegan Garlic Bread – $4.25

I love that my local gluten-free bakery is growing. I love that they are getting enough business to even offer more of their business aside from their daily lunch specials and daily specials in the case. This makes me insanely happy.

On Saturday, on the third anniversary of the opening of Annie May’s Sweet Café on Frankfort Avenue in Louisville, Kentucky, I finally got to partake in the newest feature of the bakery…

Take-n-Bake goodies from their freezer. I am talking their (FAMOUS AND DELICIOUS) pizza crusts, garlic bread, vegan garlic bread, cinnamon rolls, and even some of their pastas…(like the best mac & cheese ever). All items are gluten-free and most are allergen-free. They make a point when doing gluten-free to also try to do allergen-free. But some items (like the regular garlic bread and the mac and cheese) contain dairy.

I had stuck my head in the deep freeze earlier in the week when I was in for Soft Pretzel Wednesday (because pretzels on a Wednesday make the best lunch ever!). The key words that made me happy was…Vegan. Garlic. Bread. Short on money in the middle of the week, and knowing I was stopping in for the celebration of three years at that location on Saturday, I vowed to make a purchase then. Little did I know I’d walk out of there with not just the Vegan Garlic Bread, but also the Mac & Cheese, and the Pizza Crust (seriously…best gluten-free pizza crust on this planet…hands down!). I might have also walked out with an Allergen-Free Banana Spice Muffin (of heaven!).

But, I digress with the muffin.

Let me focus on the entire reason I pulled open that freezer in the first place…

Gluten-Free and Vegan Garlic Bread.

Annie May's Sweet Café Vegan Garlic Bread (frozen) — Annie May’s Sweet Café Gluten Free Vegan Garlic Bread (frozen)

What you get is a half of a half loaf of bread that has been slathered down with a vegan butter and garlic topping. Then…wrapped and frozen with baking instructions on the label. Talk about easy. Just preheat the oven and place the garlic bread on a pan and into the oven and allow to cook for allotted time. Once done…enjoy.

That’s what I did tonight (and served it up with the Mac & Cheese which I baked at the same time!)

I cried when I took my first bite. Tears of happiness. Tear of joy. Because I haven’t had garlic bread in a very long time. I tried to order some gluten-free garlic bread from a pizza place in Denver, but they wouldn’t deliver to the hotel (which was only 4 miles away). So…unless I make it out of gluten-free sandwich bread, it hasn’t happened. And trust me…that’s not the same. Annie May’s Vegan Garlic Bread was amazing. Delicious. The crust got all golden and crunchy and the middle…soft…chewy…garlic and vegan buttery goodness. Honestly. Seasoned perfectly. Tears. When a food makes me cry…then it’s damn good. We only ate half the loaf tonight with dinner…I almost cooked up the second half. I think this will become another staple that I always purchase from Annie May’s when she has it in stock…much like her cinnamon rolls and her macaroni and cheese! This…is one of my favorite things I have ever eaten since going gluten-free. Real food. Really good. Make you cry good! Even my roomie was blown away. She had taken a bite before I had and she gave me the saddest eyes. When I took my bite…I understood why. She liked it better than the garlic bread she has been able to eat. I liked it better than any I had prior to having to go gluten-free. Honest…good…food! That’s what Annie May’s bakes up every single time!

Annie May’s Sweet Café has literally changed my life. With all the restaurants in Louisville’s blossoming foodie areas, all I want is Annie May’s! Why? Because not only can I get safe treats and meals there, but now…I can take a whole lot of their good stuff home to bake up myself when it is convenient. I hope that the take-n-bake freezer takes off for them and expands, because I would be totally willing to purchase these convenient meals and items every week…just to make one day of my life (if not more) a lot easier.

Happy Third Birthday, Annie May’s…and here’s to many, many more delicious, allergen-free years!!

Annie May's Sweet Café Gluten Free Vegan Garlic Bread (baked) — Annie May’s Sweet Café Gluten Free Vegan Garlic Bread (baked)

June 15, 2014

Product Review: Billy Goat Chip Company Original Potato Chips

Product: Billy Goat Chip Company Original Potato Chips – $2.99

I was so happy to see a 3 ounce bag of Billy Goat Chip Company’s Original Potato Chips in my June Cuisine Cube because I was already familiar with this product…by only a couple of days. I kid you not! On Monday morning of the week I received my cube, my boss came into work and handed me two of the snack size bags of Billy Goat Chip Company’s Original Potato Chips. She said she had noted that they said “gluten free” on them and knew I could have them. She got one bag for me and one for Cathy.

So…at dinner that night…we feasted on them with a Vegan Gluten-Free “Bacon” (I make this with beans and buckwheat groats), Lettuce, Avocado, and Tomato Sammies. And we were hooked. So…I had already had an inkling of what we were in for when I served these up with a gluten-free veggie burger during the Uruguay v. Costa Rica match of the World Cup last night.

Billy Goat Chip Company is apparently a St. Louis, Missouri, restaurant that became famous for their hand-made chips. These chips are made fresh every day and by the order. Nothing sits around. One batch of these locally renowned chips takes approximately seven minutes to cook. Each batch then gets a special dusting of secret seasoning, called “Billy Goat Kicker Dust.” This seasoning is apparently the magic of the chips…because it is the one difference everyone can taste between these chips and those you buy in the store. The chips are all-natural and made fresh to order. This means the potatoes and selected, sliced, seasons and packaged by hand when they are ordered and then shipped out to customers. The owners of the restaurant make these chips with heart healthy canola oil, no MSG, no preservatives…and maintain that they are gluten-free. The dedication these two restaurant entrepreneurs put into their chips is so that they can guarantee that customers get the most fresh and flavorful chips possible.

The Billy Goat Restaurant & Bar opened in St Louis back in 2002, becoming the city’s first gastropub. It produced hand-crafted, house-made food, using locally sourced products whenever possible. The potato chips quickly became the restaurant’s signature item. With their growing popularity and demand for these treats, the Billy Goat Chip Company was born in 2009, where the company has started to work with vendors and customers to distribute this popular restaurant item.

When they set a goal to create the best potato chips in the Midwest…they succeeded. I might even venture to say they created the best potato chips in the United States.

Let’s discuss.

Since I had previously had them prior to their arrival in my Cuisine Cube…I can honestly say, seeing the large 3 ounce bag made me beyond stupidly happy. Honestly. I was…thrilled. The thing is…the Billy Goat Chip Company honestly does produce a high quality product. They take time and put a lot of effort and care into their food…and it shows. Each chip is done to that gorgeous golden brown, making it crispy and crunchy, not burnt and brittle, and definitely not soft. But, it really is the seasoning that takes these chips up to the next level of awesomesauce. Honestly. I don’t know what it is about the “Billy Goat Kicker Dust” but…it does provide the right amount of everything to these chips. It’s salty…it has a touch of garlic…a little bit of spice to take it up a notch. Nothing is over seasoned. Nothing is overdone. Each bite is pure chip perfection. Crunchy, salty, good perfection!

I might be jealous of St. Louis, Missouri…

Ingredients are honest and simple…russet potatoes, canola oil, salt, onion, garlic, spices and sugar. That’s it. That’s all. It’s that cut and dry. You can clearly taste the quality and the high standards in each chip. No big name can compete with these. Mass produced chips just don’t have level of flavor and quality that Billy Goat Chip Company pours into their products.

Nutritionally speaking, one serving of these chips is 1 ounce. A serving will provide you with 150 calories and 10 grams of fat. You will also be taking in 160 mg sodium and 1 gram of sugar. These chips are cholesterol-free, trans-fat free, and gluten-free. One serving of the Billy Goat Chip Company’s Original Potato Chips also will provide you with 2 grams of fiber and 2 grams of protein. Not filling. But chips are a side…not a meal. So they shouldn’t fill you up.

But they should be tasty, and there is no doubt that these chips are delicious! I sort of wish I had more. Good thing my boss promised that she would bring more back for me the next time she goes to St. Louis. YAY! Since her daughter lives there, that happens more often than not. I want to give a shout-out to June’s Cuisine Cube for providing my new favorite chip to me…so I didn’t have to wait as long to indulge in them again.

Thankfully, they can be ordered online. So, if you’re curious about how amazing these chips are…go ahead and order them. I promise…you will NOT be disappointed.

June 15, 2014

Product Review: Hilary’s Eat Well Adzuki Bean Burger

Product: Hilary’s Eat Well Adzuki Bean Burger – $3.99+

It’s World Cup time!! YAY!! I had the honor of attending a World Cup match back in 1994, when the USA was hosting the matches. It was so much fun. And while I’ve never played soccer…I love the sport. I could go to a match and have the best time of my life.

And with the World Cup kicking off a couple of days ago…and with my favorite player (Diego Forlan on the Uruguay National Team) playing a match late this afternoon, I figured we needed some sort of game-day grub for the occasion! Back in 2010, you couldn’t pull Cathy or I away from the matches on television or online. We watched the hell out of them.

Those days are back with a vengeance. And…although Uruguay lost today to Costa Rica (BOOOO!), at least I made a fun “pub grub” like meal. The main focus of said World Cup meal was…veggie burgers. And…more to the point…one of my favorite brands so far…Hilary’s Eat Well. This time, instead of her original veggie burger…I was told to choose one of the options at our new local grocery store (Lucky’s). They had three other ones I had yet to try…and in the end, I went for the Adzuki Bean Burger. Why? The words green chili and cumin caught my attention! And we had purchased an avocado…so that would pair well, I figured. Green chilies and avocado are best mates! I think.

With kickoff happening, I got up to make the veggie burgers and prepare the toppings. I had thawed out some of the Rudi’s Gluten-Free Hamburger Buns that were in my freezer and put them in the oven to toast. I caramelized some onion…sliced tomatoes…tore up some lettuce…and sliced up the avocado. As I finished that up, the Hilary’s Eat Well Adzuki Bean Burgers came out of the freezer and hit my skillet with just a touch of oil.

These don’t take long to cook at all. About three to five minutes on each side. And then, because I melt a slice of vegan cheese on mine, a moment longer with some water thrown in and the lid topping it to allow it to steam and the cheese to melt (as well as vegan cheese can melt). The buns were toasted, so I pulled them from the oven. I topped them off with gourmet ketchup (because every burger needs gourmet ketchup), the lettuce, the patty itself (which was crusted on the outside…and soft on the inside), and capped with the tomato, caramelized onion, and sliced avocado. I served this up with some gluten-free potato chips. Dinner was easy, early, and served with a side of World Cup!!

Hilary's Eat Well Adzuki Bean Burgers (frozen) — Hilary’s Eat Well Adzuki Bean Burgers (frozen)

I went for the burger first, of course. The Hilary’s Eat Well Adzuki Bean Burger is the perfect size for a veggie burger patty. Sometimes they can skimp on size, but not on fat and calories and that’s a problem. But this was a really great sized patty. It was a perfect circle of bean and grain goodness. And yes…you can visibly see the ingredients. Nothing hidden. Love it. One bite…and it was love. Again. I raved about the Hilary’s Eat Well World’s Best Veggie Burger…but this…this one might even top that one. As I mentioned, when I cooked it up in my skillet, it got this perfect crispness to the outside and remained soft (not mushy…just soft) on the inside. A perfect burger bite. It browned up beautifully and maintained amazing flavor throughout. Even better…the taste. Oh…my…god! Seriously…this burger isn’t trying to replicate a beef burger. It’s trying to let the grains and beans be the stars of the patty. And I applaud Hilary’s Eat Well for that. Fantastic flavor. There is a slight hint of spice from the green chilies as well as the chipotle and chili powders, but it doesn’t overpower and it’s not hot. Trust me…my roommate never said a word about the “heat” level or it being “spicy.” You can just taste it. The millet and quinoa add a bit of a nutty flavor to each bite. And the beans…that creates that amazing texture!

So…let’s look at nutrition. And far as ingredients go, this is a fantastically constructed veggie burger. For real. Hilary’s Eat Well prides itself on using real-food ingredients that nourish the body and support a healthy ecosystem. So…the Hilary’s Eat Well Adzuki Bean Burgers are made from a combination of water, millet, adzuki beans, quiona, expeller-pressed coconut oil, sweet potato, onion, mild green chilies, psyllium husk powder, arrowroot, real salt, apple cider vinegar, garlic, cumin, chili and chipotle powder, and lime juice.

I recognize everything listed above. I love it when food is made from real food. These burgers are also non-GMO, gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, corn-free, egg-free, yeast-free, and nut free!

As for the nutritional information, a serving size is 1 veggie burger patty. One of the Hilary’s Eat Well Adzuki Bean Burgers will serve you up 190 calories and 7 grams of fat. This burger will also be giving you 290 mg sodium. These burgers are cholesterol and sugar free. LOVE! Finally, you will be taking in 5 grams of fiber and 5 grams of protein. I consider this to be a very healthy burger with trusted ingredients.

So, even though Uruguay lost to Costa Rica, my taste buds were engaged and happily savoring every bite of the Hilary’s Eat Well Adzuki Bean Burger. Delicious! I can’t wait to try the other burgers that the few stores that carry these have in stock. Super delicious!!

Hilary's Eat Well Adzuki Bean Burger (cooked) — Hilary’s Eat Well Adzuki Bean Burger (cooked)

June 14, 2014

Product Review: Quest Bar Chocolate Peanut Butter

Product: Quest Bar Chocolate Peanut Butter – $2.39+

So, I’ve been slowly working my way through different high protein bars…because…I am. Because, sometimes I have to eat on the go, and they are an easy-to-grab snack/meal. They are also great on race days when I might not be going anywhere fast and will need something to hold me over until I next get to eat.

That was what happened today.

I ran a 10K race in Frankfort, Kentucky…and since I placed in both the race and the racing series…I was now staying at the scene of the crime…er…race…for a bit longer than anticipated. No problem. I come prepared for these such occasions.

For quite a long while now, I’ve been hearing my friends rave about Quest Bar. But I couldn’t find them. Anywhere. What it took was a trip to Jungle Jim’s in Cincinnati, Ohio. They were in the gluten-free section…and I grabbed a few to try. They didn’t have the flavor everyone was raving about, but they had some that sounded beyond delicious…so…why not give them a try?

Except…despite toting these places with me, I never really needed them. That’s not a bad thing…it just means I was around actual food instead. But today…today that changed.

So, as I settled in on the steps of the Kentucky State Capitol, I removed my Quest Bar from the backpack my roomie has with her. It was a bit misshapen. Unfortunately. That’s from toting it around to all those other events…in the heat…and having it soften and then harden back up. That’s fine. If it tastes good…it doesn’t have to look perfect.

But that was the question…would it taste good?

I broke off a bit for my roommate to try and she took a bite…and chewed…and chewed…and chewed…

“How is it?”

“Chewy.”

Thanks for that! Since it was the Chocolate Peanut Butter Bar…I was hoping it would taste like a Reeses Peanut Butter Cup. I took a bite. And began to chew…and chew…and chew…damn…it was chewy…

It didn’t taste like a Reeses Peanut Butter Cup. Not at all. It tasted like a really chewy hunk of chocolate…with a bit of nutty flavor and texture mixed in. It wasn’t bad. But…my jaw was already starting to hurt from working so hard on this bar. I am seriously hoping that this chewy texture (overly chewy!) was really brought on by having the bar melt a couple times in the heat and then reform. Because…by the third bite…my jaw was done with chewing and I still had half a bar left. Which I did manage to finish. And then give my jaw a much needed break. Back to the flavor though…the peanut butter part was really hidden under the flavor of the chocolate. It was just an undertone. And I don’t know if that was on purpose or not…but peanut butter is my favorite thing in life…so I was just expecting more of it to shine through. Peanut butter and chocolate are best mates and a classic combination…so this works. The flavor was good. Like eating dessert…without it being overly sweet.

It will be interesting to see how the next bar is as far as chewiness. Because now I’m curious!

Let’s look at the ingredients in this high protein and low carb bar, shall we? The Quest Bar Chocolate Peanut Butter is made from a protein blend (whey protein isolate, milk protein isolate), Isomalto-Oligosaccharides* (Prebiotic Fiber), peanuts, water, erythritol, and cocoa. This bar also contains less than 2% of the following: sea salt, stevia, lo han guo, and natural flavors. This bar is High Fiber, Gluten Free, and sweetened without the use of sugar or artificial sweeteners.

A serving size of the Quest Bar Chocolate Peanut Butter is 1 bar. This bar provides you with 160 calories and 5 grams of fat. You also will be taking in 5 mg cholesterol, 25 mg sodium, and 2 grams of sugar. This bar provides your body with 255 mg potassium. And finally, you will be consuming 25 grams carbohydrates, 17 grams of fiber and 20 grams of protein.

Trust me…you’ll feel full!

So, as I said, this bar wasn’t bad…it was just…not really what I was expecting. It was the perfect thing after my race though, when I knew it would be awhile before I ate anything. It definitely held me over for hours and I ran some errands and even settled in a bit at home before I even thought about making an early dinner. The flavor was good…and I’m really hoping the next one isn’t as chewy.

Guess we’ll find out.

Quest Bar Chocolate Peanut Butter (unwrapped with a chunk torn out of it)

June 14, 2014

Product Review: Gone Pie Vegan Bakery Coconut Brownie

Product: Gone Pie Vegan Bakery Coconut Brownie – (part of Cuisine Cube and no price online)

Are any of you familiar with Cuisine Cube? I wasn’t either. Not until a special offer came across my Groupon-like gluten-free saver sort of mailing that I belong to. I showed the e-mail to my roomie and said I wanted to try it. She said to go for it. Want to make me happy? Tell me I can get Cuisine Cube.

So, for those of you who don’t know what Cuisine Cube is…let me explain. Cuisine Cube is a subscription-based, monthly delivered box of gluten-free foodie goodness. The concept was crafted by a team of enthusiastic eaters, food professionals, and allergy sufferers from New York City who were on the hunt for great gluten-free food. They became aware that gluten intolerance is more prevalent today. And, while gluten-free brands are more readily available in supermarkets all over the country…sometimes the bigger the brand the more preservatives and additives they contain. Gluten-free foods are a lot of processed foods. And, they…much like me…want to cut out as much processed food as possible. And…at the same time…keep the food we do eat tasty. We all know, even the biggest brands in gluten-free foods don’t always taste the best. So, the creators of Cuisine Cube sought out lesser known brands made by small artisan producers, which they found often tasted better and were better for you. Not to mention, it meant supporting small businesses. But sometimes finding these smaller and lesser-known brands can be hard. Thankfully, Cuisine Cube does the leg work for you. They select different foods in each meal category and the box is delivered to my door. All of it is gluten-free…and affordable. Seriously.

I received my first Cuisine Cube in May. And, with the exception of one product inside, I hadn’t ever heard of any of the other brands inside. Gotta love it.

So…tonight…it was time to give one of these products a try.

And I made the most obvious choice…

Dessert.

The dessert category in May’s Cuisine Cube was by Gone Pie Vegan Bakery. And the item…the Gluten-Free and Vegan Coconut Brownie.

I had never heard of Gone Pie Vegan Bakery before. And for good reason. Gone Pie is a Brooklyn based brownie maker who went from shop owner to wholesale producer. Listening to the customer’s needs, all items that Gone Pie produces and sells are gluten-free as well as vegan.

This…is my happy face.

So after eating my fantastic gluten-free pizza for dinner…dessert was the next logical step. Time for some Gone Pie Vegan Bakery Coconut Brownie! I opened up the plastic wrapper and removed this very moist and chocolatey brownie. It looked so rich and smelled amazing. On top, you could see toasted coconut flakes. I couldn’t wait to take a bite. But…first I needed pictures for the blog and to split it in half so the roomie could indulge too.

She took the first bite…so I had to know what she thought. She said it was pretty good…and it tasted…familiar. That didn’t tell me much and since she’s congested, I decided just to go off my own thoughts on this one. I settled in…and took a bite.

Soft. Moist. Amazing. You could really taste the toasted coconut that is baked inside and toasted on top. I loved the richness of this brownie, and how it was kept soft and decadent with the inclusion of dates. But the dates don’t overpower or take away from that brownie feel, so don’t worry about that at all. The chocolate is the star…and it is prevalent in each bite…without being too sweet. So fantastic. I wish I had more of these. Seriously!

While these have no nutritional information, I can give you a run-down of the ingredients! The Gone Pie Vegan Bakery Coconut Brownie is made from vegan fairtrade sugar, gluten free flour blend (sorghum, buckwheat, amaranth, garfava, tapioca, potato, brown rice), dates, brown rice syrup, coconut milk, gluten-free vegan fairtrade semi-sweet chocolate, gluten-free vegan fairtrade chocolate liquor, non-GMO canola oil, vegan fairtrade unsweetened cocoa powder, aluminum-free baking powder, and spices

Thanks to Cuisine Cube, I am being introduced to some fantastic and unique products I never would have even known existed. I never would have even known about Gone Pie Vegan Bakery or their amazing products if not for Cuisine Cube. In fact…I have since visited Gone Pie Vegan Bakery’s Web site. Their variety of gluten-free goodies sound so good. And now, I will make a point to order something else and give it a try.

Yes…this brownie impressed that much.

Thank you Cuisine Cube and thank you Gone Pie Vegan Bakery!

June 13, 2014

Product Review: Schär Gluten Free Bontà d’Italia Frozen Veggie Pizza

Product: Schär Gluten Free Bontà d’Italia Frozen Veggie Pizza – $8.99+

Way back when my gluten-free journey began, I was trying out a variety of pizza shells. You know…either shelf-stable or frozen gluten-free pizza crusts that I could build my own pizza on and cook up however I wanted. That was all fine and good…as I love building new flavors and making a delicious and actually healthy pizza. But sometimes…you just don’t want to do all that chopping and saucing and cheesing…right?

Hey…we all lead busy lives and cooking takes time.

Well, my entire point to that opening anecdote was that one of my favorite crusts I used was made by Schär. If you’ve delved into the gluten-free world for awhile, you’ve probably become familiar with Schär’s products. You can find many of their shelf-stable and parbaked breads on grocery store shelves. You can also find many of their delectable cookies and crackers as well. The company’s vision statement says that they aim to become the leading specialist for particular dietary and nutritional needs in Europe and North America. Schär specializes in the development and production of foods for people with special dietary needs. They focus on producing delicious products with quality ingredients, wanting to assure that consumers receive balanced nutrition and quality of life through their diet.

And tonight, I was trying one of their new products out in the market. They recently introduced gluten-free bagels and gluten-free pizzas to their line of frozen products. So, while you can get their gluten-free pizza shell (shelf-stable)…you also now have the option of just going to your grocer’s freezer and retrieving a ready-to-bake frozen pizza as well.

YAY!

Schär Gluten Free Bontà d'Italia Frozen Veggie Pizza (frozen) — Schär Gluten Free Bontà d’Italia Frozen Veggie Pizza (frozen)

Schär currently offers two varieties of their gluten-free frozen pizza: Veggie and Cheese.

You know I went for the veggie pizza! HAHA!

There it was, in my freezer now…the Schär Gluten Free Bontà d’Italia Frozen Veggie Pizza. Tonight…it was dinner.

So…after a long day from work, I came home and got the oven preheating at 425°F, getting out my pizza stone to get it warming. The actual pizza itself had to be unwrapped and left to thaw for about 10 minutes, which is about how long it takes for my dinosaur of an oven to reach the correct baking temperature. So, that was perfect. I removed the pizza from the box, then it’s little plastic wrapper, and let it sit on a pizza pan. I already loved the look of it. It had a very thin crust, but it was loaded with amazing and fresh looking vegetables. For real!! I could clearly see a thin layer of red sauce, a light sprinkling of cheese, but the biggest stand-outs were the amazing looking vegetables scattered on top. Red peppers, yellow peppers, mushrooms, onion, and spinach. They looked completely fresh and super bright. I was already impressed. I’d never had a frozen pizza look like that before.

Once the oven was heated, I pulled out the pizza stone and transferred the pizza to it. Back into the oven it went for about 8 minutes, until the cheese was bubbly and the crust got that nice color to it. It really is that simple. Get together dishes and drinks for dinner time and before you know it…it will be time to pull the pizza out of the oven.

Let me tell you…while this is cooking up it smells fantastic! Honestly!! I was in pizza heaven. It actually smelled like a pizzeria in my apartment. That made me so happy. I commented that it smelled so good, but my roommate is fighting off a cold, so she had to just take my word for it. In no time, I was pulling the Schär Gluten Free Bontà d’Italia Frozen Veggie Pizza from the oven and letting it sit for a moment before slicing into it.

The back of the box for the Schär Gluten Free Bontà d’Italia Frozen Veggie Pizza states that “the goodness of Italy is just minutes away from your table” with the creation of Schär’s new line of frozen entrees that are “rich in natural flavors and nutrients.” The thing that I think really sets this pizza apart from all that have come before it is that thin crust is actually brick oven baked. Yes. So, you get this richness to the crust that usually you don’t find in gluten-free crusts. Add to it the blend of sauce, cheese, and toppings and you have one authentic sounding pizza.

So…did it live up to the box hype?

Schär Gluten Free Bontà d'Italia Frozen Veggie Pizza (baked) — Schär Gluten Free Bontà d’Italia Frozen Veggie Pizza (baked)

MORE THAN! Seriously. When I took my first bite, I was so impressed. For a frozen pizza, this was full of flavor. The pizza crust, being stone baked before hand, has this nice charred taste that makes it feel like it came out of one of those pizza ovens. The crust may be thin, but it is sturdy. None of the toppings were too much for this crust. And the crispiness that the edges got was perfection. I felt like I was eating a real pizza at a real pizzeria. That’s not a feeling I get often, especially while dining on my couch in my apartment. In fact…it never happens that way. The cheese wasn’t overwhelming. In fact, the vegetables were the most predominant topping and the stars of this pizza. And when you eat a veggie pizza…that’s how it should be. The peppers, onion, and mushrooms all cooked perfectly and tasted like they were fresh off the farm. Seriously. And the spinach didn’t get mushy. It was the perfect dusting of green over the top. My taste buds were blown away. And while I really had wanted to skip this easy-to-prepare meal and go out somewhere, I’m glad, in the end, my empty wallet won because nothing could have compared to this!

Let’s talk ingredients! Schär is dedicated to using only the highest quality ingredients, and that is beyond evident…even when the pizza was still frozen. The Schär Gluten Free Bontà d’Italia Frozen Veggie Pizza contains: water, vegetable mix (red peppers, yellow peppers, mushrooms, onion, spinach) tomato puree, rice flour, potato starch, mozzarella cheese, potato flakes psyllium seed husks, sunflower oil, sugar, soy protein, modified cellulose, carob-see flour, salt, mono- and diglicerides, oregano, and apple fiber. This product contains no gluten or wheat and is a good source of fiber.

As far as the nutrition information…this isn’t too bad either!

A serving size is 1 slice (my roommate and I had 2), and the entire pizza serves 4. If you follow the serving size recommendation, you will be consuming 170 calories and 6 grams of fat. You will also be taking in 10 mg of cholesterol, 370 mg sodium, and less than 1 gram of sugar. One slice will provide you with 4 grams of fiber and 5 grams of protein. So, don’t let that thin crust fool you. You will definitely feel full!

More importantly, however, you will feel satisfied…because this pizza is beyond fantastic. It takes gluten-free frozen pizzas and turns it into something that actually tastes like it came from a wood-fired pizza place. It was amazing. And I was one happy girl. Sometimes a frozen product has the potential to surprise you. Well played, Schär! Color me surprised…and full.

Now I need to stock another one in my freezer…

Two slices of Schär Gluten Free Bontà d'Italia Frozen Veggie Pizza — Two slices of Schär Gluten Free Bontà d’Italia Frozen Veggie Pizza

June 13, 2014

Product Review: Jovial Gluten Free Fig Fruit Filled Cookies

Product: Jovial Gluten Free Fig Fruit Filled Cookies – $5.99+

Do you know how long it has been since I have eaten a Fig Newton? Three years. This journey began three years ago…and…I won’t lie to you…there are times I walk past items in the grocery store and it’s all I want. Fig Newtons were one of my favorite snacks. Always were…even growing up. They were dropped from my diet when Celiac entered my life. And I have missed them. A lot.

While Jovial is one of my favorite makers of gluten-free pastas on the market, I hadn’t ventured much beyond that. A few of our local natural food stores carry other Jovial items…like their gluten-free cookies. I’ve just never justified spending money on them. I know…I’m a cookie monster, but there are usually more pressing matters on my grocery list…like…whole foods and fruits and vegetables and…the non-processed, doesn’t come with a label, best foods out there for you kind of stuff. And while I splurge every now and again, I find my budget growing tighter and tighter and my money less and less.

And it sucks.

But…sometimes…you end up in Birmingham, Alabama, visiting your family and splurges happen. Often. And this last visit, when my mom and I went shopping out at Organic Harvest, I decided that it was time to give into that craving to, perhaps, relive some Fig Newton goodness…and I purchased a box of Jovial Gluten Free Fig Fruit Filled Cookies. And they came home with me. And…I kept staring at the box, wanting to open them…wanting to see if they were even close to reminiscent of my Fig Newton noshing days.

Well, the day finally came. Today, while at work, my morning snack (because cookies in the morning is perfectly logical, yes?) became the Jovial Gluten Free Fig Fruit Filled Cookies. Hey…cookies with fruit in them can be a good morning snack! Right?!

I knew you’d agree with me!

So…at 10:30 a.m….I opened up my little package of figgy cookie goodness…and took my first taste.

So…here’s the deal with the Jovial Gluten Free Fig Fruit Filled Cookies…

They do taste a lot like Fig Newtons. They really do. Except for one…very minor…but important detail. The cookie part…the part that encases the entire figgy center…is so dry. It’s so dry that it’s crumbly. Think…shortbread texture. That’s what it immediately reminded me of. And the fact that it didn’t have that rich, soft, gooeyness that Fig Newtons had (you know…one bite and it all melts together), was actually more of a let down. The flavor is spot on! I LOVE that part. But I found the fig center to be under-stuffed and that cookie to be dry and a bit of a distraction from the fig fruit middle. It was disappointing, but not disgusting. I will (and intend to) polish off this box of cookies…but I don’t think I’ll purchase them again. At least not in the near future. My roomie tried one too…and she thought the same thing about both the cookie and the lack of fig center. And she has recently had both Fig Newtons and Fig Newmans…so, she’s in the right figgy frame of mind for this.

Ingredient-wise, these are actually really well put together. They are made from organic figs, organic rice flour, organic sugar, organic potato starch, organic palm fruit oil, organic rice starch, organic rice syrup, organic eggs, organic chick pea flour, organic arabic gum, leavening, salt, pectin, citric acid, and guar gum. They are gluten-free and casein-free. And, granted, these are the first gluten-free option for people who love figs! I will give them that! And, according to the Web site, the Jovial Gluten Free Fig Fruit Filled Cookies are baked in small batches with ingredients that are mixed by hand. They use a unique and delicate process to hide the filling completely inside the cookie before baking (unlike Fig Newtons & Fig Newmans where you see the fig filling on each end).

Nutritionally speaking, a serving size of the Jovial Gluten Free Fig Fruit Filled Cookies is 2 cookies. These two little two-bite cookies serve you up 130 calories and 4 grams of fat. Two cookies will also provide you with 5 mg cholesterol, 65 mg sodium, and 12 grams of sugar (YIKES!). Additionally, you will be taking in 1 gram of fiber and 1 gram of protein…so this is not a filling treat either. Just keep that in mind.

Yes…I was disappointed by the cookie shell of the Jovial Gluten Free Fig Fruit Filled Cookies, but…they weren’t a complete loss. The flavors were there. The cookie was just crumbly and the filling a bit scant, that’s all. And that’s me…being the cookie monster that I am…looking for the quality that I pay for. And these cookies are not cheap. Like I said, I’d eat them again…sure. But I won’t actively seek them out on a consistent basis. I would, however, like to try the other two cookie options available by Jovial.

June 11, 2014

Product Review: Halo Top Creamery Lemon Cake All Natural Light Ice Cream

Product: Halo Top Creamery Lemon Cake All Natural Light Ice Cream – $5.49+

So…a couple weeks ago I posted my first blog on my first flavor of Halo Top Creamery All Natural Ice Cream. It was the vanilla flavor…and save for some not-so-creamy texture…it ranked high in my book! What’s not to love about an ice cream that has fantastic flavor, dishes up like ice cream, and is low in calories and high in protein? There is SO much to love about that…let me tell you!

So, I was sort of (okay…maybe a little more than sort of) excited about dishing up a bowl of the other flavor that my roomie and I decided to pick up that day there was a special on them at our natural food store. I chose Vanilla Bean. She chose Lemon Cake. This shouldn’t surprise anyone…as she is a lemon freak! Like…freaky freak over lemon. Like Rick James Superfreak over lemon. I mean…I love lemon too, but she takes her lemon love to a new and somewhat disturbing extreme. HA!

Recall…the Halo Top Creamery Vanilla Bean All Natural Light Ice Cream had amazing flavor, but was less creamy than regular ice cream. It wasn’t bad through and it didn’t fall apart and flake when dished. It still rolled up perfectly in the ice cream scoop and made pretty little balls of ice cream in my bowl.

Well…tonight…it was the Lemon Cake flavor’s turn to shine.

We polished off dinner (Gluten-Free and Vegan BLATs [vegan bacon (made with black beans and buckwheat groats…yes…I make it myself!), lettuce, avocado, and tomato sandwiches) with grilled corn-on-the-cob. I asked if she wanted ice cream of cookies for dessert. She had no opinion…and I didn’t care. Since we had the ice cream longer than the cookies…I opted for the ice cream. Besides, she has a cold and up until this morning a sore throat…so ice cream is the best remedy for that, right? Of course!

I pulled it from the freezer, got my 1/2 cup measuring cup out (yes…I portion-size everything!), ice cream scoop, and ice cream bowls. I was ready to dish. The ice cream scoop went into the pint…and it flaked. It flaked!! It didn’t roll up into the scoop. It busted up into little ice cream like pieces…and crumbled. The result was a bowl of ice cream that looked more like scrambled eggs than ice cream.

BUMMER!

So…the texture on this one was WAY off. But…what about the flavor?

On the Web site, the Halo Top Creamery Lemon Cake All Natural Light Ice Cream is described as being not too sweet and not too sour. It states that it has the perfect amount of zesty freshness and sweet richness. And it’s called Lemon Cake because it has a “smooth cheesecake-y texture.”

*eyes scrambled egg-like ice cream in bowl*

REALLY??!!

Okay…the flavor was actually a very delicate and enticing blend of lemon flavor. It wasn’t overwhelming…but Cathy didn’t even realize she was eating the Lemon Cake Halo Top Creamery Ice Cream. I mentioned it after and she said, “That was the lemon cake?” I don’t know what to say about that…because she also is fighting a cold. To me…the lemon flavor was actually spot-on. It wasn’t overpowering but it wasn’t too under-the-radar either. It had great flavor.

But…my GOD…it was not at all ice cream-like. More like…sorbet gone wrong. And it’s too bad. It really is too bad because I had such high hopes for the Halo Top Creamery Lemon Cake All Natural Light Ice Cream. If you don’t mind flaky, crusty ice cream…then this is for you. But, it is called ice cream for a reason. And this…was not the texture I was hoping for when I bought it.

Disappointment.

The Halo Top Creamery Lemon Cake All Natural Light Ice Cream is made up of milk and cream, cultured non-fat milk, cage-free eggs, whey, erythritol, organic cane sugar, chicory root, casein protein, acacia gum, sea salt, organic lemon peel, organic lemon oil, organic sunflower oil, organic carob gum, organic guar gum, carrageenan, and organic stevia.

As for nutrition…a serving of Halo Top Creamery Lemon Cake All Natural Ice Cream is 1/2 cup. This serving dishes up only 70 calories and 3 grams of fat. A serving also gives you 43 mg cholesterol, 89 mg sodium, and 4 grams of sugar. This 1/2 cup serving will also provide you with 4 grams of fiber and 7 grams of protein. Not bad.

Too bad the ice cream is not good…

This was a huge disappointment. I wanted to try all the flavors, but this sort of made me not want to waste my money.

Sad.

A “scoop” of Halo Top Creamery Lemon Cake All Natural Light Ice Cream

June 11, 2014June 11, 2014

Product Review: PB Crave Cookie Nookie Peanut Butter

Product: PB Crave Cookie Nookie Peanut Butter – $6.99+

It’s no secret around here…my go-to food for…whatever emotion I’m feeling…is peanut butter.

PEANUT-FREAKIN’-BUTTER! When I’m stressed, sad, lonely, hungry, angry, confused, and yes…even happy or content…I have a jar…and a spoon…and I eat all the peanut butter.

Well, that’s not what I set out to do…but that’s normally what happens because when it comes to the creamy, rich, sweet and salty flavor of peanut butter…I sometimes can’t stop myself. Honestly, it would be best for me if I had Cathy hide the peanut butter. This may have to happen.

That being said, this morning I opened up a new dreamy jar of a new kind of peanut butter. My friend Jenn found a jar of PB Crave (my local World Market seems to be the one place locally I can get this!) and was kind enough to pick one up for me. The flavor – Cookie Nookie. As in…cookie flavored peanut butter. And, before you fret, it is gluten-free! It’s been sitting, standing on it’s lid (it’s all natural, so the ingredients separate), in my pantry, since I brought it home from Columbus, Ohio. But the time had come. I didn’t want to wait any longer. That and Cathy really seemed to want the gluten-free bagel thins instead of eggs this morning…and I needed something to schmear on them. Congratulations PB Crave…your time to shine.

I uncapped the jar this morning and got out a butter knife to begin the task of stirring the ingredients together. Hey…I don’t mind working for my peanut butter. Honestly. It smelled amazing…like peanut butter cookie dough, so I couldn’t wait to get it on that bagel. I worked for about 5 minutes, making sure the oil was mixed in well and that there were no clumpy bits. I hate clumpy bits in my peanut butter. Then, I recapped it and got the bagels out to toast in the oven. They were lightly toasted and I was ready to top them off.

PB Crave is the brainchild of Curt Riess, who was raised on traditional peanut butter and (gasp) hated it! But that all changed one day when he tried a combination of peanut butter, raspberries, and chocolate. The new twist on an old classic was what sparked the idea to begin his own peanut butter company. Curt’s Peanut Butter Company was born and soon developed four very unique flavors for their line PB Crave. The company is based out of Cannon Falls, Minnesota, and they believe in quality, citizenship, and innovation. They are not only re-inventing peanut butter (and doing a fine job of it too!), and focusing on quality products, they are setting out to change the world. No joke. Their Web site has a link to Project Peanut Butter, where the company donates a minimum of 2% of the profits from every jar of PB Crave to Project Peanut Butter, a non-profit organization that focuses on treating malnourished children. So, PB Crave is actually setting out to make a difference. You gotta love that!

But, I digress…

Kinda.

So, the gluten-free bagel thins were now dressed up in PB Crave Cookie Nookie Peanut Butter and ready for their first taste test. I handed Cathy her plate and went to clean up a little and pour myself some coffee. As she is fighting off a cold, I didn’t bother to ask her what she thought of it. I always get the same response anyway these days and I grow weary of hearing it every time. So, I settled in with my own plate and took a bite.

Rich. Creamy. And it tastes like peanut butter cookie dough with chcolate chips in it. It’s like…eating dessert on my bagel. Man…it was amazing. And really fantastic with the texture. It stirred together well and just became this smooth spread with chocolate chips throughout. And…that’s exactly what it should taste like. The PB Crave Cookie Nookie Peanut Butter is a delicious combination of chocolate chips, cookie dough flavor, wild honey, and premium peanut butter. So…cookies…peanut butter…chocolate chips…honey…did I die and go to peanut butter heaven? This was one rich, sweet treat to have on my bagel this morning. I fell in love with first bite…and then wanted to lick the plate.

I actually did lick the plate.

PB Crave is crafted using high-quality ingredients and proven practices. These jars of twisted peanut butter gives you the flavor combinations you crave without the stuff you don’t…and that your body doesn’t need. In other words, PB Crave has no hydrogenated oils, no artificial flavors, no syrups, no high-fructose corn syrup, and…yes…it is gluten-free and cholesterol free. PB Crave Cookie Nookie Peanut Butter is an artisan-crafted blend of peanuts, sugar, palm oil, chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, whole milk, natural flavor, salt, maltodextrin, soy lecithin, honey, and vanilla.

Nutritionally speaking, a serving of PB Crave Cookie Nookie Peanut Butter is 2 tablespoons. This serving gives you 180 calories and 15 grams of fat. A serving of PB Crave Cookie Nookie also dishes up 130 mg sodium and 5 grams of sugar. You also will be taking in 2 grams of fiber and 6 grams of protein. Honestly, not bad for a peanut butter.

The problem is keeping yourself limited to that serving size. Because now it’s peanut butter and dessert rolled into one. I’ve eaten peanut butter for dessert…but this is like a whole new level of spoon-licking awesomeness. Spread it on anything. Apple slices…toast…celery…and kick it up a notch. Substitute it in your recipe for peanut butter cookies. When peanut butter is elevated to a new level…it becomes PB Crave Cookie Nookie.

It just becomes PB Crave. And now I want to try all four flavors. PB Crave also is offered in Choco Choco (double dose of dark chocolate with peanut butter and honey), Coco Bananas (tropical blend of bananas, cocoa, honey and peanut butter), and Razzle Dazzle (twisted blend of red raspberry, honey, white chocolate, dark chocolate, and peanut butter).

Sound epic?

You bet your peanut butter craving panties it does!

Time to go on the hunt…or at least place an order online. This is a necessity for the pantry. For always.

Now, pardon me while I go raid the rest of the jar…

June 6, 2014

Product Review: Trader Joe’s Gluten-Free Joe Joe’s Chocolate Vanilla Creme Cookies

Product: Trader Joe’s Gluten-Free Joe Joe’s Chocolate Vanilla Creme Cookies – $3.99

COOKIES!!

COOKIE MONSTER STRIKES AGAIN!!

It’s been a little while now since I spotted the Gluten-Free Joe Joe’s on the shelf of my local Trader Joe’s. At the time, I had so many cookies in my pantry that I couldn’t justify purchasing them. I’m a cookie monster, for sure, but even I know where to draw the line at times. HA! Or…so I like to tell myself anyway. I am she of no self control when it comes to certain things (Helllllllllllo….peanut butter!). I tend to behave, most of the time, when I know what still waits for me at home.

I was happy to have these though. When my friend, Stacey, threw a challenge at me to make a gluten-free and vegan grasshopper pie…I was short on my pie crust, so I pulled out six cookies, scraped out the filling (which Cathy then snacked on), and then threw them in the food processor…ultimately getting my pie crust amount right where it needed to be. Happiness and joy. But…now I had an open box of sandwich cookies.

Oh…I guess I forgot to mention that. In case you don’t know about Trader Joe’s and their products, they have their own version of an Oreo cookie…called Joe Joe’s. Well, I think around a year ago, they introduced a gluten-free version of these cookies. Sandwich cookies…are amazing. Growing up, I was an Oreo fiend. I would pour a giant glass of milk and grab Oreo after Oreo…dipping them in the milk and keeping it there while that delicious chocolate cookie would grow soft. That’s the ultimate and best (in my opinion…but honestly…it is) way to eat a sandwich cookie.

When I went gluten-free, I thought my cookie eating days were over. Until I realized that the gluten-free cookie industry is BOOMING! Really, if it’s an unhealthy snack, there is a gluten-free version of it somewhere. Some better than others, of course. And my first gluten-free sandwich cookie (of Oreo-like goodness) came from Glutino…thanks to my mom. There are other brands out there that I still need to try (K-Toos for one), but I have stuck it out with Glutino for the longest time. Because…they are flippin’ fantastic. For real! But…there came a moment of weakness during a quick Trader Joe’s stop…where a box of the Gluten-Free Joe Joe’s made it into my basket and then into my shopping bag…and then into my pantry.

So…last night…since the box was now open, I figured this would be an easy dessert. Besides, you give the option of milk (for me almond milk) and cookies to my roommate, and you have a happy roomie. HAHA! It’s the truth. She wanted to have nothing of the other dessert options that I listed off. I said milk and cookies and…that’s what she zeroed in on. And that…was what we had.

I poured her a glass of skim milk and me a glass of my unsweetened almond milk and pulled out two cookies each for us. Suddenly, I was feeling like a kid again. I felt like I was sidling up to the breakfast table at my friend’s house with the entire package and devouring most of said package in that sitting as we just kept dunking and eating and enjoying those tasty, delicious, amazing Oreo cookies. The instant I dunked that cookie into my almond milk and held it there, counting silently to the magic number that gets the cookie all soaked and mushy without it breaking off and pooling at the bottom of the glass (hate when that happens). I carefully lifted it to my lips…and that first bite…pure magic.

These…are fantastic. They are damn good. They might not be up to the level of Glutino, but they are also less expensive to purchase, and it’s been awhile since I even had the Glutino sandwich cookies…so perhaps the comparison is unfair. The chocolate cookie part itself is rich and dark and just…that right amount of crunchy and crumbly. Perfect balance. It didn’t take long for it to soak up that almond milk and get it to that level of sogginess that I love when I eat these sorts of cookies. The creme layer itself is…different. I found it to be a bit dry…and a little on the thin side. As in…I expect these cookies to have a good layer of creme (not double-stuff, but still a good layer!). So, that creme filling was a little lacking. I loved, however, that you could actually see the vanilla bean specks inside the creme. No fake and artificial vanilla flavor here. That’s the real deal. Too bad they sort of skimped out on that filling, eh? But…the cookie is the star and the cookie was amazing. The chocolate flavor just floods your mouth…and I think that’s where that creme layer needed to really be there…to sort of bring a balance. But…it’s something they can consider for the future. If a product is a cookie with creme…give me the damn creme!

Two cookies…gone way too soon. The temptation to get the package and just keep going was definitely there. Oh…to have the metabolism I had as a child…and no knowledge of what the hell a calorie was. Ignorance really is bliss. Sandwiched between two chocolate cookies. *sigh*

Let’s take a look at the ingredients that go into Trader Joe’s Gluten-Free Joe Joe’s Chocolate Vanilla Creme Cookies, shall we? These cookies are made from: cane sugar, grain blend (corn flour, rice flour, cornstarch, potato flour, tapioca starch, potato starch, xanthan gum, arabic gum, and carrageenan), palm oil, cocoa powder, expeller pressed canola oil, invert syrup, cocoa powder, egg white powder, sea salt, baking powder, vanilla bean seeds, soy lecithin, natural flavors and ammonium bicarbonate. Not a fan of the canola oil, the carrageenan…honestly. But…I don’t eat these often, so as a treat…

As far as nutrition goes…these are cookies…keep that in mind. A serving size is 2 of the Gluten-Free Joe Joe’s Chocolate Vanilla Creme Cookies. I know it’s difficult…but try to keep to that serving size. This serving will provide you with 130 calories and 6 grams of fat. Additionally, you will be taking in 65 mg sodium and 11 grams of sugar. These cookies are cholesterol free. Finally, you will be provided with less than 1 gram of fiber and 1 gram of protein. Filling…it’s a cookie…it’s not going to be filling. It is going to be a nice sweet treat though.

So…yes…I know these are not clean eating, nor are they healthy. But, you can’t be 100% all the time. And since I can’t eat Oreos anymore…I have to find my alternative. Trader Joe’s does a decent job with their Gluten-Free Joe Joe’s Chocolate Vanilla Creme Cookies! They are packed with flavor…just not with filling. Which, might be a blessing rather than a curse (keeps that calorie count down!). However, let’s face it…the creme is one of the best parts of sandwich cookies…so I want to be aware of it when I binge on these addictive little treats (made even more addictive when dunked…I can’t explain it…but it’s true!). So, I’m not disappointed with this purchase, and would probably buy these again in the future. After all…sometimes you just can’t beat that Trader Joe’s price!