Here are some products I’ve tried lately. Some were bad, some were okay, some were good, and some were awesome. So I figured I’d share. I have no affiliation with any of these companies. These are simply my honest opinions.
1. Choc & Nut spread. This is a vegan version of Nutella. I first came upon this French company at Expo West and after one bite I was hooked. It tastes heavenly – chocolate & hazelnut in a creamy smooth buttery spread.
I found it at my local Co-Op and it’s not cheap. $10 for the small jar. Luckily a little goes a long way so I’ve been able to ration it.
2. Falafel Republic Hummus & Salsa Wrap. I realize I already showed you guys these Mediterranean burritos (as well as the same company’s falafels), but they have become such a staple in our freezer. Kyle and I are both completely in love with their products.
They taste so fresh. They are the anti-frozen food. If your Costco doesn’t carry them I’d ask them to start.
3. Rudi’s GF bread. I got both of these loaves (original and cinnamon raisin) from the company, but they are pretty widely available at most grocery stores (conventional stores like Vons, Ralphs, etc. and natural foods stores like Whole Foods).
I keep going back and forth on how I feel about this bread. They taste good and are lighter than any other gluten free breads I’ve tried, but I couldn’t really eat them as sandwich bread. They break apart too easily. They are almost TOO fluffy. And yet, they aren’t really fluffy at all. It’s hard to describe. Anyway, I’ve eaten them a variety of ways, the cinnamon raisin is best when toasted and topped with Earth Balance. Oddly (or boringly) enough I like the plain ones best solo with a glass of almond milk on the side.
4. PureFit Nutrition bars. They are both vegan and gluten free but they have lots of processed soy. The company sent me them and after trying one, I called it quits on the rest. They were chalky and made my stomach feel like crap. Kyle has been enjoying them though. They definitely have that protein-powder-y flavor.
5. Sukhi’s Gourmet Indian Foods naanwich. I love the story of how the company came to exist and since they have East Bay roots, I am even more of a fan. For being packaged, their products taste pretty damn authentic.
The naan is so so soft and the inside has the perfect level of flavor without being too overpowering.
They are widely available in health foods stores.
6. NuttZo omega 3 multi-nut butter. This stuff is like peanut butter on steroids. Flax seeds are always a good addition to anything, especially nut butters, but mixing cashews, almonds, hazelnuts, brazil nuts, and sunflower seeds into the mix too!?! Crazy talk.
I just wish there were more almonds and flax. The ratio is slightly imbalanced – if I had to guess I’d say it’s like 50% peanuts. But since I usually make my own, I’m used to getting my exact specifications (which has apparently made me semi-spoiled in the grocery realm of nut butters). Aside from that trivial complaint, this jar is otherwise quite heavenly. My usual approach to gussying up my oatmeal with a smorgasbord of toppings is cut to one ingredient when Nuttzo is involved.
7. zukay live foods raw beet juice. This company makes raw vegan products including juices and salad dressings. I thought the beet juice would be a nice on-the-go shortcut for me since I like juicing, but often want it before work when it’s not very practical to operate and clean the juicer (while still letting Kyle sleep in).
But there was something off about the flavor. To be fair, I’ve always had it in combination with carrots and greens, so maybe I’m just not used to drinking straight up beet juice? I’ve since considered ways to cook with it (yes, I know this completely negates the raw factor, but oh well).
8. RAWvolution maca cookie dough balls. Having heard some iffy things about Euphoria Loves Rawvolution cafe, I have never dined there in person. However, I’ve been eyeing the menu ever since I moved back to LA. It’s drool inducing. Our local Co-Op sells their meal plan items individually, and I impulsively bought these very overpriced dough balls last week.
They look awesome don’t they? Unfortunately they were almost pure cocoa butter. Not coconut butter. Cocoa butter. As in the fatty part of chocolate that lacks the flavor. It’s not that tasty. You’d think fat would taste good right? Bummer. The little cacao nibs offered a nice crunchy contrast to the waxy texture of the ball, but that’s about all I liked. I have no clue where the maca was. Dough balls these were not.
9. Good Belly probiotic juice. The first ingredient is water, which I thought was weird. Otherwise it’s a variety of juices with some cane sugar and lactobacillus. We decided to try it because you don’t see pomegranate blackberry as a flavor very often. Kyle and I have been making smoothies with it for a change up from the usual almond milk. It’s fine on it’s own, but I think I prefer almond milk in my smoothies. They get too sweet with frozen berries AND berry juice.
10. Speculoos Cookie Butter. I finally caved and bought this hot ticket item. On my last Delta flight I tried the Biscoff cookies it’s made from (and wasn’t really into them). So why did I decide to give the butter version a shot? Well. I guess I’m crazy. But Trader Joe’s is so cheap I figured it didn’t really matter if I had it once and hated it. Of course that’s not what happened though.
It tastes a little bit like gingerbread, with a thick pudding-y texture. It’s fluffier than nut butters, but has way more ingredients than nut butters too. There are these teeny crunchy bits (cookie remnants?) that give the spread a gritty texture every once in a while. I definitely liked it, but now I don’t know what to do with it. So far I’ve only eaten it from a spoon.
Alright, that’s it I need to try cookie butter! If only there were a trader joes near me!
Those naanwiches look so good! I think naan is actually one of the biggest things I miss since going gluten free!
Thank you for your honest opinions! A post like this is much more fun to read (especially with your voice) than a sponsored post.
Also my fingers are crossed that my Costco carries those hummus and salsa wraps — they look awesome!
I imagine the cookie butter would be too cookie-y to spread it on cookies or graham crackers 🙂 My boyfriend likes to eat his on ice cream. I’m curious if it could be mixed with almond milk to make cookie-butter-syrup, but he hasn’t wanted to try it and I can’t eat it myself, sadly.
That Cho & Nut spread looks and sounds awesome…I was almost glad Nutella isn’t vegan because it keeps me from buying it…so dangerous for me to have in my house. My stomach would hate me! I haven’t tried the TJs cookie spread, although I’m in love with Biscoff…again, dangerous to have around the house. I’m not sure you need to do anything more than eat it from a spoon! I ate biscoff on nanners…yum!
The cookie butter is definitely dangerous. I had to finally throw it away because I couldn’t stop myself from eating it by the spoonful. Justin’s nut butter also makes a vegan (I think — it has evaporated cane juice) chocolate hazelnut butter as well. It’s delicious and only has 7 grams of sugar. I really enjoyed this post!
Those Garden Vegetable Naanwiches are one of my favorite frozen foods products! They definitely don’t taste all weird and overprocessed like most frozen food.
those things r so easy to make. u should do a post where u make them and see if its tastes the same or better 😀 (i bet on the latter)
Thanks a lot for your reviews! I’m living in England right now and don’t have most of those products, but it’s such a reminder to really read the ingredients and taste the food. Thanks!
I totally agree with you about the cookie butter! It is amazing but I really don’t know what to eat it with. Recently I’ve been dipping Barbara’s Puffins into my jar. Random, but delicious! And I must get my hands on some of those Falafels
Those cookies are so deceiving because they look like they would be so good! That cookie butter on the other hand – well that stuff is straight up crack.
Love that the vegan Nutella has just 9g of sugar–Nutella has upwards of 20g!
I’ve wanted to try the Nuttzo for a while now, but I’d have to order it online! I’m so intrigued! Do you think it’s worth the 12$ plus shipping fees? It sure looks worth it! There’s also a peanut free version, but it’s upwads of 18$ – I’m a splurger on food, but even I don’t think I could spend that much on one jar of nut and seed butter!
Straight up beet juice tastes like dirt. But kinda in a good way? Good dirt juice!
i know right? i think we both like things that others may not be so into, haha.
do you have a food processor? because if you do id say no, its not worth that price tag. you can make your own by just taking a few cups of mixed nuts and processing for 10 minutes. but then again, im the queen of impulsive and overpriced purchases when it comes to food….soooo….id completely understand if you just splurged.
go to the bulk bins and get flax seeds, cashews, brazil nuts, macadamias, almonds, hazelnuts, and whatever else you want and just pulse pulse pulse.
wow. thats kinda crazy. did you hear about the mom suing nutella? so ridic. shes claiming she was falsely led to believe its a nutritious breakfast food or something. i have no clue how these people get away with this stuff. grow a brain and think for yourself lady!
which thing are you referring to specifically k?
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I am so stealing this “knock them all out” style of reviews. Love.
I LOVE BEET JUICE. I never make it because who wants to peel a beet? But I do love it. And you.
Just wondering; what is a Co-Op?
co-op is short for co-opportunity, its a natural foods store that is owned by the community (me! the buyer!) as opposed to a retailer (you can buy a share if you want to but you dont have to in order to shop there)
read more about mine here: http://www.coopportunity.com/
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I don’t even know how I ended up here, but I thought this post was good.
I do not know who you are but definitely you are going to a
famous blogger if you are not already 😉 Cheers!