Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Good for You Goodies[First Video Post!]

Hey guys! I decided to change it up a bit by presenting you with a video post. Hope you enjoy =) By the way, here is the link to the company featured today.

Monday, March 30, 2009

Good for you Goodies: FitNutz!

Hey all! Hope everyone had a beyond wonderful weekend. I did, up until I watched the weather and heard we are supposed to be getting blasted with 4-7 inches of snow—again! What is up with this crazy spring/winter weather? I thought March was supposed to either come in like a lamb, go out like a lion, or the opposite—but in this case it’s been a lion the whole way through. Southern states are sounding better every day.

A couple things on the blogenda today: First off, a reader made a comment on my post on the powdered peanut butter PB2 and asked, “Why don’t you just eat real peanut butter?” Since I think blogs should be interactive, I decided to respond, but in a post rather than privately just in case anyone else was wondering the same thing. Well to answer your question—I do eat real peanut butter; check out my stash! CIMG0235 I am in no way saying you should not eat real peanut butter, in fact I stress that you should—it’s a nutrient/protein-packed powerhouse. I simply like to try and review other products on my blog, especially since this whole “Good for You Goodies” concept is about highlighting unique products. I don’t think it would be too exciting to do a review on Skippy peanut butter because..well..who doesn’t know what a jar of Skippy tastes like? I instead chose PB2 and in today’s case, FitNutz, because they are not you everyday item. And by the way, you do not need to replace peanut butter for this, it can simply be an addition if you please. Plus it can be used in lots of others ways that standard peanut butter cannot. Check em’ out here. So I hope that answered that question.

Next on the blogenda—just a quick heads up on a blog post that totally blew me away this weekend! Wanted everyone to check it out. You can here!

And finally the Good for You Goodie of the day!!

The Good for You Goodie: Regular, Chunky, and Pro-Protein Powdered PB

The Company:FitNutz

The Chew Review: This is the 2nd powdered peanut butter that I have tried now, and I am sad to report I did not like FitNutz nearly as much as PB2. I did however like the fact that they offer a chunky version which PB2 does not. Anyway, what I noticed was the powder was not as easy to mix. It took more time to incorporate the powder and water. Then for the taste test—it didn’t have that ‘total’ peanut butter taste I was looking for. But it still is loaded with the same essential fatty acids found in your standard peanut butter and it’s all natural! So needless to say, it will not go to waste! [I hate wasted food!] I am planning on incorporating it in some other of my recipes.

Here’s the chunky. It still lacked that awesome peanut flavor, but CIMG0213the peanut chunks make up for it a bit.

 

 

 

 

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Then came the regular tested on a whole wheat bagel. After I tried it, I added some cinnamon on top because it was lacking flavor. The Pro is basically the same look wise, but it had a bit more of a sweet taste to it, which wasn’t all that bad.

But as we all know, tastes and individuals vary, so if you want an opinion on FitNutz different from my own, check out Jenny over at Peanut Butter and Jenny.

Happy Monday!

Friday, March 27, 2009

Good for You Goodies: Medora Snacks [Part 2]

Last day of “Good for You Goodies” for the week, and I am not even half way through the products I received, plus I am still waiting on a few =) Let’s just say I love trying new foods. I bet I have the best stocked dorm in college thanks again to all the beyond amazing companies! I almost can’t wait for Monday to share the post on the next powdered peanut butter I tried. So you’ll definitely want to check back. But don’t leave just yet! As I promised the reviews for the Sotos and Corners are heeere.

The Good for you Goodie: Sotos and Corners

The Company:Medora Snacks

The Chew Review:

  • Cinnamon Streusel Sotos

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Sotos are these cute little square, multi-grain, crunchy snacks! New favorite alert: I rarely ever declare something an absolute favorite, but as chips go, I am sorry that I might have to consider divorcing my beloved Mr. Krispers Nacho Cheese Baked Rice Krisps that have been a staple in my life for the past year and a half! Unfortunately I can only be married to one chip type, and I feel this one possibly deserves my heart! In other words—these were a-m-a-z-i-n-g! They tasted like a cinnamon CIMG0187 bun in crunchy form. They were great plain, dipped in some vanilla yogurt, or just as a side to my lunches! Sadly, my bag is almost gone. You can order any of Medora’s products in bulk only on Amazon; hopefully they’ll be available in stores sooner than later.

  • Zesty Cheese, Olive Oil, and Lemon Sotos

It was hard to make a fair taste test after trying the Cinnamon CIMG0211 Streusel ones, but since they are not in the sweet category, but more on the zesty side, they were good! Definitely a unique chip flavor, so no real comparison here. Super duper flavorful. You could taste the cheese, olive oil flavor, and the lemon all in one bite. They also make a Sea Salt flavor which I did not receive, but I’m sure it is scrumptious like the others were.

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  • Ranch Corners

The “Corners” are basically a smaller version of a Dorito as far as CIMG0204 shape goes, but that’s where the similarities end!! Corners Popped Corn Tortillas™ are made with real corn, extra virgin olive oil, all natural ingredients and no trans fat. Corners™ unique popping process combines popped corn and tortilla chips. What a super way to combine 2 favorite snacks in 1! The Ranch flavor was like a Ranch Dorito, but with a much more natural ranch taste vs. artificial yuck and way more flavor. They were finger-lickin’ good.(Literally!)CIMG0205

  • Sea Salt Corners

I love the texture of Medora’s Corners! They are way crunchy and CIMG0206 serve up an endless amount of great flavor. The Sea Salt was not a disappointment. I am a huge fan of Sea Salt flavors(gotta love how they make you pucker). This was the best Sea Salt chip I have had in a long time. Make that all time. It’s something about their products—no weird after tastes or all that stuff that bad-for-you chips deliver. Conclusion: I am way glad I discovered this line of Good for You Goodies; hope you’ll get to share in the tasty experience also!

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p.s. These come in a Nacho Cheese flavor!! Not sure how they are(didn’t receive that flavor), but I’d bet that they are delish-o as well.

Thursday, March 26, 2009

Good for You Goodies: Medora Snacks[Part 1]

Hey everyone! I’m so glad it’s Thursday, which means I have made it through half the week and I’m still kickin’! Anyone else having extremely dreary weather—as in slush/snow, no sun for 4 days, cold, windy, etc. I sure hope no one else has to deal with this crud! Grr. Anyways, I just wanted to make sure all my reader’s are enjoying this ongoing “Good for You Goodies” feature, so if you could just take a second to take the poll below, I would really appreciate it! Like I said, I will use the weekends to feature recipes, tips, etc. But I cannot imagine not sharing all these delish products with everyone![I know one of my fav things about blogs is discovering new products & getting real reviews!] Thanks guys!

The Good for You Goodie:Pucci Pizza Snacks and White Cheddar Pogos

The Company: Medora Snacks

The Chew Review: Medora Snacks is a fairly new company that launched its products in 2008. The maker’s of Medora Snacks envisioned bringing their ideas of healthy and innovative snacking to the public. The result? A slew of amazing and unique products that are now making their way into people’s mouths all over! =) They make 4 main products: Corners, Pogos, Pucci, and Sotos. Luckily, I got samples of all 4 types, so I am splitting this post up. Tomorrow will feature Sotos and Corners. Here’s the samples I got.

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  • White Cheddar Pogos

CIMG0202 What the heck is a Pogo?[or Pucci, Sotos and Corners?] These names initially had me scratching my head, but heck, once I bit into these babies, I could care less if they had no name or a crazy name! But FYI, a Pogo is a potato cheese stick! It’s crunchy and fun shaped. I immediately thought of a Cheeto and it has a resemblance in taste also, except like Medora states on their website, “Tons of crunchy, cheesy taste and none of the messy CIMG0203 orange stuff left on your hands.” Hey, I’m all about super snacks minus the mess! I got to try the White Cheddar, but they have 2 other flavors also—hickory smoked and jalapeño cheddar. Plus Pogos are made with a unique baking process to create a more wholesome product using only all-natural, non-GMO ingredients.

nutrional facts

  • Pucci Pizza Snacks

CIMG0193 Do you ever have extreme pizza cravings, but don’t have time to pop one in the oven, or maybe you don’t even want a whole slice, but just a bite instead. Whatever your deal, I have just solved mine! Pizza bites any time I want! In the car, on the run, or just for fun—please make sure you get your hands on a bag of these soon =D They come in 3 flavors; Classic, Tomato Basil, and Garlic. I tried the classic. I could go CIMG0194 on and on about these little pizza jewels, but I will just say this: they look like pizza, they taste like a flat and crunchy slice, and they pair perfectly with a meal or all by themselves. Medora says, “Experience the delicious taste of 100% extra virgin olive oil, mozzarella and parmesan cheese baked into every bite.” Bon appétit!

nutrional facts

**By the way, check out Amanda's blog for a uber cool cereal giveaway!

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Good for You Goodies: Zoe’s Granola & Bars

The Good for You Goodie: 3 of Zoe’s Granolas and 3 of Zoe’s Bars

The Company: Zoe's Foods

The Chew Review: If you’ve never heard of this company, let me introduce them. =) Tori (the founder of Zoe Foods) started the company because she had a passion to make a difference and used that passion to fulfill her dream for providing great tasting, 100% naturally nutritious foods—which resulted in Zoe Foods! Sure glad we have ambitious people in the world! How else would such wonderful products be created?! Their site slogan is “All Day Energy. Everyday Health.” When they said they would send me a sampler box, you bet when it arrived I dug right in and set up a little taste test party!! Check out the results, and what I thought about each product below--->

First check out the great sampler I got!!!Thanks again to the generous folks over at Zoe Foods for your generosity!

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I’ll start with the granola..

  • Cranberries Currants Granola

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This granola did have pieces of real cranberries hence their absence in the picture! This was by far my favorite of the 3. First thing I noted about Zoe’s granolas as a whole—they are very chunky and very crunchy which = a pleasant granola eating experience! It had a hint of fruit flavor with a nice cinnamon twist to balance it out. [By the way, I did not take pictures of the next 2 flavors just because a camera doesn’t make granola look as interesting as it really is.]

  • Honey Almond Granola

This one reminded me of some sort of sugar cookie or cake batter taste. Maybe it was the honey mixed with the sliced almonds? Whatever the reason, I’m glad it tasted the way it did because it was no doubt delightful! By the way—did you check out the stats on this granola?! 115% Daily Value ALA Omega-3’s, 7g fiber, 8g protein, ground flaxseed, no trans fat; heck we resort to eating Zoe’s granola for every meal. He he ;-)

  • Cinnamon Raisin Granola

The name really gives the surprise of this one away. Fortunately, it was still surprisingly good. This one was comparable to other Cinnamon Raisin granolas/cereals I’ve tasted, so it was nothing too new for me. But, if you like a crunchy texture with some raisins and a shot of cinnamon, try it out! Now onto the bar reviews….

  • Peanut Butter Paradise Bar

CIMG0192 I must say, these bars are very satisfying! I split each one in two so I could stretch out their goodness. 8-) The whole grains in this were apparent as well as the natural nutty peanut butter taste. It wasn’t some fake artificial tasting peanut butter flavor, more of a “just the peanut” taste. Some peanut bars can be too salty, or too sweet, or just plain gross, but although this was not the favorite of the three, I would consider eating it again for a peanut butter fix. Ingredients:
ZoeMix (ground flaxseed, rolled oats, roasted soybeans, partially defatted soy flour, isolated soy protein), brown rice syrup, partially defatted peanut flour, barley malt syrup, crisp brown rice (brown rice flour, rice flour), crisped soy nuggets (isolated soy protein, rice flour, malt, salt), glycerin, date paste, chicory syrup, natural flavors, high oleic sunflower oil, soy lecithin, salt, vitamin E (mixed tocopherols – a natural antioxidant).

  • Chocolate Delight Bar

CIMG0199 This bar had total chocolate written all over it from the appearance, the smell, and you got it—the taste! To me, it tasted somewhere along the line of a Little Debbie brownie with a granola texture instead of a cakey texture. This is a bar to eat slowly and savor the real chocolate delight! Ingredients:
ZoeMix (ground flaxseed, rolled oats, roasted soybeans, soy protein isolate), brown rice syrup, crisped soy nuggets (isolated soy protein, rice flour, malt, salt), sugar, barley malt syrup, cocoa powder, evaporated cane juice,palm kernel oil, glycerin, chocolate liquor, date paste, chicory extract, lactose, high oleic sunflower oil, natural vanilla flavor and spice, soy lecithin, vitamin E (mixed tocopherols – a natural antioxidant).

  • Chocolate Peanut Butter Bliss

CIMG0198 This one was my favorite :-) It was like a hybrid of the two previous bars. So imagine those two reviews squished together and you’d get another good great bar from the company Zoe’s Foods. Ingredients:
ZoeMix (ground flaxseed, rolled oats, roasted soybeans, soy protein isolate, partially defatted soy flour), brown rice syrup, partially defatted peanut flour, sugar, barley malt syrup,soy nuggets (isolated soy protein, rice flour, malt, salt), crisp brown rice (brown rice flour, rice flour), palm kernel oil, glycerin, chicory extract, date paste, cocoa powder, natural flavors, high oleic sunflower oil, lactose, soy lecithin, salt, vitamin E (mixed tocopherols – a natural antioxidant).

Wow that’s a lot of chewing!!! I need something to drink now, bye!

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Good for You Goodies:PB2

The Good for You Goodie: PB2

The Company: Bell Plantation

The Chew Review: You could definitely call me a peanut butter girl. I prefer it in a old plain-Jane peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and have childhood memories filled with Smucker’s Uncrustables or my other infamous Doritos and peanut butter sandwich—honestly try it if you haven’t! It’s one of those combos that sounds disgusting, but it weirdly amazing! So when I first saw the new “powdered” peanut butter buzzing around the blog world(and getting rave reviews), I knew I had to feature it in the Good for you Goodies segment. Both PB2 and Fitnutz specialize in creating this powdered peanut butter that is made by squeezing out the oil from the peanuts and what remains is the powdered peanut butter in your jar with a stunning 85% less fat than standard peanut butter. So how do you eat a powdered peanut butter you ask? You simply mix 2 Tbsp with 1 Tbsp of water and as you stir it magically turns into a creamy peanut butter spread with a dreamy peanut scent! And the ingredients—only 3: roasted peanuts, salt and sugar. Don’t you just love knowing the actual source of the ingredients on a food you eat, rather than some long foreign looking list? I sure do! So scroll down for my chew..

CIMG0166  So I measured out the amount I wanted to use mixed the recommended amount of water into it. It was soo easy to stir and the ingredients incorporated very quickly. About 5 seconds later, I had your every day creamy peanut butter. Now for the test. 

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Of course it had to makes its’ debut on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich! It was unbelievable! Would it be safe to say that this could give Jiffy or Skippy a run for their money? I would be willing to bet on it. Not a slight difference whatsoever to a “regular” peanut butter. And guess what people….!

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It comes in chocolate form too! Holy smokes Yummy, this took my standard PB and Banana sandwich to a whole new level. I definitely suggest stocking your shelves with this ASAP. You can even head to their website and order a sample pack for $3.99 before deciding to buy more. If you don’t want to buy in bulk, I suggest going to Netrition where you can buy it for just $3.99/jar. I will soon be doing a taste test of FitNutz powdered peanut butter also; theirs comes in chunky! So keep your eyes peeled for that. See ya tomorrow!

Monday, March 23, 2009

Good for You Goodies:Food Should Taste Good[Part 2]

Hey fellow friends! I hope you all had a great first weekend of official spring. Here it didn’t seem like spring, but then again in Minnesota nothing is ever predictable, especially the weather. My weekend was restful for the most part, except for starting out my day Saturday discovering I hate a flat tire!! When your 2 hours away from your “car men”[Dad/Grandpa], and you have no mechanically inclined people to contact here, I did what I thought I should do and drive 10 mph with my flashers on to the nearest service station. Luckily it was just due to the cold weather and the tire had slightly pulled off the rim which caused it to deflate. So just $14.50 later(vs. an $80 replacement tire), I was on my way to a much better weekend! Now, onto the food of course :-) Today is part 2 of the Food Should Taste Good chip review, you can view Part 1 from last week here. I saved the last 4 flavors of chips for last just because they were my favorites. Best for last y’all!

  • My 4th Favorite Chip was…

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The Jalapeño flavor! This chip was one of the bigger ones compared to the Buffalo and The Works chip. I also loved the fiery red hue. When I first bit in it was normal, but then all of a sudden I got a hint of heat. Not too hot, not to blah! They recommend eating this with corn&black bean salsa!

  • My 3rd Favorite Chip was…

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The Olive flavor! It’s a chip infused with not one, not two, but three different olives. Black, kalamata, and green mixed together make this another great flavor. Plus the giant circle shape in a plus for dipping!

  • My 2nd Favorite Chip was…

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The Multigrain flavor! To me this was the most wholesome tortilla chip that has ever entered my mouth. Plus I couldn’t get over the shape.[The whole line of chips is in such fun shapes!] This chip is a blend of flax, sunflower, and sesame seeds all which bring out a nice & nutty flavor. Definitely a good date for some veggie dip.

  • The winner in my book is…

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The Sweet Potato flavor! I had a gut feeling when I first checked out the flavors Food Should Taste Good sent me, and I am a major sweet potato lover, so I was guessing it would take 1st place. I was right! It looked somewhat like a sweet potato, and tasted not exactly liked a fresh one, but more like a little salty and a little sweet with a hint of sweet potatoes. I will definitely be keeping a space for these on my “chip” shelve next to my Popchips and the rest =)

So in conclusion, I hope you all enjoyed this 2 part feature on the Food Should Taste good chips. There is such a variety, so if you like chips, there’s bound to be one that fits your fancy. Let me remind you these chips are very crunchy, and very satisfying, so if you’re more of a crisp person, save your money—otherwise dig in..because food should always taste good(in this case chips)!

Friday, March 20, 2009

I'm A Busy Blogging Bee!

Happy Friday everyone! Just wanted to give you a heads up that I am postponing the Food Should Taste Good[Part 2]until next Monday because I am gearing up to do a guest post over at Tina's blog on eating healthy at college when eating the dining hall or wherever else it is on campus that offers you food. I am really excited and have to go take some pics today! So on that note, I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, and I may or may not post till Monday.

By the way....

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Good for You Goodies:Food Should Taste Good[Part 1]

The Good for You Goodie: A huge variety of chips!
The Company: Food Should Taste Good
The Chew Review: Ok, so everyone assumes all food should taste good..for the most part? The first thing I loved about this company was their name!!! I know it caught my attention, and I am sure glad it did. The company prides themselves on their chips that are all natural, gluten free, good source of fiber,trans fat&cholesterol free, and lactose free. Wow that's sounds good to me! They bake the flavor INSIDE the chip to create a new snacking experience. The folks over at Food Should Taste Good said they'd be happy to send a sample of chips my way. Low and behold, a sample consisted of 4 huge bags of chips and 3 smaller bags; all different flavors and all very unique to other chips I have seen. So since they sent soo many good chips, I am splitting this blog post into 2 parts, otherwise it might get on the long side. =) Before I start, check out the nice assortment I recieved--->
*Olive, Multigrain, Sweet Potato, and Jalapeno

*The Works, Buffalo, & Chocolate

When I first tore open the box, I first fell in love with the packaging! It definitely sets itself apart from other chip companies. It's very neat, yet very compelling with the big picture of the chip in the middle.[Studying marketing really opens my eyes to the way companies get us consumers to buy buy buy] I really had a tough time deciding which chip to try first since I have never had many of these flavors in "chip" form. But one thing I noticed about every single chip is that it is a different color, different shape, and different size--thought it was neat! Also these chips aren't for "airy" chip fans, these are some seriously crunchy and dense chips. Perfect canidate for holding up to that bowl of salsa; yum! I decided to just close my eyes and pick a bag--so without further ado, the first contestant is...........
The Works chip: On their website, they claim this chip is the version of a loaded bagel. It has onion, garlic, poppy and caraway seeds. So I was hoping for an abundant poppy seed taste because I loooove poppy seed anything, but unfortunately that was not the case. Instead it was an intense -crunch!- and a plethora of all the above flavors combined. In some ways it reminded my of a Frito Lay chip(but healthier!) These are smaller compared to their other chips, but definitely one that would go good with a turkey(or some other meat)kind of sandwich and some hummus dip.


I was itching to try this one just because I knew I would either really like it or really despise it. (check out the shape/color--kinda like a chocolate bar!) Anyway, this chip took me for a spin. It was not what I expected at all. It wasn't a Hershey kinda chocolate taste, but more a corn chip mixed with just a subtle chocolate bite to it. Not my favorite one of the bunch[that's tomorrow!], but I would still encourage you to give it a shot. I might try and get creative with this. Maybe some PB on top? hmm..
Last chip of the day--the Buffalo chip. First thought: Reminded me of a mini-dorito with the shape and look of it, but no taste resemblance. Instead this was infused with cayenne pepper, garlic and vinegar. It left my mouth zinging like a buffalo wing after I ate one! But their bite to em' is addicting.....I popped a couple more and then decided these would be good at a summer BBQ when your eating celery and some ranch dip. See you tomorrow for another chip chew!

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Good for you Goodies: Erin Baker's

The Good for You Goodie:Oatmeal Raisin & Double Chocolate Chunk Breakfast Cookies + Peanut Butter Granola and Fruit&Nut Granola
The Company:Erin Baker's
The Chew Review: So I'm someone who absolutely loves giving public recognition to smaller companies in hopes that they will explode to something huge; that's how I feel with Erin Baker's. What better way to spread the word than through the blogging world?! They base their company on wholesome baked goods and their promise to customers is they will never add harmful trans fats, high-fructose corn syrups or artificial ingredients in any of their products--sounds pretty darn good to me! But besides having a good company standard, their products are waaay good. They have a BUNCH of hefty breakfast cookies, smaller bite-size cookies, brownie bites, homestyle granola, and even ultra protein granola! =) I can't rave enough about these breakfast cookies; I have never quite tasted something like it, so I can't compare it to a mainstream product. But believe me, in this case, being a unique cookie is a real good thing. So first check out the generous box the Baker's over at Erin's sent me--->
*Top left:Oatmeal Raisin Breakfast Cookie *Top right: Double Chocolate Chunk Bfast Cookie
*Botton left: Fruit & Nut Granola *Bottom right: Peanut Butter granola
I'll start with the Peanut Butter granola-- I've been sampling a lot of granola lately, but this flavor definitely leaves its' own mark. The peanut butter flavor is extremely apparent, but not in an overpowering way..instead it's more of a 'nutty' and 'natural' taste vs. if you took a spoonful of say, Jiffy. But, I have not had tons of peanut butter granola..most recently I tried the Meteor PB granola bites, and they are way sweeter than this. I thought this granola tasted devine in my vanilla yogurt =)
Fruit and Nut granola--Check out the nice texture of this! I am definitely a texture then taste kinda girl, I like checking out the whole appearance before digging in! This granola was an eye and a mouthful! The nuts, the fruit, and the granola were all apparent--no hidden ingredients here. There was walnuts, raisins annnd cranberries all mixed up with a subtle hint of coconut! Yes, all that in one package. And another good thing about granola; the possibilties are literally endless. Erin Baker's can help beautify your grand granola creations! Check out their other flavors too.Oatmeal Raisin Breakfast Cookie: I tried to write a review while eating this, but I couldn't simply because my mouth was full and I kept saying "Mmm" and looking at the package because I couldn't believe it was actually good for you! Then I had to zoom to their website to see about ordering some more of these. I have always been a die-hard oatmeal raisin cookie fan since I was knee high, but unfortunately baking your own can sometimes produce unpredictable results. Maybe too many raisins in half the batch, not enough in the other, or you overbaked them...now you can just have Erin Baker's do all the work to satisfy your craving! But even when you do bake your own, do you ever lick the bowl[C'mon you can tell me ;)] The first thought upon biting into this was: WOW it tastes like fresh and chewy cookie dough straight from the bowl 8-) It's a very oaty texture, very chewy, and verry satisfying.
Double Chocolate Chunk Breakfast Cookie: This had a similar texture to the Oatmeal Raisin Cookie; dense, chewy, and satisfying. Upon the first bite, I thought "Chocolate!"--more like double chocolate as the name implies. This one tasted like brownie batter. Honestly; I loove these. It also had tons of chocolate chips, but they balance out nicely. Another one to try for sure!

Monday, March 16, 2009

Good for You Goodies: Holey Donuts

*The Good for You Goodie: Assorted donuts, donut holes, and cinnamon buns.


*The Company:Holey Donuts



*My Chew Review: When I think of donut companies, I tend to think of Dunkin Donuts and Krispy Kreme. And when I think of donuts I generally think of them as a once in awhile treat that really isn't all that good for you. They can be loaded with unhealthy trans fats, artificial sweetners, and all that other not so good for you stuff. So what if I told you there's a company that provides donuts free of trans fats, artificial sweetners, etc. You'd probably say, "Ok, but I prefer a real donut, not some cardboard fake donut." But remember guys, this feature is called Good for you Goodies, stressing the "good" factor as being good tasting and good for you. Holey smokes I think I found a winner people! Holey Donuts is a company I discovered online(and really everyone SHOULD know about it), and they so graciously offered to send a sample my way. Fortunately, their sample stocked my whole freezer with tons of tantalizing donuts. I have been eating donuts almost every day for the past week--guilt free! And in no way could I tell the difference between their healthy donuts and a standard everyday donut. You could have literally blindfolded me and there's not a difference. Other than the Holey Donuts need to be kept in the freezer upon arrival and microwaved or thawed at room temp before consumption. They have a huge selection of donuts, donut holes, and even cinnamon buns for all you Cinnabon fans, and their prices are suprisingly cheap for all the work they go through to make these suckers healthy for consumers. The donuts are made by hand and require 22! steps till they are shipped out to you. Talk about major company dedication, eh? I could not rave enough about these and their distinct yet comparable taste to a unhealthy donut. So scroll down to view my thoughts, and ohh you can drool at the glorious donuts too!

*Low Fat Cinnamon Glazed Donut Holes
Let's just say, good things can come in small packages! They may be small, but once I popped em' the microwave, a warm cinnamon scent lingered as I bit into it. I wasn't sure what to expect with a "low fat" donut, but this was exactly like I was at Cinnabon, in a smaller, perfect for after lunch dessert. If you like cake donuts in a donut hole shape with a layer of sweet icing and a generous sprinkling of cinnamon, I suggest you get these stat!

*From left to right--Raspberry Graham Cracker, Coconut Cream Pie, Banana Cream Oreo Cookie
Unfortunately the Raspberry Graham Cracker donut has not been tested yet; so many donuts, so little time!(But I will update when I do try it!) The Coconut Cream Pie was filled with a decadent bavarian creme filling of some sort topped with a hefty layer of frosting topped with a generous amount of coconut, for a nice tropical touch! And finally the Oreo one is not skimping on Oreos at all. Since no one in my house(including myself)is too fond of Oreos(my dad likes em', but he won't eat a donut unless it's completely chocolate--grr!), so I enlisted my grandpa to test this one out for ya guys. He said it was great! I liked his little twist--he left it out to thaw and when he ate it the inside was still a bit frozen and he said he liked it that way because it was more like an ice cream sandwich--now that's what I'm talkin about! Plus I like how they incorporated both Oreo and banana for an insane good taste.

From left to right: Low Fat Caramel Crumb, Low Fat Vanilla Crumb & Low Fat Chocolate Crumb
These were all basically the same as far as texture goes. But each had a little different taste to them of course. The picture really doesn't do justice, because they are still in a frozen state. Any ways, when you pop em' in the microwave, the topping magically turns to a thick flavored icing topped with a really fun crumb layer! It totally makes the donut! Rather than having just a icing, the crumb is what makes it more fun!
Jumbo Reduced Fat Cinnamon Buns
Okay, the peeps over at Holey Donuts are not lying when they state that these buns are JUMBO. One could easily be split in two and provide a great snack or dessert. The secret of these buns, which is why they can't be compared to Cinnabon, is that they replace all the icky bad-for-you stuff in the bun with an apple/spice filling! Definitely a new twist for your cinnamon bun taste buds, but heck, it's actually better! I need to get the recipe...or just buy some =)
I'll leave ya with this last bit; a bit of donut that is! It's a peek inside the Vanilla Crumb donut after it's been microwaved and before I devour it. Check out that hefty texture and that ooey gooey topping. Now stop dreaming and go order a dozen..or two!

Good for You Goodies Kickoff: SweetRiot

I've been gearing up for my first big blog feature for about two months now, and I hope you all enjoy it as much as I enjoyed putting it together! Not really sure how long the feature will run, probably about a month. Monday-Fridays I will be chewin' to review, and the weekends I will mix it up a little. So sit back, relax, and enjoy all the Good for you Goodies.

The Good for you Goodie: 3 flavors of yummy chocolate-covered cacao

The Company:SweetRiot

My Chew Review: What initially attracted me to this website was that they used all-natural healthy ingredients and chocolate in the same sentence! I am not the biggest die-hard chocolate fan out there, I would truthfully rather have a fresh fruit platter than something like a Snicker's bar, but these seemed to be calling my name. I was so excited to recieve 3 tins of the chocolate-covered cacao "peaces". These tins are also a treat--they are decorated by artists that submit their artwork and you can even submit yours on their website! How cool right?! I also really liked the size of the tin because it's perfect for easy carrying in my purse. Once the tin is empty, SweetRiot provides different ways to reuse it such as for: vitamins, bandaids, bobby pins, jewelery, gadget cables, etc. Talk about reduce, reuse, and recycle; thumbs up for that! Now onto the chew--I will start with the tin of Flavor 50, roasted Cacao Nibs covered in 50% dark chocolate. When I opened the tin, I could immediately smell a chocolately aroma, which made me pour out a couple more than just one =) First thought? Yum! It reminded me of a chocolate covered rice krispie textured morsel. This flavor is definitely for the milk chocolate fans (myself included) because it has a much lighter chocolate taste then the next two contestants. Flavor 65 is roasted Cacao Nibs covered in 65% dark chocolate. The 15% chocolate boost was definitely noticeable; these are for the devote chocolate fans who really like the more "raw" chocolate taste. Now I thought Flavor 70 would be too much chocolate for me to handle, but when I checked out the tin I noticed this flavor contained a hint of espresso! The espresso balanced out the 70% dark chocolate taste perfectly!

Overall Opinion: Not only is the company really cool, but they just scored a new customer--me! I love that they're perfectly easy to bring along, and they're the perfect chocolate craving buster. Make sure to check out their website(the link is above)to see all the other things they have to offer. p.s. I heard these little gems are making their way around with some Hollywood stars too. Cooool!