Tags: dairy free

13 Jun 2011, Comments (10)

Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Chocolate Mega Chunks

Author: Healthnuttxo

Any exuse to eat chocolate (and/or peanut butter) and I’m down. It’s obvious that when Enjoy Life offered me a bag of their new Semi-Sweet Chocolate Mega Chunks to try for free, I accepted without having to think twice!

These chunks are gluten free, dairy free, nut free and more. I don’t have any allergies (at least that I know of!), but I’m certainly up for trying all sorts of foods.

First when I took these out of bag, I would agree they are “mega”! Long and rectangular in shape, and a dark brown color.

I decided to try one straight from the bag. It was slightly bitter, but with a smooth melt-in-the-mouth chocolatey taste. I believe I even tasted just a hint of vanilla.

Next, I thought I would bake peanut butter cookies with these Mega Chunks added in. Here’s what they looked like in the oven

See how big the chunks were!

And here’s one fresh from the oven…

What I really liked about these, was that they kept their shape even after being baked. They didn’t melt or become “lost” in the cookie. They still had a teeny bit of a bite to them, while still have the ooey-gooey goodness of a chocolate chip – just bigger!

Overall, really good! I couldn’t tell the difference between these and the chocolate chips I usually use. They were sweet, chocolatey, and love that they kept their shape! I would use these again! 4 stars

What’s your favorite type of cookie? Besides the usual peanut butter & chocolate chip, I REALLY like White Chocolate Macadamia Nut cookies!

1 Jun 2011, Comments (3)

Crispy Greens Crispy Apples and Crispy Asian Pears

Author: Healthnuttxo

It’s safe to say that I have eaten at least one apple a day, every day, since I was in middle school. Yep- they ARE my favorite fruits! And quite a lot of years and a LOT of apples were eaten in that time! That’s what I was happy to try the Crispy Greens Crispy Apples with my breakfast this morning, as well as the Crispy Asian Pears.

What I liked about these is that the ingredients is just fruit. No salt, preservatives, or sugar added, it’s just freeze dred fruit. According to the bag, both of them are also gluten free, vegan, dairy free, and peanut free.

I decided to have these with my cereal this morning. Here’s what they looked like out of the bag. (Ignore my ugly handwriting =P )

The Apples

The Asian Pears

As you can see, there was a texture difference. Not huge, but certainly there.

The Crispy Apples were just that- crispy. They also had a nice little crunch to them. They were sweet, yet tart, and pretty good. The Crispy Asian Pears were very soft. Almost as if they were the apples, but I left the bag open over night and they softened up. They just didn’t have the same crunch and crispy consistency that the apples had. However, the flavor was really yummy! They tasted just like a juicy pear would. They were also very sweet. In fact, I couldn’t get over just how sweet they were, and to think there was no added sugar!

Overall, pretty good! I added them to my cereal with almond milk and a banana, and thought they made a great addition. Gotta love that it’s just fruit, and no added sugar or preservatives! 4 stars

10 grams (1 bag) is 40 calories,  0 grams of fat, 8 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram  of fiber, 7 grams of sugar and 0 grams of protein.

Have you eaten one of the same things every day? What is it?


I got these to try, for free, from the company.

27 May 2011, Comments (0)

Trader Joe’s Black Bean & Corn Enchilada

Author: Healthnuttxo

Tonight for dinner, I was in the mood for something tasty, and something different. I remembered I bought the Trader Joe’s Black Bean & Corn Enchilada dish a while ago, and searched and then dug it out of the back of my freezer (it’s a balancing act in there with all those boxes leaning on one another!!)

According to the package, these were “wheat free” and “dairy free”, as well as being made with “organic white corn tortillas”, which I liked.

I cooked em up in the microwave, and had some steamed broccoli on the side. In the dish itself, there was crispy edges on the side and plenty of sauce surrounding the two enchiladas. Here’s how it looked when transferred to my plate.

And, here’s how it looked when I cut the tortilla to see the inside filling. There was mostly corn, tofu and black beans, with a few peppers I believe as well.

As you can see, PLENTY of corn. There wasn’t a TON of filling, but I’d say a rather good amount. The corn was very fresh tasting, and the beans were soft. The tofu was my favorite part, even though it was so tiny! Literally itsy-bitsy squares of soft tofu. I think I also saw a few peppers or some other small green vegetable, but those were rather sporadic.

The filling was stuffed inside the corn tortillas, which were very soft, and easy to cut with my fork. I liked that, for even though growing up I remember my mother telling me it was improper table manners to cut with just your fork, it’s EASY! And if I can cut with just my fork, then why not? (;  (rest assured, If I was eating at a restaurant, I would practice proper table manners. No worries!!)

Lastly, the sauce. It was very flavorful, and left a hint of spice in my mouth even when I was done eating. I liked that there was a good amount of the sauce as well.

Overall, pretty tasty! I wish that there was more protein, as both enchiladas only provided 8 grams of protein. Even though I wasn’t all that hungry at the beginning of my meal, I was hungry shortly after eating. Next time I eat these, I’ll probably have more veggies and a side of protein as well. 4 stars

So, my question is….What’s your favorite Mexican entree? Any particular brand you like?


25 May 2011, Comments (5)

Fruitzio Freeze Dried Fruit Snacks Apples & Strawberries

Author: Healthnuttxo

I got some free stuff from Crispy Green (thanks again!!!) including the Fruitzio Freeze Dried Fruit Snacks Apples & Strawberries.

haha - I love it! an apple juggling strawberries!

These lovely snacks are all natural, and according to the package are also “peanut/tree nut free, gluten free, dairy free, vegan”. What I like about it also, is that there are ONLY three ingredients-”Apples, Strawberries and Cane Sugar”. At first I was a bit puzzled by the cane sugar- I have had freeze dried fruit before and I find it to be sweet enough, but the package also stated that there was “just a hint of natural sugar”. I’m assuming it was added just to bring out the sweetness a little bit. Regardless, it didn’t seem to effect the nutritional information in a tremendous way.

I opened up the package and saw big slices of strawberries and apples. I liked that the pieces were big rather than tiny.

The apple pieces were soft, yet crunchy. They had a sweet and quite yummy apple flavor. If I had to guess as to which apple it was, I would say a Macintosh. It doesn’t state what kind on the bag, so who knows for sure. The strawberries were crunchy as well, and actually quite tart! They were still pretty tasty, but I preferred the apples over the strawberries, even though I found more strawberry pieces than apple slices in my bag.

Overall, pretty good! I felt these were a bit crunchier and a bit sweeter than other freeze dried fruit I have had in the past. I also threw these into my cereal in the morning for some added sweetness and crunch. 4 stars

What’s your FAVORITE freeze-dried fruit? I have always been partial to bananas (:

In case you're wondering...

I got these to try, for free, from the company.

18 May 2011, Comments (5)

EnjoyLife Double Chocolate Crunch Nut & Gluten Free Granola

Author: Healthnuttxo

EnjoyLife offered me something new they came out with to try for free, the Double Chocolate Crunch Nut & Gluten Free Granola. Being the nut about granola that I am, (and the fact that chocolate was involved), I couldn’t wait to try it.

This cereal is very “allergy friendly”, as the package states, as it is free of  ”wheat, dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, egg, soy, fish, shellfish” and “also made without casein, potato, sesame and sulfites”. Wow. It’s amazing how they can still make tasty products even with excluding so many different types of food!

Once I got the package, I immediately dove in and gave it a try. Here’s what it looked like

Look at all those yummy chocolate chips!

At first, I thought it was a bit bland, since it’s not super sweet. But, as I ate it, it really is delicious, and I couldn’t STOP eating it! Handful after handful, I ate the yummy granola. I loved the fact that there were a LOT of chocolate chips, no scrimping there for sure, and they were smooth and sweet. The texture of the granola was crispy, crunchy, and it had a mild chocolate flavor, that again, was not overly sweet.

Overall, very good. It was kind of like a bag of chocolate candies, once I started eating a few handfuls, I kept saying “oh, just a little bit more”, and then proceeded to take even more handfuls! I love that this is made with good ingredients,has a bit of fiber, and is a decent portion size given that it involves both chocolate and granola. 4 stars

What’s your favorite thing that’s “double chocolate”? I love double chocolate chip muffins!


7 Mar 2011, Comments (4)

Enjoy life Soft Baked Snickerdoodle Cookies

Author: Healthnuttxo

I’m pretty sure snickerdoodles are my FAVORITE type of cookies. I love the cinnamon sugar flavor, and the chewiness that they have. I was offered a free box of the Snickerdoodle Cookies from Enjoy Life, and was excited to try them. I recently reviewed the Lively Lemon flavor of these cookies I also was sent to try, and thought they were pretty good.

Some quick words about these cookies, according to the box, they are nut free, gluten free, wheat free, dairy free, peanut free, egg free, fish free, soy free and shellfish free.

I opened up the box, and like the Lively Lemon cookies, these cookies were kind of small. Like I stated before, they are about the size of a Snapple cap, but 1 serving is 2 cookies as stated on the box.

I took a bite, and found them to be very moist, chewy, and almost fudgy in consistency.  I actually really liked the texture, almost like a cake-cookie. They certainly weren’t like any Snickerdoodle I have eaten before, but they were still pretty good. A deep cinnamon flavor, and almost a bit of a burnt flavor as well. They were sweet without being too sweet, and even though there wasn’t molasses on the ingredient list, the flavor reminded me of something sweetened with molasses.

Overall, pretty good, and quite unique. I would probably eat these again, and I also love how the ingredient list was rather short- 4 stars.

2 cookies is 130 calories, 5 grams of fat, 21 grams of carbhydrates, 2 grams of fiber, 13 grams of sugar and 1 gram of protein.

What’s your favorite kind of cookie?

20 Feb 2011, Comments (2)

EnjoyLife boom CHOCO boom bars

Author: Healthnuttxo

Chocolate! Nothing is better than chocolate. Ok maybe peanut butter, but there’s room for debate on that one. ANYWAY, EnjoyLife sent me some boom CHOCO boom bars to try for free. I already reviewed the Rice Milk with Crispy Rice variety here, and thought it was pretty good. Today’s review is on the Dairy-Free Rice Milk Bar and the Dark Chocolate Bar.

Both these bars are free of nuts, soy, dairy, gluten, wheat, fish, shellfish,  and eggs as stated on the wrapper. They are also both vegan.

I tried the dark chocolate one first, although hesistantly. As you probably know, I’m not a huge dark chocolate fan. I love the health benefits, but not a fan of the bitterness (Why can’t milk or white chocolate be as healthy as dark chocolate!!!??) I DID like how cute the squares were. Here’s a picture

So, I took a bite of the square, which was rather thick and had a nice bite to it, and was pleasantly surprised. Not as bitter as I thought it would be! It was creamy, actually kind of sweet, and there was a vanilla aftertaste as well. Pretty good! 3 1/2 stars

Next up, the Dairy-Free Rice Milk bar. At first this one was smooth and sweet, but as I continued to eat it, I noticed it had some kind of an aftertaste. Hmm. Have you ever had sugar free chocolate? I have, and I always noticed it had some sort of an aftertaste which was similar to what this bar had. Also what I found odd was that I could almost taste milk in this bar, despite the fact that it was dairy-free. Bizarre. It was OK, but not my favorite. 3 stars

Well, look at that! I actually liked the Dark Chocolate one more than the Dairy-Free Rice Milk bar! Go figure ;)

Dark Chocolate boom CHOCO boom bar- 1 package is 200 calories, 15 grams of fat ( 9 saturated) 22 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of fiber, 17 grams of sugar and 2 grams of protein.

Dairy-Free Rice Milk boom CHOCO boom bar- 1 package is 230 calories, 17 grams of fat (11 saturated), 21 grams of carbohydrates, 1 grams of fiber, 17 grams of sugar, and 1 gram of protein.

If you could invent your own chocolate bar, what would it have in it? I would have a peanut butter filled milk chocolate bar with bits of banana in it. MMM!

30 Jan 2011, Comments (1)

Enjoy Life Soft Baked Lively Lemon Cookies

Author: Healthnuttxo

EnjoyLife offered to send me some of their cookies for free, and one of them was the Lively Lemon cookies. According to the box, these are wheat free, peanut free, dairy free, tree nut free, soy free, fish free, egg free and shellfish free, as well as being gluten free. I don’t have any food allergies, but I was still up for trying them anyway.

I opened the box, and saw kind of small-ish cookies with yellow spots on them. They smelled very fresh and lemon like. I took one out of the box and was a bit disappointed at how small they were. For a comparison, here’s what they looked like compared to a Snapple cap.

More like bite-sized cookies to me!

These cookies were super soft,  no crunch here. They were chewy, except for the little yellow bumps that were a bit harder. They were sweet with a lemon zest flavor, and pretty good. It was strange that they were really moist, yet dry at the same time- odd? Overall, they were pretty good. Not amazing, but pretty good. I had a friend try one an she said they were “very good in their own way” but they “had something missing”. I agreed.  3 1/2 stars.

What’s your favorite thing that is LEMON flavored?

2 cookies is 130 calories, 4.5 grams of fat, 21 grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of fiber, 11 grams of sugar and 1 gram of protein.

27 Jan 2011, Comments (0)

Arico Cassava Chips Ginger on Fire

Author: Healthnuttxo

Source

I wasn’t sure what to expect of these chips. I saw the words “on Fire” which sounded like they’d be spicy, and “Ginger”, so I thought there would be a rather pungent, distinct flavor.  According to the bag, these were “Gluten Free”, “Dairy Free” and had “Twice the Fiber of Leading Brand Potato Chips”. Hmm… they sounded good!

I opened the bag to avery strong ginger smell,  I was scared to taste these. Once I did, the were a lot better than I expected! Crunchy chips, at first some saltiness happens, then there is just a tinge of sweetness, followed by a basic potato chip taste-with the exception of the burning sensation that ginger can provide. These are pretty good! I loved the mild sweetness they had to them, and the satisfying crunch.

Overall, pretty good chips! I can picture them going just perfect with a sandwich for lunch. A downside is that they are kind of high in saturated fat (3 grams), but on the plus side, the sodium isn’t too bad with 150 mg. 3 1/2 stars

1 oz is 150 calories, 6 grams of fat, 3 grams of saturated fat, 18 grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of fiber, 1 gram of sugar and 1 gram of protein.

What’s your favorite flavor of chips? I happen to be partial to sour cream & onion or sweet barbeque!  : )


I was provided these chips to try for free from Arico Natural Foods Company.


6 Jan 2011, Comments (5)

Larabar Blueberry Muffin bar

Author: Healthnuttxo

Oh yea, here’s something BRANDDD NEWWW! Yesterday I got a lovely package from LARABAR with some new Blueberry Muffin Larabars inside. YES! I love new products! I thought when I opened the box.

The first thing I noticed was that the wrapper was much more of a plastic-y wrapper than usual, but then again,  maybe it’s just me and my imagination. But onto the bar, not the wrapper (who am I to judge by the outside?)

This bar is “gluten free” “soy free” and “dairy free” , has “no added sugar” and counts as “1/2 serving of fruit” according to the wrapper. How’s THAT for a snack that’s also all natural with only 6 ingredients? (Ok, I sound like an advertisement. I’ll stop now… =P)

The bar was brown in color, with little pieces of nuts and blue spots for the blueberries. Strong cashew flavor, that really reminded me of a sweet cashew butter. It had a slightly tart and yet still sweet blueberry flavor as well.  It was chewy, dense, and very moist. It’s pretty good, actually!

Overall, 4 stars.  While I liked the carrot cake or chocolate chip cookie dough Larabars better, this one was still quite tasty, and a great snack between meals!

1 bar is 190 calories, 8 grams of fat, 26 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of fiber, 17 grams of sugar and 4 grams of protein.

Dates, Cashews, Blueberries, Blueberry Juice Concentrate, Lemon Juice Concentrate, Vanilla Extract.

Whats your favorite Larabar?

I was provided this bar to try for free from LaraBar.

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