Flash in the Pan

Arico Natural Foods sent an assortment of product for the crew (my wife, me, and whatever particular set of kids marching through the house at any give time) to test. The company apparently focuses on gluten- and casein-free snacks. They present the cassava chips as a lower-fat and higher-fiber alternative to potato chips. (Stressing gluten-free when potatoes don't have gluten doesn't get you far.) The chips, made out of the starchy roots of a South American plant, were pretty good. The taste was a bit different from potato chips in a way that I find difficult to describe - lighter, maybe - but was nevertheless pleasant. Everyone else seemed to like the chips as well.

On the cookie front, we were far more divided. The kids loved the chocolate chunk and triple berry, my wife liked them, and I found them on the dry and mealy side, though if you can't tolerate gluten, they are good to know about. However, they are far from cheap, at least if you are buying online. You buy by the case of six family packs, and each pack, in a reclosable pouch, weighs 4.8 ounces; the price is $29.94, and then you pay $5.95 on top of that for shipping. Even without the shipping, it's $16.63 per pound of cookie. Similarly, the chips are a case of one dozen 5 ounce bags for $41.88. Ouch. So I'd suggest holding off on trying the products unless you can find them in a store, and even then you might find them an over-priced novelty, unless you have to avoid casein and gluten, in which case you probably have limited choices.

Labels: chips, cookies, product, review, snacks

OK, so the name sounds like something Roald Dahl threw out when writing Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. But don't let the self-conscious cuteness of FruitaBü throw you. These organic fruit snacks have a strong and clean fruit flavor, though some tend a little to the sour. But they're aimed at kids, and those same kids often like incredibly sour candies that twist my lips into a knot when I even think of them. Also, all the sugars come from fruit, so there is no high fructose corn syrup that goes into these.

There are two versions. The fruit Twirls are like a ribbon of soft fruit leather spiralled up. The fruit Sploooshers are packets of some kind of gelatinous mass that I'm sure is a heretofore unknown physical state of matter. I found the texture mildly off-putting, as did my teenage daughter, though, as I did, she liked the Twirls. But, being the dutiful young woman she is, she brought samples with her to school to test on her friends. They pretty much said, "Bring more," and they preferred the Sploooshers.

So give them a shot. Chances are that you won't go wrong, and at least you're keeping the corn content out and available for ethanol for the car.

Labels: fruit, opinion, product, review, snacks

While driving back from eastern Massachusetts to the western part of the state, we pulled over at the Johnny Appleseed rest stop in Fitchburg, home of that famous gardener. Being filled with the fruit spirit, my wife and I bought a bag of Seneca Apple Chips. The taste was pretty good - not a complete substitute for a potato chip, if you have that specific craving, but slighly sweet without being cloying, and precious little sodium. I thought they might be dried, but according to the company's web site, it uses a "proprietary vacuum cooking process." We tried the original flavor (otherwise known as apple), but there are some others, including caramel and cinnamon, a tart Granny Smith, and sour apple. They're definitely worth trying.

Labels: opinion, product, review, snacks

The PR people for Guiltless Gourmet sent a sample of a new version of their apparently 20-year-old baked tortilla chips. There are a number of flavors, though the one that showed up here was chili and lime. I'm not typically someone that likes flavored chips, but the tartness and bite weren't bad, which leads me to think that if you do like flavored chips, this might be to your taste. The crunch in them was excellent, even after the bag had been opened and then folded over and clipped shut for about a week. The release for the reformulated chips mentioned "better" texture and aroma - you won't get an argument out of me, although I never tried the earlier versions, so couldn't give a good comparison. But these seem good for a snack. Now, if only we had made salsa the other day, my afternoon would have been complete.

Labels: product, review, snacks

I generally eschew product announcements because I either want to know I'm suggesting something good, or I want the opportunity to mock someone unmercifully. However, my family has been eating Tribe hummus for years. It's very good, given that it's ready-to-eat, so this seemed a natural - consider it a review of a new packaging concept. The company is putting hummus into 2 ounce snack containers. You get a choice of roasted garlic, classic, 40 spices, and roasted red peppers.

The small containers come in two ways. One is a four-pack, whose suggested retail price is $2.99, "which is line priced with their most popular 8oz hummus product line." In other words, apparently they're not charging a premium for smaller packaging. Nice to see for a change. There is also a single 2-ounce snack pack that comes with a few crackers and runs ... $1.49 suggested retail, or roughly twice the unit price in the four-pack. Ah, well, so much for avoiding premium pricing.

The hummus does have to be refrigerated, so don't plan on keeping it in a hot lunch box all day.

Labels: opinion, product, review, snacks

I've never heard of food being called hand-held, though obviously the term is apt in a number of cases. (Just so long as I can avoid the front-of-shirt held experience.) A food and beverage consulting company called the Center for Culinary Development regularly produces a food trend report. Here are some of the "[e]xciting hand-held foods trends" the company sees:

Multiculturalism- Indian, Chinese and Latin American street foods, such as dosas, empandas, and bao, encase sweet or savory fillings in unique carriers. Now, making a cultural cross-over and expanding American palates, these hand-helds have intriguing shapes, and can be filled with a wide variety of ingredients.

Fresh & Wholesome- Paletas are bright, Mexican frozen pops made from fresh fruit or vegetables, spices, water or milk and just a little sugar. They feature chunks of hand-mashed fruit, rice or nuts for texture and ingredients such as cucumber, mango, avocado, corn, chili, lime, salt and mint.

Premium Twists to the Familiar- Sliders are craveable mini burgers that elevate the typical burger experience through creative variations of protein like premium beef or lamb, unique sauces and specialty cheeses. Their appetizer size encourages sampling for the culinary curious and also appeals to kids.

If you've been feeling left behind by the world of foodies, now's the time to get a handhold ... uh, handful?

Labels: snacks, street food, trends

We received a test shipment of a variety of cheese sticks from John Wm. Macy. For those not familiar with the concept of cheese straws, traditionally you roll out a sheet of puff pastry, cover both sides with grated cheese (Parmesan is a popular one), cut it into thin strips, twist each strip into a long spiral, and bake them. They can make a good appetizer. The John Wm. Macy variety are made of sourdough, not puff pastry, and have a number of flavors, including the original cheddar. Unfortunately, after trying a number of them, we all found them fairly bland. A sharper cheese would have perked them up with a little more bite. Sure, you could dip these into something, but if a cheese straw needs that, then it's missing something integral. Personally, I'd choose something else to serve - not that they are bad, but if I'm going to spend money, I'd rather get something that really grabs me.

Labels: appetizers, opinion, review, snacks

When the PR people for the Snack Factory asked whether I wanted to test Pretzel Crisps, I was dubious. Supposedly they were delicious (What's a PR person to say, they stink?), had a pretzel shape that made them "a real conversation piece," and were good with any dip. So let's go into these claims. First, these are like bagel chips, in the sense that the company takes pretzels, cuts them into horizontal slices (I think), and bakes them until crisp, then they add flavor. Or the steps might be mixed around a bit, but that is probably a close approximation.

Although a bit unusual, I wouldn't call the shape a conversation piece. As for dips, I supposed you could use them, but we never got that far, because the chips were just too good on their own. We went through a few flavors and haven't been able to try every one, but not a single one was a disappointment. Our niece said that although she didn't like Buffalo wings, she did like the Buffalo wing flavor; I thought it was a standout, and I do like the appetizer. Adults like them, a flock of teenagers liked them, and chances are, you will, too. So, get some dip if you must, but you owe it to the chips to be creative. For example, it would be interesting to try the Buffalo wing variety with blue cheese dressing. This seems like a great addition to a holiday party, and the packages are resealable, which is a bonus.

Labels: appetizers, opinion, ready-made, review, snacks

Here's another product I stumbled across at that recent festival. Dancing Star has energy snacks with high fiber - like the energy bars you might buy, but with a couple of differences. Instead of buying individually wrapped bars (though Dancing Star does have a line of those), you buy little energy cubes in bulk and then take as many along as you need. There's the taste, which is really good. I tried a couple and thought they could almost pass for dessert. And when you buy in bulk, the cost is about 50 cents an ounce rather than over a dollar as is true with the popular bars.

If there is no store near you carrying the products, a 5 pound bag will set you back $35, but it is more economical per serving than picking something individually wrapped from a grocery store, and even better, shipping is free.

Labels: Dancing Star, energy, energy bar, snacks