Gluten Free Cookies: Mary's Gone Crackers Double Chocolate Love Cookies - Product Review #52

Gluten Free Cookies: Mary's Gone Crackers Double Chocolate Cookies

PRODUCT NAME:                     Double Chocolate Love Cookies

BRAND:                                    Mary’s Gone Crackers

COST:                                      $4.75

SIZE:                                        12 cookies (5.5oz)

COST PER COOKIE:                 $0.40 ($0.86/oz)

CERTIFIED GLUTEN FREE:       YES

CERTIFICATION AGENCY:        GFCO

ORGANIC:                                YES

CERTIFICATION AGENCY:        ICS-INTL

VEGAN:                                    YES

GLUTEN FREE FACILITY:          YES

LOCATION OF FACILITY:          CALIFORNIA



*These statements are based on the information printed on the product packaging. We cannot verify the accuracy of this information. For verification of the statements above, please contact the manufacturer.

REVIEW:
While I was at the 2011 Fancy Food Show at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, I came across the Mary’s Gone Crackers booth. If you recall, they make delicious gluten free crackers made with a blend of seeds. I spoke with them briefly about their products and was informed that they actually make gluten free cookies as well. They call them Love Cookies.

Today, we decided to try the Double Chocolate Love Cookies. If I recall correctly, the representative said that Double Chocolate was one of the newer flavors. The packaging is very similar to their crackers with very nice graphics on the front. If you are familiar with the brand, you would be able to pick it find it on the shelves with no problem. Open up the box and you will find 2 separate packages with 6 cookies in each package. Although it is extra packaging, I liked this concept. The package is not resealable, so it’s a good way to ensure that at least half the cookies stay fresh.

The first thing I noticed about these cookies is that they look a lot like chocolate snickerdoodles. Pop one into your mouth and you will be greeted with a very nice chocolate flavor. This cookie is not overly sweet, which is one of my favorite things about it. It is a very dry cookie, but you have to remember that this cookie is dairy-free. The organic gluten free blend of brown rice flour, tapioca flour, potato flour, potato starch, and amaranth flour give this cookie a very unique texture that I haven’t had with any other cookie. Combine that with the chunks of chocolate in the cookie, and you have a very pleasant cookie.

Mary’s Gone Crackers have done a great job with this cookie. It tastes great, has good texture, and it’s not horrible for you. It is organic, kosher, non-gmo, gluten free, vegan, allergy friendly, uses low glycemic sweeteners, contains chia seeds, no hydrogenated oils and has no trans-fats. It’s like a health freak’s perfect cookie. At 130 calories and 100mg of sodium for 2 cookies, it’s not as bad as some other cookies, but as always, remember to watch what you are eating and practice portion control.

Taste: Great rich chocolate flavor that isn’t overly sweet combined with a nice dry, but chewy texture.

Labeling: Very attractive labeling similar to their other line of products.

Packaging: 2 sealed packages with the cookies split evenly in a recycled paperboard box.

Reader’s Reviews: Please share with us your review of this company’s other products + where you purchased the product + how long you have been using this product. Please no review from the family + friends of the company producing the product…

RATING:
Texture:           5
Taste:               5
Value:              3
OVERALL:        4.3

Reviewed 011911 by CC

Gluten Free Pretzels: Glutino Sesame Pretzel Rings - Product Review #48

Gluten Free Pretzels: Glutino Sesame Pretzel Rings

PRODUCT NAME:                          Gluten Free Sesame Pretzel Rings

BRAND:                                         Glutino

COST:                                            $4.99

SIZE:                                              8oz

COST PER OZ:                               $0.62/oz 

CERTIFIED GLUTEN FREE:             NO

CERTIFICATION AGENCY:              N/A

ORGANIC:                                      NO

CERTIFICATION AGENCY:              N/A

VEGAN:                                          YES

GLUTEN FREE FACILITY:                UNKNOWN

LOCATION OF FACILITY:                Israel

*These statements are based on the information printed on the product packaging. We cannot verify the accuracy of this information. For verification of the statements above, please contact the manufacturer.

REVIEW:
Glutino is one of the biggest names in gluten free products. They manufacture and distribute over 80 different gluten free products. They have everything from baking mixes and snacks to frozen entrees and pizza. With such a successful operation, they must be doing something right. We have tried a few of their products in the past and have liked them a lot. When we saw these Gluten Free Pretzel Rings, we knew we had to try them.

There are a few things that jump out at us about these pretzels. Not only are they gluten free, but they are also milk free, casein free, and egg free. So that makes these good for people with gluten free diets as well as vegan diets. It’s nice that these pretzels are good for people with special diets, but really, how does it stack up to regular pretzels? I will say that I am personally not the biggest fan of pretzels. I don’t mind them, but they wouldn’t be me snack of choice. If all pretzels were like these, I might have to reconsider. These pretzels were great and got a unanimous two thumbs up from everyone in our office. They have the pretzel flavor, but are lighter and crispier than regular pretzels.

Since I’ve been paying attention to nutrition labels a lot more lately, I decided to take a more in depth look at the nutrition facts of these gluten free pretzels. I decided to compare them to the nutrition facts of pretzels from a large manufacturer. What I saw was surprising. I saw that these gluten free pretzels actually have more calories (150 calories vs. 110 calories) and fat (8g vs 1g) than traditional pretzels with similar serving sizes. These gluten free pretzels did have less sodium though (390mg vs 420mg). All of these numbers are relatively close though, but the sodium content is a little on the high side. That goes for both the Glutino gluten free pretzels as well as the regular pretzels. That just reminds us that we need to pay attention to the nutrition facts and make sure we don’t overdo it. Remember that everything should be used in moderation.

These pretzels are suitable for just about everyone whether you are gluten free or not. They have nice flavor and are really crispy. If you are allergic to soy or sesame, you might want to stay away as these pretzels contain both.

Taste: Great pretzel flavor, but with the added bonus of being lighter and crispier than regular pretzels. I actually prefer them to the regular pretzels full of gluten.

Labeling: Very attractive labeling on this package that is also informative. They have all of their bases covered as these pretzels are gluten free, milk free, casein free, and egg free.

Packaging: The packaging is your typical cellophane package with an air tight seal. Opening it might be a little tricky though because it tears pretty easily once it is opened. If you plan to keep these for more than one sitting, I would suggest have a bag clip on hand to keep it fresh.

Reader’s Reviews: Please share with us your review of this company’s other products + where you purchased the product + how long you have been using this product. Please no review from the family + friends of the company producing the product…

RATING:
Texture:           5
Taste:               5
Value:              3
OVERALL:        4.3

Reviewed 011011 by CC

Gluten Free Cookies: Nana's Chocolate Munch Cookie Bars - Product Review #24

Gluten Free Cookies: Nana's Chocolate Munch Cookie Bars

PRODUCT NAME:                           Chocolate Munch Cookie Bars

BRAND:                                          Nana’s Cookie Bars

COST:                                            $3.99

SIZE:                                               6.17oz

COST PER OZ:                                $0.65/oz

CERTIFIED GLUTEN FREE:              YES

CERTIFICATION AGENCY:               GFCO

ORGANIC:                                       NO

CERTIFICATION AGENCY:               N/A

VEGAN:                                           YES

WHEAT FREE FACILITY:                  UNKNOWN

LOCATION OF FACILITY:                 California

*These statements are based on the information printed on the product packaging. We cannot verify the accuracy of this information. For verification of the statements above, please contact the manufacturer.

REVIEW:

With Curious George, a fond childhood memory of mine, on the front of the box, eye catching graphics and the promise of chocolate flavored cookies, I was excited to try these cookies.  After taking my first bite, my excitement soon turned to disappointment.  I thought I was eating a cookie, but after biting into it, I had no idea what it was.  It was soft…too soft.  It was also powdery and left a weird feeling in your mouth.  I really wanted to like this cookie, looking at the package, it has so much going for it…no refined sugars, no dairy, no trans fat, no GMO’s, no cholesterol, no casein, no eggs, no wheat, no corn, no soy, no cane or beet products.  It’s a healthy cookie alternative.  I just wished what was inside matched the packaging. 

Bottom line, these cookies are healthy alternatives that would probably be best suited for people who like soft cookies.  Younger kids would also probably love this cooking because the packaging really is eye catching.  The cookie bar is not horrible, but I can safely say that it is not for everyone.  If you are looking for a big crunch, it is probably not for you      


Taste:  Perfect amount of sweetness and flavor, but with a texture that is too soft and powdery.  I have had many cookies that had way too much sugar in it and were overly sweet.  Nana’s does a good job of keeping the sweetness at the right level.  She uses a different approach at sweetening the cookie.  The box claims that it is sweetened with fruit juice.  I thought that was interesting.   

Labeling: The box has a picture of Curious George on the front, I’m not sure if this is always true, but the box that we got did.  I can already see that this is probably a hit with children.  They did a great job with their graphics.  They used nice bright colors that make this stand out on the shelf. 

Packaging: The packaging is printed on 100% recycled paperboard however inside are 5 individually wrapped cookies.  I think that this is a waste of packaging, however I do see that they did that so that these cookies can be eaten on the go.   

Reader’s Reviews: Please share with us your review of this company’s other products + where you purchased the product + how long you have been using this product. Please no review from the family + friends of the company producing the product..

RATING:

Texture:                 2             

Taste:                     2

Value:                     2

OVERALL:              2

Reviewed 11/18/2010 by CC