Gluten Free Pasta: Tinkiyada Organic Brown Rice Penne Pasta - Product Review #97

Gluten Free Pasta: Tinkiyada Brown Rice Penne

PRODUCT NAME:                        Organic Brown Rice Penne

BRAND:                                       Tinkyada

COST:                                          $4.49

SIZE:                                            12oz

COST PER OZ:                             $0.37/oz                              

CERTIFIED GLUTEN FREE:           NO

CERTIFICATION AGENCY:            N/A

ORGANIC:                                    NO

CERTIFICATION AGENCY:            N/A

VEGAN:                                        Unknown

WHEAT FREE FACILITY:              YES

LOCATION OF FACILITY:             Canada

SHELF LIFE:                                3 Years                 

*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:
Tinkyada out of Canada is a company that is dedicated to making good tasting rice pasta.  They specialize which means that all of their machines are dedicated to process only rice and no other grain or cereal.  Not only is this pasta gluten free, but it is also corn free, egg free, dairy free, casein free, meat free, soy free, nut free and peanut free.  It’s the perfect allergy friendly pasta. 

Cooking this pasta is just as easy as cooking any other pasta.  All you need to do is it on medium-high for 16-17 minutes.  The cooking time seems a little high compared to other pastas, but it was surprisingly accurate.  The package claims that this pasta is not mushy, is al dente, and has good consistent texture.  All of these statements are accurate.  As long as you follow the directions, you will have consistent pasta every time. 

The taste and texture of the pasta was perfect.  This pasta is made of brown rice and you can tell right away.  Usually, pasta is really bland and really doesn’t taste like much, but this one had tons of flavor.  This pasta had the distinct, slightly sweet, brown rice flavor.  The texture was spot on too.  We were afraid that we overcooked the pasta with such a long cook time, but it held up perfectly.  It was firm, yet chewy and held its form.  The package was right; it was al dente, not mushy and had good consistent texture. 

Nutrition Facts and Ingredients

Overall, we loved this pasta.  It was everything you can ask for in a pasta; great flavor, good consistency and good texture.  With 200 calories, 1.5 grams of fat and just 25mg of sodium per serving, this is a fairly healthy pasta too.  The only downside is that it is a little pricy at $4.49 for a 12oz package.   

Taste: This is a great tasting pasta with good texture.  It is definitely one of the best we’ve ever had.   

Labeling: There is a lot of writing on this packaging.  While it can get confusing at times, it is all there for informational purposes. 

Packaging: Vacuum sealed plastic packaging. 

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 on 3/24/11 by Calvin C   

Gluten Free Soup: Kettle Cuisine Southwestern Chicken and Corn Chowder - Product Review #70

Kettle Cuisine Southwestern Chicken and Corn Chowder

PRODUCT NAME:                    Southwestern Chicken and Corn Chowder

BRAND:                                   Kettle Cuisine

COST:                                     $4.35

SIZE:                                       10oz

COST PER OZ:                        $0.44/oz

CERTIFIED GLUTEN FREE:      YES

CERTIFICATION AGENCY:       GFCO

ORGANIC:                               NO

CERTIFICATION AGENCY:       N/A

VEGAN:                                   NO

GLUTEN FREE FACILITY:        NO

LOCATION OF FACILITY:        Chelsea, MA

*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:
Southwestern Chicken and Corn Chowder… just saying that puts me in a festive mood. This chowder is just one of many in Kettle Cuisine’s line of gluten free soups. If you were wondering what the difference between a soup and a chowder is… it’s the thickness of it. Soups are usually just broth based, whereas chowders are thickened with cream. So if you’re allergic to dairy, you might want to stick to soups. This chowder is great. It’s all natural, contains no preservatives, no artificial colors, no MSG, no artificial flavorings, not to mention it’s certified gluten free. What more can you ask for?

Cooking this soup up is a breeze. You have 2 options, microwave or stovetop. The lack of a microwave in our studio forced us to the stovetop option, but it was still easy. Just release the frozen contents of the bowl into a pot and turn the heat to medium. I decided to add about a half cup of water just to speed it up a little. Make sure you watch it closely and stir it so it doesn’t burn. Chowder is thicker and contains cream, which tends to burn easily if you let it sit too long.

This Southwester Chicken with Corn Chowder was delicious. Kettle Cuisine uses high quality ingredients in their products. Take for example the fresh green and red peppers and the tender grilled chicken in this chowder that is raised without antibiotics on a vegetarian diet. Add to that the corn and the long list of spices and you have a fiesta in a bowl.

Although this soup tastes great, it isn’t the healthiest thing in the world. It contains 230 calories, 10 g of fat, 50 mg of cholesterol, and 620 mg of sodium. These numbers are all a little high, but I decided to compare it to the nutrition facts of a similar regular Southwester Chicken and Corn Chowder. The nutrition facts seem to be about the same. The kettle cuisine version has double the cholesterol, but 140mg less sodium. Point of this is to make sure you are aware of what you are eating and how much it impacts your recommended daily values.

Overall, this chowder tastes great, but as much as we love things that taste great, not all of them are great for us. When eating this, make sure you watch what you eat for the rest of the day.

Taste: Great tasting chowder that is nice and thick like it is supposed to be. The pieces of chicken were much larger than I had expected and was really tender.

Labeling: The labeling on this product is similar to the labeling on the Chicken Soup with Rice Noodles we reviewed yesterday. All of the important information about the soup right on the front. One thing that I didn’t mention on yesterday’s review was the nice picture on the front. I don’t think our bowl looked as good, but it sure tasted good.

Packaging: Usual packaging. It comes in a microwave safe container so it can go right from your freezer to your microwave, to your stomach.

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:             4
Value:            3
OVERALL:      4

Reviewed 021011 by Calvin C.

Gluten Free Snacks: Mary's Gone Crackers Sea Salt Sticks & Twigs - Product Review #65

Gluten Free Snacks: Mary's Gone Crackers Sea Salt Sticks & Twigs

PRODUCT NAME:                       Sea Salt Sticks & Twigs

BRAND:                                      Mary’s Gone Crackers

COST:                                        $4.65

SIZE:                                           8oz

COST PER OZ:                            $0.58/oz

CERTIFIED GLUETEN FREE:        NO

CERTIFICATION AGENCY:           N/A

ORGANIC:                                   YES

CERTIFICATION AGENCY:           ICS

VEGAN:                                       YES

WHEAT FREE FACILITY:             YES

LOCATION OF FACILITY:            USA

*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:
If you’re looking for something with a great crunch to snack on, we think we have found just the thing for you. Mary’s Gone Crackers’ Sea Salt Sticks and Twigs might just be the perfect salty snack. You might remember last week when we reviewed the Curry flavored version of this delicious snack and how much we loved them. The perfect crunchy texture mixed with all those spices, it was perfect. Like the curry version, we loved these Sea Salt flavored one too. In fact, we might even actually like these more.

I don’t know what it is about the simple flavor of sea salt, but it makes everything taste so right. The sea salt in these sticks and twigs is the perfect complement. It does a great job of highlighting the different flavors of the brown rice, whole quinoa, flax seeds, sesame seeds, amaranth, millet, and chia seeds. Combine that with the same crunchy texture that we have come to expect from Mary’s Gone Crackers and we come out with the perfect snack.

We like to pay close attention to the nutrition fact on the products we eat so it’s no surprise that we paid attention to this one. 150 calories, 5 grams of fat, and 300 mg of sodium is contained in 1 serving of 15 pieces. These numbers are almost identical to the ones on the Curry flavored Sticks & Twigs from last week. The 1 difference you will see is the sodium content. This version has almost double the sodium content. That sounds bad, but not all is lost because although it is more than the Curry Flavor, these still have about 100mg less sodium than a leading brand of pretzels. Regardless, we still recommend practicing portion control with these snacks especially if you are sensitive to sodium or have high blood pressure.

If you’re afraid that these won’t keep long after opening, rest assured because we tested that too. We actually opened these Sea Salt Sticks & Twigs last Thursday and when we ate them today (Monday) they were still nice and crispy with no signs of going stale.

Have we found the perfect snack? It’s pretty darn close. These are perfect for just about everyone, but like we have said in the past for their other crackers we have tried, if you have sensitive teeth, you might want to be a little careful because they are extremely crunchy and some of the seeds are a little hard. At 300mg of sodium, they aren’t horrible, but it is something you should pay attention to, especially if you have high blood pressure.

Taste: Made up of brown rice, whole quinoa, flax seeds, sesame seeds, amaranth, millet and chia seeds this snack has a great crunchy texture, but watch out for those hard seeds that are mixed in. Combine the great crunch with the nice simple flavor of Sea Salt, and you have a great snack.

Labeling: Mary’s Gone Crackers’ labeling is among the best I’ve seen. They use the same theme on all of their packages that makes it unmistakable that this is a Mary’s Gone Crackers product.

Packaging: Regular vacuum sealed packaging.

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:         3
Taste:             5
Value:            4
OVERALL:      4

Reviewed 020711 by Calvin C.

Gluten Free Granola: Paleo People Cappuccino Crunch Granola - Product Review #59

Gluten Free Granola: Paleo People Cappuccino Crunch

PRODUCT NAME:                      Cappuccino Crunch All Natural Granola

BRAND:                                     Paleo People

COST:                                       $7.90 (2-pack)

SIZE:                                         5oz each

COST PER OZ:                          $0.79/oz

CERTIFIED GLUTEN FREE:        YES

CERTIFICATION AGENCY:         GFCO

ORGANIC:                                 NO

CERTIFICATION AGENCY:         N/A

VEGAN:                                     YES

GLUTEN 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:
Who thought eating like cavemen could be so enjoyable? Paleo People, formerly Paleo Women, did. Laura, the woman behind the product, set out to create a granola that would cater to her CrossFit community. Her goal was to create a product that was made with ingredients you would find in the cave dweller days because food back then was at their peak for health and performance. What she came up with was this all natural granola.

Today, we tested their Cappuccino Crunch flavor granola. First thing you will notice is the very attractive packaging that is resealable and of course if you’re familiar with gluten free foods, you will see that this granola is certified gluten free by GFCO. Made with almonds, Brazil nuts, walnuts, pecans, sunflower seeds, coffee beans, raisins, and dried cranberries among other things, this granola is one of the bests I’ve had. I was feeling a little sluggish this morning and this granola gave me that little pick me up that I needed.

Open up the package and you will be greeted with the fragrant aroma of fresh coffee. The clusters of granola vary in size, but grab a handful and pop it into your mouth and you will notice the nice blend of different textures. The chewiness of the dried fruit, the full bodied texture from the variety of nuts, and the crunch from the coffee beans all come together to create the perfect texture.

This granola is flavored with honey, cinnamon and the sweet flavor from the dried fruit and with 7g of sugar in each ¼ cup serving, it’s reasonable. The flavor is perfectly balanced and not overly sweet like you might find with other granolas that are sweetened with high fructose corn syrup and ridiculous amounts of sugar. If you look on the nutrition facts and are scared by the 12g of fat, just remember that the main ingredient in this granola are nuts, which are naturally high in fat, but don’t worry because it’s the good kind.

This granola is good for just about anyone, except for those of you with nut allergies. At about $3.95 per 5oz package, the cost isn’t much different than your traditional granola. Don’t forget to practice portion control either. Just because granola is supposed to be good for you, don’t overdo it. Serving size for this granola is ¼ cup.

Taste: Great slightly sweet flavor coupled with a mild coffee flavor. Whether you like coffee or not, you will probably like this granola. The texture is also very nice with a blend of textures from soft to crunchy.

Labeling: Attractive labeling that is very easy to read. This product is also Certified Gluten Free.

Packaging: Resealable packaging that is great for people 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:         5
Taste:             5
Value:            4
OVERALL:      4.7

Reviewed 012811 by Calvin C.

Gluten Free Sauces: Premier Japan Teriyaki Sauce - Product Review #56

Gluten Free Sauce: Premier Japan Teriyaki Sauce

PRODUCT NAME:                         Gluten Free Teriyaki Sauce

BRAND:                                        Premier Japan

COST:                                           $4.69

SIZE:                                             8.5oz

COST PER OZ:                              $0.55/oz

CERTIFIED GLUTEN FREE:            NO

CERTIFICATION AGENCY:             N/A

ORGANIC:                                     YES

CERTIFICATION AGENCY:             QAI

VEGAN:                                         YES

GLUTEN FREE FACILITY:               UNKNOWN

LOCATION OF FACILITY:               USA

*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:
When I asked Rody, who is the gluten intolerant one in our studio, what he missed most since finding out he was gluten intolerant, he mentioned teriyaki sauce. Most teriyaki sauces are made with regular soy sauce, which as you probably know, has gluten in it. While I was at the 2011 Fancy Food Show at the San Francisco Moscone Center last week, I was happy to see that someone had made gluten free teriyaki sauce. That someone is Premier Japan has made a gluten free version of soy sauce using gluten free tamari soy sauce instead of regular soy sauce. The brand might sound familiar because it is the same company that makes the wheat-free hoisin sauce I reviewed last week.

Teriyaki sauce is used a lot in Asian cooking, especially Japanese. It is used in stir fry, it is used to glaze when barbequing, and it is also used over barbecued meat and fish. Teriyaki sauce is traditionally sweet. Premier Japan’s version of the sauce is pretty good. It is sweet like your traditional teriyaki sauce, but there is a kick of tanginess and spiciness as well. I think the tanginess comes from the use of apple cider vinegar and the spiciness comes from the black pepper used in the sauce. It’s not your traditional sweet teriyaki sauce, but it is definitely a good one.

Like I said with the hoisin sauce from this brand, you are going to want to watch the amount you use. This sauce actually has more sodium than the hoisin sauce we reviewed last week. Each tablespoon of this sauce has 15 calories and 250mg of sodium. That’s 10% of your recommended daily sodium intake. Just think about…if you were to have 10 table spoons of this sauce, you’d have hit your sodium limit for the day.
We used this sauce to flavor our vegetable stir fry and it added just the right amount of flavor. A tip though, the sauce is pretty concentrated with flavor so add a little water when you cook with it. This will help you keep your portions under control. Overall, we think this sauce tastes pretty good despite the fact that it isn’t your traditional teriyaki sauce. If you’re looking for something that will add a little sweetness and kick, this is the sauce for you.

Taste: Good tangy taste with a hint of spiciness from the black pepper. It isn’t your traditional sweet teriyaki sauce, but with the addition of the tanginess and spiciness, it is still a great sauce.

Labeling: Identical labeling to the hoisin sauce we reviewed last week. This sauce is also wheat-free, gluten free, vegan, and organic.

Packaging: Regular twist top bottle filled with 8.5 fl. Oz of sauce.

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:         4
Taste:             4
Value:            3
OVERALL:      3.7

Reviewed 012511 by Calvin C.