Jalapeño Fiesta Snack from Graze

Photo from Graze.
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Ingredients:

jalapeno peanuts, roasted sunflower seeds, salsa almonds and roasted pumpkin seeds

I received this snack in my February Graze box.

Tea Suggestion:

I suggest an iced tea with this selection, and have plenty on hand because it’s a spicy snack!  You’ll want to refresh the palate!  When I opened this tray, I had this Whisky & Cola Iced Tea from Southern Boy Teas chilling in my fridge!  A nice way to cool the tongue after eating one of those jalapeño peanuts!

What I Think:

Spicy!  The peanuts have been seasoned with “jalapeño” flavoring (although the ingredient list says that it’s cayenne, I don’t see jalapeño in the complete ingredient list), and there are quite a few peanuts in this snack mix.  The almonds have been seasoned with a “salsa” flavoring, and while there are far fewer almonds in this mix, there are enough here to amp up the zesty flavor of the mix.

There are also sunflower seeds and pumpkin seed kernels in this mix, and they aren’t flavored except with a bit of soy sauce.  They need a little salt.  Yeah, I know soy sauce has a salty flavor to it, but, I would prefer a light salting over a soy sauce coating.

My Final Thoughts:

Overall, I didn’t hate this this nutty snack mix.  I don’t know that I enjoyed it enough to “like” it on my graze account.  It’s tasty enough, but I felt as though it really could have used more salt.  I’m not usually one who needs a lot of salt on things (unlike my husband who likes a little bit of food with his salt, it seems!) but this would have been better if it was a little saltier.  Because of this, I chose to “trash” this snack.  I didn’t hate it, but, I didn’t want to receive it again either.  I like the spicy elements, but I wanted a little more contrast.  Maybe some acid (how about lime seasoned pumpkin seeds?), and definitely some more salt.

Sour Cream & Onion Cashews Snack from Graze

Photo from Graze.
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Product Information:

Sour Cream and Onion flavored Cashews.

I received a tray of these cashews in my December Graze Box!

Tea Suggestion:

I enjoyed these with a tall glass of iced tea, and the iced tea I happened to have chilling in the ice box when I opened up this tray of cashews was this Honey Ginger Flavored Black Tea from Southern Boy Teas.  A very refreshing tea and the sweetness of the honey went along nicely with the savory qualities of these nuts.

What I Think:

I like these.

The flavoring is strong.  It tastes like the same kind of sour cream and onion type flavoring you’d get on a potato chip, only it’s on a lightly salted cashew nut.  And even though the flavoring IS strong, it doesn’t overpower the flavor of the nut.

There is just enough flavoring so that there is no mistake that you’re eating something sour cream and onion flavored … but it also allows the natural sweet, creamy, nutty flavors of the cashew to also come through, so I am able to enjoy both the sweet nutty flavor, the salty notes, the tangy flavor of sour cream and the savory notes of onion in every morsel.  It’s a bit like a flavor explosion – yum!

My Final Thoughts:

I enjoyed these.  I put a “like” on this snack because I certainly wouldn’t object receiving them again.  December’s Graze box has been a BIG winner.

Chocolate Almond Butter from Justin’s

Product Information:

What do you do when your roommates start eating all of your chocolate almond butter?  Put your name on it, like I did!  What began as a kitchen experiment has turned into the perfect combination of premium chocolate with California Almonds for a nut butter so good you’ll want to put your name on it too.

Learn more about this product here.

What I Think:

I can’t believe I haven’t reviewed this stuff yet.  It’s so yummy.

For the purposes of this review, I smeared some of this nut butter on apple slices.

There is a good balance between chocolate and almond.  It’s very rich and chocolate-y, but I can still taste the delicious nutty flavor of the almond.  It is sweet, a little salty and a whole lot yummy.  This would be good on just about anything, and even better right out of the jar.

Just out of curiosity, I compared the numbers in the nutritional information of the chocolate almond butter and the classic almond butter (both from Justin’s) and the numbers are very similar.   I’m no nutritionist by any stretch of the imagination, so, I’m not going to pretend that I really know what all those numbers mean.  I don’t.  But, based on what I see, I think that if the classic almond butter can be part of a “healthy” diet, I don’t see why this product couldn’t be.  And this has chocolate in it, which makes the chocoholic in me very happy.

My Final Thoughts:

Before I tried this Chocolate Almond Butter from Justin’s, the Maple Almond was my favorite nut butter from them, but now, I’d be hard pressed to decide which one I like better.   Both are simply phenomenal.  Every product that I’ve tried thus far from Justin’s has been exceptional and this one is too.  I really can’t say enough good stuff about Justin’s nut butters (and let’s not forget their peanut butter cups!  YUM!)

Justin’s Organic Milk Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups

Pic from Knoshbox.
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Product Information:

Nothing says Halloween quite like a peanut butter cup! These organic peanut butter cups are unlike any you’ve tasted before. They’re crafted with organic ingredients and contain no hydrogenated oils, high fructose corn syrup or artificial ingredients.

I received a package of these peanut butter cups in my October Knoshbox.

Tea Suggestion:

I brewed a cup of steaming hot chai to go with my peanut butter cups, and one of my favorite chai blends is this Witches’ Brew Chai from 52Teas!  It’s spicy, a little bit smoky, and a whole lot of WOW!  It made for a compelling accompaniment for these rich, delicious confections from Justin’s.

What I Think:

Before I begin on this review, I think I should make mention of the fact that when I visited the Knoshbox website to get the information on this product, it would seem that Knoshbox has changed their name to Knoshy!  As long as they keep up with the amazing boxes … I don’t really care what they choose to call themselves!  Just please don’t do something like sell out to a company and then disappear on us.  I need you, Knoshbox or Knoshy!  You can change your name but don’t go changing what you’re about, please!

Anyway, back to these treats!  I’ve tried a few different “gourmet” peanut butter cups, and while those that I’ve tried have been superior to the best known peanut butter cup (you know which one I’m talking about, right?) I have yet to find one that compares to Justin’s.  I guess the same is true for their peanut butter too.

These peanut butter cups look just like the “better known” peanut butter cup that you can find in any convenience store candy aisle (you know the one I’m talking about, right?)  In fact, if you put just the peanut butter cups up next to each other, side by side, you’d probably have a hard time determining which was which based on appearance alone.  They’re both about the same size, they’re both about the same shape with the same ridges around the edges, and they’re both lined with the wax paper cups.  They’re both made of chocolate and they both have peanut butter inside them.

But that’s where the similarities end.  They might look the same, but the certainly don’t taste the same.  Sure … the milk chocolate is sweet and creamy, and the peanut butter is smooth and and deliciously peanut-y.  But with these Justin’s peanut butter cups, everything just tastes of better quality, you know?  The chocolate is better, the peanut butter is better … and this just creates a better tasting product.

My Final Thoughts:

Everything that I’ve tried from Justin’s has just simply been YUM.  Their nut butters, their peanut butter cups … just … yummy.  Sure, the products cost a bit more than the commercially processed competition, but give Justin’s a try and you’ll find that when it comes to taste there simply is NO competition.  Justin’s is just better.  Period.

Black Pepper Pistachios from Graze

Picture from Graze.
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pistachios, salt, natural black pepper flavors

I received a tray of these pistachios in my November Graze Box.

Tea Suggestion:

I recommend a fruity iced tea to drink while snacking on these flavorful nuts.  I drank some of this Acai Squeeze from Argo Tea – a ready to drink tea?  Yes!  The tart, fruity notes offered a really interesting contrast to the peppery kick of the pistachios.

What I Think:

Of the four snacks that I received in this month’s Graze box, this was the snack I was least excited about.  Don’t get me wrong, I love pistachios!  But, I have tried a salt and pepper version of pistachios before and I wasn’t all that excited about it.  I mean … it was alright, but, it wasn’t something that I’d ever buy again, and because we purchased a rather large bag, some of those pistachios ended up wasted because they weren’t as good as I imagined them to be.

So … I had my misgivings when I opened the tray of these pistachios.  But these are really tasty, and much better than I remember that previous version of salt and pepper pistachios.

First of all, these aren’t overly salted.  There’s a small amount of salt on these, just enough to bring out the natural flavors of the nut and to enhance the pepper.

Second, the pepper isn’t overdone either.  It’s the perfect amount of pepper.  It is enough so that there is a distinct peppery kick but not so much that I feel like I need to take a sip of tea in between each nut.  Neither seasoning is so overdone that the pistachio is overwhelmed.

My Final Thoughts:

The nut tastes toasty and has a pleasant crunch.  The pepper adds a pleasing contrast to the sweetness of the pistachio.  Not too salty, not too spicy … just the right balance of flavor with this snack.  I like it a lot more than I thought I would.

Fruit & Seed Flapjack from Graze

Photo from Graze.
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Ingredients:

rolled oats, margarine (vegetable oil, water, salt), demerara sugar, apricots, dates, currants, raisins, sunflower seeds, golden syrup, pumpkin seeds (contains gluten)

I received these mini flapjack bars in my first Graze box.

Tea Suggestion:

Because these “flapjacks” remind me a bit of an energy bar, I decided to go with something invigorating to drink, and I chose this Vietnam Black Tea from Single Origin Teas.  I like the way the natural spice tones of the tea accent the fruit and seed notes of these snacks.  It was a really enjoyable tea time!

What I Think:

What I’m thinking is YUM!  These are essentially soft and chewy granola bars, loaded with toasted oats, raisins, apricots, dates, currants, sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds.

The oats are a prominent flavor and they lend a nice toasty flavor to the bar.  The photo suggests more pumpkin seeds in these than I’m actually finding in my three bars (The tray comes with three small bars – about three or four bites worth, depending on how big your bite is).  I’m finding some pumpkin seeds in these, but I’m wishing there were more.  I definitely do taste the sunflower seeds, and the raisins.  I don’t taste a lot of dates, but, I do get a hint of apricot every now and then.

My Final Thoughts:

It’s sweet and fruity and it’s a little bit like a tasty oatmeal that I can take with me.  I’m not really crazy about the addition of margarine, I prefer butter.  I’m not really crazy about the “golden” syrup which implies additional sweetener.  These two additions don’t scream out “healthy” to me, although I’m sure that these are healthier than say, a commercially produced granola bar.  I like that they aren’t overly sticky (a sign to me that there’s too much sweetener in the bar.)  That said, these do seem to have less sugar and sweeteners than the commercially produced granola bar.  Tasty, I’m going to give these a “like.”

April’s Knoshbox!

Yep … I’m still working on all my past tasting box posts!  This is my post for April’s Knoshbox!  Knoshbox remains my favorite foodie tasting boxes of the few that I’ve been trying over the past year or so.  The reason is simple:  Knoshbox truly is a foodie box.  It’s a thoughtfully curated box with a theme, and tasty, unique foods that you don’t find everywhere.  For those of you who miss Foodzie and don’t like what they’ve become with Joyus, I think you’ll be really satisfied with Knoshbox.  (More on why I love Knoshbox with my May/June box information … coming soon!)

This month’s box included some real tasty foods!  First and foremost were three sample packages of Justin’s Nut Butters.  I won’t be writing a review on most of these because, well, I’ve tried most of them!  There were three nut butters in the box, including the Maple Almond Butter which is probably my favorite nut butter ever and I keep it on hand in the full-sized tubs now, the honey peanut butter and one I haven’t tried yet, the Chocolate Almond Butter.  (I’ll do a review of this soon.)

So, immediately, I was a happy foodie to get more Justin’s Nut Butters … I love Justin’s!  Also included in this month’s box was a tub of Garlic Basil Crackers from Z Crackers.  These were pretty tasty, although, I did find them a wee bit disappointing only because the flavor was not consistent.  Sometimes, I’d bite into a cracker and get next to no flavor.  Then I’d bite into another cracker and it would have a really nice garlic-y and basil flavor.  I like the texture of these – crunchy and I could taste the multi-grains which gave it a nice, nutty kind of flavor.  Better than your average snack cracker that you’d buy at the grocery store, and really tasty with cheese spread.  Since I’m not big on eating snack crackers, though, I don’t think these are at the top of my must buy list.

Garlic Basil Z Crackers

Also in this month’s box was a Simple Square (I’ve previously reviewed their Cinnamon Clove bar, their Coconut bar, and their Rosemary bar.)  I love Simple Squares … but I was not as excited about the bar in this box, because, well, it was a Coffee bar.  I’m not big on coffee.  I ate the bar, I liked it OK, but I would have been happier with one of the other three flavors that I’ve already tried or perhaps one of the other two flavors I haven’t yet tried:  Sage or Ginger!

I was much happier with the Battenkill Brittle.  I’ve got to tell you, this stuff looks like a treat you’d feed to your parakeet.  Seriously, this looks like bird food.  Since I’ve never actually eaten bird food, I can’t say whether or not it tastes like it.  But, it does taste good.  It has a delicious, sweet, nutty flavor (and crunch!)  I like that most of the sweetness comes naturally, from the seeds themselves, and there is very little “added” sweetness by way of the Vermont maple syrup and organic brown rice syrup that is used.  There is a delicate maple note to this, it isn’t so heavy that it obscures the seeds.  I taste the sesame seeds, I taste the sunflower seeds, and I taste the pumpkin seeds too!

Battenkill Brittle

I like that there are six simple ingredients to this brittle.  It doesn’t taste overwhelmingly “candy-ish” the way most brittle does, and it isn’t as hard as most brittle is either.  It has a gentle, crackly crunch from the “brittle” but most of the crunchy comes from the seeds!  It is gently sweet, and very energizing!  Definitely something I’d be happy to eat again!

I’ll be reviewing the Green Tea and Lemon Kombucha Wonder Drink (yes, Tea!) and the Raaka Virgin Chocolate (yes, CHOCOLATE!) separately at some point!  I love it when there is TEA and CHOCOLATE in the same tasting box.  This box gets extra points just for that!

Honey Cinnamon Almonds from Nunes Farms

Product Description:

California-grown almonds are roasted to crunchy perfection, and then seasoned with  a blend of sweet honey, spicy cinnamon, and floral vanilla.

I received these nuts in my December Love with Food box, and they can be purchased on the Love with Food website.

Tea Suggestion:

These almonds make a delightful tea-time snack!  I enjoyed these nuts with a cup of Kyobancha from Tealet!  I thought this was a perfect pairing – the natural nutty tones of the Kyobancha and it’s delicious roasty-toasty flavor complemented the almonds so nicely … allowing the natural goodness of the nut to shine through the sweetness of the honey, the warmth of the cinnamon and the touch of salt.

What I Think:

Yum!

The best part about these is the cinnamon, it gives the sweet, candied nut just enough extra interest to keep it … well, interesting.  After a while, candied nuts – while delicious – end up tasting all the same, and it seems like this time of year almost every one of my tasting boxes has at least one type of candied or flavored nut in them.  I don’t mind this, of course, I enjoy these offerings, and they make a somewhat healthier option versus all the sweet candies and cookies that are also sent in the tasting boxes.

However, it’s nice when I open a pouch of candied almonds like this and find something just a little different about them … and with these, Nunes Farms added a touch of cinnamon (maybe a little bit more than just a touch!) to give them some warmth and spice without making them spicy.  These aren’t an ordinary “spicy-sweet” kind of candied nut, or even just a sweet candied nut.  They are really quite extraordinary!

My Final Thoughts:

Well, first of all, the pouch was too small, because the almonds disappeared too quickly!  (ha!) but, I loved the portion that I received.  These are crunchy, a little salty, sweet from the honey (but not sticky!) and have just a little exciting twist with the cinnamon note.  Really yummy!

Bobbysue’s Nuts (Original Flavor)

Product Description:

You’ll go nuts for these candied nuts! Bathed and baked in a bold blend of spices, they’re simultaneously sweet and savory. We’re not talking peanuts here; this jar is filled to the brim with plump almonds, cashews and pecans.

I received a packet of these nuts in my November Goodies Box.

Tea Suggestion:

These candied nuts make a wonderful tea time snack.  They’re so flavorful and I love that gentle nudging of the spices in these nuts, so I wanted something that would bring out some of those warm spices even more.  So I made a chai latte, and I found that this Masala Chai from Blue Lotus Chai made a perfect chai to go with these sweet, salty and warmly spiced nuts.

What I Think:

Yummy!  I’m totally loving these nuts!

When I first opened the pouch, I was kind of “ho-hum … another batch of flavored nuts.”  So I popped the first one in my mouth without paying much attention, and WOW!  These taste amazing!

First of all, I love that it’s a blend of mixed nuts:  almonds, cashews and pecans.  Then the nuts are candied in a sugar and spice combination that is a little bit sweet and a little bit savory.  The result is a crunchy, toasty, salty, sweet and warmly spiced mix of nuts, and I’m going nuts for this!  I love the contrast in flavors, I love the crunchy texture of the nuts together with the subtle chewy texture of the candied coating.

These are so tasty and completely irresistible.  Before I knew it, my package was empty!  I want more!

My Final Thoughts:

I only wish that the sample bag that I received in this month’s Goodie box wasn’t so small, because it was gone way too fast.  I don’t think that this is going to be available in the stores, so I think I’m going to actually have to order more of this … and I definitely will be doing just that!

Coconut Chili Macadamias from Oren’s Kitchen

Photo from Petit Amuse.
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Oren’s Kitchen nuts are high quality, farm-fresh, and uniquely seasoned to create gourmet treats. Their elegance is perfect for dinner parties but their delicious taste will keep you snacking.

The coconut chili macadamia nuts have the perfect balance of salty, sweet, crunchy, and spicy. Fresh macadamia nuts are paired with generous amounts of coconut, a hint of honey, and red chili for a hot kick at the end.

I received a pouch of this snack mix in my November Petit Amuse Sampler Box, and is available for purchase from Petit Amuse.

Tea Suggestion:

OK… so this spicy-spicy-SPICY sweet salty snack packs a real punch of flavor, so I wouldn’t recommend choosing something that will detract from that, instead, I would recommend ICED TEA because you will want to refresh your palate!   I chose this tea:  RadioactiviTEA Southern Boy Teas from 52Teas mostly because it was the iced tea that I had already prepared in the fridge, but I think any unflavored iced tea will do when it comes to refreshing the palate, but what I really liked about this selection is that while it is a good, strong tea, it’s not overly sweet nor does it offer flavors that either get lost or interfere with the distinct flavors of this nut mix.

What I Think:

This stuff is good … but be warned, it’s got some KICK to it!  I’m not even sure what to call this … it’s not just nuts, because there are big chunks of coconut in there too … maybe a trail mix of some sort?  But I don’t know if you’d want to take this out on a trail, only because you wouldn’t want to be too far from a source of liquid refreshment – this trail mix bites back!

Its a mix of toasted macadamia nuts and toasted coconut flakes that have been coated with honey and then tossed with red chili flakes!   The result is a deliciously crunchy, spicy-sweet-salty mix that burns so good, with a flavor that is positively addictive!  Seriously, once you get started eating this, it’s hard to stop.  It’s so yummy!

The macadamia nuts are sweet, crunchy, salty and delicious.  The coconut adds a slightly chewy texture to the mix, as well as it’s own distinctive sweet flavor.  The honey adds a touch more sweetness and I’m happy to say there isn’t a sticky texture from the honey here.  And of course, the red chili adds some serious heat!  It’s a great exploration of contrasting flavors and textures.

My Final Thoughts:

If you’re one who has a sensitive palate to the spicy side of food, this is not a product I’d recommend purchasing.   But, if you’re someone who – like me – LOVES indulging in snacks that explode with contrasting spicy and sweet flavors – YOU MUST TRY THIS!