My Knoshy Box has Arrived – and Guess What? It’s Tea Time!!!

Yay!

OK, so I’m really behind on my posts.  I’ve got a few posts hanging out in the draft section of my dashboard, just waiting for me to put the finishing touches on them.  But, I had to put this post ahead of the rest, because … IT’S TEA TIME!

I don’t know if the great minds at Knoshy actually read my blog.  I hope they do.  But, I’ve been mentioning in several box announcement posts about my desire for a tea time box.  They’ve finally given me my heart’s desire!  The theme for this month’s box is Tea Time!

So, the first thing that needs to be in a Tea Time box is tea, right?  And what better company to select a tea from for this box than Steven Smith Teamaker?  There’s a full box of Lord Bergamot (one of my very favorite Earl Grey teas – in the top three – of all time!) and even though they’re sachets – tea tastes better when it’s loose leaf! – I won’t ding ’em for going with the sachets.  I understand … I get it … not a lot of people know what to do with loose leaf tea.

They also included a package of Amsterdam Wafel cookies from Rip Van Wafels.  I’ve had these before, and they’re totally yum.  I’m glad they’re in this box.  There is also a package of my favorite shortbread cookie baker – Lark Fine Foods!  These are Sweet and Savory Olive cookies.  Interesting.

Finally, there’s a jar of You’re My Boy BLUE-berry Bourbon Jam from the Jam Stand.  This sounds like a seriously yummy jam … it would be spectacular on scones.  I might have to make some scones soon to try it out.

I’m thrilled with this month’s box!  Thank you, Knoshy!

Cranberry Pecan Ancient Grain Granola from Purely Elizabeth

Photo from Knoshy. Click on the pic to go there.

Product Information:

Get ready to enjoy some of the best granola on the planet. Made with all natural, organic and gluten-free ingredients, including: quinoa, an ancient grain considered a complete protein; amaranth, high in b vitamins; chia seeds- providing excellent sources of omega-3 fatty acids, fiber and antioxidants; and raw virgin coconut oil containing medium-chain fatty acids that get used as energy rather than stored as fat.

I received a pouch of this granola in my January Box from Knoshy.

Tea Suggestion:

Because I ate this granola as a breakfast cereal with milk, I decided that a breakfast tea was the way to go!  Recently, I discovered Glen Arbor Breakfast Tea from Whispering Pines Tea Company, and it’s a great breakfast tea.  Very woodsy and rustic, a perfect complement to a granola cereal!

What I Think:

This just may be the best granola I’ve ever tasted.  I was surprised with the first taste, because while it LOOKS like just about every other granola out there, the flavor is much better.

The cinnamon is well-defined.  The oats have been baked to a nice crispy texture.  A tasty nutty flavor from the pecans, and just enough plump, juicy flavor from the cranberry to give it contrast.

My one complaint:  I would like a little more cranberry in this.  That’s something that’s easily remedied by adding a handful of Craisins to the bowl, and even though I’d argue that the right amount of cranberries should be in the granola already, the flavor of the granola makes it worth it to me to open my package of dried cranberries and add a few to the bowl.

My Final Thoughts:

I really liked this.  It was a delicious granola, and I’m going to be picking up more from Chuck’s Produce, as I’ve noticed this on the shelves the last time I was there.  I’m definitely going to be wanting more!

Nature’s Immunity Nuts Snack from Graze

Photo from Graze. Click on the pic to go there.

Ingredients:

roasted unsalted cashews, brazil nuts and pistachio kernels

I received this in my March box from Graze.

What I Think:

No tea suggestion with these nuts, mostly because I didn’t enjoy this particular snack enough to try to find a way to incorporate it into tea time.

I’ll be honest and tell you that I went into this particular tasting certain I wouldn’t like it.  Oh sure, I like cashews, brazil nuts and pistachios.  Love ’em!  But, these are unsalted cashews, brazil nuts and pistachios, and I’m of the opinion that the nuts should be at least lightly salted.

I’m still of that opinion.  I think that these would definitely be tastier if they were lightly salted during the roasting process.

This might be the first time that I’m trying these three particular nuts unsalted, and I do appreciate the opportunity to try them without the salt.  However, I don’t think I like them enough to want this snack again.

My Final Thoughts:

I “trashed” this snack on graze.  I just simply didn’t enjoy the unsalted nuts enough to want to finish the tray of nuts, and I certainly don’t want to receive them again.  I don’t HATE them … but, I didn’t really find the snack enjoyable either.  They’re just kind of … meh … you know?

My March Box from Graze is Here!

The day that my Graze box arrives in my mailbox is a happy mail day, indeed!  And this month is the first month where I am seeing the “power” of choice with Graze.  I received two products that I previously liked/loved.  Yay!

Both of the revisited products are from my very first box from Graze.  The first snack is the Fruit & Seed Flapjack snack – I had marked this one as a “like” and the second snack is the Toffee Apple snack, and it’s a snack tray that I LOVED.  I’m especially happy to have this snack again … and I’m eager to find out if I enjoy it as much now as I did then.

As I write this, I’m snacking on the Fruit & Seed Flapjacks and they’re so yummy!  I’d take a tray of flapjacks to a granola or energy bar any day.

Also in this month’s box are two new-to-me snacks:  Bonnie Wee Oatbakes and Nature’s Immunity Nuts.  I’ll be writing reviews on these two snacks later (after I’ve had a chance to enjoy them), but I won’t be writing another review on the previously reviewed two snacks.

Interested in getting your own Graze box?  I can give you a “friend code” that will allow you to join Graze!  Just comment on this post with your email and I’ll respond to your email with the code.  It’s a great price:  just $6 per box!  It’s a great way to get yummy fun in the mail.

Key Lime Pie snack from Graze

Photo from Graze. Click on the pic to go there.

Snack Ingredients:

lime infused raisins, sponge pieces, mini meringues and green raisins

I received this snack in my February box from Graze.

Tea Suggestion:

When I eat pie, I like to sip on hot black tea.  And even though this is a snack mix and not technically “pie” – I decided to brew myself a cup of Malty Assam Tea from Tea People.  A really lovely pairing!

What I Think:

YUM!  This might just be my favorite snack that I’ve gotten from Graze yet!

There are two different kinds of raisins:  dark raisins that have been infused with lime, and green raisins.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen “green raisins” before.  They look like gold raisins to me, and taste like them.  Sweet and plump.  The lime infused raisins are my favorite of the two raisins though, I love the bright, citrus-y note they add to this snack mix.

The sponge … isn’t as sponge-y as I recall other ‘sponge’ from graze to be.  These are actually crunchy … like a Nilla wafer.  Tasty and they add a pie crust flavor to the mix.

I love the meringue!  Crisp and light and airy!

This snack is fun to eat when I put one of each element into my hand and eat it all at once … it is very “key lime pie” ish!  But I also enjoy popping each item into my mouth individually and exploring the flavors.

If I were to change anything about this particular snack, it would be to have more lime flavor to it.  Maybe there could be some lime in the meringue bits or the cookie bits.

My Final Thoughts:

I “loved” this snack on my Graze account.  I hope they send it to me again soon.  I’d be happy to have it in every box.

Coco Paradise Snack from Graze

Photo from Graze.
Click on the pic to go there.

Ingredients:

milk chocolate drops, coconut flakes and cranberries

I received this snack in my February box from Graze.

Tea Suggestion:

I don’t usually pair similarly snacks with teas, but I decided to eat this snack with this Cranberry Black Tea from A. C. Perch.  I found that the cranberry snack really brought out the cranberry notes in the tea.  It was an interesting experiment!

What I Think:

Cranberry and coconut are two flavors that I wouldn’t think to mix, but I like them together.  The sweetness of the coconut softens the tart notes of the cranberry.

I like the texture of the coconut shred.  It almost reminds me of the coconut chips that I love from Dang, although they are a little less dry.  They have a little more moisture to them, and as a result, they’re a little less crisp than the coconut chips.  But they still have a really nice texture and I like the contrast to the snap of the coconut to the chewy cranberry and the creamy chocolate.

The chocolate is absolutely my favorite thing about this mix, and I’m glad that they didn’t skimp on the chocolate drops.

My Final Thoughts:

I “liked” this one.  It isn’t my favorite snack that I’ve gotten from Graze, but I do like the combination of chocolate, coconut and cranberry, and I wouldn’t mind getting this snack in the future.

Jalapeño Fiesta Snack from Graze

Photo from Graze.
Click on the pic to go there.

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.

Summer Berry Flapjack Snack from Graze

Photo from Graze.
Click on the pic to go there.

What’s In It:

rustic rolled oat flapjack with berry-infused cranberries

I received these Flapjack snack bars in my February box from Graze.

Tea Suggestion:

Since these oat bars have a very ‘breakfast-y’ snack sort of taste to them, I went with a black tea, this Australian Daintree Black Tea from McIver’s.   I love the way the rich, molasses-y sort of flavor melds with the flapjack snack!

What I Think:

I like the flapjack snacks from Graze.  In my post about my February box, I mentioned that they’re kind of like granola bars … well, they are … and they aren’t.  They have a granola bar look to them, and some similar ingredients to a granola bar, but the taste and texture reminds me more of a bowl of oatmeal that has been converted to convenient bar form.

The oats tastes sweet and nutty.  It has a rustic, hearty taste and texture to it.  I don’t eat oatmeal made from rolled oats often, because I prefer steel cut oats, but, I like the flavor of rolled oats in granola bars, oatmeal cookies and these.

And after mentioning oatmeal cookies … these not only remind me of a bowl of oatmeal, but a thick, soft oatmeal cookie but without the sweet dough.  It’s like it has all the goodness of an oatmeal cookie without the stuff that you shouldn’t be eating.

The berries in this are cranberries that have been infused with other berry flavors.  I definitely taste cranberry … do I taste the other berries?  Yeah, I think I taste notes of strawberry, perhaps, and maybe blueberry.

My Final Thoughts:

I “liked” this snack.  It’s really yummy and satisfying.  Like I said previously, it’s a little bit like a bowl of berry studded oatmeal in bar form.

My February Graze Box is Here!

Again, it’s not late, it arrived on the 26th, I’m just a little late at posting about it because I’m behind on all my posts!

This month, I got an exciting box that appears to be more sweet than savory (hey, it IS February, it should be a little sweeter for Valentine’s Day, right?)  On the savory side, I got Jalepeño Fiesta which is a nut and seed mix.  I got three sweet selections this time around:  Summer Berry Flapjacks (flapjacks = soft and chewy granola bar), Coco Paradise (berries, coconut and chocolate!), and a trail mix-y type of combo called Key Lime Pie (Yum!)

This has become one of my favorite monthly boxes, because I love these snacks!  They are unusual and thoughtfully created.  The flavors are there, and there’s just enough “snack” in each tray to curb that hungry feeling when I feel like snacking.  And you can’t beat the price:  $6 per box!  You can set up your “grazing” for every 2 weeks or every 4 weeks (mine is set up for every four weeks), and you can even choose between the nibble box (this is what I get) or the calorie counter box which is more dieter friendly.

What I really like about this box is that if you like a snack, then you can rate it “like” and this snack will be sent to you again in the future.  If you LOVE a snack,  you can rate it “love” and this will be sent to you more often than a liked product.  Or … if you really just don’t like something, you can rate it “trash” and it won’t be sent to you.  I rated a couple of items as trash that I was pretty certain I wouldn’t care for (stuff with seaweed, I’m not big on seaweed), and if I come across a product that I don’t like, I can always trash it and be assured that I won’t get it again in the future.

Are you interested in getting in on Graze?  I have one more friend code available – if you want it, please just comment on this blog post with your email address and I’ll send you the code via private email!

Eleanor’s Apple Crumble Snack from Graze

Photo from Graze.
Click on the pic to go there.

What’s In It:

raisins, cinnamon and honey almonds and apple

This snack was in my January Graze Box.

Tea Suggestion:

When I’m eating a “crumble” … I can think of no tea I’d rather have in front of me than a black tea … perhaps a warmly spiced chai?  So I chose to brew this Bourbon Chai from Vintage TeaWorks.  It’s honeyed sweetness melded wonderfully with the sweet flavors of this mix, and the spices accentuated the warm cinnamon notes of the almond.  This tea turned this snack into a dessert!

What I Think:

This is pretty good, but perhaps I’m a little spoiled on some of the previous fruit snacks that I’ve had from Graze previously, because I found myself wanting the flavor infused raisins that I’ve tried before.

The almonds are definitely my favorite part of this snack.  They are “candied” with honey and cinnamon, and that candied coating is absolutely scrumptious!

The apples and raisins are sweet.  The raisins are nice and plump golden raisins.   The apples are dried and chewy, and have a delicious, juicy taste to them.

My favorite way to enjoy this snack is to grab either a raisin or a piece of apple and eat it with an almond so that I get fruity goodness along with that delicious candied almond.  I wish there were more almonds to this!

My Final Thoughts:  

I enjoyed this snack (especially with the chai that I brewed to go with),  but I found myself wanting something a little more.  The candied almonds were delightful, but, everything else – while tasty – missed some of that excitement that I have experienced with the other snacks from Graze.  I didn’t “trash” this product, but, I didn’t like or love it either, I’ll keep it at a “try” status.