Partake Snickerdoodle Soft Cookies

Alas... another bad cookie. The reason these were available in my veg box (and the bad lemon ones too) is that Partake has a "new formula" now, so maybe they have become a bit less gross recently. But for now, they're very heavy on the foot vibes. I do like that there are oats in, and the texture (somewhat soft, but mostly Firm like a Nantucket) is not terrible even though it's not really what I'd call soft. The taste is mostly unobjectionable slightly sweet bready dough, but there's a weird fake cinnamon note, like in the bad [[apple jack] [pop tarts]]. This taste is now in my bottom 3 tastes, and I am tasting little notes of it everywhere. I don't think it's just what cinnamon tastes like, because I put cinnamon in my oat meal and that is pleasant and fine. This is like a lab-created [red hot] dust or something. But just a little bit of it. Am I lost in space? Maybe. But these cookies are not good. I didn't even eat more than the serving size, which is extreeeeeemely rare for me and cookies! And unlike the lemon ones, they didn't mildly grow on me as I consuméd. Happy Father's Day.

Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 5/10 

Katz Gluten Free Glazed Chocolate Donut Holes

Man, I really love desserts and Asian food, and it's darn hard to find (non-homemade) versions of those things that are nut-free. Of course, a Gluten Free option like this is often your best bet, and of course, gluten free things are nasty. (Or maybe just: frozen donut holes are nasty). So rating these among "food", these are weirdly corny and not great. But considering my options, I'd say they're pretty solidly "OK". 19 seconds to cook 6 of 'em is about right, and that's a somewhat satisfying little treat. Somewhat. Coating is good.

Overall
Cost: 4/10
Taste: 6/10

Katz Cinnamon Donuts

These were quite good for a gluten-free dough dessert. They did have a weird floppy texture though. Either floppy or frozen, you choose. I think heating for about 25 seconds worked best. They had a less corny taste than the donut holes, and the cinnamon sugar coating was copious, oily, and tasty. 

Overall
Cost: 4/10
Taste: 7/10

Katz Glazed Donut Holes

I had seen these in my local grocery store's freezer case before covid, but they're gluten free (and expensive, and frozen) so I assumed they'd be pretty gross. But I was sad and desperate one day, so I got them anyhow. They were better than I expected, but definitely "weird". They have great glaze on them, and a decent texture, but unfortunately taste (and smell) exactly like a corn dog, I assume because the flour is corn flour and not wheat flour. I do love mini corn dogs, but not when I'm looking for a donut "dupe". Still, good to eat, and I would get them again.

Overall
Cost: 4/10
Taste: 7/10

Partake Vanilla Sugar Crunchy Cookies

Ah, an explicitly nut free cookie! That's always nice to partake in. And it's fun and exciting to try out a new safe brand. Unfortunately, it wasn't really that NEW, because these taste exactly like the Enjoy Life crunchy sugar cookies. I thought the funky gluten free taste in those was from konjac, but there's no konjac here, so it must be something else. Maybe that's just how oat flour tastes??? Anyway, it's a little "off" and it's too distracting to enjoy as a cookie. I want more of a buttery taste, but being dairy free I guess it's hard to do that. These do have little sprinkles, but they aren't as pretty as the box shows, they're kinda hidden inside. Fun texture and they have spirulina in, so more evidence that spirulina coloring doesn't kill me. Otherwise, not much to be excited about, unfortunately.

Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 5/10

Snyder's Gluten Free Pretzel Sticks

Honestly? These were kinda neat. They're very different from regular gluteny pretzels, and they kind of taste like a corn puffed snack or a potato flake, but still in pretzel shape so it would serve for dipping or whatever you use pretzels for. Sour cream dip would be good; mustard maybe not so much. The taste on its own might actually be better than regular pretzels! But definitely different, not a great "dupe". Less salty also maybe? And there's a lot in 1 100 calorie bag. Kind of cool to try these, definitely better than I'd expected.

 

 

Overall
Cost: 7/10
Taste: 6/10

Enjoy Life Crunchy Vanilla Honey Graham Cookies

Shockingly, these were actually crunchy!  And crumbly too, lots of mess to be made here. These do still have the weird gluten free flavor that comes with pretty much all of the enjoy life cookies I've had, but they also have a nice vanilla flavor and a slight butteryness to them (although it's obviously not butter is it), and those notes go a long way towards making this decent. Kind of like a weird Lorna Doone knockoff cookie, which is not terrible.





Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 6/10

enjoy life soft baked mini cookies - double chocolate brownie

Ah, Enjoy Life. So classic. You can really tell these cookies are gluten free, not just from the taste (kind of grainy, with that spicy konjac background) but from the texture as well. These are small dense orbs, almost like raw dough, and not really a conventional cookie at all. They do have a slight similarity to those Little Bites packs of mini brownies, though. There's a strong chocolatey flavor, which is pleasant, and even though the choco chips don't really stand out from the overall choco ball, you definitely get the sense you're eating a dessert. Which is nice, and if I were gluten free maybe I'd appreciate it more. As it is, these are pleasant but I'd never seek them out (basically the Enjoy Life party line for me).

Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 6/10

Enjoy Life ricemilk bar

Technically, this is a 'chocolate flavored confectionary bar', I guess because the first ingredient is sugar. And it is very sweet, but honestly, I enjoyed this - more than I thought I would! It tasted like a like milk chocolate bar. Maybe could have used a bit more creaminess, but given the dairy-free angle I can't be too picky. Mine actually melted and reformed several times (I don't have AC and it's like 100 in here) but it didn't have any bloom and even though the shape was kind of funky, it didn't seem to affect the taste. I would get these for allergen-free kiddos in a heartbeat!



Overall
Cost: 4/10
Taste: 7/10

Freeyumm Double Chocolate Cookie

This "cookie" was very dense and oaty. It looked like a thin hockey puck! There was certainly chocolate flavor, even creamy chocolate flavor, but overall this tasted more like an oatmeal chocolate dessert, but "healthy". I wish there were fewer oat bits actually. It's not terrible, but not really what I consider to be a cookie. The packaging is cute though, and it's fun to try something new and nut-free - but there are better options out there.






Overall
Cost: 4/10
Taste: 5/10

Homefree Vanilla Mini Cookies

I enjoyed these! They're free of the top-8 allergens, which is never a good sign, but apart from the super-duper-crunchy texture (which is fairly enjoyable actually), you wouldn't really know it. They're basically a crunchy version of Lorna Doone shortbread cookies. A little buttery, very sweet, with I guess a mild vanilla flavor. There's a slight "off" taste to them, but I can't really pinpoint what it is or what it comes from, and it's possibly that it's partially just psychological. Anyway, these are fine, and a cute little snack.





Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 6/10

Welch's Fruit 'n Yogurt Snacks - Cherry

These are pretty tasty little "fruit" snacks. To be honest, they taste more like a candy than a snack (very sweet and vaguely white-chocolatey), but they have some vitamin C and are low calorie, so I guess that's alright. The taste is a little like a cherry twizzer with the white-chocolate coating from Flipz Pretzels (RIP the days when I could eat Flipz Pretzels), and the texture is soft and a little chewy, but not too much (kind of like cookie dough bites...RIP the days when I could eat cookie dough bites). So these are a nice treat, technically not candy, and nut free! The strawberry flavor is good too. I'm here for it, Welch's.



Overall
Cost: 8/10 (about 2$ for 8 packs)
Taste: 7/10

Tasty Organic Fruity Snacks - Super Fruit

Clever move(?) to call the brand "Tasty", but these didn't really win me over. The taste is fine, I guess, a generic fruit snack taste, and they have no major allergens, which is great, but they are also vegan, i.e. without gelatin. And whatever they used to make these chewy, I think they really overdid it, because these are super sticky/chewy. They also made me feel a little itchy, which could be entirely unrelated, but they weren't good enough for me to hazard a second trying of them. So, I recommend you avoid these!

Overall
Cost: 4/10
Taste: 4/10 (if we include texture in taste, which we (I) do)

Homefree Mini Cookies - Chocolate Chip

Sadly, these are not great. I like the lemon homefree cookies a lot (which are also multi-allergy friendly), but these definitely have a gluten-free taste. They are not very sweet, not buttery, not chocolately, not indulgent, yet still somehow 150cals for a little bag of 4-5 cookies. I feel pity for gluten free-ers who crave chocolate chip cookies because this is not satisfying at all! It does have cute packaging and of course it is nice that they are so inclusive, though! Plus the texture is nice and crunchy.





Overall
Cost: 4/10
Taste: 5/10 (it's still a cookie)

Enjoy Life Soft Baked Minis - Snickerdoodle

I see that these aren't actually called "cookies" on the package, which is apt since they aren't cookies as much as little crumbly spheres! But I digress. Enjoy life makes a lot of nut free snacks, which I appreciate, but I think they are also a top-8 allergen free company, which I appreciate on a solidarity level but on a taste level, not so much. Still, considering what they're working with, these are a pretty solid snack. They are soft and cute little orbs with an unfamiliar 'spicy' note to them, which I am assuming is the konjac in there, since I haven't had it in anything else (but I am not allergic, now I know!).

They have a nice flavor overall; not too sweet but with a nice cinnamon aftertaste. Not too crumbly, even though they aren't anywhere near as soft as a "real" cookie. For 100 calories this is a pleasant snack that virtually anyone can enjoy, so I approve.

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 6/10

Kiwa Vegetable Chip Mix

These chips are pretty tasty -- but then again, they're salty, fatty, chips, so of course they are. Fun fact: "kiwa" is quechua for "green"! Anyway! This is a cool mix, because it has beetroot (tastes like a beet :6), cassava (basically: potato), Sweet Potato (but they're white and purple!! tasting different than a sweet potato, tasting like...potato), Arracacha (carroty), and banana (these are the tastiest, good thick texture). Nevertheless, not any better than a storebrand chip, and not that much better for you even though there is a good mix of vitamins cuz' it's an assortment. :P

gluten free though! ;P

Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 6/10

NoNuttin Vanilla Caramel Granola

This granola is safe and good for you(ish), so I want to like it a lot! Ultimately, I think I like it pretty well, but it's still not as tasty as Quaker granola. Still, this is filling (it IS granola) and has a nice gentle vanilla-y oat flavor. The texture is a little soft, but then again, that's probably good for my teeth. Great with fruit and yogurt.

Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 7/10

No Nuttin' Granola Bars (aka Libre Naturals Granola Bars)

OK, bratty secret: I saw that these were egg, dairy, and gluten free (as well as nut free of course) and I thought "man these are probably gonna suck!" True fact: they didn't suck! To be fair, the texture is a little spongy and soft and chewy(?) for a granola bar, but the taste was good (I think! I was pretty drunk and starving, but I inhaled them :P). The Apple Cinnamon one really does taste appley, and it's a cool change of granola-bar-flavor pace. The Double Chocolate Chunk one was chocolatey, as expected, and gave me a good energy boost. I think I might buy some of these in the future. Plus, the wrappers make them look like delicious Easter candies!

2020 Update: These are now called Libre Naturals granola bars, but they tasted pretty similar to how I remember them -- or at least the Apple Cinnamon one did! It now has sunflower oil, but the oil is OK for me. Weirdly soft for a granola bar, still, but tasty and filling. 7/10. The Red Berry flavor was a little less good, I found it oddly savory and definitely soft/chewy. Still filling though. 6/10

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 8/10

Cosmos Creations Salted Caramel Popcorn

Well la dee da, you may say, but now that I'm getting to try all these peanut-safe popcorns, I can safely say that I don't really like this one. It's both too sweet and too salty without being buttery enough. The carmel is just sickeningly sweet after only a few pieces! I can't imagine that Cracker Jack and Crunch N Munch taste this way...but if they do, then I am happy I'm not really missing out. Still, the fact that a company like this exists makes me very happy, and I look forward to trying a less sweet flavor soon.

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 4/10

Good Boy Organics Sea Salt BOPS

A gluten free organic product that doesn't contain nuts! How wonderful. Also wonderful: BOPS stands for "baked organic potato snacks". Hee hee. Anyway, these are decent, but not amazing/as good as most "normal" chips like UTZ or Bickels or those sweet potato chips I like. The flavor is good, salty but also a little creamy, maybe because the texture of the chip is a little mushier than a standard crisp. Kind of a weird little corn(?) aftertaste. Corn and salty sour cream flavored BOPS, maybe. I'd be interested in trying the other flavors! And the fat content isn't too bad.

Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 6/10