Product Review: Sweet Earth Kyoto Burrito

This is kind of embarrassing, but I yelped when I saw my Target carried Sweet Earth burritos. Hand over heart, I saw a woman who was perusing the ice cream turn around and ask, “Is there a dog in here?”

I was just super excited, because I’ve read great things about this brand on Another Hungry Vegan (one of my favorite vegan food blogs, by the way, and an inspiration for my site!)

It was definitely a trial deciding which one to buy, but I finally settled on the Kyoto: Japanese adzuki beans, edemame, baby bok choy, fresh baby spinach, ginger, carrots, brown rice, seitan and shiitake mushrooms. Side-note: why is the spinach the only ingredient that’s “fresh”? I mean, it’s frozen food, so strictly speaking none of this is fresh. Or was the spinach picked right before this burrito was all wrapped up? Another unsolved mystery… Right up there with the Bermuda Triangle.

I thought this was pretty decently-sized–and it has 11 grams of protein, nice! It was so cool, after I microwaved it it smelled like a Japanese restaurant. Unexpected and awesome, like hearing an African-American with a British accent. The worlds-colliding factor definitely worked in this burrito’s favor. The light, yes, fresh-tasting veggies paired really well with the flour tortilla. In fact, the vegetables were the dominant flavor–I couldn’t really pick up on the brown rice, although I did get one particularly satisfying chunk of seitan. (Sweet Earth Foods knows what they’re doing with their seitan.)

Don’t let it’s un-photogenicness scare you.

 

If you love edemame beans, you’ll love this burrito, because it was crammed full of them. Altogther, I thought it was a delicious, unique variation on the classic burrito. The flavors melded together wonderfully and the dish was light yet filling. My one complaint: the tortilla cooked a little un-evenly… but I’m chalking that up to the microwave’s fault.

Cost: $3.99

Rating: 7/10

Would I buy again: Yes

Product Review: Brownie Batter JunoBar

It’s time to reveal a secret: I love bars. No, not the type most college kids love–I’m more about Clif bars than Pina Coladas, and instead of a beer, I’d much rather have a Brownie Batter JunoBar 😉

I keep a stash of bars in my desk, much like a chipmunk socks away nuts. Nutrition bars are tasty, reasonably healthy, and portable. What’s not to like???

This baby, by BumbleBar, is one of my new favorites.

When I read the name I was pretty suspicious. “Call a spade a spade,” and all that. Brownies are chock-full of sugar and flour and oil. These are not. Yet when I bit into the bar, the distinct taste of brownies filled my mouth! The chocolate flavor was rich and deep without being too sweet and melted wonderfully on the tongue.

Delicious it may be… photogenic it is not.

I was also a big fan of the texture. This was quite soft and chewy, interrupted by the occasional crispy quinoa chunk.

So how did this compare to its sister, the Apple Crisp JunoBar? Although their look and mouth-feel are almost identical, I definitely enjoyed the Brownie Batter more. It was sweeter and tasted more dessert-like, which my sucrose-loving taste buds adored. In terms of ingredients, they only differ in that the Brownie has cocoa where the Apple has (surprise) apples. I guess it makes a huge difference!

Cost: C/O (but it looks like they’re $2.69 on the website)

Rating: 7/10

Would I buy again: Yes

Product Review: Dr. McDougall’s Pad Thai

There was a boy at my high school  named–well, let’s call him Seth. (His name was actually Seth, and I know him still, so let’s hope he doesn’t read this.) Seth brought his lunch and snacks to school every day in individual jars. His backpack was always stuffed, but not with binders or books… with jars. Of course, he was teased endlessly. I mean, this was high school, and most guys didn’t show up with any food, let alone food in jars.

Let me tell you, Seth was onto something. As mason jars became super trendy in the Instagram/Tumblr/blog world, I hopped on the jar-wagon (haha) and started storing all of my food in jars. They’re re-usable, easy to clean, portable, and kind of cute! Sorry for laughing, Seth.

Anyways, how does this relate? I made this Dr. McDougall’s Pad Thai entree three days ago, tasted it, and then stuck it in a jar–where it is sticking still. I really wanted to like it, especially after the scathing review I gave Dr. McDougall’s Lentil Curry Pilaf. However, it was pretty mediocre.

When I opened up the package of seasonings to pour over the noodles, I was semi-alarmed by its neon orange, Kraft-esque color, yet ignored my qualms. Packaged food comes at a price, right? The noodles and sauce combo certainly smelled pretty authentic: peanutty with a slight tang. I optimistically forged ahead.

Besides a faint tingling on my tongue that told me there was a little spice in the mix, I barely tasted anything. This was just super bland. It needed salt, or Sriracha, or salt and Sriracha– actually, it needed a whole new sauce. The noodles had a good texture and consistency, but I felt like I was eating plain noodles, which everyone knows isn’t a very stimulating taste experience. Into the jar this went, where I promised myself I’d add soy sauce, a little bit of peanut butter, some sugar, some lime juice, and some SODIUM. I haven’t done that yet, however, and now it’s making me feel guilty.

Cost: $3.95

Rating: 3/10

Would I buy again: No

Product Review: Lundberg Honey Dijon Rice Chips

(Please note that for those who don’t eat honey, well, the name says it all.)

When I was in elementary school, Flamin’ Hot Cheetos were a  huge deal. Forget Lays, or Fritos, or Doritos– it was all about that bright orange, red, and yellow bag. I’m pretty sure we were all trained, Pavlovian-dog status, to salivate as soon as we caught sight of the (admittedly noxious) color combo. Most of us could convince our parents to buy us some once in a great while, but one particularly lucky girl I knew received a four-serving bag in her lunch every single day. Unfortunately, she was not only lucky but sadistic. Joffrey* (name has been changed) would share her chips, but only after you had proved your inferiority performed some humiliating act, like eaten a Cheeto smeared in dirt or tried to kiss a howling male class-mate.

I could see myself developing a passion for these Lundberg chips equivalent to my love for Cheetos. I’m just glad I don’t have to eat any dirt to get them… and that I’m no longer in elementary school. Say what you want about how cute kids are, I’m just glad I got out with my head.

These chips are delicious, although their flavor is predictably much more sophisticated than Cheetos. Size-wise, they were pretty hefty, and generously dusted with powder–albeit only on one side of the chip. Am I the only one who likes when both sides are flavored so I can lick one side clean without robbing the bite of all seasoning? However, it has to be said there was a LOT of air in this bag; only about one-third was actually filled with chips.

The dijon mustard was the dominant first taste, whereas the sweetness of the honey claimed the after-taste. I loved the contrast between the sugary honey and the salty mustard. Obviously, the honey tempered the bitterness, so this had a much less vinegar-y taste than plain dijon mustard.

The chip itself had a great texture: grainy, thick, and hearty. Although these are rice chips, I mostly tasted corn. After I checked out the ingredients I saw corn flour was third on the list.

Cost: $3.59 (Campus market, need I say more?)

Rating: 8/10

Would I buy again: Definitely– but I want to try the other flavors first!

 

 

Product Review: Dr. McDougall’s Lentil Curry Pilaf

My school has boxes and boxes of Dr. McDougall’s Lentil Curry Pilaf near the check-out at one of the sandwich venues. I’ve never seen anyone buy them–but someone must be, because there’s been a ready supply of them ever since I started school. (Or maybe they’re the same 50 boxes that have been there all along?) I decided it was time to give this vegan and gluten-free option a go.

Preparing it filled my kitchen with a wonderful, aromatic fragrance. I was a little disappointed with the small serving size, but as long as it was big on flavor, I could deal.

Spoiler alert: it was not big on flavor. In fact, it was bland and way under-seasoned. I wasn’t surprised the directions advised adding in extras like raisins or peas– there definitely wasn’t enough in this dish to satisfy me as is. In addition, the texture was quite odd. The sauce was grainy and the rice was so hard it felt like it had barely been cooked, while the lentils and vegetables were too soft.

Although there’s supposed to be a lot of spices in this, the only one I could pick up on was cinnamon, and it was more like a ghost of cinnamon than the real thing. I definitely didn’t finish the bowl.

Cost: 3.95 at my campus market (yeesh, I doubt you’d have to pay this much in the “real world”)

Would I buy again: Nope

Rating: 3/10