A Product Review for Namaste FoodsYou know me…I don’t do mixes…Well sometimes you just have to. Last week we rented a cottage and of course, when heading out of town it is practically impossible to pack your entire pantry. Living with celiac disease means it isn’t always possible to find delectable treats. I would normally bake before heading out of town, but, life can get messy. Mom’s; you know what I mean 😉
What’s a fun week away without a treat? Not that dessert is an everyday thing. Far from it. We usually save treats for special occasions; or family vacations. Now with 2 celiacs it’s much harder. Heading out to the middle of no-where; and I really do mean the middle of no-where. (creepy, way out in the woods, 1 hour to another human being, middle of no-where) I figured we better have something yummy to calm the nerves (this city girl needs busy big city noise for peaceful sleep, think Manhattan on a hot summer night).
Okay back to the point: no time, need something yummy, Namaste Foods to the rescue. The brownie mix was crazy easy to whip together. Baked in only 35 minutes which is just enough time to get the kitchen cleaned up and ready to go.
The Product: Brownie Mix by Namaste Foods
Namaste foods for everyone is a company founded by a mom just like me. In need of gluten free, whole ingredient, easy to make foods. Well sort of. She did it for a friend. Now it just so happens that these brownies were her first gluten free creation, but thankfully not her last. Brownies are kind of a go-to mom trick. I’m not sure there isn’t a mom out there who hasn’t whipped up a pan of brownies from a recipe on the side of the coco package. So why buy a mix? Time and ingredients. Really the same reason we buy boxed cake. It’s already measured out, all you have to do is add your eggs, oil and water. Mix. Bake. BAM! Ready!
What I Like/What I Don’t like
Looking at the ingredients it’s exactly what I would mix together from my own pantry. No fake ingredients here! Cane syrup, rice flour, cocoa, tapioca, arrowroot, salt and xanthan gum
Perfect 🙂
Of course my main reason for this brand is the fact that all their products are made in a dedicated gluten free facility. If gluten is not your only concern the facility is also free from dairy, wheat, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, soy, mustard, sulfites, sesame, casein, fish, crustaceans, shellfish
Wow!
So there I am an hour before heading out the door for a week and my hubby says “do you have a treat for you and R”? Huh? Oh yeah, middle of no-where! Me “yep” and jump to making these decadent brownies. First off the box makes 2 batches! Easy to measure out, drop everything in my mixer and poof ready for the oven. Now I know my oven is a bit on the slow side so I set my timer for the longer time 35 minutes. Yep perfect! No need for adjustment. I really hate it when a box says 30 minutes and 40-50 minutes later the thing is ready.
The Brownie
My husband’s idea of a perfect brownie is the crinkle top, me I just like a dark chocolate flavor that’s not too sweet. The kids, just like their mom, look for that rich cocoa flavor (yeah my kids are kinda food snobs). Very dark, rich, crinkly, chewy brownies came out of my oven. None of us were disappointed 🙂
We only had 1 complaint, actually 1 out of 5 had 1 complaint. Texture. My husband found them a bit on the spongy side. Of course this is due to the fact that they are made of rice and tapioca. He is not a fan of mochi or tapioca. So that was expected from him. They kids: loved them, even the gluten tolerant ones.
The Verdict
Namaste Foods: GF Brownie Mix
Yumm factor: 5/5 Deep dark rich chocolate flavor
Family Score: 5/5 5 yeses is a hard thing to get in my house.
Dollar value: 4/5 a bit on the high side but I feel worth it when compared to the ingredients of other mixes plus the whole safe for celiacs thing.
Buy Again: Yes
Health Benefits: 2/5 They’re brownies! But they do get a point for whole ingredients. Okay 1 more point for emotional healing; saved me from rocking back and forth in the corner of the cottage when the power was out for 2 days (true story).
Final Score: 5/5
The Good Stuff
This was my first introduction to Namaste Gluten Free Brownie Mix; it was
not my first intro to thier foods. When they asked me to write a review and host a giveaway I jumped at the chance because I already knew they offered awesome gluten free foods.
I wanted my review to be authentic so I chose a product that I would not normally buy. Products I do buy on a regular basis are: flours (love thier brown rice flour check out my brown rice shortbread recipe), seasoned coatings, pizza crust mix and a few others less often 🙂
I love sharing awesome finds with you my lovely readers! So here it is a gift tote of Namaste Foods containing:
4 Namaste Foods products
Namaste grocery tote
A copy of Gluten Free & More Magazine
Assorted recipe cards (I love these)
Namaste sent me a box of products to review; I was not paid. All opinions expressed are my own and I have no other affiliation with this brand.