Healthy snack food often has a stigma attached to it, and that stigma is: booooring. Followed closely by: rabbit food.
You may want to choose only low-sugar, low-carb, nutrient-rich things to eat, but then you think about the sour cream and onion chips in the pantry, and suddenly, all you can think is, sour cream and onion chips. Must have now. (It’s not your fault hunger brings out your primitive, quasi-caveman-speaking side.)
At least that’s true for us, so when Allgood Provisions offered to send us a care package of their organic, vegan, gluten-free, GMO-free snacks to try, we enthusiastically said yes.
Admittedly, though, when the package arrived, we weren’t so quick to dig in, mostly because we’ve been burned by so-called healthy snacks before — ones that turn out to not actually be healthy for you (who knew deep-frying and bacon-wrapping asparagus made it less nutritious?! Oh wait. Everyone.), or ones that tasted so bland they took the joy out of eating.
Thankfully, Allgood Provisions surprised us in the best way: Their individually packaged treats were flavor-packed and relatively healthy. Here’s what we received, starting with our favorite snack:
- Trail Mix — As much as we love those cheap-o bags of trail mix, which tend to be more M&Ms than anything else, this mix was even better. It’s a blend of raisins, pumpkin seeds, almonds, walnuts, goji berries, dried cranberries and dried mulberries, giving you a nice balance between juicy, sweet-yet-tart fruit and crunchy seeds and nuts.
- Maple-Roasted Cashews — They have a salty-sweet taste that doesn’t overpower or detract from the roasted cashews, making them a great pick-me-up if you’re facing mid-day hunger pangs (or sugar cravings). We keep a bag stashed in the cabinet next to our desks.
- Sea Salt-Roasted Pistachios — Not too salty; all-around great.
- Sundried, Sweetened Cherries — If you like fruit leather, you’ll enjoy these. The cherries have a light, sweet flavor, and the texture is a lot like an oversized raisin.
- Oven Stoked Black Truffle Rosemary Almonds — We were most excited about this dish, which we served during a Friendsgiving party. Unfortunately, we overcooked the almonds, making them much, much saltier than we imagine Allgood Provisions intended. However, even salty, they were delicious — and devoured within minutes.
All of the snacks came in grab-and-go pouches, except for the Black Truffle Rosemary Almonds. These were a great party snack: You just toss the ingredients in a bowl, spread the coated almonds on a baking sheet, and bake. The hardest part is remembering to set a timer (d’oh!).
Even cooler than the food, though, is the cause each bag supports: 1 percent of every sale goes toward preserving and restoring the environment. Talk about feel-good snacking.