Free2b with Tryazon

 Well, this "party" went quite a bit differently than I had originally planned. Tryazon sent us a huge box filled with a giant assortment of snacks from "Free2b", so that we could host a party and introduce others to the products. The dates were going to line up perfectly; we had some people coming in from out of state to join us in running our first "Tough Mudder" race, and when we finished we'd all be able to refuel with free2b snacks - I had it all planned out. Then disaster hit in the form of rain - TOO much rain for a tough mudder apparently, and the event was cancelled at the last minute. The others ended up turning around and going back home, and just like that all our weekend plans got thrown out the window!

So we had to improvise a bit (a lot). What we ended up doing was having our own little tasting party with my family. Free2b's lineup of products include sun cups (an allergy-free version of Reese's PB Cups), Crunchsters (Sprouted Mung Beans for a healthier, filling crunchy snack!), and chocolate wafers for baking.  We received an assortment of sun cups and crunchsters to try. We had the "Beyond Bacon" & "Simply Sea Salt" Crunchsters - my kids weren't huge fans but they are tasty and as my husband commented, would make for a great road trip snack! The Sun Cup flavors include dark chocolate, milk chocolate, both with sunbutter filling, and a dark chocolate mint variety. No one in my immediate family has any allergies, but I was happy to have a chance to actually try a product out before recommending or giving it to someone I know, so that I feel like I'm actually giving them something that tastes good and they won't feel like they have to completely miss out when there are treats or snacks involved. I don't know how Free2b does it honestly, because their products are all gluten-free, vegan, and free from TONS of common allergens - including nuts, dairy, and fish (and many more) - AND they don't taste like cardboard. That's definitely an accomplishment! These are a snack that don't have to be completely set aside for just the "allergy crew", they can be enjoyed by everyone. That's not to say they taste just like a regular Reese's PB Cup; you can definitely tell the difference, but they are still tasty and given time for taste buds to adjust I think they would be just as welcome in anyone's hand (or mouth!) Check out their website for more info: https://free2bfoods.com/

My almost-2-year old was loving them - I gave him one of the mini sunbutter cups as I was trying to prep things for the rest of us and he kept begging for more! He was NOT a fan of the mint however, haha. But the sunbutter cups he was all about! I set out some of each variety we got, as well as regular Reese's PB Cups, and had them do a blind taste test. Not surprisingly, everyone guessed the "real" one correct. What was surprising though was that they all said "Yeah these are good, I like this" so that was a win! Both of my boys actually did end up not enjoying the mint, but it may have just been a little strong for them. Everything else was gobbled up happily!

Since we were given so many, and we wanted to be able to share after not being able to host the party as originally planned, we decided to bag up a bunch of the rest of hand out to neighbors/friends. We put a little of each kind in Halloween-themed goody bags, along with an info card, coupon, and some free2b "swag" (pen, note pad, sticker). Then we taped a little note on the outside (not pictured) giving them some additional info about the products and what we were doing. I hope they all enjoy getting a little taste of this like we did!

Finally, I took one of the bags of mini dark chocolate sun butter cups, chopped them up, and used them in place of chocolate chips in my normal banana muffin recipe. I was repeatedly swatting my toddler's hand away because he wanted to get at the Sun Cups so badly! I also replaced half the butter with avocado for a little nutrition boost/fat reduction, which had the added benefit of making the muffins slightly green, perfect for Halloween! These were great, and a nice little change up from the normal plain chocolate, to having a little flavor variety.

Overall, it was definitely not what I had expected to be doing for this party opportunity, but it all worked out well. It was agreed these products are a definite "will eat again" and it's so great to see more companies coming out with these that all people will be able to enjoy, regardless of certain allergies or dietary restrictions. Free2b for the win!

#Tryazon #Free2bHalloween

GF Goodness TryaBox

 I am not gluten-free, but I have a sister who was diagnosed with celiac disease a few years ago, and has had to make a lot of drastic changes to her diet ever since. This has made me hyper-aware of just how many things can actually contain gluten (so many you wouldn't expect!) and how careful people with dietary restrictions have to be. So I am grateful for people and companies who have made it their mission to help those with allergies be able to eat more freely and not have to give up some of their favorite foods.

With that in mind, I was excited to hear about this tryabox opportunity from Tryazon, to see how this brands products hold up. Taste Republic sent me coupons to pick up a couple varieties that my family could try out for free, as well as a cool wooden utensil - and what kitchen doesn't need more of those? They also sent a recipe-card for a pesto dish and we were initially going to do that before changing at the last minute to something the kids would be more likely to eat. I was also glad to see that despite being fresh pasta, these didn't need to be used within 2-3 days like I had first read you need to do with homemade pasta.

I decided to go with the 4-cheese tortelloni, and spinach & cheese ravioli varieties, mainly because they were different types of pasta I'd never actually had before and thought it would be fun to branch out. I will say, I was nervous to serve this to my family! I have had another brand of gluten-free pasta before and while it wasn't awful, you could definitely tell it was different. So I was sure there were going to be complaints about it being weird. And yes, the spinach kind was only eaten by adults, and I don't blame the kids because I definitely wouldn't have eaten green pasta when I was younger! But actually it was just fine. We served them with a homemade alfredo sauce and I thought it was great. I could tell there was a slight difference in the flavor, especially the ravioli, but it honestly wasn't bad at all. The texture was really good to eat, too. We had a couple of my husband's brothers eating with us as well and I don't think they even noticed anything about it!

The one downside I did notice was that they did seem to stick together a bit more (especially the ravioli) but perhaps that was just user error or I needed an even bigger pot or something. Not a major issue, just that when it came to serving they were clumped and had to be pulled apart - and that led to them breaking. Then when I went to cleanup afterwards I did find that there was significantly more dough stuck to the pot and that it was trickier to scrub off than when I cook normal pasta. I'm sure that's just the nature of the product and the ingredients that have to be used.

Overall I was very pleased with this pasta. I thought it looked and tasted very comparable to normal pasta, and I would definitely feel okay serving this to my sister. A win for the GF community!

Fun, flavorful varieties to choose from, and a cool spork!

We made alfredo sauce & chicken cordon bleu! Paired nicely.

#tasterepublic #glutenfree #glutenfreepasta #quickdinner #easyhealthymeals #freshpasta #tryazon