Product Review: Joans GF Great Bakes Ready To Bake Chocolate Chip Cookies December 3

Filed under *Bakery products, *Cookies & Biscotti, Joans GF Great Bakes reviews by Karen | 3 comments

I love the idea of these gluten free chocolate chip cookies!

Joan’s GF Great Bakes sent me this ready to bake cookie dough to try out. I was amazed- they are even pre-scooped/shaped! All you have to do is place the scoops of frozen dough on a cookie sheet, bake, and then eat. It doesn’t get much easier than that for fresh baked gluten free cookies! Each package is 10 ounces and contains enough dough for 12 cookies and cost $10.

Unfortunately, my cookies don’t look very appetizing, even though they tasted really good.  I fully blame my high altitide location for this, though, since this used to happen with my own home made cookies.

These gluten free chocolate chip cookies are sweet and chewy. The flavor is pleasant and doesn’t scream “I’m gluten free!” My picky children even liked these. The texture was difficult to assertain since they flopped flat in my oven, but I didn’t sense any grittiness or coarseness, which was another bonus.

Overall, these are tasty cookies that are a great option when you want fresh baked gluten free cookies, without the mess or fuss.

Pros: great flavor, easy prep

Cons: Results vary with higher altitude locations, expensive

Rating: 4 stars

Ingredients: GF flour blend (corn starch, tapioca flour, rice flour), light borwn sugar, sugar, butter, butter, eggs, salt, GF baking soda, xanthan gum, gf vanilla, chocolate chips (chocolate, cocoa butter, milk fat, soy lecithin, vanilla)

If you want to try this gluten free product yourself, please visit Joan’s GF Greatbakes website for ordering information

Product Review: Joan’s GF Great Bakes Bagels - Sesame & Plain flavors - gluten free/ wheat free/ dairy free option November 13

Filed under *Muffins & Bagels, Joans GF Great Bakes reviews by Karen | 2 comments

Who doesn’t like a fresh, hot bagel?

Joan’s Great Bakes sent me their plain and sesame bagels to try. Each package contains five bagel shaped dough circles ready for you to bake in your own oven.  Joan’s offers the following flavors: plain, everything, poppy, sesame, egg/onion/poppy. A dairy free option is also available or all flavors.

Honestly, it took me a while to figure out how to bake these bagels- I kept getting burnt exteriors and marginally baked interiors. Not good! However, after some experimentation with high altitude baking, I think I found success. ( decrease baking temp by 15 degrees and cover with foil the last 5-8 minutes to prevent burning.) These gluten free bagels taste best lightly toasted after baking.

Here is what I noticed with the plain and sesame flavors:

Plain: These bagels reminded me of the frozen Lenders bagels I used to make in college due to the size, the flavor, and the texture. The exterior is crisp and chewy, and the inside is soft, smooth, and bread-like with a few nooks and crannies. These are close to the “real deal” with only a hint of gluten free rice flavor.

Sesame: This gluten free bagel flavor is similar to the plain variety in regard to texture and flavor. The sesame seeds on the exterior tend to be a bit messy as they easily fall off. However, enough of the seeds remain on the bagel to provide a toasted sesame seed flavor.

Overall, these are yummy gluten free bagels that will satisfy a fresh baked craving.

Pros: chewy and soft, smooth texture, subtle flavor, fresh baked at home, dairy free option

Cons: still tastes a bit gluten free (yes, I am picky!)

Rating: 4 stars

To purchase Joan’s GF Great Bakes bagels, please visit their website

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Please check out my other bagel and muffin reviews, and Joan’s GF Great Bakes product reviews.

Product Review: Joan’s GF Great Bakes gluten free English Muffins - dairy free/ cholesterol free/ wheat free September 27

Filed under *Frozen Foods, *Muffins & Bagels, GF/ CF products, Joans GF Great Bakes reviews by Karen | 1 comment

Another product from Joan’s GF Great Bakes to continue my “new products” theme for the month, and it is a good one!

This Joan’s GF Great Bakes gluten free english muffin comes frozen in a package of six and is “mostly” baked- I say mostly because when thawed, the edges of my muffins were slightly gooey and undercooked. This is a product that definitely has to be toasted before consumption.

Straight out of the package, these look almost exactly like gluten containing english muffins. The top is a golden brown and the edges are pale and sprinkled with corn meal.  They are fairly soft and easy to slice when thawed. I sliced my english muffin with a bread knife and toasted it on a medium setting. In honor of my dad, who LOVES egg sandwiches, I cooked up an egg, melted some cheese, and made a breakfast sandwich.  The muffin held up quite well in the sandwich with no mushiness and crumbling.  The edges and surfaces of the muffin crisped up and provided a satisfying crunch without tasting dried out.

The inside of this gluten free english muffin is more dense than a traditional english muffin- there aren’t as many nooks and crannies. I also noticed the rice flavor of the GF flour mix was a bit heavy- I could taste the rice. It didn’t keep me from eating the whole thing though, so I guess it isn’t that big of a deal.  This may also be because I am almost paranoid about tasting rice flour because Iwon’t settle for products that taste gluten free- and rice flour is my flavor association with that.  I didn’t notice a weird texture or aftertaste though- another bonus!

This is the tastiest gluten free english muffin I have had. In reality, I didn’t really love them before going gluten free.  However, these are so tasty I think I have a new favorite breakfast sandwich.

Rating: 4 1/2 stars

Pros: looks just like a “regular” english muffin, tastes fresh and toasts nicely, doesn’t dry out, no crumbling

Cons: the flavor of the rice flour comes through- this may be a turn off to some, 23% DV of sodium in each muffin

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Want to try these gluten free english muffins? Check out Joan’s GF Great bakes website for ordering and shipping details.

**Update! I got an email from Joan’s stating their english muffins are 15% off this week! Nice!!**

Ingredients: GF flour blend ( rice flour, corn starch, tapioca), water, sugar, canola oil, gelatin, GF baking powder, egg replacer (potato starch, tapioca flour, calcium lactate ( not dairy derived), calcium carbonate, citric acid, sodium carboxymethlcellulose, methlylcellulose), xanthan gum, salt, cornmeal.

Check out my other muffin reviews and Joan’s GF Great Bakes reviews!

Product Review: Joan’s GF Great Bakes Gluten Free Onion Sandwich Rolls September 24

Filed under *Bread & Biscuits, Joans GF Great Bakes reviews by Karen | 4 comments

What a great idea! Joan’s GF Great Bakes reminds me of the take ‘n bake pizza chains like Papa Murphy’s. The concept is that Joan’s GF Great Bake sells packaged, frozen dough to make “homemade” gluten free bagels,  sandwich rolls, pizzas, cookies . . . and the list goes on. No more dried, crumbly gluten free products.

I agreed to review their products to see if this really is the case. The fresh gluten free products arrived safely packed in an insulated box with plenty of ice packs to keep the products frozen and fresh. I was very impressed!

First, I tried the onion sandwich rolls. The bread dough comes packaged in a rectangular metal tray, ready for baking. I baked these rolls for 20 minutes until they were golden on the top.  I must admit, it was so great to have hot, fresh baked gluten free bread in my kitchen and not have to mix a sticky bread mix or measure a lot of flours to measure.

First and foremost, these 3 pack of rolls are large enough for a hefty deli sandwich, and could even be sliced in half to make six smaller sandwiches.This bread is quite good, compared to other gluten free breads I have tried. It is a thick, textured bread that is a bit course. It does taste “gluten free”, but I think that is what makes it good in this case.  This is not a gluten free bread imitating a gluten based bread. It is just a good tasting gluten free bread that does not get soggy or fall apart when you eat it. I piled my sandwich with grilled veggies and chicken, cheese, tomato and a slathering of mayo, and ate it with only slight crumbling- nice! The onion flavor was a bit strong and may compete with the flavor of sandwich toppings. However, it complimented my hot sandwich nicely.

Overall, I think this is a great product that I would buy again.

Rating: 4 stars

Pros: fresh baked benefits with minimal fuss, holds lots of toppings without sogginess, no trans fat, nice flavor

Cons: texture is course, tastes “gluten free”

CLICK HERE for ingredients and nutritional information

Click HERE to purchase from Joan’s GF Great Bakes website or HERE to view store locations in east coast states