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Product Review: Amy’s Non-Dairy Pizza with Rice Crust

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I cruised the frozen section of my favorite health food store for something new to try that promised to be vegan deliciousness. I came across Amy’s Gluten-Free and Non-Dairy Cheeze Pizza with Rice Crust. Sounded promising, especially since Amy scored with the non-dairy mac and cheeze. I decided to overlook the $6.99 price tag and give it a try.

I preheated the oven to 425, as instructed and inspected the 7″ pizza. It looked enticing with more cheese than I was expecting—most frozen pizzas can be sparse on the toppings, as was the case with Amy’s No Cheese Pizza.

The instructions suggest baking the pizza for 8-10 minutes, then “carefully remove pizza directly under the broiler. Broil for 45-60 seconds, just enough to melt cheese.” Well, this isn’t easy to do. I don’t recommend holding it up to the broiler–too hot. So I left the pizza on the rack, closed the oven door and let the broiler work its toasting/melting magic. The results were less than stellar. It’s pretty hard to melt the cheese without burning the crust in the process.

(Yes, the above pic is the baked pizza–I know, kind of hard to tell . . . see burnt edge of crust).

Anyway, I never let a little charred bread get the best of me, so I sliced it up and dug in. Drumroll, please. . .

It didn’t  move me. I did not do my happy vegan food dance that I am known to do when yummy vegan food leaves me speechless. This left me wanting some flavor. I was tempted to sprinkle on some Daiya cheese and throw it back in the oven, but after spending $7, I wasn’t going to add more to it by using up some of my coveted vegan shreds. (The back of the box even says, “And of course you can add your own favorite toppings!”) Not for that price. The crust was ok–a little too soggy in the middle. There just wasn’t any flavor—nothing. Pretty disappointing, especially for the cost. Oh well. So far it seems Amy can’t quite master the vegan pizza—but I will say, that’s not an easy task. However, I wonder since they use Daiya in the mac and cheeze, why can’t they use it for the pizza?

Click HERE for a list of the ingredients.

Product Review: Amy’s Organic Tuscan Bean & Rice Soup

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Today was just a soup day. Good thing I picked up a couple of cans of Amy’s Organic Soups the other day—2 for $4. I had never tried their canned soup before, so I was interested in giving them a whirl since I’ve had good luck with other Amy’s products in the past.

Just heat and serve–that’s it.

I wasn’t planning on eating the whole can (really, just 2 cups) but before I knew it, I had. The brown rice and borlotti beans weren’t mushy at all and the flavor was outstanding. It also didn’t have a grainy texture that some soups can have. I was mighty impressed and my soup craving was fulfilled.

So here’s what I also like about this soup: No trans fat, No MSG added, No preservatives, Gluten free, No GMOs, Organic and Vegan.  There are 160 calories per serving, only 0.5 grams of saturated fat, 5 grams of fiber, and 5 grams of protein. But, like everything, here’s the Debbie Downer: 680 mg of sodium. It’s still less than other brands of canned soup and you’re getting the benefit of no animal products, organic ingredients, and gluten free.

Ingredients: FILTERED WATER, ORGANIC BROWN RICE, ORGANIC ONIONS, ORGANIC BORLOTTI BEANS, ORGANIC CELERY, ORGANIC SPINACH, ORGANIC CARROTS, ORGANIC TOMATO PUREE, ORGANIC EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL, ORGANIC GARLIC, ORGANIC SPICES*, SEA SALT, ORGANIC HIGH OLEIC SAFFLOWER AND/OR SUNFLOWER OIL, ORGANIC BLACK PEPPER. *100% PURE HERBS & SPICES (NO HIDDEN INGREDIENTS)

Product Review: Amy’s Rice Macaroni with Dairy Free Cheeze

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When I saw that this product made it as a readers’ fave in the latest issue of Vegetarian Times, I did a tentative happy-vegan-food dance. It sounded promising, especially since it’s made with Daiya cheese. Plus, it’s gluten-free. So I picked one up for $3.69. It was practically burning a hole through my reusable grocery bag on the way home. I couldn’t get it in the microwave fast enough. Then the moment of truth . . .

I did a full-fledged, unadulterated, happy-vegan-food dance like no other. Never in my life would I have thought there’d be a delicious vegan mac and cheese that rivals that of the real deal. Unbelievable. Even The Husband was hovering, hoping that I would share more than just the one tiny bite I had given him. No way.

Oh, man. Good stuff. It took me a few minutes to recover and wipe the cheeze from my face–I was not above licking the cardboard dish clean, nor am I embarrassed to admit that. It was creamy and tasted just like the real thing. You can cook it in the oven for 25-30 minutes (I had no patience for that) or in the microwave for about 4 minutes.

Alas, like everything delicious, it comes with a price. One 8-ounce container brings with it 520 calories (I better go for another run today), but it’s actually comparable to regular mac n’ cheese. Total fat: 22g, 5g of saturated fat and no trans fat Sodium: 740mg, Carbs: 72g, Protein: 8g, but hey, NO cholesterol! 🙂 Overall, with no dairy, no soy and no gluten, it’s an indulgence I can handle every once in a while. (Glad I bought two)!

Product Review: Amy’s Roasted Vegetable, No Cheese Pizza

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I was excited to try this pizza since I’ve had good luck with other products from Amy’s Kitchen. A no-cheese pizza is a hard thing to make–and to make it tasty is a whole other ball game. This certainly isn’t a home run–more like a ground double. It wasn’t bad.

First of all, let’s check out the ingredients: (VEGAN) ORGANIC WHEAT FLOUR WITH ORGANIC OAT BRAN AND WHEAT GERM, ORGANIC ONIONS, FILTERED WATER, ARTICHOKES, EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL, ORGANIC ROASTED RED PEPPERS, ORGANIC TOMATOES, ORGANIC SHIITAKE MUSHROOMS, ORGANIC AGAVE NECTAR, BALSAMIC VINEGAR, SEA SALT, EXPELLER PRESSED HIGH OLEIC SAFFLOWER OIL, ORGANIC EVAPORATED CANE JUICE, ORGANIC GARLIC, ORGANIC LEMON JUICE, YEAST, SPICES. CONTAINS WHEAT.

Nutritional Facts:

Serving Size: 0.33, Servings Per Container: 3, Serving Weight: 113 g

Calories: 270, Calories from Fat:80

Total Fat: 9g 14%, Saturated Fat: 1.5g 8%, Trans Fat: 0g

Cholesterol: 0mg 0%

Sodium: 490mg 20%

Carbohydrates: 42g 14%

Fiber: 2g 10%

Sugars: 5g

Protein: 6g 0%

Organic: 85%

Vitamin A: 6%, Vitamin C: 20%

Calcium: 2%, Iron: 4%

I paid about $4.50 for this single-serve pizza, which is a bit on the high side, but that is also the price we pay for organic and having to not wait more than 10 mins for it to cook. The toppings left much to be desired.

I desired more toppings.

They tasted good–just wanted more of them. The “sauce” is some type of vegetable, but I couldn’t quite figure out what it was–cobweb-like onions is all I can think of to explain it. It satisfied my hunger, but it was just, ok. The lack of toppings really killed it for me. The crust was good, however–not soggy or chewy like some frozen pizzas. Definitely take the few extra minutes to bake it in the oven–I can’t imagine how terrible it would taste coming out of the microwave!

Check out (better) vegan products from Amy’s Kitchen–they do have some winners!

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