And that’s surprising for someone like me who originally thought food free of wheat, gluten, dairy, nut, egg, lactose, casein (the principal protein found in milk and other dairy products) would also be free of taste. Enjoy Life has changed my way of thinking about gluten-free and allergen-free foods.

So if they’re products are free of so many allergen-inducing ingredients what ARE they made of? I went online to read more about a company whose dairy-free, soy-free and gluten-free semi-sweet chocolate chips are just plain yummy. (I’ll get to those in a minute.) Though Enjoy Life foods have some rice products (rice flour, rice flakes, rice protein) they differ from “other” manufacturers by using nutrient- and flavor-rich alternatives like amaranth and sorghum flour. “Instead of eggs, we use a combination of aluminum-free baking powder, flax, and applesauce. Rather than saturated fats, we use non-hydrogenated, trans fat-free safflower oil. For sweeteners, we skip the refined stuff and use a combination of natural fruit juices and honey or pure brown cane sugar. Instead of the artificial stuff, we bake with rosemary extract and a fruit juice/grain dextrin mixture to lock-in freshness and extend shelf life.” With all that good stuff inside it’s no wonder Enjoy Life foods taste so dang good!

And my family should know–we recently used their semi-sweet chocolate chips in our favorite cookie recipe. Mom didn’t tell anyone they were “special” chips and no one seemed to notice, and that’s saying something. (We’re chocolate chip cookie experts!) These chips tasted just as rich and creamy as the ones from my Costco-size bag of Nestle semi-sweet chips. The good news is I just found out Enjoy Life offers a 5-lb bag–just think of the dozens of cookies we can make!

I have yet to test other products from their line, but from what I’ve heard you can’t go wrong. I’m dying to try their Double Chocolate Brownie cookie, Cinnamon Raisin bagels, and Cinnamon Crunch granola. Everything Enjoy Life offers is super tasty. Oh, and their products are also manufactured in a dedicated nut- and gluten-free bakery. That’s wonderful news for parents of children with nut and gluten allergies. Besides enjoyable and tasty foods the site also offers recipes, tips & hints, and other allergy-related resources. Enjoy Life’s “whole purpose is making smile-good foods that keep people’s insides happy too.” Whether you have allergies or not, Enjoy Life foods will definitely keep your insides happy! –Emily

This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 7th, 2008 at 9:33 pm and is filed under Daily Dish. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.