So, when a food allergic person hears the words secret ingredients, I promise you their skin crawls. Don’t go running yet, this is a very cool secret ingredient that is only secret if you want it to be. The folks over at The Sneaky Chef® sent me a jar of their Creamy No-Nut Butter (made from golden peas) and the Smooth Red sauce for pasta to try out. They did not request anything of me and nor did they pay me to review their product to say positive things. My opinions are always my own and please remember that the reason I don’t like something maybe the reason that makes you love it. The concept with The Sneaky Chef® is to offer healthy foods in places that we don’t expect it and where the flavor makes the culinary experience even better. The reason I say sneaky is that the pasta sauce was loaded with veggies (but shhh) and tasted far more interesting that the average jarred red sauce. The Creamy No-Nut Butter was shockingly tasty too! I have to confess to forcing myself to take that first bite. I love peas, but in a jar? Really?
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixn85iXD7HQ]
When I took the Creamy No-Nut Butter out for a spin, I had hoped to have a few teens, who didn’t have a food allergy try it out. As luck would have it, one young lady asked me if I had any of that “stuff that is not peanut butter” before I could make my offer. I told her I had something new for the to try but wouldn’t say what.
I sliced up Granny Smith Apples and set the teens free with the jar and a butter knife! They were shocked to hear that I gave them golden pea butter and even more surprised at how much they loved it. Even though it was a major success, the teens all agreed the sweet taste was too much to be in a sandwich. They said this would be great on top of chocolate cupcakes, with apples, maybe graham crackers, definitely with raisins and list went on.
Next, I tested out the Smooth Red Sauce for pasta and without sharing my ingredients, my asked why the sauce was more flavorful. I had added meat to my sauce in my attempt to really hid that there were carrots, sweet potato and cauliflower (just to name a few items) in the recipe! I have to agree, this was good and the veggies added a real complexity that was fresh and welcomed.
This photo does not do justice to the dish!
The only draw backs I found was that The Sneaky Chef® website had so much information on it I was a tad overwhelmed. Also, I don’t believe these products have made their way to Reno, NV…yet. The pricing on the pasta sauces were much lower than I expected at $3.99 from Net Grocer.com! The Creamy No-Nut Butter was priced at $6.99 which seems reasonable for such a specialty product.
Do you have any recipes in which you incorporate healthy ingredients and then watch people dive into your dish happily not realizing the health benefits?
p.s. As with any food item, read all labels and call the manufacturer to ask about cross contact risks within the factory.
One of the hardest things I find about managing both life threatening food allergies and asthma is talking to others. I hate to be the one that might be perceived as demanding, pushing or for asking too much. What I now know, fourteen years later, is that honest, clear information presented with kindness works!..
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for a very long time. Thank you and best of luck.
Well, I think she should list all the ingredients. This is a great thing she’s doing, don’t get me wrong, I appreciate it. But I don’t know (other than peas) what it’s made out of, whether it’s corn, gluten, wheat, soy, seafood, fish, fruit, etc. And I have many allergies, which is why I want to know.
Hi Rachel,
By law all ingredients should be listed. My personal goal is to call each manufacturer before my family consumes it to make sure there have not been any recipe changes or any risk of cross contact within the facility. As always, give ’em a call to make sure they’ll work for you. it is certainly hard when you are managing a list of allergens. We have a grouping to avoid in our household too. Good luck.