I was fortunate in being picked for another BzzAgent campaign and got to try Smartfoods Selects. They sent one large bag of Buffalo Cheddar cheese popcorn and two bags of their hummus chips. The chips came in Feta Herb and the second bag was Garlic Tomato Basil.
I will start with the Popcorn: The base of the popped kernel itself is very soft in texture. Airy when felt in the hand but spongy when you put in your mouth. Not the best feeling. Flavor factor I give it a 2 out of 5. The one star is for it smells better than it tastes. You get no heat but mostly a vinegar, almost citric acid flavor and the cheddar could just be called milk in my opinion. I had two pieces and then had 3 after. I figured something was off in my mouth, so I resealed the package. That is also where the second star comes into place, the package is resealable and stays sealed. I let a day pass and thought let's give it a try because the picture on the outside looks good and I like Buffalo sauce. Same results! Not good and for the caloric count, I'll eat something else that delivers the flavor it states but in a good way.
Feta Cheese Hummus Chips: The best of the bunch and they have such a nice crunch. They stay firm because I also liked them so much that I went for a red bell pepper hummus dip I had in the fridge. What a combination! The chips have parsley and rosemary herb flecks that really balance out the Feta nicely and you do taste Feta cheese, not just some odd sour cream base that could be called any cheese. The best part is the pepper kick you get from the black pepper and it is baked so well into the chips, you just get that freshly cracked peppercorn taste but not overpowering. My favorite and I would purchase them again.
Garlic Tomato Basil Hummus Chips: I won't make this long but it just tasted like Ketchup. I like ketchup on certain things but not on hummus. You get a flavor that is very close to the flavor packets you get in soups. The balance is off and the garlic is M.I.A. They mention Basil, maybe those are the green colored flecks but you could really call them anything. I have dried basil in the pantry and a live plant in the garden. I have no idea where their basil originated from but it did not resemble either. It was just tomato soup based broth on a chip. I felt bad for the poor hummus chip that got subjected to this flavor :(. Maybe my batch was made on an off day but no way would I eat these again. Everyone tried just one chip and most that put the whole chip in their mouth, regretted not being smart like the others that just took a bite. I felt bad sharing these and thankfully the bag did not have a large amount. The rest were thrown away.
My take on Smartfoods is mixed. They strike gold with the Feta Herb but did so poorly with the others. I still like the idea of eating real food, who doesn't? So their mantra hits home in using natural based ingredients. I still like that they advertise great flavors like the Italian Herb Multi-grain chip and they also have a Cinnamon version. They sound awesome but I do fear how their interpretations will taste. I would chance it one more time and try their Granola coated Popcorn, which I saw in a Blueberry Almond Vanilla flavor and make my final decision.
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