… Lentil Benefits in Snack-Food Packaging
Enjoy Life Foods is once again helping me enjoy life with their newest snack, this time with a salty chip variety. A few weeks ago we shared just a newsy post letting you know that Plentils Crunchy Lentil Chips would be debuting soon. Well, they’re finally here … Yay! And we’ve had the delicious task of reviewing them so we could bring you the results. You know the saying, “It’s a tough job, but somebody’s got to do it!”? Well … it wasn’t a tough job at all. I found myself having fun playing with flavor combinations to see what I else I could do with these chips, in addition to enjoying them straight out of the bag of course. Here are our descriptions of their flavor profiles and some creative serving suggestions we’ve come up with (though we haven’t put them all to the test yet) …
Garlic & Parmesan – It is so nice to finally have a chip that has a cheese-y flavor. I looked at the ingredients three times to try to figure out where that tasty “dairy” flavor came from. I decided I really don’t care how Enjoy Life created it … since I know I can enjoy it without worry. I think this flavor profile would lend itself nicely to becoming a coating for baked chicken.
Light Sea Salt – This flavor is the most subdued of all the flavor choices, in my opinion. They have just a hint of salt. These chips would make a great platform for other flavors to shine on. Paired with a robustly flavored dip, such as Fire Roasted Red Pepper Hummus with Basil and Garlic, or a ranch-dressing-style dip, the snacking would be delicious.
Dill & Sour Cream – These do not cause pucker-power, as some sour cream and dill chips do. There is no overbearing tartness to them, but there’s a hint of a tanginess just at the end of eating the chip. Again, not a flavor that is easy to get from other sources when someone is dairy-free. These too would be good on baked chicken. Or perhaps some of these chip crushed, then added to sour cream (or dairy-free substitute) would make a delicious baked potato topping. (Okay, my mouth is watering … sorry!)
Margherita Pizza – This flavor profile transported me to a basil-infused pizza sauce. I thought this flavor was the most bold of the four choices. Munching some of these with a cold, gluten-free beer could (periodically) satisfy my ever-present craving for pizza. (Sometimes you just have to have pizza, though.)
All Plentils have the same light, airy texture. They are more “puffed” than some whole grain chips. In fact, perhaps the best way to describe their texture is to compare them to snacks you might already be familiar with … Funyuns or Bugles. However, these chips do not have the same flavor profile or powdery aftertaste as either of those, in my opinion. (And I do not care for either Funyuns or Bugles.) They do have a very good crunch! While Plentils are made from lentils, therefore providing a “better-for-you” chip (to quote Enjoy Life) with more protein and fiber than many others, they don’t have the strong legume flavor from being plant-based. I thoroughly enjoyed all four flavors, but I think my personal favorite is the Garlic & Parmesan, or maybe the Margarita Pizza, or … well, I said earlier it wasn’t a tough job, but it may be a tough choice.
Plentils Crunchy Lentil Chips are free of wheat, dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, egg, soy, fish and shellfish. They are also made without casein, sesame and sulfites. Here are some other note-worthy characteristics: No artificial ingredients, saturated fat, or GMO ingredients. Plentils also contain no cholesterol or trans fat. Each 28g serving provides 3g protein, 1g fiber, and only 6g fat, compared to 10g fat in most potato chips.
So our review has been delicious and we’ll be soon moving on to our exploration phase, trying out these chips in other uses, as mentioned above. If you have fun ways to Enjoy Life, be sure to share them with us.
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