Showing posts with label raw. Show all posts
Showing posts with label raw. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 11, 2016

Raw Garden Burritos

In Emily von Euw's new cookbook, The Rawsome Vegan Cookbook, I found a delicious recipe for raw garden burritos made with spicy mushroom nut meat, guacamole, and broccolini all wrapped up in collard leaves. It is surprisingly filling and tasty. Just be sure your collard leaves are fresh! You'll love the marinated broccolini the most.


Garden Burritos

Ingredients
Spicy Mushroom Nut Meat
  • 1 cup almonds, soaked for 8 hours
  • 1 1/2 cups mushrooms
  • 1/2 tsp cumin powder
  • 1/2 tsp coriander powder
  • 1/4 tsp chili flakes
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
Guacamole
  • 2 avocados
  • 2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
Fillings
  • 3 cups broccolini
  • 1 Tbsp tamari
  • 4 huge collard leaves
  • 1 cup cilantro
  • 1 cup shredded purple cabbage

Instructions
To make the nut meat: put all the ingredients in a food processor and process until it forms a chunky paste. Adjust according to taste, adding more spice or salt, if desired.

To make the guacamole, mash the avocado meat with the lime juice and salt until it reaches the desired consistency.

Toss the broccolini with the tamari and let it sit in the oven at 200-degrees Farenheit for 10-15 minutes to soften, or use a dehydrator at 115-degrees for 40 minutes. If your oven doesn't go that low, just use the lowest temperature and keep an eye on the food as you may need to take it out a few minutes early.

Spread your mushroom nut meat onto the collard leaves, and add the guac, cilantro, cabbage, and broccolini. Wrap up and enjoy!



Friday, March 27, 2015

Rhythm Superfoods - Kale Chips

I've tried a lot of kale chips in my life, but somehow never got my hands on the Rhythm Superfoods ones until now. Rhythm Superfoods kale chips were conceived in the kitchen of The Daily Juice, a little juice bar in Austin, Texas. Their products were so popular, they took them to the shelves and the rest is history.


What makes a delicious kale chip? Crunch and flavor. Kale chips are usually made from dehydrating kale at under 118-degrees. These are no different. They say that their chips are air-crisped under low heat to maintain their natural enzymes and maximize their raw nutritional potency. The art really lies in coating them with lots of flavor then dehydrating them until they are crunchy and crisp. I must say that Rhythm does both of these things well.

They sent me three flavors of their kale chips to try. My favorite was the Kool Ranch. Somehow they hand-crafted a dressing made with sunflower seeds, tahini, carrots, cane sugar, apple cider vinegar, onions, sea salt, lemon juice, dill weed, garlic, and white pepper that tastes very ranch-y. They are super crisp with the crunch you are looking for in a fantastic snack.


I loved the Original too as it had less seasoning, but still a great crunch.


Lastly, I tried the Mango Habanero. Mango with kale? Who would've thunk it? Mango and kale actually works though I tasted very little hot habanero spice. If you are going to call a chip "mango habanero" flavor, it better have a habanero kick!


I love that all of their kale chips are certified organic, certified gluten-free, and Non-GMO Project Verified. Clearly they care about using high-quality ingredients. And what better way to get your vitamins A and K than from healthy kale chips?! To try some on your own, you can find them at Yes! Organic Market in DC or on Amazon here.

Full Disclosure: Although the products were provided to me for free to review, that in no way influenced my veracious opinion.

Friday, November 14, 2014

Alive Juices

I'm officially on a raw, cold-pressed juice kick. By cold-pressing fruits and vegetables, the nutrients are made more bioavailable as they are not pasteurized using heat. Fresh juices can deliver a variety of vitamins, nutrients, and enzymes directly to your body in a wholesome way. I don't have my own juicer because I just don't trust that I will juice that much on my own so I buy expensive cold-pressed juices regularly. Recently, I was contacted by Alive Juices, a Maryland-based juice company, to see if I'd be interested in trying their juices. Why, yes, of course I would!

Alive Juices was started by Rachan Malhotra, who was inspired when he saw the effect of fresh, Ayurveda-based juice as a healing mechanism for his father after he suffered a stroke. Today, he is virtually back to normal and now Rachan is on a mission to bring his magic juices to everyone.

In fact, all of the juices I tried were delicious. They offer eight different recipes of juices in several different juice plans that can be ordered online and delivered to your home. All of the juices contain what they call "the big 4," that is, garlic, lemon, apples, and ginger.


I got to try Recipe #1, the Positive Karma, that had the big 4, cucumber, celery spinach, and cilantro. This was your typical green juice that was well-balanced and loaded with celery and cucumbers.

Recipe #4, Detox Mantra, is made with carrots, beets, kale, and cilantro and was really bitey, perhaps from the ginger or garlic, but had a nice smooth texture. Bitey or not, it was still pretty good.

Recipe #5, Guru's Green, was another green juice made with romaine lettuce, bok choy, collards, and fennel. This one was really good as well.

Lastly, Recipe #8, Morning Sunshine, was a fruitier juice made with squash, cilantro, and pineapple. I definitely tasted the pineapple, but who would ever think there was squash in this?!

They recommend you drink one juice daily for breakfast and even include a mix of powdered Ayurvedic herbs that they say have powerful anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant and cleansing effects with every delivery.  They also include a snack mix of dried kiwi, banana chips, pineapple, walnuts, and peanuts.

They offer a variety of juice plans that are detailed here. Three daily juices for seven days (21 juices) are $179. That's about $8.50 per juice and is in line with the higher priced juices you see at Whole Foods. The benefit to getting them delivered fresh and from a local company is that they haven't been pasteurized at all so you are able to absorb even more nutrients. So, if you are skeptical, why not give it a try and see if juicing makes you feel more energized as many people say it does.

Full Disclosure: Although the products were provided to me for free to review, that in no way influenced my veracious opinion.

Monday, November 10, 2014

Joy Bliss Raw - Chocolates

Any time I hear of raw chocolate being made locally, my eyes widen and the edges of my lips begin to curl up as vision of sugar plums dance in my head. At VegFest, I met Anh Thu Hoang, founder of Joy Bliss Raw, a raw chocolate company based in DC. Skeptical, I tried a couple of her assorted chocolates and within mouth-watering seconds, that skeptical look was wiped off my face. These are restaurant-quality artisanal raw chocolates worthy of accolades.


The most impressive of her lineup are her Assorted Chocolates. These handcrafted chocolates look like they came right out of a gourmet chocolate factory. The shell of each is made with raw cacao liquor and cacao butter, maple syrup, vanilla, and pink Himalayan salt. There are typically four flavors in each box: Caramel, Chai, Marzipan, and Almond Butter or Peanut Butter.  The marzipan was spectacular and made me wonder how she made it with all of these healthy ingredients. The marzipan filling was made with sprouted cashews, macadamia nuts, maple syrup, coconut oil and flour, and almond and vanilla extracts. Similar ingredients were used to make the other flavors and they were all really good.


Next, I tried the Half and Half. I could eat these every day. These tiny little snacks are made by pressing a mix of nuts and seeds together (sprouted almonds, buckwheat, pumpkin and sunflower seeds along with sesame, flax, and chia seeds) with hemp hearts and coating half of the bars in cacao butter and nibs.


Lastly, I tried her Almond Butter Cookies, which were crunchy and rich and full of vanilla flavor. They are also made with sprouted almonds and chia along with almond butter.


Anh has an interesting story as she originally obtained a master's in public health and spent many years working on HIV prevention in Africa and Asia. While living in Thailand in 2006 to 2009, she fell in love with raw foods and decided to change careers to feed her new passion. After graduating from the Living Light Culinary Arts Institute in Fort Bragg, California, she started her own company and is now growing inch by inch.

She uses high quality raw ingredients in all of her products that are fair trade and organic. The best part is that she does not use any preservatives, additives, or emulsifiers. All of her products are vegan and gluten-free. She said the prices of each product vary upon retailer and to contact her directly for orders. You can find her contact information on her website. Support local. Eat good, healthy food. Joy Bliss Raw.

Full Disclosure: Although the products were provided to me for free to review, that in no way influenced my veracious opinion.

Monday, November 3, 2014

The Squeeze - Raw Snacks

There I was moseying through Expo East this past September when I spyed a refrigerator filled with colorful juices. That was my first foray into The Squeeze world founded by Karliin Brooks. Karliin opened a juice truck called "The Squeeze" just a few years ago and now has a storefront in Brooklyn in addition to the truck in Broadway. The cold-pressed juices I tried at her booth were outstanding and she sent me off with some samples of some of the goodies they sell.


All of her products are raw, meaning they are never heated above 118-degrees, which increases the bioavailability of their nutrients -- this means your body benefits more. She has a bunch of packaged snacks that she sells across New York -- here are the ones that I tried.

The Nacho Kale Almonds make me think I've died and gone to heaven. She takes raw almonds and coats them in a creamy nacho seasoning, then dries them at a low temperature to produce almond heaven. The mixture of kale, cashews, sesame seeds, olive oil, onion, nutritional yeast, garlic, apple cider vinegar, mustard seed, turmeric, chili pepper, and salt really is spectacular. You'd be hard-pressed to find nuts that taste better than these.


The Mac 'N Cheese Kale Chips had a similar coating and were also heavenly. These flaky kale chips were loaded with nutritional yeast and balanced seasonings. Some of the best I've ever had.


The FunOnions were delicious and would make a great burger topper. These onions are coated with a mixture of buckwheat, flax, oat flour, nutritional yeast, almonds and spices and then dried at a low temperature.


The Kind Pork Rinds could have had a more appropriate name, in my opinion, but, then again, I've never had real pork rinds so maybe these taste just like them. In any case, these are really good snacks as they are basically strips of red bell pepper coated in almond flour, oats, and seasonings that makes them taste fantastically good.


Last, but not least, she also makes raw granolas called Coconut Squeezola and Chocolate Squeezola. They are super crunchy mixes of coconut, sprouted buckwheat, dates, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, oat flour, coconut oil, vanilla bean and Himalayan pink salt. You can really taste the vanilla bean flavor coated throughout the granola.


I am really impressed with the flavor profiles of all of the snacks. I never expected all of them to be good and I was most impressed with the kale chips and nacho kale almonds. One day, I dream of world in which The Squeeze truck visits DC, but, until then, you can buy her products on her website here.  They are fun, healthy, and super delicious, and I only hope her distribution channels continue to increase. Now, how about you go get your squeezola on!

Full Disclosure: Although the products were provided to me for free to review, that in no way influenced my veracious opinion.

Monday, July 21, 2014

Tastymakes - Raw Bites and Granola

I continue to believe in the healing power of raw foods and reading the story of the founder of Tastymakes only reaffirms my beliefs. Melissa Lacitignola was hit by a car and had lost her sense of smell due to severed nerves.  But, rather than accepting the diagnosis, her husband conducted some research that led him to the healing powers of raw, alkaline food. She became cured and the business of Tastymakes was born.

Raw food is never heated above 118-degrees so its natural enzymes stay intact, which increases the nutritional profile and bioavailability of those nutrients so your body can absorb them better.  Melissa found it hard to find good raw, vegan food so she and her husband began making their own treats and selling them and the business has really taken off. I was able to try four of their products and loved all of them.


They make snack bites, granola, and crackers. The first bag I opened was the Vanilla Nut Bar Bites. These are little snack bars made of wholesome ingredients. They have a strong vanilla flavor and a nice texture. Made with dates, walnuts, cashews, sprouted almonds, vanilla extract, flaxseed meal, and sea salt, there is nothing unnatural in these. No preservatives or artificial anything!



I also liked the Lemon Bar Bites. In these, I think it was the crunchy sprouted millet and cashews along with the lemon flavor that stuck out most. These would be great with a little tea for an afternoon teatime break.


If the bar bites were good, then I thought the granola was great!  My favorite of the two that I tried was the Choco-Coco Granola. I tried it in a bowl with almond milk, but I think it is even better straight out of the bag. We're talking crunchy sprouted buckwheat, sprouted millet, flaxseed meal, dates, coconut flakes, cashews, agave, cacao nibs, vanilla, and sea salt. Crunchy buckwheat with cacao -- please give me more!


The Apple Pie Granola was great as well. Again, it is crunchy because of the buckwheat and millet and is flavored with dried apples, agave, vanilla extract, cinnamon, nutmeg, and sea salt. This one is the sweetest of the two with 10 grams of sugar per serving. The sodium content in both of the granolas was low at only 30 mg while fiber was high at 6 grams. They are a bit high in fat as this flavor had 9 grams of fat, but it is good, healthy fat.


Next up, I want to try all of their crackers. With flavors Sea Salt and Vinegar, Garden Herb, and Fig & Onion, they sound delicious. Oh, and did I mention that an inspirational quote is included in each bag? Love it!


 All of their products are vegan and gluten-free. The bar bites retail for $5.95 per bag while the granola sells for $8.95 per bag on their website. They say that Tastymakes snacks are made to empower people and their bodies to be their natural best. With such healthy ingredients without added preservatives, I think they may just do that.


Full Disclosure: Although the products were provided to me for free to review, that in no way influenced my veracious opinion.

Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Blueberry Buckwheat Energy Bars

As I was reviewing Brandon Brazier's new cookbook, Thrive Energy Cookbook, I had the pleasure of making his Blueberry Buckwheat Energy Bars, which turned out to be pretty good. These bars are ideal for sustaining physical activity. The dates, which are primarily glucose, provide immediate energy and the combination of these ingredients including fresh blueberries, raw nuts, and buckwheat result in a functional, sustainable energy bar.  I did have trouble getting the bars to stay together, but the ones that did tasted great, and the ones that didn't, still tasted great as crumbles.


Blueberry Buckwheat Energy Bars
Makes 8 bars

Ingredients
  • 1 cup pitted and soaked Medjool dates
  • 1/4 cup fresh blueberries
  • 1/4 cup whole raw walnuts
  • 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
  • 1/4 cup unhulled hemp seeds
  • 1/4 cup vanilla-flavor Vega Performance Protein
  • 1 Tbsp coconut palm sugar
  • Sea salt
  • 1/2 cup sprouted or cooked buckwheat
  • 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1/2 cup frozen blueberries

Instructions
In a food processor, combine the dates, blueberries, walnuts, flaxseed, hemp seeds, protein powder, palm sugar, and salt to taste. Process until desired texture is reached The less you process, the crunchier the bar will be.

Transfer the mixture to a bowl and knead in the buckwheat, chopped walnuts, and blueberries with your hands.

Press into a baking dish lined with parchment paper, refrigerate for 5 hours, and slice into bars.


Wednesday, June 18, 2014

Gnosis Chocolate

A couple of years ago, I purchased some Gnosis raw chocolate bars through the Daily Gourmet and found them to be very bitter and not at all tasty so I wrote about that. Since then, the owner claimed that I must have received a bad batch, but never sent me new ones so I kept the review posted as is. In the meantime, a bunch of people told me they really liked their bars and suggested I give them a second chance. Sure, why not. So when the owner contacted me recently, I suggested she send me some new samples and, boy, was I surprised.


Gnosis bars are really good. In fact, based on this most recent experience, I'd say that Gnosis makes some of the best raw chocolate bars on the market -- hands down. Gnosis was created by Vanessa Barg just six years ago. She was on track to go to medical school when she realized that food was the best medicine so she switched direction and trained at the Institute of Integrative Nutrition instead. She heard a presentation about the benefits of raw chocolate by world-renowned raw foods expert, David Wolfe, and decided to develop raw chocolate using superfoods that would be great tasting and healthy. And so Gnosis was born.

She sent me three of her chocolate bars and a raw trail mix and I have to admit they were all good. My favorite bar was the LuckChoc. This was the one I put off till last because it didn't sound all that appetizing. It seemed like the healthiest one as it was made with Vitamineral Greens, clover powder, irish moss, and blue-green algae. But, how would that taste in a chocolate bar? The answer is that it tastes amazing. I found the bar to be rich and creamy when I first bit into it, then it finished with the taste of those unusual ingredients and it was truly delightful.


I also loved the Immunity bar. This 70% raw cacao bar is made with chai spice, currants, herbs, and coconut palm sugar. This bar was also quite rich and you could really taste the delightful mix of rose hips, ginger, cardamom, ginseng, and cloves along with the peptias. It was the cardamom that really gave it the oomph.


I also enjoyed the Coco Almond bar, but found it a bit drier than the others. It was still a nice mix of almonds, coconut flakes, maca root, mesquite, cordyceps, and love. :-)


Then there is the Raw Trail Mix in PowerChoc. This is sooo good. It's a superfood trial mix with fruits and nuts that is rich in protein and omegas for long-lasting energy. It's a scrumptious mix of chocolate, almonds, goji berries, currants, hemp seeds, and cacao nibs. I loved how soft the goji berries were -- not dried out at all like many other brands. I feel like I could eat this every day!


Best of all, it is raw chocolate. Raw chocolate is less processed and rich in nutrients and antioxidants. Many people think it is much healthier than roasted chocolate because it has not been heated above 118-degrees, therefore all the goodness remains intact.

What I like most about this company is how they are conscious in every way. Vanessa works directly with the suppliers and farmers to ensure integrity. She visits her suppliers in Belize, Grenada, Mexico, and Indonesia to ensure quality and fair labor practices. All of the chocolate is certified organic, certified vegan, kosher, gluten-free, and Non-GMO Project Verified. 

Most of the bars sell for $6.99 each while the specialty bars are as expensive as $9.25 each. The trail mix is $12.99 per bag. They also make hot chocolate, truffles, and spreads. So while not cheap, I will say that the chocolate with its healthy, organic, superfoods is well worth the price. Do yourself a favor and give yourself the gift of fine, raw chocolate. Your body will thank you for it later. You can order direct here. In the meantime, I'll be removing my previous review as this one better reflects my current views.

Full Disclosure: Although the products were provided to me for free to review, that in no way influenced my veracious opinion.

Wednesday, June 4, 2014

Forager Project - Juices

The more I learn about juices, the more I realize that I've been duped most of my life into thinking I was drinking nutritious juices as I picked up the standard Veryfine or other similar pasteurized drinks. When juice is pasteurized, it is heated to a high temperature to destroy bacteria, mold, and unwanted micro-organisms that might be lurking in the juice. Pasteurization prolongs shelf-life, making it a more cost-efficient product. But, it also kills the vitamins, minerals, and enzymes you think you are getting when you drink juices.  The more educated consumers become, the more they have been realizing that raw juices are the way to go, hence the sudden increase of commercially available raw juices. That's where the Forager Project comes in.


The Forager Project juices are cold-pressed, which means they use high pressure processing (HPP) rather than thermal pasteurization to preserve nutritional integrity and taste.  They are made with the highest quality organic ingredients that are cold-pressed into juices that retain much of their vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and enzymes, which then become bioavailable to your body. This is why they have a much shorter shelf-life and must be refrigerated at all times.


All of the flavors they sent me were amazing!  They sent me six of their juices and nut milks to try out of the 11 flavors they produce.


The Roots A was like a carrot juice, but so much better as it had sweet cucumber, apple, and orange flavors built in with a spearmint finish.


The Roots B was just an awesome beet juice made with celery, cucumbers, apples, and lemons.


The Roots C quickly became my favorite with its carrots and beets all rolled up in ginger and lemons. You really can't go wrong with ginger and lemons!


The Greens D was a delicious green juice made with spinach, kale, and romaine and sweetened with oranges and limes.

Lastly, there were the nut milks. Unfortunately, my Nuts A went bad before I could try it, but it was my favorite at the food show. The Nuts B was really good, but I don't drink coffee so I just had a swig of it. I loved it, but I can't let myself get hooked on coffee. My body is my temple.


One thing you'll notice is just how filling these juices are. I tended to drink just half a juice per day as it filled me up like a meal would!


I can't express how excited I am that these juices are being sold at Safeways in DC, Maryland, and Virginia. If only Whole Foods would start carrying them, I'd be a super happy camper! As with any raw juice, they cost much more than the regular juices. At $6.99 per 16-fluid ounce serving, they may seem pricey, but they are as nutritious as eating all of the veggies and nuts on the label. I also love that they list the ingredients right on the front of the bottle so there is no guessing as to what is in each one. They are filled with 100% wholesome ingredients. If you haven't yet experienced cold-pressed goodness,  I highly recommend this brand. Great taste plus 100% organic ingredients = a great way to get your vitamins and minerals for the day. I'll let them do the foraging for me while I just drink their great juices!

Full Disclosure: Although the products were provided to me for free to review, that in no way influenced my veracious opinion.

Friday, May 30, 2014

Nii Bars

As I stand in front of the bar aisle at the grocery store, I am constantly reminded of how unpure many of the bars are. And even those that seemingly have pure ingredients often are not organic. So when I discovered Nii bars, I was delighted. It really is the wholesomeness that got me excited. These bars are vegan, certified organic, gluten-free, raw, and made with cold-pressed ingredients.


The Cherry Coconut was definitely my favorite.  Made with raw cashew butter, dates, coconut nectar, dried tart cherries, walnuts, coconut, sunflower seeds, rice protein, hemp seeds, and sprouted quinoa, it had a smooth texture and great flavor.


I also loved the Peanut Butter flavor loaded with chocolate chips! Who knew there were chocolate chips in there? I think this one should be called Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip, but, regardless, it was yummy. I should mention that it is on the high side of fat content at 12 grams of fat for a small 1.8-ounce serving, but it is all good fats so I didn't mind. The calorie content was 220.


Then there was the Almond Chocolate Chip. This one was particularly chewy and sticky, but I loved the big pieces of almonds and chocolate chips.


The Berry Cashew as probably my least favorite as it had a few too many berries in it for me. This one would be great for all the berry lovers out there! With cranberries, blueberries, and strawberry flavor, you'll be rolling in berries.


So who is behind these bars?  Shanais Pelka is her name and nutrition is her game. As a mother with three active children, she was on the search for the perfect on-the-go food, but didn't want to compromise her health just because they were busy. So she began the quest to develop the perfect nutrition bar. And the rest is history.

As a new company, the bars are not yet widely available and are not at all available on the east coast. You can currently buy them online for $2.99 each on the Nii website or search for a store near you here. With Nii bars, you can Own the Day!

Full Disclosure: Although the products were provided to me for free to review, that in no way influenced my veracious opinion.

Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Health-Ade Kombucha

I have to say that I love it when I meet entrepreneurs who are passionate about their business. Daina Trout is no exception. As the creator of Health-Ade out of the Los Angeles area, Daina's mission is to provide the world with a healthy kombucha. And when I say healthy, I mean healthy. Kombucha is a fermented tea that has long been touted for its health benefits, but in the process of its gaining popularity, a number of manufacturers have jumped on the bandwagon and started cutting corners. Daina, who possesses Master's Degrees in Nutritional Biochemistry and Public Health as well as other credentials, utilized existing research to create one of the healthiest kombuchas on the market. So what makes her product stand out?


Well, let's first start with what everyone cares about -- flavor. There are currently seven seasonal flavors listed on her website. I was lucky enough to try five of them.  Instead of infusing her kombuchas with juice concentrates, she uses only fresh cold-pressed fruit to ensure maximum nutritional benefits and optimal flavor. Her flavoring is also very subtle so if you like a pure kombucha with just a hint of flavor, you are going to love these.


The Pink Lady Apple was my favorite as you get a perfectly mild kombucha with just a little bit of apple on the finish.

Let's take a step back and talk about kombucha in general. Kombucha is a fermented tea drink that is naturally rich in friendly probiotics, not to mention high in antioxidants and nutrients. It has been used in countless cultures to help improve health, in particular to boost immunity and energy, balance metabolism, and aid in digestion. Real kombucha is made only one way, with 3 simple ingredients: tea, sugar, and water.  Combining these with the kombucha culture, called a “scoby” (symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast), in just the right temperature and for just the right amount of time will make kombucha.The bacteria and yeasts in the culture “eat” the sugar, resulting in a slightly effervescent and delicious drink that ends up being very low in sugar and caffeine, and great for your health. 


I also enjoyed the Original flavor as I found it incredibly palatable with its mild taste and just a little fizz. Kombucha becomes naturally carbonated over time from the yeast. Health-Ade does not add any artificial carbonation into its kombucha unlike other manufacturers as that can destroy the probiotics. Health-Ade only ferments its tea in glass to naturally produce healthy probiotics. Daina says that she would never ferment in plastic because it can corrode and erode and ultimately damage the kombucha scoby, which is what allows the tea to ferment and product healthy characteristics.


Another thing they are adamant about is storing the kombucha in amber bottles as UV light can damage kombucha and reduce the probiotics.


Health-Ade's kombucha is 100% raw. They do not pasteurize their kombucha as the kombucha itself acts as a preservative. The symbiosis of cultures does not allow bad bacteria to grow. Other brands pasteurize, which can also reduce the probiotic content.

Other flavors I enjoyed were the Cayenne Cleanse, California Grape and Pomegranate.


Best of all, they are all certified organic, certified vegan, gluten-free, raw, and pending certification from the Non-GMO Project.  They are currently being sold in select stores in California, Utah, New York, West Virginia, Arizona, and Maryland for $4.99 per bottle, but distribution is quickly expanding so keep your eyes open for a store near you. For a complete list of stores, click here.

Full Disclosure: Although the products were provided to me for free to review, that in no way influenced my veracious opinion.