Easy recipes, fun reviews, and silly chatter from three
gluten-free, additive-free, and wholesome eating kids!








Thursday, March 3, 2011

Review: Mini Pops Popped Sorghum!



We gave up on popcorn a while back, not only because Brother Chef and Momma Chef are sensitive to corn but because we could not stand those little hulls that got stuck in our teeth! In fact Little Chef once ended up with a really infected gum from a popcorn hull! :-/

Movie night however, just hasn't been the same.  There is just something about that salty snack that makes the experience so much more entertaining.  We've been on the lookout for a good replacement, with not a lot of luck, until a friend sent us a link to a site that offers popped sorghum. We were really intrigued! We did not know you could pop this grain, acutally we had never thought of it being a grain. In fact we hadn't really thought of it at all. We just knew that it was a sweetener, similar to molasses, that is good on biscuits. (That would be our southern blood showing through...)

We were really excited about this product, called Mini Pops, because not only are they corn-free and gluten-free but they are also organic, non-gmo, and farmed in the USA. The best part though is that they have no hulls to get stuck in your gums!!

We'll let Ari, creator of MiniPops, explain the product in more detail.


Ari was kind enough to mail us a box of Mini Pops so we could see for ourselves what all the fuss was about! We were so excited when we learned this because the website looked so cool, it was hard to wait for the box to arrive! While we waited we read every page on the website, lots of good information! As soon as Little Chef saw "Little Poppy" on the site he laughed and yelled "Who is that? I love him! I want him!" We think that's a great idea, to be so kid friendly. Because of our allergies we don't get to eat all those little packs of foods in stores that have bright colors and cute mascots. We love Momma Chef's homemade treats but... sometimes we just want a fun, store bought snack like everyone else. And they have lots of fun flavors that look so amazing: Petite Plain, Baby White Cheddar, Hot n’ Chilly Chili, Itsy Bitsy Chili Cheese, Subatomic Sea Salt, Little Lemon Pepper, Itty Bitty Butter, Teeny Tiny Kettle Pops and Cutie Caramel!

Today was the big day! As soon as we got home from school and saw the box sitting on our table we begged Momma Chef to let us open it right away!!


Little Chef was just bursting with glee! He saw what was inside and screamed "It's LITTLE POPPY!!!"

In the box were THREE bags of Mini Pops!!  "Yay" we yelled  "One bag for each of us!!" We each picked a bag and here it what we thought.

Sister Chef: I chose the White Cheddar, I'm the only Junior Chef not sensitive to dairy, and it was really good! They were really crunchy and had a great flavor. I ate and ate while watching the movie but never ran out as they fit a LOT in those bags. They taste just like popcorn but are tiny. I loved that nothing got stuck in my teeth, I hate it when that happens. I think this product should be sold in movie theaters so kids with corn allergies can have a nice treat too.

Brother Chef: I ate the Subatomic Sea Salt. It was great! I ate a bunch and still had half a bag left so I am taking it to school tomorrow. It made me thirsty but that is good because popcorn is supposed to do that. It made my movie really fun and I liked the bag. I would like Momma Chef to keep it on hand.

Little Chef: Mine is Itty Bitty Butter!!!! Because I like butter!! Look at them, they are so tiny, I love them, they are little popcorn babies! Listen when I put them in my mouth...CRUNCH CRUNCH CRUNCH... hahaha! It is very, very good. Look at the bag...that's Little Poppy! Say "hi" to him, the site said to tell him "hi" every time you see him... "hi", "hi", "HI!". I see him every bite I take, HI LITTLE POPPY!!


Aren't they adorable?  And their website assures us that they are gluten-free: "Mini Pops' ingredients do not contain gluten, a protein that is commonly found in rye, wheat and barley. We regularly send out Mini Pops samples to be laboratory gluten tested so that we can be confident that gluten levels are deemed 'Undetectable' which translates to gluten levels less than 5 parts per million (<5ppm). Because we get our ingredients from vendors who don't necessarily manufacture in gluten-free facilities, we take the extra step to ensure a gluten-free product. Also, Mini Pops doesn't contain corn gluten or zein, two allergens that people avoid who are allergic to corn."

If you would like to purchase your own bags of Mini Pops you can do so HERE!  A 3oz bag is only $2.98 so that makes them a very affordable gluten-free snack. They also have 6oz and 16 oz bags or you can order a sampler pack if you would like to try a variety of flavors. Since they offer both USPS and UPS, shipping is very reasonable too!

Thank you Mini Pops for sharing your fun snack with us! We hope every child with corn allergies finds your product so they can enjoy popped treats again!



~This item was sent to us for review purposes, the opinions written here are ours. We did not receive any monetary compensation for this post & were not under any obligation to give a positive review of the product.~

3 comments:

  1. Great post! I'd never heard of sorghum before now and I love popcorn so tracking some down and trying my luck at popping it is something I'm keen on!

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  2. I have actually tried to pop it myself- with very little luck (plus it was super hard to find.) I ended up getting it online at Amazon.

    A cheaper alternative is organic puffed rice- I just coat it with butte,coconut oil and salt and my girls really like it.

    jen

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  3. We found some Mini Pops in the health food store the other day. My children and I have corn allergies, and boy are we psyched!! This stuff is SOOOOO GOOD!!! It was great to have on family movie night! Gotta get us some more of this stuff!

    I am thinking of trying to pop my own if I can find the whole grain somewhere. Jen said she didn't have much luck with it. I wonder if she was air popping like they do?

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