Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Garden Lites Reviews

I am the lucky winner of a Garden Lites Giveaway and my prize arrived at the house this morning! I was so excited to open the box and see what Souffle flavors I got, and I was surprised and pleased with the amount they gave me.

Let me back up a little bit before I get too excited.
For those of you who don't know yet, Garden Lites is a company that makes Delicious, Healthy, Low Calorie, All Natural, Gluten Free, Vegetarian Souffles and Zucchini Pasta Meals that can be found in the freezer section of the grocery store.

Here is what their website says:
Start with the freshest, most delectable vegetables. Then whip them into perfect shape using a blend of secret ingredients, years of culinary experience, and a little bit of love, as “mom” used to say. The finished product: Garden Lites line of vegetarian, all natural soufflés and sumptuous zucchini “pasta” dishes. Minimally processed and maximally delicious, each bite is filled with nutritious real flavors.
There are 9 Souffle Flavors, and 2 Zucchini Noodle Dishes to choose from, and my prize came with 8 Souffles, 1 Zucchini Noodle Dish, and a Tote Bag! I am so grateful for this prize. :)

The meals and souffles are between 100-200 Calories each. And they can be Microwaved or heated in the Oven. (I've only ever made them in the microwave because it is quicker and more convienent. Heating them in the oven takes 40 minutes, but heating them in the microwave takes about 5 minutes including 2 minutes of rest time.

The Tote Bag is so nice, A very soft material, but strong and durable as well.

 I will proudly be using this tote bag, And showing it off to my friends, family, and co-workers.


 Here is the Zucchini Noodle Dish that they sent me. Zucchini Marinara. I couldn't wait to try this since I have only tried their souffle's and have not seen the noodle dishes at my grocery store yet. I decided to make this for lunch, and It Was AMAZING! Yum! I loved it so much I licked the bowl clean. The Vegetables were cooked perfectly, not too crisp, but not mushy, and the marinara sauce was not overpowering at all, it wasn't too tomato-y or acidic like other tomato sauces can be. It had a natural sweetness that was very pleasant and delicious.
 I have not tried the Broccoli Souffle yet, but I am looking forward to trying it soon. :) I hope it tastes like the Cauliflower souffle (I haven't actually had the cauliflower souffle yet because my store hasn't had it, but the Pizza Souffle is made with cauliflower and that was amazingly delicious, so I just know I will love the Cauliflower Souffle).
I think this is the first Souffle flavor I tried when I discovered Garden Lites Souffles about a year ago. I am glad it was my first one because I fell in love right away. I love the variety of vegetables in it, and I was impressed with the nutritional information. Plus, it is delicious!
The Butternut Squash Souffle is one of my favorites, and every time I buy Garden Lites, I make sure to get  at least one Butternut Squash Souffle. It is dense in a good way, and it's naturally sweet. I have always loved squash, and this just makes me love it more. ;) This souffle has been featured in a few of my bentos including my most recent First Day of Summer Sun Bento.
 The Spinach Souffle is unfortunately not one of my favorites. Today I made this one for my fiance's lunch and I had a few bites of it. I love spinach, but there if something about the texture/taste of this souffle that I don't like as much as the others. Its still yummy, but it's not one of the flavors I will be buying very often.
 Now the Zucchini Souffle is defenitely one of my favorites! I have only eaten it once, but I remember it well. I love the texture and the flavor and I am sooo happy this souffle was included in the prize :) You may remember seeing this souffle in my Earth Day Bento.
 This is one of the Souffles I tried very recently. I had not seen it in the grocery store at all until 2 weeks ago. I love the mix of Black Beans, Rice, Corn, Peppers, Onions, Zucchini, etc. in this Souffle. And it is pleasantly spicy. I wrote a mini review of the Southwestern Souffle on this Smiley Face Bento Blog Post.
 This Pizza Souffle is also one that I recently found and tried. And I was sooooo happy with this one. I was a little iffy about trying it because I was worried it would be too cheesy, or the sauce would be overpowering, but it was not. There was just the right about of sauce, and a little bit of cheese to give it flavor but not overpower it at all. I actually used this souffle in my Early Birthday Bento and I used it like a mock birthday cake with a candle in the top. There is also a mini review of this souffle on Kat's Birthday Bento Blog Post.
When I saw this Souffle in the box I was sooo excited. Carrot Cake is my favorite dessert, and this souffle is just like a carrot cake. I was excited to try it as my dessert, and when I was cooking it I could smell the cinnamon and nutmeg. YUM... But when I took a bite I was sadly disappointed. Don't get me wrong, it tastes good, but I think I much prefer the savory flavor of the other souffles over the sweetened one. I found myself wanting to taste more of the carrot and less of the sweet and cinnamon. Sadly I only ate half of it and put the other half away to try again later. I might buy this again and mash it up and add it to a carrot cake  recipe, but I am not sure I would eat it buy itself again.
Well maybe I will get it again when I am craving something sweet but want to have something healthier then dessert.






Zucchini Marinara
Carrot Raisin Souffle





Spinach Souffle




















Thank you soooo much! I am blessed to have won such an amazing prize, and I hope my reviews have made you all interested in this wonderful company and their delicious and healthy meals. I highly recommend you all try some!

*The views in this blog are my own, and I was not asked to write this. I truly love these delicious souffles and I just wanted to spread the word. :)
 Enjoy!

6 comments:

  1. WOW! Very fancy! Yay on winning something else! Lol. Glad you're enjoying them so much. ^_^

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    1. Thank you! I am super excited to be winning so many awesome prized lately. :)

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  2. I am 49 years old and have been following the GF lifestyle out of necessity for a number of years now. I love to cook and am writing a cookbook for my nearly-grown children and extended family--which I may or may not publish one day haha =) I was delighted to see the Garden Lites products in the freezer section of our local Whole Foods and thought it would be nice to have something in the freezer and on hand for a quick option on busy days. The Zucchini Souffle quickly gained my attention and a place in my grocery cart. I don't own a microwave myself [personal conviction] and so opted to heat in the oven per the package instructions. To my great disappointment, I found the souffle inedible =( The soufflé contained very very little zucchini--NOTHING at all like the photo that appears on the front of the package. Most of the soufflé was bread/filler-like, a bit too sweet, under-seasoned, and the few bites I ate left my mouth with an odd and indistinguishable aftertaste. As for myself, I certainly was not impressed and would not recommend it to others. Thank you for allowing me to share my experience. Warm regards, Cyndi

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    1. Aww, I'm sorry you didn't like it. Zucchini Souffle is one of my favorites. But I always get a lot of zucchini in mine.

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    2. Cynthia, I wanted to address your concerns. The zucchini in our Zucchini Souffle is within the batter as well as in pieces throughout the souffle. It sounds like you may not have had as many pieces of green peel visible, which can be perceived as less zucchini. I assure you that each of our souffles contains at least 2 full servings of veggies. I hope you will give us another try, each of our souffles has a unique flavor. You can obtain coupons on our website to go towards your next purchase. Thank you for sharing your thoughts, we value all feedback.

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  3. I just recently found the Zucchini Souffle in my health food store. I loved it and went back 2 days later to buy another one. I did cook it in the microwave - and I added a little cheese on top because I was eating it for breakfast in place of a quiche or a frittata. I can't wait to try some of the other varieties. I have also tried some of the Garden Lite muffins which were great also.

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