Tuesday, December 31, 2019

The Top 10 Friday Food Finds of 2019

What a delicious year! Hundreds of products were put to the ultimate taste test on the Taylor Strecker Show’s Chub Chub Showdown segment (and recapped here on Friday Food Finds), but only 10 were deserving of 2019’s top honors. These were the new snacks, drinks, desserts, and flavor iterations that impressed us most, earning unanimous praise from Chowhound editors, guest co-hosts, and Taylor herself. So without further ado, here is your Top 10 Friday Food Finds of 2019:

Thank you so much for following along as we tried the best (and worst) that food and beverage companies had to offer. Did any of your favorites make the list? Be sure to scroll down for a recap of our initial reviews, as well as links to purchase each of the products. We’re already excited for what 2020 will bring (as long as it’s not another stevia-sweetened protein bar)!

Want to try all 10 of our Top 10 Friday Food Finds for yourself? Be sure to enter our Instagram sweepstakes here. We’ll be picking 10 lucky winners to receive all 10 of the chosen products! Contest rules can be found in the post’s description box. Limit one entry per username. All entries must be in by Wednesday, Dec. 18 at noon ET.

Related Reading: The Top 10 Friday Food Finds of 2018

PigOut Pigless Bacon Chips (Original)

March 15: After consuming hundreds of new food products every year, it takes a lot to shock and surprise us. Well, consider us shocked and surprised. PigOut’s Pigless Bacon Chips taste EXACTLY like bacon, but are made with mushrooms (!!!) for a mid-afternoon snack, salad mix-in, avocado toast topper, etc. They’re not only salty and delicious, but healthy and easy on the palate. These are definitely in contention as a Top 10 Friday Food Find of 2019, and we’re excited to see what other ideas this company has in store.

Triscuit Wheatberry Clusters (Pumpkin Seed & Sweet Corn)

March 29: These were hands-down the best things we sampled all day. They’re the perfect balance of sweet and salty and make an amazing mid-afternoon snack that is, overall, quite healthy. These would also be great topped with cheese or a homemade preserve, which means you’re officially planning the next happy hour whether you like it or not. Rush to buy these immediately.

Clarkson Avenue Crumb Cake Company (Classic)

June 28: Holy moly. This crumb cake is absurd in the best way possible. We could seriously eat it by the pound. The topping is particularly delicious because you can actually taste spices like cinnamon and cloves, without them being overpowering. What’s also great is that you can easily freeze the product and thaw it when hunger strikes. Dear dreams: we’d like to introduce you to your newest subject. Clarkson Avenue Crumb Cake Co. is celebrating 2020 by offering 20 percent off for Chowhound readers! Enter promo code CHOWHOUND at check-out. (Please note: The site will be down from Dec. 17 – Jan. 6 for the holidays.)

Trufflin Black Truffle Ranch Dressing

May 3: Let’s just say that this ranch dressing forced Taylor and me to burst into Usher’s “Oh My God.” It is, perhaps, one of the best things we’ve sampled on the show. So creamy, so truffley, so decadent…yum, yum, yum. My only gripe is that it is damn-near impossible to get this stuff out of its pretty jar. I literally had to use the handle of a fork to stab it repeatedly. Still worth it, though. I’ll be pouring this on everything.

Tony’s Chocolonely (White Chocolate Raspberry Popping Candy/Dark Chocolate Almond & Sea Salt)

Aug. 2: Wow. The raspberry flavor in this bar is intense and we’re NOT complaining! In fact, this may be the bar to turn white chocolate haters (cough, Taylor) into lovers, especially with the fun addition of popping candy. I also brought their Dark Chocolate Almond and Sea Salt variety for fun and it was equally, if not more amazing. Could this be our new favorite desk-side indulgence? With adorable rainbow packaging and a commitment to ethical farming practices, it very well could be.

JuneShine Hard Kombucha (Rosé)

Aug. 16: We don’t think we could love this drink more if we tried! Kombucha is already a deliciously healthy alternative to soft drinks and sugar-laden juices and this alcoholic, rosé-flavored variety more than delivered. It was not overwhelmingly sweet, contains probiotics, and was palatable for even the kombucha-averse. Not a fan of rosé? A) Who are you? and B) They’ve got a bunch of other equally delicious varieties, also brewed with green tea and honey to make your new favorite libation. We are huge fans!

Re:THINK Ice Cream (Coffee Hazelnut)

Aug. 23: This was absolutely the best thing we sampled all day. The integration of hazelnuts gave it a nice texture and the fluffiness of the ice cream made it less artificial-tasting than its icy and flaky competition. We appreciate the company’s commitment to natural ingredients, as well, with a green tea infusion that provides a boost of caffeine and antioxidants. If you’re dieting and craving a quick and almost guilt-free dessert, this is the one for you.

Daily Harvest Bites (Cacao Nib & Vanilla)

Sept. 6: We were really blown away by these. Borderline obsessed, even. Edible cookie dough is all the rage, so to take something naturally decadent and make it healthy is truly mind-blowing. We genuinely have no complaints here. Our only recommendation is to let these sit a bit so that the texture isn’t hard from being frozen. Other than that, they’re damn-near perfect and we can’t wait to buy them in bulk.

Brownwood Farms Famous Kream Mustard

Sept. 6: I am a self-proclaimed sauce connoisseur and this is probably my favorite sauce I’ve tried all year. It’s the perfect balance of sweet and spicy with an almost caramel-like texture that clings to nearly anything you want to dip into it. I can’t wait to pile this on chicken fingers and french fries for a weekend indulgence to celebrate the end of bathing suit weather and the start of hibernation season. Don’t act like you’re not planning to do the same.

Kettle Brand Chips (Apple Cider Vinegar)

Oct. 11: Kettle really hit it out of the park with this one. In fact, they should seriously consider making Apple Cider Vinegar a permanent flavor in their already-impressive lineup. This is the go-to snack for those who think traditional Salt & Vinegar is too strong. It’s the perfect balance of salt and tang, piled high on the familiar, crunchy chip we’ve grown to love. This is definitely a contender for Top 10 Friday Food Finds of 2019. You heard it here first, folks!



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