[Review] LesserEvil "No Cheese" Cheesiness Paleo Puffs

• Brand name: LesserEvil Snacks
• Location: Danbury, Connecticut
• Known for: Healthy snack foods that are Kosher, Organic, certified non-GMO, and sometimes vegan or gluten-free
  

I love and miss the taste of cheese puffs pretty often, so I jumped on my coworker's recommendation to try LesserEvil Paleo Puffs in the "No Cheese" Cheesiness flavor. These are described as having legendary cheesy flavor without the guilt - and side effects - Organic, non-dairy seasoning brings the cheesy flavor and leaves the cheesy baggage behind. Vegan, grain-free and nutrient dense. Packed with organic cassava, coconut flour and sweet potato. I think these are really good. I'm not surprised to see the ingredient list - these puffs taste like the slightly-sweet but pleasant flavor and density of sweet potato combined with a little bit of the melt-in-your-mouth texture I associate with cassava. The cheesy flavor is also spot-on, which I very much appreciate. The texture is unique and not much like the typical 35-gallon jar of cheese balls you used to eat as a toddler, but I like these as an upgraded and less-greasy version of that same idea.

Thoughts

I have seen this brand at the grocery store for a few years but have never tried any of their products. I think it's the branding that never really spoke to me - they advertise much more about being Paleo, which I'm not, and I assumed that the items wouldn't be dairy-free or vegan for some reason. There is also something about looking down the aisle of snacks and reading "egg white curls" that doesn't really make me feel excited. I am pleasantly surprised with these, though, and I would be interested to try some of the basic popcorn flavors or some of their other things in the same "No Cheese" family. I will NOT be trying the watermelon or pink grapefruit popcorn, however, because that really crosses a personal line for me. I can't begin to imagine what that texture is like, and it does not sound appealing at all. I'll be over here with my classic, tried-and-true flavors.

Also, what is their mascot? It looks like a very relaxed man who seems to be doing a different activity based on the flavor of each snack. Don't ask me why vegan "cheese" puffs have inspired him to put on what looks like a fuzzy bear costume. Kudos for originality, though.

LesserEvil sells these and many other snacks directly from their website, and they also have a store locator that tells you where to find them in stores all across the United States. I picked up this bag by itself from Whole Foods.