Mailbox Gratitude

Since taking over at Purely Delicious magazine in October 2008 (yes it really has been two years!) I must admit that going to the mailbox each week can sometimes feel more like Christmas than work. Today was no exception!

There it was, a big beautiful box of surprise raw goodies from our friends at Café Gratitude. Unfortunately, I have never had the opportunity of actually enjoying a meal at one of their wildly popular locations... yet. But hopefully soon.

I couldn't wait to rip open the bags and give them each a try.

But I restrained just long enough to snap a quick photo. Check.

My first taste was one of the “I am Delightful” Chocolate Fudge Cookies. Holy smokes those are good. Chewy, dense and fudgy. And the fact that they are raw, vegan, gluten free and used no refined sugars... well, they had me at fudge.

Next up are the Lemon Coconut Cookies. These were chewy and light but I felt they could use a little bit more lemon flavor. My husband on the other hand just polished off the bag. So two enthusiastic thumbs up on those as well!

The Strawberry Thumbprint Cookies are so adorable. Just the sight of them took me back to my childhood. However, I've never been a fan of strawberry jam, but I would serve them to anyone who is looking for a cookie. And again, the spouse was all over them. (Are you seeing a trend?) All in all I think the Chocolate Fudge are my hands down favorite so far of the cookies. All are delicious. And you can taste the love in each bite.

We saved the “I Am Great” Granola for last. I am a granola hound. I think I’ve tried just about every granola on the market and have made my own on a regular basis for over twenty years. So let's just say I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this one. Hmm, only ten ingredients, the first of which is apple... excellent! Crunchy, good texture, mildly sweet with a hint of cinnamon. I also appreciate how they left the sprouted almonds whole instead of chopping them up. Makes for a nice mouth feel. It ranks pretty high on the good old can’t-stop-eating-addict-o-meter.

All in all, yum. Not to be too cliché, but I am grateful for this mailbox blessing today. What are you grateful for today?