When I got the Nature’s Path Organic Frosted Strawberry Toaster Pastries, I thought it was going to be made out of organic hippietastic ingredients, like hemp, berries from some forest, pine cones stolen from a raccoon, tie-dye shirts, parts from a 1970s Volkswagon van, and Jerry Garcia’s beard trimmings. But then I realized that if it were truly hippietastic, it wouldn’t come packed in foil wrappers inside a cardboard box, it would be wrapped in leaves, sealed with homemade hemp rope, and delivered by some guy who says, “Hey, man” way too much.
Nature’s Path did a good job of making these organic toaster pastries look like the O.G. of toaster pastries — Pop-Tarts. As for its taste, if someone were to blindfold me, handcuff my hands behind the back of a chair, put a leather spiked leash around my neck, put a Frosted Strawberry Pop-Tart and a Nature’s Path Organic Frosted Strawberry Toaster Pastry in front me in their own doggie dishes, and then tell me I could try each one, only after I say, “May I please try it, Master,” I could definitely tell which one is which. The organic one is surprisingly very good and not as sweet as the original Pop-Tart version, which to me is a little too sweet.
The frosting had a nice crunch to it and the whole thing had a slight grainy texture, like there was with the Whole Grain Pop-Tarts I reviewed earlier, but I didn’t really mind that.
Eating these organic toaster pastries made me feel like I was eating healthy Pop-Tarts, and I wish I had some hippie friends I could share them with in a smoke-filled Volkswagon Bus, but I wondered if they were truly healthy. I compared the nutrition facts for these and the Frosted Strawberry Pop-Tarts and it turned out that they are about the same. Of course, the main difference between the two is the fact that the Nature’s Path one is organic, meaning that no synthetic pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers were used in making its ingredients, which truly do give them a health advantage.
As with most organic products, there is a premium with them and these toaster pastries cost higher than their non-organic, big name counterpart. Each box also contains two less pastries than a regular Pop-Tarts box, which can be disappointing when I want to get my food glut on.
(Nutrition Facts – 1 pastry – 210 calories, 4 grams of fat, 2 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 140 milligrams of sodium, 40 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of dietary fiber, 19 grams of sugar, 3 grams of protein, 2% calcium, 8% iron, and 0 grams of hippiness.)
Item: Nature’s Path Organic Frosted Strawberry Toaster Pastries
Price: $3.99
Purchased at: Some natural food store
Rating: 8 out of 10
Pros: Surprisingly good. Organic. It’s frosted, bitches! Naturally flavored. Not overly sweet, like regular Pop-Tarts. Zero trans fat. Vegetarian. Not made out of hippietastic ingredients.
Cons: Slight grainy texture. Only six pastries, compared with Pop-Tarts, which have eight. Paying someone to call them “Master.”
$3.99 a box for only three packets of two pastries each?! Oh, I guess you’re bracing yourself for the coming of Whole Foods to Hawaii later on this year. Before they shut down the Kahului Star Market for renovation to become a real Whole Foods, they (I assume it was Whole Foods management) were bringing in all kinds of ridiculously overpriced organic stuff. $15 organic peanut butter, anyone? (No, I’m not kidding, I wish I was.)
Sorry to rant on your blog, Marvo. I really wanted a Trader Joe’s to open in Hawaii and, now, I’m just bitter.
These do sound pretty tasty, but I hope the testing situation you described was entirely hypothetical. If it’s not, I hope you made lots of $$$ from the role-play.
Oh man, I *LOVE* these toaster pastries! I buy ’em in bulk — a box containing two boxes o’ Strawberry ones, and one o’ Blueberry from my work, which is a Costco reseller.
Anyway, when I first bought them, I wasn’t sure I’d even like them, but after eating just one, I knew I loved ’em. I think they’re even better tasting than Pop Tarts. I’m not much for the whole “organic” kick, but I like the fact that it has less chemicals, etc.
In closing, I can’t believe that you reviewed something that I actually eat on a weekly basis. That’s so awesome.
Keep up the great work.
I’ve had the blueberry ones. They were awesome. Sicknasty in fact.
I liked these too, but they are pretty pricey.
I will call you master for free.
The “USDA Organic” label means that if you get them on clearance at your local natural food store, they’re probably going to be moldy when you open the package — thanks to a delicious lack of preservatives. And then you’re going to feel really stupid because you’re not poor and there’s absolutely no reason why you couldn’t have afforded to pay pull price for a box that wasn’t expired.
I’ll stick with Pop Tarts, thanks, and leave the “organic” ones to people with money to burn.
Nature’s path sounds like…your colon…
i had some of these that were a different flavor… maybe raspberry acai or something… they were good but expensive.
Molly – I agree with you about the Trader Joe’s. I wish they would open one here. There’s a park behind my apartment complex that’s totally useless, but would make a great Trader Joe’s location.
Chuck – No, I had to pay.
The Lazy Canadian – Maybe I’ll review Molson Beer next?
Hunter – Were they frosted? Frosting makes everything better.
bikerbabeee – Will you also put on this leather thingy and this ball gag I have for free?
Stacey – USDA Organic on clearance is regular price for new non-organic stuff.
ultradave – Or money to wipes their asses with.
Perkins – It would be funny if Nature’s Path has their own line of laxatives.
Alisha – I had the apple ones and I really didn’t like those.
leather spiked leashes and handcuffs… Sounds like my last weekend. I have to stop hanging around goths…