Mariposa Gluten-Free Delights

Got a nice package from Mariposa, an artisan company that specializes in gluten-free baked treats. We opened the package and already came with high expectations because Roomba gleefully exclaimed, "They have the best bubble wrap in the world!"

Soooo, the baked goods. First were some garlic crostini, in a lovely bag. To be honest, if these weren't made from real bread, you could have fooled me. I wouldn't have known the difference. They're crunchy and airy and absolutely saturated with butter and garlic, and the flavor stays. They're a bit dry, which is to be expected, but I'm really eager to try these with bruschetta or alongside pasta.

The taste is just spot-on. If you like garlic, eat these. If you like vampires, stay away! So here's a little dedication to all the Twilight-haters out there- eat these crostini and the Twihards will be at bay. (Sorry, Twihards. I'll review something for you, too.)
6/10- GOOD

The next treat was a cinnamon toast biscotti. I normally shy away from biscotti, but with a flavor that promises to emulate such a quintessential breakfast staple, how could I not try it? And it delivered! I'm almost jealous of those on gluten-free diets now, for the chance to try all this awesome food. This biscotti's texture and mouthfeel is a smooth, yet bubbly crunch, a crisp, and the taste is like Jacques Pepin decided to make a special dessert version of Cinnamon Toast Crunch, and condensed it into this. It's orgasmic.

But it's so simple! And it just proves that you don't need bells and whistles to make something amazing. This biscotti might just haunt my mind, it's so good. And you know what that means- when I'm crunching, not even halfway through one, and I'm staring at the box, clamoring for a second. No, readers, not gastric bypass, a perfect score.

Oh, and by the way? One cookie, and keep in mind, they are rather large, is 110 calories. Suck on that, Nabisco and your 100 calorie packs!

10/10- PERFECTION

I got a nice set of bars from Mariposa, too, and brownies! The next treat to try was a walnut brownie, and when I opened the package, I could smell the chocolate from the other side of the room. No, that's not a quip on the size of dorms, that's how chocolatey this was! And medium rare, like I love my brownies! Ohhhhhh, man, this was a gooey and delicious brownie, and the walnuts were chopped on top. I mean, this was just incredible. A good brownie is made or broken by its texture and consistency, and this was just nearly liquified. Amazing.

9/10- MMMMM!



Onto the next brownie, though, the triple chocolate truffle brownie. Another heady and intoxicating scent of baking chocolate. The nice thing about these brownies is that they're also not too sweet, like others I've reviewed. This brownie also carries the special distinction of causing my first food-related casualty! It's not the brownie's fault, though. When I cut into it with my pocket knife, which is usually present in the photos, it stuck and gooed to it so much and let out such a good smell that I had to lick it, right? And, of course, got cut.

Now that I am no longer bleeding, the brownie is so delicious. It has a crust on top and tastes almost like cocoa. It was a little less sweet than what I'm used to, but the texture was spot on again and the flavor was really, really rich!

8/10- GREAT

The last bar was a coconut lemon square that I was really excited to try. It has huge shavings of coconut on it, and the lemon scent is really intense and sweet. Best of all, the texture and feel of it is nice and soft. Sometimes coconut can get brittle and disgusting and hard, leaving a yucky crust, but this is tender and soft.

The bottom texture on this bar is downright obscene. It's like a meringue, a shortbread, and granulated sugar rolled into one. It's the finest texture of any cookie-like dessert I've ever had, hands down. The coconut was in brown sugary and was very moist and chewy. Really, really tasty bar, and, for the first time in Foodette history, another ten. I'm not getting soft. This stuff is just that good.

10/10- AMAZING

I also received a quickbread from Mariposa. A pumpkin bread appears! Roomba pounced on it immediately and cut some off for me. It was a bright orange pumpkin-scented bread with raisins studded periodically.

It's a little more crumbly and a little less moist than what I'm used to, but the crust is to die for. It's very springy and melts in your mouth, a nice buttery and pumpkin flavor with hints of cloves, cinnamon, and the flavor is so nice. This would be a good bread with some cream cheese, something to offset the hint of dryness it has, but nonetheless, good.

6/10- DELIGHTFUL!

And, the last treat. A delicious sour cream coffeecake. Brimming with walnuts and cinnamon streusel. Honestly, the entire concept of gluten-free treats is like magic. How? It's so moist. If I put this on a table with other coffee cakes, I'd choose it first. There's an amazing cinnamon and nutmeg aroma and aftertaste to this, and the sour cream flavor comes out in the buttery, creamy richness of the texture and taste.

It's so excellent. I wanted to eat the entire thing, because it's not just excellent, it's delicate. It's very fluffy and not dense at all and reminds me of something one might serve to fairies at a ball. A gluten-free ball.

8/10- LOVELY

Mariposa Baking
www.mariposabaking.foodoro.com