I just have to rave about how awesome these Michael Season's brand Baked Cheese Curls taste: they are simply AWESOME. I am in cheese-puff heaven :)
Note: these are not your ordinary cheese-curls, but instead are "Hot Chili Pepper baked cheese curls", and if you like HEAT, and like nice crunchy and crispy cheesy poofs, you are going to be joining me in my cheese puff Shangri-la. When Michael Season's labels them "Hot Chili Pepper", they mean it... these things have some warmth to them. Awesome!
(if you click on the above at the top of this Gluten-Free Blog entry, you should see a larger, very detailed view that will make the chili pepper powder quite visible on the cheese curls).
Examining the gluten-free ingredients label reveals the secret to their heat and robust flavor... ingredients including: Chili Peppers (including Habanero peppers!), extractives of capsicum (i.e., pepper extracts!), turmeric, paprika, onion, garlic, and cheddar cheese. It all adds up to one incredibly tasty and tangy cheese puff treat. Oh, if not obvious, they are corn-based puffs, like most cheese puffs.
These are definitely my current favorite snack food of choice. And, because they are baked, they are much lower fat than other varieties. They have no preservatives, no MSF, nothing artificial. And, because they are HOT, they make a great "diet cheesepuff" since you can only eat so many before your tongue is burning to the point your brain tells you to stop, even though they taste so good :)
I found these at Whole Foods Market recently. I tried their regular variety too (which was quite nice, but minus the heat), but I am most certainly drawn first to these hot chili type cheese puffs since I really like nice spicy foods, and this is a great way to get some zip in a readily available snack.
And, these cheese curls are by far and away the best I have had, even compared to mainstream brands like Dan-Dee (i.e., Troyer Farms - big in the MidWest), or Cheetos (from Frito Lay brand), and a few others which, I have not eaten any of lately unless marked gluten-free or indicated on their web sites as such.
Another quick note: they call the crispier type "curls" and the more poofy cheese-snacks "puffs". I prefer the "curls" that are crispier and crunchier than puffs. So, my review should have been titled: "Best cheese CURLS ever, and gluten-free too!" to be 100% correct. Whether you are gluten-free / wheat-free / Celiac or just part of the population at large that enjoys cheese curls, and likes heat, these are simply wonderful. Time to go... I have some cheese curls to eat (can't let those ones I pictured above go to waste).