GoPicnic Ready-to-Eat Meals Review/Giveaway

Welcome back to school everyone!

If you are not “Back to School” yourself you probably know someone who is whether it is your child at their first week of the First Grade or the soon-to-be underfed college student in your life. Maybe you just are a busy professional who had a hard time finding and packing a lunch that is still healthy and cost effective.

Well do I have just the thing for you.

The lovely people from GoPicnic ready-to-eat meals sent me two of their great boxed-no refrigeration needed meals to try.

I was so excited to try these meals as I’ve heard a lot about them from different friends.

 To my surprise when I returned to my college campus this week I saw them neatly stacked awaiting me to purchase them in my school’s convenience store! It must be fate!

One of the best things about GoPicnic meals is not just that they are convenient, healthy, but they come in multiple varieties including Kosher, All-Natural, vegan, vegetarian, and most important, gluten-free! Finally there is an easy nutritious option for those suffering from Celiac disease and other gluten intolerances. As I have several close friends who are Gluten-Free I was very excited to work with GoPicnic.

Note: GoPicnic provides a variety of meals, which are not all gluten free. It is important for consumers (you) to review the product packaging and labels because there are several meals, which are not gluten free.

The first meal I tried was the “Turkey Stick and Crunch” which included the following gluten-free goodies:

1 Old Wisconsin Turkey Snack Stick
1 bag of Popchips Barbeque Potato chips
1 bag of Niagara Natural Simply Fruit Tropical Bites
1 bag of Sweet Perry Orchards Baja Blend Fruit & Nut Mix
1 Enjoy Life Double Chocolate Crunchy Cookie

I enjoyed/devoured this meal in a school setting if you couldn’t tell. GoPicnic ready-to-eat meals are perfect for kids school lunches as they are easy to pack and don’t need refrigerated. I love how conscious GoPicnic is about balanced meals. The calories, fiber, and protein are printed right on front so you know what you are eating.

I loved the turkey stick which reminded me off the less-healthy beef-jerky snacks I had as a kid so it was the best of both worlds! The turkey stick was smoky, salty, tangy and a treat for those who don’t eat beef! As I haven’t eaten beef or pork for 11+ years now, GoPicnic was nice enough to only send varieties I could actually eat. And boy did I like this one!

My favorite product was the Sweet Perry Orchards Baja Blend Fruit & Nut Mix. Their mix was sweet, salty, and slightly spicy and added the perfect “crunch” to the meal. As they are needed to be small to fit, I felt myself wanting more than 5 or so bites of the Fruit & Nut mix. I’m greedy like that!

The Niagara Natural Simply Fruit Tropical Bites were such a treat. Chewy and satisfying, they had just enough sweet and a big fruity flavor to match along with a full serving of real fruit! The Barbeque Popchips were a familiar product to me but I’ve never tried them before. The popped potato chips gave a great barbeque flavor and a satisfying crunch that made me feel guilty being in the library!

I love the idea of the Enjoy Life Double Chocolate Crunchy Cookie. It is the only product in the box which is specifically made for gluten free eaters but its crunchiness and very chocolately flavor is great for anyone! It left a bit of graininess in your mouth behind but that is to be expected from a Gluten-free cookie.

 

The next box I tried was the all-natural Peanut Butter + Crackers meal. This meal included:

1 bag of Partners Get Movin’ Honey Wheat Crackers
1 package of Peanut butter & Co. Smooth Operator Peanut butter
1 Sweet Perry Orchards Unsweetened applesauce
1 bag of Annie’s Homegrown Cheddar Bunnies
1 bag of Professor Zim Zam’s Extraordinary Sweets

This super-kid friendly box includes some of the best peanut butter I’ve ever had on Honey sweet crackers. This box was definitely much sweeter than the turkey stick box and has a few more calories. If you or your loved ones have a peanut allergy, GoPicnic has a Sunbutter (Sunflower) variety as well! I enjoyed the Peanut Butter + Crackers meal outside like a real picnic.

So scenic don't you agree?

I really liked the Peanut Butter meal but after awhile I found myself craving savory other than the Cheddar Bunnies Crackers. If you have kids, I recommend this box as it has healthy all-natural foods along with the things they love like cheddar crackers, gummies, applesauce, and of course peanut butter and crackers! If you are a kid-at heart you’ll love this box!

Review: Overall I love GoPicnic ready-to-eat meals. I couldn’t get over that the box not only locked to store the goodies you haven’t eaten yet, but there is a Sudoku puzzle printed inside the box!

Talk about the full package! Along with the fun facts printed within GoPicnic is very proud that the products they include have no trans fat, no high fructose corn syrup and no added msg. As a busy college student with classes all day I know how difficult it can be to pack a lunch I still feel good about. Leftovers are great but they more often than not need refrigeration. GoPicnic is pretty affordable (around $5 each) and are easy to store, carry around, and eat!

Personally, after eating a full box I felt a bit hungry soon after but that’s because I have a crazy metabolism. For the average person and more importantly, a student, GoPicnic boxes provide a great variety of food to eat all in one sitting or throughout the day. Their ready-to-eat meals provide a full meal for anyone just add a water bottle and maybe an extra piece of fruit (though there are plenty of fruit servings included in each box.) If you are looking for something easy for you or your kids, GoPicnic boxes are the way to go. They are so many varieties to choose from based on diet or just flavor! I can’t wait to try the hummus, salmon spread, and turkey pepperoni varieties!

Whether it is in your local store or online, give GoPicnic a try and you won’t be sorry!


More info about GoPicnic:

As there are many different products in each box, GoPicnic works are the perfect place to bring these items together. Found one item you like and want it separately? GoPicnic Grocery allows you to buy bulk of the items you love the most from GoPicnic in small and large packs! Meals and Care Packages with many at great sale prices!

Want some of your own?

GoPicnic is giving away TWO (2) boxes of their ready-to-eat meals to one (1) lucky reader of the College Cuisiner for Back-to-School with GoPicnic!!

What do you have to do?

 

Here are the rules:

• First, sign up for the GoPicnic newsletter on GoPicnic.com and comment here on this post letting me know you did and what two ready-to-eat meals you would like to try.
• Leave a way for me to contact you: Google account, email, etc.
• Open to U.S. Residents Only

 

Extra Opportunities to Enter:

(please post a separate comment for each additional entry)

•  Like GoPicnic on Facebook
• Follow GoPicnic on Twitter
• Visit GoPicnic's Facebook page and tell GoPicnic what is your favorite product (or the one you would like to try) and WHY
• Like the College Cuisiner on Facebook
• Like the College Cuisiner on Twitter
• Post this giveaway to your twitter, facebook, or blog!

 

The giveaway starts Tuesday, August 28th and ends Monday, September 3rd at 5:00pm! I’ll announce the winner on Wednesday, September 4th!

 

If you have any dietary restrictions such as gluten-free or one of GoPicnic’s special dietary varieties let me know and we will make sure you only receive meals you can eat!

In addition, GoPicnic wants to give everyone the chance to try their products! All College
Cuisiner readers can get 10% off their online order at Gopicnic.com!!

Just enter the following discount code when you order online and you’ll receive 10% off your order!

Discount Code: CS10

 

ENTER NOW AND DON’T FORGET TO TELL YOUR FRIENDS!!

 

Love,

The College Cuisiner