It’s time again for another iHerb Haul! (Check out my other ones).
Another small batch of two re-orders and two new things!
EARTH CIRCLE ORGANICS | RAW & ORGANIC GOJI BERRIES
Okay, not a reorder exactly. We usually go for Navitas Natural’s Organic Goji Berries, but after a closer look, we saw that the price had gone up and that these were cheaper.
Goji berry as Goji Berries, no? Not really.
I have to admit, these remind me a lot of Buywholefood’s organic Mulberries (which you have to try if you like mulberries!), they are bigger, juicier and sweeter in taste. These are the best goji berries that I’ve tried! They feel almost fresh and sweeter than regular that you’d almost believe they were covered with sugar. So I’m very happy with our switch of brands!
COCONUT SECRET | RAW COCONUT AMINOS SOY-FREE SEASONING SAUCE
After someone telling me that Tamari isn’t healthy and has tons of salt in it, I kind of wanted to look for other options… I did my own research and I could only find better and better things about Tamari (estimating it is made in traditional ways). Like, I did not know that Tamari is the oldest soy recipe, it’s been used for over a century. It’s made in the process of making miso, and the only proper way to digest soy products (this includes soybeans) is to have it fermented at least 2 years.
Anyway, I knew there was something called Coconut Aminos that could be used as a soy substitute. Kimberly Snyder uses it, but I actually found it while searching for Coconut Nectar of the same brand. So no, she’s not allowed to get any credit for this find.
We still have to bear in our minds that it does contain salt. In fact, the thing is liquefied salt. The only up-side is that it has an abundant source of 17 amino acids, minerals, vitamins and a nearly neutral pH. Also contains 2-14 times more amino acids than natural soy – 2-14 seems a bit misleading, but in context, it just sounds much better than actual soy or Tamari.
But I’m happy to receive any opinions on this.
The Coconut Aminos is much sweeter than regular soy or Tamari. It doesn’t give as much taste as Tamari in dishes, and I read that heat will make the taste even blander, which I agree upon. I’ve used it for wok and sushi, but I’ve always felt the need to reach for Tamari just because the Coconut Aminos isn’t salty enough in flavor. Correspondingly, a friend of mine has just finished a course of cookery classes that she found on the CocuSocial website and she told me that the sushi teacher gave her some similar advice. The sweet taste can be used as an advantage though.
Instead of using sugar or other sweeteners, you can, in fact, pour some of this to make a dressing or dish sweeter. It would probably be perfect for marinades, instead of using honey glazing.
If you don’t like sweet taste than I’d recommend you steer off from this one, for it adds a sense of “added sugar” to dishes (but with fewer calories and low GI).
There’s no hint of coconut flavor, but as I said, it’s less salt and sweeter, which wasn’t really what I wanted to aim for.
I’m quite disappointed that it wasn’t more salt, and I wouldn’t say it tastes like soy at all.
Nonetheless, there’s nothing wrong with the product, and it’s not like it stands unused! I will just not buy it again.
Well, maybe if it was sold in a store close by, but as long as it’s not easily available I will keep buying Tamari.
NOTE: I just want to give kudos to iHerbs great packaging! The soy had leaked and been shaken on it’s way to me, luckily it was in a bag that was in another plastic bag so nothing else got ruined! *kisses*
NUBIAN HERITAGE | RAW SHEA BUTTER INFUSED WITH FRANKINCENSE & MYRRH
This thing is addictive! Not only did it save me and my boyfriend from getting sunburned this summer, but it managed to heal my boyfriend’s dry spot that he’s got on his hand. I tried everything on it, from Coconut Oil to Neem, nothing made it vanish as quickly as this Shea Butter! I even went and bought plain Raw Shea Butter from Akoma, but it wasn’t even close to as affective and smooth as this one.
I use it wherever I’m dry, it sinks in without leaving an oily residue so it’s perfect as a hand cream too. I just love this stuff and had to repurchase it!
ACURE ORGANICS | ULTRA-HYDRATING BODY LOTION UNSCENTED
My very first Acure product. I thought with winter coming soon I’d drop some body lotion into the basket. And because I’ve been having an eye on Acure since like 2012, I thought that body lotion would be a great product to get a feel for the brand.
So far I’m a bit disappointed, it says “Ultra-Hydrating” but sinks in faster than I can blink. The consistency is like body butter but when applied it melts in like body milk. To be fair, it does feel hydrating, but because it vanishes so fast you have to use more of the product, which I don’t like doing. In that case, I have to say that I like Dessert Essence much better, but this one has a great ingredient list and is unscented. Although it is unscented, it has a very weird smell to it. I don’t even know how to describe it other than “Burnt”.
Have you tested Acure’s Ultra-Hydrating Body Lotion? What do you think it smells?
If you haven’t, I’d love it if you dropped a comment below with tips on any unscented natural body lotions that has a more pleasant smell to it :)
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