We’ve all had this basic trail mix that consists of peanuts, raisins, and chocolate. If you’re like me, you mostly avoid raisins. We convince ourselves that consuming too much of this mix is healthy, as if somehow the wholesomeness of the nuts balances out the processed chocolate.
But now I’m eating a trail mix that’s Actually healthy and has more delicious and complex flavors. After digging into the brand’s origin story, I also love knowing that it started as a one-woman business inside her tiny apartment.
Toodaloo is my new favorite trail mix because it’s packed with superfoods and extremely tasty.
Toodaloo Trail Mix Flavors
Toodaloo has five flavors and I’ve tried four of them (I’ll find the fifth someday!). Each is distinct in both flavor and texture, so let’s go through one by one:
“Hot at the trot” might just be my favorite. It contains a combination of spicy and sweet ingredients, such as roasted chickpeas, dried pineapple, several types of sprouted seeds, jalapeno powder, cayenne pepper, ginger powder, turmeric, etc Some of the ingredients are crunchy, while others are chewier, so you never really know what you’ll get with each bite.
When a friend of mine tried it, all she could say was “wow!” After getting over her initial shock at how much she liked it, she described it as lemony and said the flavors reminded her of Indian cuisine. This one feels like it energizes me well during hikes and while I write (as I do right now).
Although I preferred the last flavor, “Slow Your Roll” seemed to be my friends favorite. It comes in bigger clumps, which makes it easier to eat, and it’s sweet without being too sweet. This comes from the small amount of maple syrup, as well as healthy ingredients like blackberries, chamomile tea, cashew butter, nutmeg, cinnamon, reishi, sprouted nuts, and more.
Like “Hot to Trot”, “Slow Your Roll” had a combination of textures. I learned not to snack on this one straight from the bag as it quickly disappears. I think it tastes great as the perfect ingredient – my friends have suggested it as a great breakfast alternative or a sweet treat, maybe a mid-day pick-me-up. The flavor is reminiscent of Raisin Bran cereal.
“Turn Heads” is another milder flavor. The cocoa gives it a chocolate taste, but not heady. It also comes in large clumps that are both chewy and crunchy, and although they don’t contain any, they taste like marshmallows! Besides cocoa, the ingredients include a variety of nuts, coconut chips and nectar, dried fruits, vanilla extract, hibiscus flower, and more. This flavor is easy to consume, so proceed with caution.
the “Smoke Show” the flavor might be the richest in flavor. There are lots of spices, but that doesn’t mean it’s spicy. Rather than chunky clumps, this one has a looser overall texture. The crunchy chickpeas are my favorite part again. In addition to chickpeas, there are several types of sprouted nuts and seeds, smoked paprika, Himalayan salt, onion, garlic, chili peppers, chaga, cordyceps, cumin, etc
My friend Beeshoua said it tasted like Asian fried pork skin (which I can neither confirm nor deny as a vegetarian). Being a looser texture, this one can be tricky when hiking. It’s a better fit for an at-home treat. Recently I realized it makes a great salad topping (replacing croutons) so this is my new favorite way to eat it.
Is Toodaloo Trail Mix Healthy?
As you can probably tell from the ingredients mentioned earlier, Toodaloo is much healthier than traditional trail mixes. They use organic ingredients and avoid the processed candies you find in other trail mixes. Toodaloo’s website says they use “30+ superfoods and adaptogenic herbs.” I’m not necessarily convinced by these buzzwords, so I always look directly at the ingredients and nutritional values to decide if a food is right for me.
Let’s take a second to compare Toodaloo’s Smoke Show Trail Mix with a store brand generic trail mix from a store near me. The generic brand ingredients are mostly peanuts, raisins, milk chocolate candies, almonds, and dried sweet cherries. The milk chocolate candies contain ingredients that I have never heard of before.
Both brands have a ¼ cup serving size. The generic brand contains 14 grams of sugar, including 7 grams of added sugars. Comparatively, this Toodaloo flavor has only 1 gram of sugar and no added sugar.
While the store brand has 180 calories per serving, Smoke Show has only 150 calories. Although it doesn’t seem like a significant difference, let’s be honest, you are likely to eat more than one serving. The generic brand contains 5 grams of protein and 4% of your daily iron needs. Meanwhile, Toodaloo’s Smoke Show contains 7 grams of protein and 10% of your daily iron needs. I definitely feel healthier eating Toodaloo’s trail mixes and the nutrition facts back that up.
Are there any downsides to Toodaloo?
Toodaloo is more expensive than generic brands of trail mix. A variety pack with four bags of different flavors is currently $39.99 on Amazon, but you can clip a digital coupon on the page to save an additional 15%, bringing the price to $33.99. Considering Toodaloo uses organic ingredients and a variety of expensive spices, it doesn’t surprise me that it can’t compete on price with trail mixes that use cheap ingredients with less complex flavors.
For me, the higher price is worth it, but I’m sure not everyone would agree. Honestly, the biggest downside of Toodaloo for me is that I haven’t been able to taste the Deja Brew flavor yet (which contains coffee.) Hurry up and stock this again, Toodaloo!
General thoughts
As long as you’re not fooling yourself into saying it’s healthy, there’s nothing wrong with having a generic trail mix as an occasional treat. However, if you’re looking for a trail mix that’s actually healthy and even tastier than the trail mix you’re used to, Toodaloo is for you. The brand is also concerned about the climate. With every purchase, they reclaim 100 square feet or polluted farmland and use neutral plastic packaging.
