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I have to let y'all know straight up that I'm super in favor of this company, though I'll still be posting my honest opinion on each flavor.
Backstory: It's blurry now, but somewhere along my many Instagram adventures of finding new products/companies, I found This Pie Is Nuts. I innocently followed their page; they were a pretty new company and I wanted to keep an eye on them.
Somehow along the way, their beautiful treats found their way onto my feed regularly and I became an avid commenter on their photos. I discovered that the owner, Diana Pappas, is an actress as well. But she's like, a really real actress who is braver than I and lives in New York. I haven't made that leap... yet.
Anyway, I guess I bothered her enough with my page interactions and got a follow back. We became "Instagram friends," which is a weird new thing where you feel like you know and like someone but have actually never met them outside of the social platform. For as much time as I put into my social media, I still find this phenomenon so strange. But that's okay, because it always seems to come to life eventually and we get to meet the people behind the handles.
Enter Paleo f(x) 2017.
This was my third year to attend, and I've loved watching it grow exponentially year to year. The first time I went, my blog was fairly new and I got to meet the people of Otto's Cassava Flour and Life of Riley Foods and talk with them about the beginning of their companies and how preliminary reviews like mine were integral in helping them launch. That was pretty dang cool. I've hung out with the lovely Otto's folks each year since... mostly stealing their samples. But sharing some laughs and hugs, too. ;)
That trend continued last year, when I finally got to meet the people behind Rickaroons after doing their first product review before their launch two years prior. I've seen that company change and grow tremendously and still avidly support them. I hung out with my paleo girls' night friends, who are now simply friends, at the Barefoot Provisions. I met even more awesome companies and got to give them reviews in this past year.
This year' PFX brought the biggest expo yet, extending into an extra room at the Palmer Event Center and out onto the patio. This year brought more companies I had worked with over the interwebz and got to greet with a smiling face. This year, I got to give Diana a huge hug and thank her for taking a trailer to Texas and sharing the good her company does in the Big Apple. And then we promptly discovered we are each others' spirit animals. But I digress.
Diana's story involves a diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis (M.S.) and her decision to combat its symptoms holistically with food. The pies and granola are certified vegan, paleo, and gluten-free and deliciously satisfying. They aren't overly-sweet and display the beauty of the natural flavors used perfectly. The company simply wishes to put good food in front of people at a reasonable price, because Diana believes eating well shouldn't be a privilege.
The pies and granola from This Pie Is Nuts are literally all nuts. Like, not even just the pie crust and granola. That creamy filling is also largely nuts! Biting into it, you would never believe that's the case. These babies have been worked on with love to produce a product unlike any other on the paleo market right now.
Diana doesn't know I'm doing this page for her... yet. She seriously deserves it after the dozens of praises I heard about her throughout the convention that weekend and since. I proudly brag about our Instagram friendship and agree with how awesome she is. She also brought Gabby (@gabbahgabbah) along and introduced me to her... Gabby is a badass. She's been featured on the Food Network. I want to be more like both of them. Between these two, This Pie Is Nuts is a powerhouse. And I have a personal testimony to the kind of people they are and company Diana runs.
The weekend of Paleo f(x) was also the weekend I graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with two degrees: a B.A. in Theatre & Dance and a B.S. in Kinesiology. Because of the ceremonies and celebrations around that, I was only at about half of the PFX events. However, I needed to say hi to my friends Friday morning before graduation and meet Diana. So, I went at the very beginning of the convention and made the rounds.
It was so cool to see the little @thispieisnuts handle come to life as Diana Pappas, and her smile when I said that I was Flabs to Fitness returned the regard. I mentioned my schedule for the weekend due to graduation, and she was incredibly kind and congratulatory about it. I told her my plan to buy a "shit ton" of her pies for my party on Sunday, to show everyone that the "weird way Allison eats" is actually really delicious. She got super excited.
On Saturday, I returned for the full day and stopped by her booth at the end to buy my pies. Diana simply asked how many I needed, and as I thought about it, she told me to open my bag and go to the fridge. Opening the door, she began loading my satchel without counting them. She told me to take them and congratulated me on my accomplishments again.
This is just a glimpse into how she is as a person... I've felt incredibly blessed the rest of the week because of her kindness. She really does believe everyone deserves real, good food. Without the Whole Paycheck price.
Okay, I'll stop the sap and tell you about each product I was loaded up with. I froze these pies for photos to make sure I had at least one of each flavor left after the party, because they were totally a hit! So that's why they look even cooler... no pun intended. And, pro tip: eating them frozen is DOPE.
Key Lime
This is one of my favorite flavors of all time, regardless the product. So of course it was the first thing I delved into in my bag o'pies and the flavor Diana gave me the most of.
The tang of the lime is just right, the texture divine, and the sugar low enough to be delicious but not enough to cause an over-eating response. And trust me, if someone's going to over-eat something, it's me. Sugar triggers that in this gal. But not with these! It's such a refreshing feeling to have something like this that I truly do enjoy each bite of, but don't feel the need to open and eat 6 more.
Rating: 10/10
Ingredients: Water, maple syrup, key lime juice, raw cashews, dry roasted, unsalted almonds, dates, organic, unsweetened, shredded coconut, seedless raisins, kudzu root, agar agar, organic coconut oil, sea salt.
Chocolate Mousse
Can you just stop and appreciate that almond butter drizzle on the top real fast? Like, OMG.
"Mousse" is the perfect name for this pie, as the chocolate filling really is a light, fluffy stuff that the teeth sink through easily. Again... how is this mostly nuts?? The flavor is that of dark(er) chocolate due to the low sugar content, which is again awesome for me and those dang sugar reactions. However, my picky taste likes a bit sweeter chocolate when paired with nut butter. That's being super picky, though, and I still really enjoy this pie!
Rating: 8/10
Ingredients: Water, dry roasted, unsalted almonds, maple syrup, raw cashews, organic cocoa nibs,dates, seedless raisins, organic, unsweetened cocoa powder, organic kudzu root, agar agar, sea salt, organic coconut oil.
Coconut Cream Pie
Not being a big fan of cream pies, this is probably my least favorite flavor of the options sold by This Pie Is Nuts, at least out of the fridge. However, once frozen... game changer! The filling gets an ice cream-like consistency different from the others and I prefer it this way. If you're used to coconut being sweet, prepare for a more subtle, coconut milk-like flavor.
Rating: 7/10
Ingredients: Water, raw cashews, maple syrup, raw walnuts, raw pecans, dates, organic, unsweetened, shredded coconut, seedless raisins, raw macadamia nuts, organic cocoa nibs, blanched almonds,organic kudzu root, sea salt, coconut oil, agar agar, vanilla bean.
Sweet Potato Ginger
Honestly, the idea of sweet potato pie has always kinda grossed me out. I don't know why. Maybe it's a texture thing? Like I think of mashed sweet potatoes as equivalent to baby food? I have no idea.
What I do know is that this pie changed my mind on that. The sweet potato + ginger flavor combination is one I now want to steal and play around with more in my own future recipes. I loved the touch of sprinkling fresh-ground ginger on the top for decor, and the sweet potato kept the ginger flavor from being too overpowering! Because of the low sugar content, the ginger stands out more than in a traditional sweet potato pie and is, in my opinion, the game changer for this recipe.
Rating: 9/10
Ingredients: Water, sweet potato, pure maple syrup, raw pecans, dry roasted, unsalted almonds,raw cashews, pitted dates, organic, unsweetened, shredded coconut, seedless raisins, organic kudzu root, organic coconut oil, ground cinnamon, lemon juice, agar agar, sea salt, dried ginger root, ground ginger.
Purely Pumpkin
Ahh, the traditional pumpkin pie. A staple for American Thanksgiving and every basic white girl's obsession as soon as fall fashion hits. The obsession is for a good reason, and this is easily one of the best versions of pumpkin pie I've ever tried... paleo or not.
I was in charge of the family pumpkin pie last Thanksgiving, and while I used a stellar paleo recipe for it, the nuts-at-the-center again break the rules and change the standards for what I like texture-wise. This Pie Is Nuts is doing something awesome with this American classic and it's basically tied with Key Lime as my favorite of the flavors.
Rating: 10/10
Ingredients: Water, pumpkin puree, maple syrup,unsalted almonds, raw pecans, pitted dates, raw cashews, seedless raisins, kudzu root, unsweetened shredded coconut, coconut oil,agar agar, sea salt, pumpkin pie spice.
Final Thoughts
If you're in New York City, give This Pie Is Nuts a go. I'll totally be bothering them (and probably put to work by Diana, honestly) next time I'm in the state. Unfortunately due to the high freshness standards of the company, you can only purchase the pies while in the city. They're available via Postmates up to 11 miles away from their production center in Manhattan.
However, TPIN granola ("This Granola Is Nuts") is available for shipping within the 48 continental United States! If you're interested in ordering either pies or granola from this incredible company, click here. You're supporting and awesome movement and wonderful employees.
