To celebrate Foodie Friday, I’m focusing on sweet treats with my June review of Orangeglad, a monthly artisan dessert subscription.
If you’d like to try out one for yourself use my code ST10 for 10% off your order.
Lovely packaging as usual.
Carolina Girl Cooks – South Carolina
About the Company:“The first time Jennifer experienced the captivating flavor of lavender, she was having dessert during a night out with a group of girlfriends. She fell in love with the flavor and immediately began experimenting with recipes of her own. Oddly enough, the fragrant flower kept finding its way into sweet delicious cookies and from there, Carolina Girl Cooks Tea Cookies were born. Creating the perfect packaging meant the most because soon Jennifer learned that the meaning of lavender when given as a gift ‘the promise of new adventure’…Jennifer’s sincerest hope is that each artfully crafted cookie tin will serve a sa reminder that small passions can turn into wild adventures in the most unexpected and thrilling ways, just as lavender has for her.”
Rose Tea Cookies
($9.00 for 8 to 10 cookies)
Description: “Subtle yet elegant, the Rose Tea Cookies are made with the finest dried, edible rose petals and delicate rose water. One bite is like a stroll through a summer garden.”
Orange Cardamom Cookies
($9.00 for 8 to 10 cookies)
Description: “Orange Cardamom is a light butter cookie balancing the delicate floral flavor of ground cardamom with the brightness of citrus zest.”
Verdict: Pretty, but not my favorites
These type of crumbly tea cookies just aren’t my favorite. I did think that the rose cookies in a June box were an inspired choice. The packaging on these is gorgeous and made me immediately think of wedding favors (particularly the Rose Tea Cookies). While these wouldn’t be my personal favorites, they were lovely cookies and perfect for June.
Unna Bakery – Harlem, New York
About the Company: “…Unna’s gourmet cookies are made using her traditional recipes passed down through generations. To offer uncompromised quality, they use only the best ingredients like organic butter, organic locally milled flour and handmade jam with berries from the Hudson Valley. Treat yourself their tasty cookies while enjoying the old Swedish tradition of taking a ‘fika’ (a little break).”
Raspberry Cave Shortbread
(3.4 oz: $7.99)
Description: “A buttery, rich , golden cookie with Raspberry Jam from award-winning Maya’s Jam”
Farmer’s Cookie’s
(3.4 oz: $7.99)
Description: “A traditional Swedish, crispy, light and nutty cookie with browned butter and almonds.”
Verdict: Hit!
I love jam cookies so the Raspberry Cave Shortbread cookies were my favorite dessert in the box. The Farmer’s cookies were also lovely. Apologies for the spastic photos on the Farmer’s cookies – sometimes my camera has a mind of it’s own.
Shotwell Candy
About the Company: “A corporate lawyer and father of three at the time, Jerrod spend this nights learning the science and art behind cooking caramel, testing several different ingredient combinations and eventually developing what he thought to be the best tasting caramel possible. With the help and encouragement of his wife and close friends, Jerrod officially launched Shotwell Candy (named after Jerrod’s great grandfather), in December 2012. Although the attention to detail process and classic caramel making process has not changed one bit, Shotwell Candy has since grown well beyond Jerrod’s home kitchen become one of the South’s great confectioners, even earning a food award form Southern Living Magazine in 2015 for ‘Best Sweet’.”
Craft Beer & Pretzel Caramels
(2.5 oz Bag: $5.95)
Description: “Other than their glorious caramels, beer is one of the Shotwell Candy’s grat passions. Especially some of the locally made versions available in Memphis. They combine their buttery soft caramel with a healthy dose of shot River Brewing’s Golden Ale and finish it off with nice sized chunks of hand-crushed salty pretzels. It makes a perfect malty, caramelly, crunchy and salty bite!
Verdict: Misfit
I didn’t think this product fit in with this box. We’d actually received the same exact one in the February box. It also doesn’t feel appropriate for June or match up with the Rose tea biscuit feel this one had going. Another fruit related dessert or something with a summery feel would have been a much better fit. My camera was apparently having a bad day so apologies for another off pic.
OVERALL
Verdict: Some good ideas, but overall a mess
Let’s start with the value. I receive this box free in order to review it, but if I’d paid for it, it would have cost $25. After doing the math, I come up with an estimated value of only $13.30 for the included items. Now that value doesn’t include shipping, but that’s just far too low a return on the investment, especially considering there is a repeat item in this box. I feel like we need a total value closer to $18. Shipping each item would be expensive, but for $25 you could get more of your favorite item, have it shipped to you, and still probably end up under $25. The value issue could be solved by upping the quantity of some items. Carolina Girl Cooks offers tea cookies in lovely tins. One tin of cookies instead of the two tiny packs, would have added a lot of value and appeal to the box.
I thought the Rose Tea Cookies were a great idea for a June box and the Unna Bakery’s Swedish offerings paired with them to create a sort of summer tea party vibe. Unfortunately, the beer caramels were like inviting your football watching uncle to a garden party instead of the Sunday game. If I was curating, I’d have replaced the caramels with a fruity bar of some kind or dainty chocolate truffles. There was a lot of potential with this box, but the overall value was just too low to justify the misstep with the caramels.
What type of value do you expect from a sub box versus what you paid for it?
THE BACKSTORY
Orangeglad is an “artisan dessert box that sends handcrafted, unique and exclusive desserts each month. Eat delicious treats created by local artisan chefs throughout the country, and learn about the amazing people behind each item.”
Single Portion Box: 5 Deluxe Sized Treats
Curated from around the country
Makes 1-2 people happy
Cost: $25 per month (shipping included)
Double Portion Box: 10 Deluxe Sized Treats
Curated from around the country
Makes 3-4 people happy
Cost: $40 per month (shipping included)
Managing your account is easy. If you want a break, you can cancel or skip at anytime, with absolutely no hassle.
Coupon Codes: Use code ST10 for 10% off your orders
Lisa Preziosi 