Z's Blind Taste Test #3: Gluten-Free Pancakes!

Z's Blind Taste Tests are a monthly feature on Gluten-Free from A to Z!

Z's Blind Taste Test #3: Gluten-Free Pancakes

How It Works: Z will cook/bake/prepare four different versions of the same gluten-free product and randomly label each version with a number. Then A and friends will try all four versions and rank them from most favorite to least favorite. The results will allow us to see exactly how different brands of gluten-free products compare to each other!

The Contenders:

1. Namaste Foods' Waffles & Pancakes Mix
2. Arrowhead Mills' Gluten Free Pancake & Baking Mix
3. Gluten-Free Pantry's Brown Rice Pancake & Waffle Mix
4. 365 Everyday Value's Gluten Free Pancake & Waffle Mix
   

The Final Results:

• Most Favorite: Gluten-Free Pantry (4 of 6 votes!)*
  
• 2nd Favorite: 365 Everyday Value (4 of 6 votes)*
  
• Tied for 3rd Favorite: Namaste Foods (3 of 6 votes)
  
• Tied for 3rd Favorite: Arrowhead Mills (3 of 6 votes)
  

*Although the votes did eventually come up with a first and second place, everybody had trouble deciding between Gluten-Free Pantry and 365 Everyday Value. After the tasting was over we discovered that these two brands actually have the exact same ingredients in the exact same order! So these two mixes are basically the same thing! No wonder people had difficulty deciding!

A's Blind Rankings:
(For A's comments on each cookie, please see the individual A-Z reviews!)

• Most Favorite: Gluten-Free Pantry
  
• 2nd Favorite: 365 Everyday Value
  
• 3rd Favorite: Arrowhead Mills
  
• Least Favorite: Namaste Foods

Z's Mama's Blind Rankings:

• Most Favorite: Gluten-Free Pantry - "fluffy, yet crispy; it looked pretty and browned"
  
• 2nd Favorite: 365 Everyday Value - "similar to favorite one"
  
• 3rd Favorite: Arrowhead Mills - "texture like cornmeal? sweet, vanilla flavor."
  
• Least Favorite: Namaste Foods - "flat & green!"

Our Friend MM's Blind Rankings:

• Most Favorite: Gluten-Free Pantry - "smooth, not chewy, pancakey!"
  
• 2nd Favorite: 365 Everyday Value - "sticks in my teeth! grimy, crunchy"
  
• 3rd Favorite: Arrowhead Mills - "crumbly, too sweet, cookie flavor, grainy"
  
• Least Favorite: Namaste Foods - "dense, good flavor, but really flat"

Our Friend TL's Blind Rankings:

• Most Favorite: 365 Everyday Value - "awesome! moist and pancake tasting, my favorite!"
  
• 2nd Favorite: Gluten-Free Pantry - "very good, still a little bland but generally quite tasty; not as good as my favorite but with butter and syrup totally passable for a regular pancake"
  
• 3rd Favorite: Namaste Foods - "a little bland, very strong floury taste; sort of unremarkable like those protein things they give astronauts - nourishing but not yummy"
  
• Least Favorite: Arrowhead Mills - "cinnamony tasting, which I like, but the texture is really gritty - ew! like chewing sand and syrup cannot hide it"

Our Friend MS's Blind Rankings:

• Most Favorite: 365 Everyday Value - "fluffy, buttery, holds syrup, mmm...."
  
• 2nd Favorite: Gluten-Free Pantry - "fluffy, colored well, not quite as buttery as my favorite"
  
• 3rd Favorite: Namaste Foods - "flat and not fluffy, really light in color but holds shape"
  
• Least Favorite: Arrowhead Mills - "a bit chalky and still flat, light in color but doesn't hold shape"

Z's Not Blind Rankings:
(For Z's comments on each cookie, please see the individual A-Z reviews!)

• Most Favorite: Gluten-Free Pantry
  
• 2nd Favorite: 365 Everyday Value
  
• 3rd Favorite: Namaste Foods
  
• Least Favorite: Arrowhead Mills