We Tried Chrissy Teigen's Ultimate Banana Bread Mix And Didn't Leave A Single Crumb Behind
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Chrissy Teigen's Instagram bio famously says, "making America great again," but what she's doing is making banana bread great again. The former model gives us every reason to get into baking with her new line of baking mixes that only require a few added ingredients.
At the end of October, Chrissy and the Cravings team launched a new line featuring three products: Chrissy's Ultimate Banana Bread Mix; Buttermilk Mochi Pancake Mix; and Salted White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookie Mix (via Instagram). The launch of these baking mixes marks a significant milestone for Cravings as it expands from a recipe site inspired by Chrissy's popular cookbook to now offering easy-to-make baked goods.
Over the next year, the team is going to release other baking mixes and items like pasta, sauces, condiments, snacks, and more (via Forbes). We Tried Chrissy Teigen's Ultimate Banana Bread Mix and didn't leave a single crumb behind. Keep reading to learn everything you need to know about this new banana bread mix.
What's in the banana bread mix?
The Cravings mix contains the usual banana bread ingredients like sugar, wheat flour, and bananas. Still, one ingredient may surprise you that contributes substantially to the flavor of this loaf. One of Chrissy's Ultimate Banana Bread Mix's main ingredients is coconut.
The other minor ingredients, many of which we can't pronounce, confirm this baking mix satisfies cravings, but you might want to keep it off your diet plan. Each serving (the box contains eight total) yields 37 grams of sugar. For this review, we would like to highlight the taste over the calorie and nutritional information, but it's helpful to note.
In addition to the ingredients in the mix, the recipe calls for adding two eggs, oil, and water. Combining these foods with the boxed mix creates an irresistible, moist, sweet bread. It's one of those baked goods you keep returning for seconds or even thirds. If portion control remains your biggest challenge, we suggest using the mix to create banana muffins instead.
How much does the mix cost?
Chrissy's Ultimate Banana Bread Mix costs eight dollars, significantly more than other baking mix companies like Betty Crocker, which sells a banana nut muffin and bread mix for $2.69 at Target.
We would place Cravings by Chrissy Tiegen in the, dare we say, gourmet or higher-end mix category. This smaller category contains a few brands that charge similar amounts for their banana bread mixes. Simple Mills, which promotes healthy and simple ingredients, charges $8.69 for its banana bread mix. Simple Mills provides a healthy spin to the standard recipe, while Chrissy's replicates a viral recipe that will cure your sweet cravings.
While the price differences may be drastic between Cravings by Chrissy Tiegen and Betty Crocker's banana bread mixes, we think Chrissy's tastes closer to a homemade version than other pre-made mixes and can be worth the price. With this banana bread, you certainly get what you pay for.
How long and where will it be available?
Chrissy Teigen's Ultimate Banana Bread Mix is flying off the shelves. According to the official Cravings by Chrissy Teigen Instagram account, the Ultimate Banana Bread Mix sold out twice before launching again. As of the publishing date of this article, it's sold out on the Cravings site.
To get your hands on a box of this banana bread mix, you can turn on email alerts on the website to be notified when the mix is back in stock. On the Cravings by Chrissy Teigen website, you can receive 15% off if you buy any three baking mixes. Once the boxes come back in stock online, you will receive free ground shipping.
The mixes can be solely found online at this time, but we wouldn't be surprised if expansion to stores like Whole Foods, Target, and Safeway came in the coming months. For now, all you can do is wait by your email to see if you can snag a box and try this mix for yourself.
What's the nutrition information for the banana bread mix?
As mentioned, Cravings' Banana Bread Mix satisfies cravings but does not strive to be a healthy baking mix. The mix contains some artificial ingredients; however, the ingredient list is not as long as we would expect for a dessert mix.
The box of Ultimate Banana Bread Mix contains eight servings, and once prepared, each serving offers 370 calories. For chocolate and coconut banana bread, we feel like this number isn't very high. The good news is a serving of this banana bread will actually satisfy you and fill you up — it's not an unrealistically small serving size.
Overall the other nutrition facts don't come as much of a surprise; this is a dessert snack, after all. The bread contains 17 grams of fat and 53 grams of carbohydrates per serving. There's nothing especially bad about Cravings' Banana Bread Mix if you're planning to indulge in a baked good.
How does it compare to other banana bread mixes?
Making a delicious loaf of banana bread is more difficult than you may think. Creating a loaf that's soft and moist in the middle but slightly crisp and firm on the edges takes the right banana bread recipe. Chrissy Teigen's Ultimate Banana Bread Mix provides that homemade bread taste without as much effort on the baker's part.
In our eyes, this bread mix tastes better than conventional bread mixes that have been around for years. The biggest differentiator in this mix's recipe comes from the coconut. The coconut provides added texture and adds a little bit of tropical flavor that pairs well with the bananas.
The ingredient is visible to the naked eye, but the bread itself does not offer an overwhelming coconut taste, so if that's not your vibe, it's likely you won't even taste it. If you're a snob about baking things from scratch, this might be the boxed mix that wins you over.
The verdict: we didn't leave a single crumb behind
Today it seems like every celebrity has a food, beverage, or beauty brand in addition to their work as a singer, actor, or model. With celebrity brands comes the question: Will it be worth the hype, or did it gain popularity from the power of marketing and celebrity endorsement?
We had high hopes for the Cravings by Chrissy Teigan Ultimate Banana Bread because her recipes already had an audience of fans online. Before launching in a mix, the banana bread recipe captivated the hearts and tastebuds of many.
This banana bread mix makes the easiest bread that tastes like cake and will be devoured quickly. We recommend dipping it in a glass of milk or on the side of your morning coffee or afternoon tea. No matter what you serve it with, we know you'll be as impressed as us. This didn't last long once we baked it, because we devoured every piece.