I have just found a delicious and super nutritious pancake mix for my little family! The directions were super easy to follow. We ended up deciding that we would do waffles, bacon and eggs for dinner. YES… Breakfast for dinner. This is a common occurrence in the Pate household, so finding this gem of a mix is exciting!
The ingredients say less than 2% of cinnamon, but they made my house smell so delicious, even hubby noticed as he walked in the door!
We paired it with the 100% pure organic maple syrup from costco! So good! Did I mention gluten free. We don’t have a gluten issue in our household, but our close family members do, so this is awesome to have a go to when they come visit!
I mean look at this golden waffle! (don’t mind the crunchy bacon… still working on that)
These waffles were totally Pate Kid approved. We will for sure be back for more, and we are dying to try the brownie mix! The Pate girls love us some fudge brownies! 
~ Lachele
I just tried Among Friends Old Fashioned Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix for the first time today. I had a pot-luck and work and wanted to bring something that everyone can eat. With the mixes being gluten free, whole grain and Non-GMO, it was fit for everyone! I found the preparation so easy! Only three additional ingredients needed with the mix and I was done! The cookies came out perfectly. The cookies didn’t flatten during the cooling process so they looked very appetizing. The flavor and consistency was great and exactly what you would want from a chocolate chip cookie. Everyone couldn’t believe that they were actually gluten free! They were a hit!
~ Paula
When I received my Among Friends Darcy’s delish Old Fashioned Chocolate Chip cookie mix I was excited but a bit nervous. I had never had a gluten free, whole grain cookie before, so I was a little afraid that I wasn’t going to like the taste… yes I’m one of those. 😁
Well my daughter was more than happy to help with the mixing and baking, as a matter of fact, she pretty much did it all. It’s that simple to make, an 8 year old can do it. You simply add an egg, some vanilla and butter, mix, and you are ready to scoop the dough onto a cookie sheet.
Bake at 375* for 7-9 minutes and you are on your way to cookie heaven. Among Friends chocolate chip cookies are not only whole grain, gluten free, with no gums or filler, they are absolutely delicious!!!
Funny story, my husband loves chocolate chip cookies. He was about to eat one when the kids told him they were gluten free, he opted not to have any. I baked another batch and told a tiny little white lie, “these are regular cookies” he ate them and loved them. Haha. The point of the story is that they are so good you will have no idea they are actually a healthier version of an old favorite. I am now excited to try one of their other baking mixes. As a plus (in my book at least) the packaging is super cute!
~ Patty 
In reviewing the gluten-free mixes from, Among Friends I was pleased to read on the package, 100% whole grain and non-GMO. The two mixes that will be reviewed are Alec’s brownie mix and Papa Tom’s Pancake mix. The brownie package sports the words, awesomely fudgy and that they were. Very chocolate tasting! I love chocolate, so that was a good thing. I have made gluten-free products in the past as well as from scratch, so I have had some experience with gluten-free. There is always a distinct taste and texture with gluten-free baked goods. I have made some horrible gluten free scones and some that were pretty good. I have purchased the most cardboard-like gluten free bread and had some that tasted fantastic but wait, there is another part of that sentence, they tasted wonderful, for gluten free. For the folks with Celiac disease that want to partake in bread-like food, the options have dramatically increased. I researched gluten-free on Google, and I came up with 125,000,000 results. Hmm, that will be quite a bit of reading on my part. The Mayo Clinic states, “The gluten-free diet is a treatment for celiac disease. Some people who don’t have celiac disease also may have symptoms when they eat gluten, however, this is called non-celiac gluten sensitivity. People with non-celiac gluten sensitivity may benefit from a gluten-free diet. But people with celiac disease must be gluten-free to prevent symptoms and disease-related complications.” Being gluten intolerant has become the hottest eating trend these days. I recently saw a cartoon of a kindergarten registration with the line, “would you like your child to be in the gluten-free class, the lactose intolerant class, or the peanut free class?” Don’t get me wrong; I am not making fun of those with true allergies and sensitivities. I digress, back to the task at hand of the review of my baked product using the Among Friends Hand-Crafted Baking Mixes. I baked the brownies following the directions to the letter and brought them with me, warm, to a woman’s gathering at church. Here are the comments I received. “They are good for gluten-free.” “My kids would eat them.” “I taste some after taste, but it’s not bad.” “They are dry.” (I did not over bake but possibly I should have checked them even before what was written on the package, as I too felt they were a bit dry too.) “I need a glass a milk.” The pan of brownies did disappear, none were wasted. My husband who has been on a strict low carb diet loved them and had grabbed a few to put in his lunch the following day. I looked at the ingredients, and the first listed is cane sugar. I am glad it is cane sugar that is non-GMO and brownies are treats so nothing I did not expect there. Whole grain oat flour, chocolate chips, with soy, but still non-GMO, a good thing, brown rice flour, baking soda and sea salt. All of these ingredients, I would use to make these myself. Having it all together in a package, very handy for that quick treat fix. Would I purchase this mix? Yes, if I had the need to make something gluten-free. I would watch the baking time though to see if they might turn out less dry tasting.
Photo Credit: Among Friends
The pancake mix was the next product reviewed. Ok, so pancakes for dinner, always a good thing! We all sat down to have the special meal, yum, yum. I felt these pancakes were good. I know, you are thinking to pour a bunch of syrup on anything, and it will taste pretty delicious, well, we ate some without and not bad. I did use an egg replacer for the eggs that were called for this time, making these pancakes gluten-free and vegan. They were possibly a bit thinner, but I always add extra fluid to my pancakes as I do not like them thick, so perfect. I felt they would make great waffles too at the thicker consistency. There is cinnamon in the mix so you get a very light hint of this and I liked that. In reading the package, there was a description of Papa Tom making pancakes which brought a wonderful memory of my father-in-law making pancakes on Sunday morning. I was dating my husband, and I would head over to his house after church for a pancake feast. The memories could have made the pancake taste even better!
~ Laurie R
Is your mouth watering yet? For our local friends Among Friends will be sampling at Costco San Juan Capistrano Oct 27-30 and moving on to Laguna Beach on 27220 Heather Ridge Rd. on Nov 3-6.
They will be sampling Darcy’s Old Fashioned Chocolate Chip, Alec’s Awesomely Fudgy Brownie and Papa Tom’s Perfect Pancake Mix. A 3-pack will be available to purchase these dates at Costco for around $10. If we have a good showing, Costco will carry us moving forward!
Photo Credit: Among Friends
Among Friends, LLC, is the creation of two friends (and moms) who love baking and wanted to help people fill their kitchens with fresh-from-the-oven baked goods made from the best ingredients. The brand’s mouthwatering cookie, cake, brownie and fruit crisp mixes are made with whole grains, non-GMO ingredients and are gluten-free. The baked goods are packed with flavor and satisfy everyone with a craving for something sweet, delicious and nutritious. Founded in 2006 in Ann Arbor, Mich., Among Friends is sold in more than 6,000 stores nationwide. The mixes retail from $4.99-5.99 and have received accolades from Martha Stewart, Prevention Magazine, Food Network, Runner’s World and more. For more information, please visit Among Friends 
Photo Credit: Among Friends
Disclosure: Hopscotch N Jellybeans was compensated and or provided samples in return for an honest review. All opinions and thoughts are my own. This disclosure is done in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission 10 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
