My Trip to Enjoy Life Foods in Chicago!

I was just in Chicago on a special trip for celiac research and I decided to take a day off and just chill out in the Windy City. But, as you probably know, Celiac and the Beast can’t just take a day off without doing something epic. I was invited to come see the Enjoy Life Foods facility just outside of Chicago, so Mary Fran from FrannyCakes and I took advantage of our day off, and Uber’ed into the suburbs.

Thanks for the invite, Enjoy Life Foods!

I’ve always been super impressed with Enjoy Life Foods. However, over the years, I’ve had a chance to understand more and more about their manufacturing process, testing process, and production process and I’ve just been more and more excited about this company. If you’d like to learn more about what I’ve heard from Joel, the CMO of Enjoy Life Foods, about production, visit my article on Gluten Free & More magazine here: http://www.glutenfreeandmore.com/blog/Understanding-the-Manufacturing-of-Allergen-Friendly-Foods-4036-1.html

During our trip there, we had a chance to see their Double Chocolate Crunchy Cookies being made from start to finish. First we saw the raw ingredients, then we visited the giant mixing machines. I thought my KitchenAid was impressive, but these were just awe-inspiring. Plus, everything smelled like cookies so I was eager to continue along the process (even though we can’t eat anything off the line). We saw how the cookies were made from dough – and the QA that happens on the line to make sure each cookie is perfect, looks perfect, and weighs the same as the other cookies. It happened so quickly – these workers have it down to a science! After that, we got to see the giant ovens to bake the cookies (IMHO this part smelled the best), and then the cookies being handpacked into boxes and then through the packaging machines. One of the coolest steps was seeing the boxes being shaped – from a flat piece into a box, and then stuffed and sealed. It all happens so fast!

Next we got to see the chocolate being packaged. From the huge machines that weighed out the chocolate, down the chute into the bags, and then sealed in a machine and then this – a group of employees putting coupon stickers on the chocolate. Exciting! 

A huge thanks to our sponsor, Enjoy Life Foods. I’m so thankful to be a partner of theirs in spreading the #EatFreely message to celiacs and food-allergic readers. This is a company I can truly put my heart behind! 

I hope you enjoyed a peek into the Enjoy Life Foods facilities in Chicago! Be sure to check out their baking mixes here: http://shop.enjoylifefoods.com/Baking-Mixes/c/EnjoyLife@BakingMixes.Here’s another coupon code: Buy a NEW baking mix and get a free bag of chocolate chips! You can get up to three bags for free using promo code CHOCMIX.