There are two kinds of people when it comes to food between meals. Snackers want one thing, at one time. A biscuit with a cup of tea. A bag of crisps at four o'clock.
Grazers are different. A handful of nuts on the way past the cupboard. A couple of apricots with a coffee. A spoonful of something straight from the jar. Grazers rarely sit down to a snack, but they're rarely without something to pick at either.
A big bag of one thing gets dull for a grazer within days. What they want is variety, and everything within reach. That's the idea behind this hamper.
What's inside
Six full-size packs, running from sweet to savoury.
RAWGORILLA Raw Organic Pecan Butter, 200g
Organic pecans, stone-ground at low temperature, and nothing else. It's mellow and slightly toffee-like, softer and sweeter-tasting than most nut butters, and low in carbohydrate at 4.3 g per 100 g.
It's the one item in the hamper you eat with a spoon. Spread it on toast, stir it into porridge, or put it in a small bowl in the middle of a board for dipping apricots and mango.
Good to know. There are no stabilisers, so the oil separates naturally. Give it a stir before using. For more on what to look for in a nut butter, see how to choose the best nut butter.
Deluxe Mixed Nuts
Cashews, almonds, brazils, hazelnuts, walnuts and peanuts, in exactly equal parts: one sixth each.
That's less common than you might think. Many mixed nut blends lean heavily on peanuts, which are the cheapest to buy, and go lightly on the expensive nuts. This mix doesn't. The nuts are raw and unsalted, with 18 g of protein per 100 g.
Organic Dried Mango Slices
Chewy, sweet slices of organic mango from Burkina Faso, with no added sugar. The most instantly likeable thing in the box.
Goji Berries, 250g
Sun-dried goji berries, also known as wolfberries, from Ningxia in northern China, the region most famous for growing them. They taste sweet and slightly sour, a bit like a raisin with a tangy edge, and they're chewy rather than soft.
Natural Whole Apricots, 250g
Turkish apricots, hand-pitted and slowly dried in the sun.
You'll notice they're brown rather than bright orange. That's because they haven't been treated with sulphur dioxide, which is what keeps most dried apricots that vivid colour. Without it, apricots darken naturally as they dry, and the flavour changes too: deeper, richer and closer to caramel than the bright, sharp sweetness of a sulphured apricot.
Organic Omega Seed Mix, 250g
Pumpkin, sunflower, linseed and sesame seeds. The one you scatter over everything else: yoghurt, salads, porridge, soup, or into bread dough.
Why a grazing hamper works
Variety is the point. Six different textures and flavours means there's always something different to reach for. Nothing gets boring.
It builds a board in two minutes. Tip the nuts, apricots, mango and goji berries into small bowls, put the pecan butter in the middle, and you have a grazing board with no cooking and no shopping.
It keeps. Everything is a store-cupboard item with a long shelf life. It doesn't need eating in a week, which suits a grazer perfectly.
Nothing in it is a mystery. Nuts, seeds, fruit and ground pecans. The longest ingredient list in the whole hamper is the mixed nuts, and every ingredient on it is a nut.
How to build a grazing board from the hamper
- Pick a board or a large plate. Wood looks best, but anything flat will do.
- Place the pecan butter first. Spoon it into a small bowl and put it slightly off-centre. Everything else goes around it.
- Add the big items. Arrange the apricots and mango slices in loose piles, fanned out rather than stacked.
- Fill the gaps with nuts. Tip small handfuls of mixed nuts into the spaces between the fruit.
- Finish with colour. Scatter the goji berries across the board for flecks of red, and sprinkle a pinch of seed mix over the nuts.
- Add what you have. Cheese, oatcakes, grapes, sliced apple or a few squares of dark chocolate all fit in.
The fruit and nut butter together are the best part. Try an apricot dipped in pecan butter.
More ways to use everything
- Pecan butter: on toast or pancakes, stirred through porridge, or with sliced apple
- Mixed nuts: by the handful, roasted with a little salt and rosemary, or chopped over salads
- Mango: straight from the bag, or chopped into flapjacks and muffins
- Goji berries: over a smoothie bowl or granola, or steeped in hot water with fresh ginger
- Apricots: chopped into a tagine, a stew or a bowl of porridge
- Seed mix: over yoghurt, soups and salads, or kneaded into bread dough
Or combine the mixed nuts, mango and goji berries into your own trail mix for walks and long drives.
Who it's for
Grazers. Obviously. Anyone who works from home and picks at food throughout the day, or keeps a bowl of something on the desk.
Vegans. All six items are suitable for vegan and vegetarian diets.
People who like to host. It makes an instant grazing board for friends who drop by.
Walkers, cyclists and anyone on the move. Nuts, seeds and dried fruit travel well.
Someone trying to eat fewer ultra-processed snacks. Every item is a whole food, with nothing added.
Who it isn't for
Anyone with a nut allergy. This hamper contains a lot of nuts: pecans in the nut butter, and peanuts, hazelnuts, cashews, brazils, almonds and walnuts in the mixed nuts. The seed mix contains sesame. Everything is packed in an environment that also handles mustard, celery, soya and gluten.
Someone looking for a fully organic hamper. Three of the six items are certified organic: the pecan butter, the mango and the seed mix. The mixed nuts, goji berries and apricots aren't. If organic matters most, the Organic Snack Hamper is certified all the way through. Here's what's in it.
Chocolate lovers. There's no chocolate in this one.
For help matching a hamper to the person, see how to choose a food hamper someone will actually eat.
Storing everything
Keep everything in a cool, dry place away from sunlight. The pouches reseal, so close them after opening or move the contents into airtight containers. Stir the pecan butter before use and finish it within three months of opening.
Full allergy information
Contains pecans, peanuts, hazelnuts, cashews, brazil nuts, almonds, walnuts and sesame. All items are vegan and vegetarian, GMO-free and have no added sugar. Full ingredients for every item are listed on the product page. Always read the label on each product when it arrives.
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