Product Comparison - Kodiak Cakes vs Aunt Maple's

When I was making my last grocery order, I noticed that Aldi is now selling protein pancake mix. It seemed like fate, as I knew I had some existing mix in the cupboard AND my new Dash mini waffle maker had just been delivered. I did check some online reviews for the Aunt Maple's and they were decidedly mixed.

The best way to try out the new waffle maker is with waffle mix (though that's about the last thing I cook in my waffle irons, usually, but that is a post for another day), and the best way to try out new protein mix is with a taste test and macro check! 

Going head to head: Kodiak Cakes and Aunt Maple's protein packed pancake and waffle mix.

First off: Macro check

The serving sizes are different between the two products, 53 grams vs 61g, so I decided to go with 53 for both. I will do a little math for you, so you can see how they compare.

My sons love pancakes, so I have two others in the house, that I will compare macro-wise, since they are at hand. Hungry Jack Light and Fluffy and Pearl Milling Company (the batter previously known as Aunt Jemima, because when things go on clearance, I stock up).

With Kodiak Cakes at 53g, Aunt Maple's at 61g, Hungry Jack at 52g and Aunt Jemima as 36g, I applied a formula to get the below: 

HOT TIP: 

If you would like to increase the protein contents of any of these items you can substitute protein shake for the water or milk

I like: 

Premier Protein

Pure Protein

This swap could easily add another 10+g of protein to your meal

The first step in cooking these is to grab my handy, dandy digital scale. 

I got my food scale at Target a few years ago, but you can find them anywhere, with plenty of good reviews. 

I press the Unit button to move it from pounds and ounces to grams

Add a bowl to the scale

Press the Tare button to zero out the weight, so only the stuff you add to the bowl gets measured

Add in my mix until the scale reads 53g

I plugged in my waffle iron to start preheating and then added water to each bowl of mix, until it reached a pourable consistency. 

Actually, since I used regular bowls instead of mixing bowls with a pour spout, I used my little ladle with the ambidextrous pour spouts (as a left-handed person, the abundance of right-handed utensils can be an inconvenience)

Before adding water, is when you might want to put in some personalized additions, such as some sweetener or vanilla, or any customizations you like.

If you let the mix sit awhile, it will get a bit fluffier. 

Messy, messy. I should have put a paper towel or sheet pan under the waffle iron. I know with my larger waffle iron, I would never think to use it without the drip tray underneath it. Facepalm.

Comparison:

I tried one of each with a little Mrs. Butterworth's Sugar Free syrup, at 10 calories for 2tbs (and it doesn't have that chemically aftertaste that the other sugar free syrups I have tried do).

Kodiak Cakes - Having always been a fan of these, I still love them. Not too heavy, not too sweet. This bag of mix had been opened for awhile, and I cooked them first, so they didn't have as much time to rise, so they only really got crispy on one side. This has the highest protein, as well as the lowest fat, sodium carbs and sugars. 

Aunt Maple's - This tasted very comparable to the Kodiak. They tasted good and had good texture, so I would definitely get it again based on that alone. The mix fluffed up pretty well as it sat, so it pressed higher against the upper plate on the waffle maker, and ended up being crispy on both sides! They have slightly lower protein, and higher fat, sugars, carbs and sodium than Kodiak... they're still lower than the other non-protein mixes.

Locally, I paid $3.29 for a box with 9 servings, so $0.37 per serving for Aunt Maple's

Then I paid $5.79 for a box with 11 servings, or $0.53 per serving for Kodiak Cakes. 

Verdict:

While Kodiak Cakes had better macros than Aunt Maple's, the fact that they tasted similar and Aunt Maple's is cheaper and slightly fluffier makes the latter the narrow winner in my book. 

My next question is, will these freeze and reheat well, so that I can bulk prep them? 

I am placing two waffles from each batch into the freezer and will wait a week, then reheat them in my toaster oven. Look for a follow up to see how they turn out!

Another HOT TIP? My very favorite way to eat Kodiak Cakes are with the Dark Chocolate mix, topped with reduced fat peanut butter.

It is a protein packed meal with only 350 calories, but 21g of protein... and it tastes like a super indulgent dessert. Unfortunately, I have not seen any Dark Chocolate Aunt Maple's, but if I do, I will definitely try it.