La Reina discontinues the last baked corn chip...

[healthyvegan]

La Reina Discontinues the ONLY HEALTHY BAKED CORN CHIP left on the market. Healthy Snacking will never be the same...

Well I got this devastating news today...

Hi Lex

The So Cal WF’s Region faithfully carried the item for over 10 years. Unfortunately when other Regions brought it in, it was DC’ d soon after for lack of sales. Furthermore we were forced to credit distributors for product that went past code dates.

Some pieces of the equipment to manufacture the chips have been moved to other production lines, and other parts dismantled and sold. The space has already been rededicated to other products.

We will not be getting back into the baked tortilla chip business.

David K
Director of Business Development
Anitas
Anita’s Mexican Foods / La Reina

Basically the only healthy packaged snack food Whole Foods carries was discontinued... hilarity. Shameful John Mackey, just Shameful.!

[Vegankit]

While it's sad, consider yourself lucky that you had it available to you. This was never sold in my area. I have to make my own using Trader Joe's corn tortillas.

[Ern2Win]

Too bad!

I couldn't find them here in the east anyway. Can't blame them...they are in business to make a profit. It is easy to see why they don't sell as most vegetarians and vegans don't buy into the no oil thing and, let's face it, fat tastes good to most people.

[bridgetohealth]

Basically the only healthy packaged snack food Whole Foods carries was discontinued...

The sesame flavor of Corn Thins have no oil. "Corn Thins" is even a member here and will respond to questions.

http://www.cornthins.com/prodSesame.aspx

Not exactly a chip (never seen or tried the discontinued baked chips), but they're pretty tasty, crispy and three ingredients: organic maize, sesame, sea salt. Less than a mg sodium per calorie, so they meet Jeff's sodium guidelines. I eat them plain or with salsa. Can also be used with peanut butter or hummus for those that eat them. WF has their snacks scattered in various sections throughout the store but I've almost always seen these somewhere in east coast stores. Don't know about your area. I've even seen the "rice thins" from this brand in regular stores, though they have a bit of oil and are therefore off-plan.

[LowCarbIsDeadly]

Just eat unrefined unprocessed corn on the cob. The closer the food is to how its grown in nature the healthier anyway.

[healthyvegan]

Corn Thins are decent, but aren't great with salsa like corn chips are. I make my own with corn tortillas, but its just the convenience of pop'n open a bag and downing a tub of fresh california salsa! I am going to find an alternative and harass Whole Foods until we get another fat free corn chip. Maybe Engine 2 can do it.

[hazelrah]

Corn Thins are decent, but aren't great with salsa like corn chips are. I make my own with corn tortillas, but its just the convenience of pop'n open a bag and downing a tub of fresh california salsa! I am going to find an alternative and harass Whole Foods until we get another fat free corn chip.

There was one I found in the San Bruno Mexican market a year or so ago. But they do not still carry it. It wasn't promoted as oil free, but reading the label quickly revealed it. Trader Joes makes a baked blue corn chip, but they tend to be quite salty ( the ones in San Bruno were salt free too, I think), so we use them as treats when we've had as much of the home baked ones as we can stand.

Let us know if there's somebody at Whole foods we should harass to help promote it.

Mark

[Bix]

Thanks for posting this. It's a real disappointment. La Reina was our go-to chip. No one else does, or did, what La Reina did ... make a really good tortilla chip with no oil. They showed it can be done ... I hope someone else tries.

They don't sell them around here either (PA). We mail ordered ours, from Walmart!

[michaelswarm]

Check out Mexican or Cuban grocers.

I have found different baked corn tostadas, crackers (galletas) and tortilla chips (totopos) at various Mexican groceries in Northern California, and at some mainstream Publix groceries in South Florida. If I recall, I found 2 different brands. One Whole Foods in Texas (either Austin or San Antonio) also carried these.
Check out Sanissimo and Charras.
http://www.sanissimo.com or http://www.sanissimo.com.mx
http://www.charras.com
Looks like you may buy online at Amazon and Walmart.

Currently in Mexico, and baked corn tostadas, crackers and chips are available in every supermercado (supermarket) and mercado (traditional market). Whole corn on the cob is available year round. Street vendors sell whole corn on the cob (esquite) and corn kernels (elote). Get with lime juice and salt. Also fresh tortillas, by machine or even hand. It's not a meal here if it doesn't have corn.

While Mexicans are as unhealthy as Americans (similar body shape, similar life expectancy, junk food and animal products sold everywhere), they have more and better fresh produce (larger produce sections in markets), and among the bad food choices, cooked corn, cut fresh fruit, and fresh vegetable and fruit juices are sold on street corners.

[f1jim]

I agree with the poster that advised to make your own. They are better tasting, low in sodium, and very easy to make. They also will keep for a few days which is as long as they last at my house. This aslo gives you complete control over the ingredients in the tortillas used to make the chips.
f1jim

[Katydid]

Perhaps you could contact Rip Esselstyn about adding baked corn chips to their Engine 2 Plant-Strong product line for Whole Foods. They already have fat-free tortillas and wraps and crisp breads and crackers, so a fat-free chip would be a good fit for their product line.

Kate

[healthyvegan]

La Reina were salt free. Only one ingredient = organic corn. I make my own with a pizza cutter. I run it through an entire pack of fresh corn tortillas and then painstakingly arrange them on parchment paper in the oven until crispy. They are good, but La Reina had taken it to the next level. Their final batch of baked corn tortillas were magical. The chips curled up like Frito's Scoops, which was essential for gulping down fresh salsa with them. Their final processing system retained maximum moisture and corn flavor, while maximizing crispiness. RIP

Engine 2 would make them so awful that I would never be able to eat corn chips again, kind of like they did with hummus and those crackers.

[vman]

I found these baked tostada's http://www.mexgrocer.com/58480-00126.html on a recent trip to Mexico and they taste incredible. According to the listed ingredients, there is no added oil. They are a bit pricey to eat all the time, but they are easily the best tasting corn chip I've ever tasted. Slightly smokey flavor that really is amazing for a tostada with no oil. Of course they are way cheaper in Mexico as long as you don't count the airfare!

Now to get Whole Foods to carry these.

[hazelrah]

I found these baked tostada's http://www.mexgrocer.com/58480-00126.html on a recent trip to Mexico and they taste incredible. According to the listed ingredients, there is no added oil. They are a bit pricey to eat all the time, but they are easily the best tasting corn chip I've ever tasted. Slightly smokey flavor that really is amazing for a tostada with no oil. Of course they are way cheaper in Mexico as long as you don't count the airfare!

Now to get Whole Foods to carry these.

That's the brand I used to get at the San Bruno market. They were smaller chips in the box I used to get, but in that same weird packaging. I think they only carried them for about 6 months. I don't know if I ever tried the La Reina, but these tasted better than the ones I bake at home now ( or maybe they just appeal to the slothful aspect of my pleasure trap). My sense was that they were not a product you'd typically find at WFM. Then again, I guess if they put their money where their mouths are, they wouldn't have discontinued carrying the ones in the original post.

Mark

[SweetPea]

I make my own with a pizza cutter. I run it through an entire pack of fresh corn tortillas and then painstakingly arrange them on parchment paper in the oven until crispy. They are good, but La Reina had taken it to the next level. Their final batch of baked corn tortillas were magical. The chips curled up like Frito's Scoops, which was essential for gulping down fresh salsa with them.

Have you tried making them from the frozen 365-brand tortillas that WF carries? I microwave a package's worth for 30-60 seconds (to defrost), cut to quarter, arrange on parchment-covered sheets, bake at 375F for 7 minutes, swap tray locations (our oven bakes unevenly), and bake for 3 minutes more. Great flavor, sturdy, and very crunchy chips. And mine do seem prone to curling, which I actually don't prefer. When I make a second batch right after, they are more prone to browning, so if you like a smoky chip...they're good for that, too. TJ's also has great tortillas for chip-making.