A Dietitian’s Review of Wildgrain

In the summer of 2021, Wildgrain reached out to me and my dietitian teammates here at The Real Food Dietitians asking if we’d each like to receive a box of their frozen sourdough breads and other artisanal baked goods. Since we always test products and services before sharing them with you, I agreed to give it a good test run.

Everyone on the team baked, tasted, and experienced the items in those first sample boxes. It wasn’t long after that when I signed up to be a paying member of Wildgrain. Now I get (and pay for) a box that arrives about once every 4-8 weeks, and both Jessica and Stacie do the same.

In this Wildgrain box review (which is not sponsored by the brand), I’ll share everything I’ve learned about Wildgrain as a paying customer for more than four years now, including cost, quality, how it works, and baking tips.

Pros and Cons

I compiled my experiences with the Wildgrain subscription box into a quick glance of pros and cons. Overall, it’s been a great experience, and Jessica, Stacie, and I all plan to continue using it.

Pros	Cons
Delicious. I love the taste of the high-quality delicious sourdough and other bakery goods and hand-made pasta created from clean ingredients. All of Wildgrain’s high-quality ingredients are non-GMO.	Cost. A Wildgrain membership costs more than if I were to make homemade sourdough, but I’m also get quality baked goods delivered right to my door.
Convenient. I bake just what I need — one loaf, or even just one cookie — at a time.	Storage. The products are fresh and without preservatives. After baking, they should be eaten within a day or two.
Quick. I love that it’s so easy. The loaves arrive frozen and bake in just 20 minutes.	Sometimes arrives broken: I’ve been a Wildgrain member for more than four years now and most often the items arrive in great shape, ready to be put into my freezer. However, there have been a few instances where my longer Ciabatta loaves and the pizza crusts arrive broken. However, Wildgrain customer service was quick to resolve the issue in these few instances. They can be reached at 617-702-2749, Monday through Friday from 10am to 6pm EST.
Flexibility: I can pause or stop the delivery service any time, and I can edit what’s in my box for each delivery. I love to include seasonal items and add-on special deals at checkout.
Special diets: Gluten-free and vegan boxes are available. And all gluten-free products are produced in a dedicated gluten-free facility.
Conscious company: Using Wildgrain makes me feel good about spending my food dollars — the products are made in small bakeries around the country, rather than corporate food production companies, and they donate meals to a Boston food bank for each new member who signs up.
Fermentation: I am especially a fan of sourdough bread because of its unique health benefits created through the process of fermentation.

More pros: New members who sign up to get 6 or 12 items per box will also get free croissants in every box, plus $30 off their first box when using discount code REALFOOD30. And shipping is always free.

Taste and Quality

I’m not exaggerating when I say that Wildgrain products are SO delicious. While I have my favorites, I actually really enjoy everything I’ve tasted from Wildgrain. As I bake my way through my monthly box of frozen loaves, I consistently get high-quality bread that has the crusty exterior, warm tender interior, and perfectly tangy sourdough flavor. 

It’s the kind of bread that is so good that it makes me pause and be present in the sensory moment. I really can’t beat the experience of pulling a warm freshly baked loaf of sourdough out of my oven, especially when all I had to do was pull it out of the freezer.

I’d say the bread is on par with homemade bread that I’ve made myself and sourdough I’ve tasted from other friend bakers. And it’s definitely superior to the sourdough bread loaves I’ve picked up from the grocery store.The pasta and other baked goods are also quite delicious.

The pasta is on the thicker side, a lot like fresh, handmade pastas I’ve eaten at high-end Italian restaurants. And every bakery item I’ve tried, from the dinner rolls and biscuits to the bake-from-frozen donuts and cookies, are delicious treats that my family looks forward to enjoying every month. I work them into my weekly meal plan for special nights.

Cost and Value 

When first signing up, you select either 4, 6 items (that’s the size I get), or 12 items, which is great for bigger families. Then, depending on the box type you select (either Variety Box, Gluten-Free Box, or Plant-Based Box), you can choose from a variety of high-quality parbaked bread loaves, rolls, muffins, pasta, pastries, and artisan bakery desserts. Customize your box every month or just take the monthly items that Wildgrain selects for you. 

Also, every month, there are seasonal offerings and new artisanal pastries, such as pecan pumpkin cinnamon rolls (only available in the fall) and strawberry rhubarb turnovers (only available in the summer). 

The products arrive frozen in a cardboard box with a soft liner, cardboard dividers, and dry ice. I store everything in my freezer where they last for months, and then I bake them whenever I want to.  

If you select the 6- or 12-item box, you also get free croissants in every box for the lifetime of your membership

• For plant-based boxes, you’ll receive free vegan croissants
• For gluten-free boxes, you’ll receive free gluten-free chocolate chip cookies

Variety Box

• Select from a large variety of loaves of sourdough bread and slow-fermented breads and rolls, hand-cut fresh pastas like fettuccine and tonnarelli, and pastries like chocolate chunk cookies, Belgian waffles, and Parmesan herb biscuits to add to your mixed box
• Add on extras and seasonal items, such as apple cider donuts, brioche rolls, and chocolate croissants
• The 6- and 12-item box size includes free croissants in every box
• $13.25 – $17.25 per item, depending on box size

Gluten-Free

• Select from gluten-free seeded sourdough bread, brioche rolls, pasta, and pastries
• Items are produced in a dedicated gluten-free facility
• The 6- and 12-item box size includes free gluten-free chocolate chip cookies in every box instead of free croissants
• Price per item is $15.75 – $22.25, depending on box size
• Read more about my experience baking and tasting the Wildgrain gluten-free items in the last section of this Wildgrain review

Plant-Based

• Select from several choices of vegan sourdough breads and rolls, olive oil ciabatta, baguettes, and slow-fermented breads, croissants and plant-based desserts
• Only get presented with vegan options
• Has filters to include/exclude products with honey
• The 6- and 12-item box size includes free vegan croissants instead of free standard croissants
• Price per item is $13.25 – $17.25, depending on box size

Who Should Try a Wildgrain Box

Being members of Wildgrain has been such a great experience for me, Jessica, and Stacie (all of the dietitians on our team). Even though I make my own bread from time to time, I find that I can’t beat the convenience of having ready-to-bake high quality breads and more right in my freezer. 

I think Wildgrain is a good option for: 

• Anyone who loves having warm fresh-baked bread at meals or special occasions
• People who love the flavor of sourdough bread
• Busy adults and parents who appreciate a shortcut in the kitchen
• People who entertain or attend occasional potlucks and dinner parties
• People looking for gluten-free bread, pasta, cookies, and pastry items made in a dedicated gluten-free facility

Who Wildgrain is NOT a good option for: 

• People who enjoy only making their bread from scratch
• Households on a tight food budget

My Favorite Products

Personally, I love the Slow-Fermented Olive Oil Ciabatta Bread (it feeds my family of five for several meals), the Sourdough Sesame Seed Loaf, the Plain Sourdough Loaf (which tastes like it was made right at home, crispy on the outside and tender chewy on the inside), and the Giant Snickerdoodle Cookies.

“I needed to bring something to a holiday potluck but was running short on time. I baked two loaves of Wildgrain bread and made a quick batch of our Honey Butter. Everyone raved about it and asked if I spent hours in the kitchen making homemade bread. I was almost embarrassed to say that all I did was pull it out of the freezer and bake it for 25 minutes!” – Jessie, RD

Dietitian Stacie’s favorites are the Cranberry Pecan Sourdough Loaf (so good with our chicken salads), Parmesan Herb Biscuits, and the Blueberry Biscuits, which she says are the perfect handheld pie to serve to guests, and the Giant Chocolate Chunk Cookies.

“My husband and I had friends over for a last minute dinner get together and didn’t have a lot of time to prepare a meal and we were limited by what we had on hand. Thankfully I had some Wildgrain in my freezer. The Parmesan Herb Biscuits stole the show! It didn’t even matter what else was served. Everyone LOVED the biscuits.” – Stacie, RD

Dietitian Jessica loves the Sourdough Harvest Loaf, the 3-Cheese Sourdough for making sandwiches and serving with French Onion Meatballs, the Sourdough Rolls, and the Croissants (she likes to bake just one at a time to add to lunches).

“For my daughter’s 13th birthday slumber party, my husband was in charge of dinner and forgot to buy garlic bread. Wildgrain saved the day! I pulled out a loaf of sourdough, baked it, then sliced it while still warm and spread each piece with butter, garlic powder, and salt.” – Jessica, RD

A Few Baking And Serving Tips

• I find that it’s helpful to allow the baked loaves, rolls, croissants, and English muffins to sit on a cooling rack for at least 15 minutes before I slice into them, if not a few hours. 
• I bake the croissants 1-2 minutes less than the package directions indicate — until they are just starting to brown on the bottoms and tops, and then I let them cool completely. This way, they tend to be flakier and hold up better after being cooled and sliced, especially if I’m using them to make breakfast sandwiches.
• My husband gave me this trick, which I’ve been using often when baking a loaf: I’ll set a small oven-safe ramekin filled halfway with water (a few tablespoons) in the oven right on the rack near a loaf of the sourdough bread as it bakes. I find that this added moisture helps create a loaf that has a nice firm and crusty outside without being too flakey. 
• For the giant Chocolate Chip Cookies, I typically bake them 1-2 minutes longer than the package says. I love that I can just pull out a few (or even just one!) of the frozen cookie dough “pucks” to bake and serve warm. I don’t have to bake them all at once — just the portion that I need.

So, Is It Worth It?

Wildgrain is unique among meal delivery services because it focuses on artisan breads and other baked goods. This bread subscription service is similar to other food subscription deliveries I’ve tried in that I have flexibility over my delivery schedule, I can customize what’s in each box, and I can pause or cancel any time.

Personally, I find Wildgrain products are worth it for me. I love the taste, quality, and convenience of having a loaf of bread (or other baked goods) right at my fingertips to help round out a meal or make a dinner more special. I love the free croissants that I get with every box and I love being able to add seasonal items when they’re available. I genuinely look forward to receiving my Wildgrain box every month. 

If you still have questions after reading my Wildgrain review and the FAQs below, please leave them in the comments and I’ll do my best to answer them.

A Note About Wildgrain’s Gluten-Free Items

Several readers have asked my thoughts about the Wildgrain gluten-free items. I do not have celiac disease myself (and neither do Jess or Stacie) so none of us eats a strict gluten-free diet. However, I was interested to test out the Wildgrain gluten-free items so I could speak confidently about how they taste. So I added some gluten-free items to a recent Wildgrain box order of mine.

When unpacking the gluten-free items, they were noticeably heavier weight than the non-gluten-free items. I baked a loaf of the gluten-free seeded bread, the gluten-free sourdough bread, and the gluten-free chocolate chip cookies. I’ve included photos of those below.

I baked the gluten-free loaf for 8 minutes less than what was on the package, and I still think I could have baked it for less time (I think 10 minutes less than what’s on package would have been ideal), and then I let it fully cool before slicing.

The gluten-free loaves were really good, and my husband thought so, too. The texture was dense and slightly ‘springy’ but not in a weird way. The regular gluten-free sourdough was less dense, but still a bit springy. It had a nice tang (not quite the same as wheat-based sourdough) but there was an acidity there and it was pleasant.

The crust was really nice, too. It was thick and, well, ‘crusty’, just like I’d expect a good loaf of sourdough bread to have. The gluten-free cookies were a hit, too. They have a little more crunch on the outside than the standard chocolate chunk cookies, but they were chewy in the middle and had just the right amount of sweetness without any grittiness. Overall, I’d say the gluten-free items from Wildgrain are really nicely made and were a delicious eating experience, just like every Wildgrain product I’ve tried. I hope this feedback helps, if you’re interested in a gluten-free box from Wildgrain.

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