I was a little nervous to buy this Odwalla bar because I’ve had one of their bars before that I was not a fan of. This one though was from their line of “chewy nut bars” that I hadn’t heard of, so I figured I could give Odwalla one more shot.

I will however, continue to be totally creeped out by Odwalla’s weird bird mascot. He looks like a soulless man-eating daggar-beaked pterodactyl sent straight from hell to poke my eyes out.  Seriously, look at how recklessly he rides that bike downhill with those face protrusions pointed straight toward certain calamity! Think of the children! 😉

I couldn’t get a good shot of the ingredients or nutritional information because the font was white on an orange background, very hard to read.

It has 220 calories, perfect for a satisfying snack. Only 8 grams of sugar in this one which is fantastic. I’m pretty happy with the size of this bar too, it really fills up every inch of the packaging it comes in so you know exactly what you’re getting.

Appearance: As you can see, there are tons of whole oats and large pieces of almond all glued together with a shiny golden lacquer.

Texture: You’d think it would be crunchy with the candy-like coating and huge almond pieces, but it is actually chewy as advertised. It’s flexible and bendy and not too sticky in your hand.

Taste: If I had to describe this flavor in one word I would choose “golden.” It has a buttery, honeyed, freshly baked sweet dinner roll kind of flavor. It reminds me a lot of caramel popcorn with it’s balance of sweet and salty. The almonds are roasted and flavorful and taste like those hot candied almonds you can buy at fairs. Incredible.

Overall, I am so impressed with this bar. It tastes pretty sinful for being full of such wholesome ingredients. This is one I’m sure I’ll buy again, especially since Odwalla bars are very affordable.

Do you prefer chewy or crunchy bars?

July 27, 2011 Alayna Discussion 6 comments

Here’s one I don’t allow myself to indulge in too often: Pro Bars. These are one of the more expensive bars on the shelf, but they’re so hard to pass up with all the gorgeous fruit mosaic labelings and truly unique flavors.

I chose this one specifically because I had no idea what it was. Most of the flavors are very descriptive, but this Art’s Original Blend was a mystery to me. From the ingredient list I at least knew that I was in for peanut butter and chocolate chips, and really what more could I ask for? 😉

There are 19 grams of sugar and that’s more than I like, but at least it’s not full of corn syrup or anything gross like that. The 10 grams of protein is a nice touch.

At 370 calories, I really feel like this is more of a meal replacement bar than a snack. I love that Pro Bar is honest about that too. It says right on the front that it’s a “whole food meal bar,” that tells me right away that this is a meal in and of itself.

I couldn’t be happier with that ingredient list. It’s rather long, but most everything in it is real food, much of it in a raw state.

Appearance: It’s a bit smaller than anticipated, and with a $3.49 price tag that can be a little upsetting. It kinda feels like I’m being tricked with the rectangular packaging making the bar appear wider than it is. But inside, everything is as it seems in this bar. Whole nuts, seeds, and dried fruits are held together with what looks like a peanut butter glue.

Texture: It has a great soft and chewy texture, and even though all the ingredients are whole in this bar, it isn’t a chore to chew through. Bites flake off in big chunks, but it isn’t so crumbly as to be messy. The big chocolate chips have a wonderfully soft texture, not chalky or hard.

Taste: It’s hard to explain, but you can actually taste each individual ingredient. If I think about the papaya, I can taste the papaya. If I try to taste the sesame seeds, they come rushing to the foreground. If I’m not thinking about it, it tastes mostly like a mixture of brown rice syrup and peanut butter, studded all over with fat chocolate chips and juicy sweet raisins. The chocolate chips have an incredible flavor too, almost fruity like raspberry or blackberry.

Overall, I absolutely loved this bar. The flavor is incredible and the ingredients are so wholesome. With it’s higher price and calorie content though, it’s definitely one that I would reserve for those random occasions that I miss a meal and need a healthy snack to fill me up for hours.

Do you ever use snacks like this when you know you’re going to miss a mealtime?

July 21, 2011 Alayna Discussion 2 comments

I’ve been meaning to give these Raw Revolution bars a shot for a very long time. I happen to love “green superfoods” like spirulina and chlorella so long as they’re not too aggressively bitter, so I thought that I might like this one if it actually tasted like banana, but there’s always that chance that it could end up tasting like a freshly mowed lawn.

I love it when companies make an effort to listen to the dietary needs and wants of consumers by making their products as inoffensive as possible. This one is gluten free, dairy free, soy free, peanut free, vegan, kosher, and contains no artificial preservatives or ingredients to speak of. While I may not necessarily need all of those things, I feel better knowing that this is an extremely “clean” product free of any crap that I don’t need to put in my body.

It clocks in at 170 calories. Not bad, but I tend to feel like 200 to 250 is best for a snack that actually satisfies your hunger for more than a minute. 18 grams of sugar is a little high, but most of the sugars are fruit sugars and the rest is agave nectar, not the worst sweeteners out there. Those are the two things I look at most often when selecting these bars, calorie content and sugar.

Appearance: Darker than expected, definitely from the dates. Looks smooth and ingredients are evenly distributed.

Taste: Mmm! I expected this to taste like banana bread as many banana-based bars do, but it actually tastes like a pina colada! A very present and natural-tasting banana flavor with a twinge of what tastes like pineapple, though there is no pineapple in the bar. And though it’s packed to the gills with green stuff, there really isn’t any bitter or grassy flavor to speak of, just tastes like delicious bananas and dates.

Texture: Smooth and pasty like a Larabar but with little bits of nuts mixed in.

Overall, I loved this one! It’s a really original flavor that I haven’t come across elsewhere. I like that I can take in some healthy green stuff without my mouth tasting like it’s packed full of lawn clippings soaked in algae. And while it has the similar smooth and pasty texture of a Larabar that I love so much, it’s a bit larger and therefore more satisfying than a Larabar. WIN!

Do you prefer smooth or crunchy bars?

July 10, 2011 Alayna Discussion 3 comments