Review - Betty Lou's Just Great Stuff Bars

Brand:  Betty Lou’s  

Flavor:  Just Great Stuff Superberry Acai Bar

Where to get it:  here @ BettyLousInc.com

                I’m already a huge fan of the Betty Lou’s family of products, and these bars are but a small exception…I can’t stand acai, so they never really had a change. That aside, if you like acai, these are just another great vegan staple from Betty Lou’s. They’re soft and chewy like a fruit bar, but they have more substance to them, similar to a Nakd or Lara Bar. Lots of good fruit and nuts ground up in these as well, so no funky weird ingredients. If you’re following a straightforward approach to your food, this is a great choice for a midday snack.

               

Tastes like:  Acai & protein powder

Taste rating:  6/10

Qualities:  Vegetarian, vegan, Gluten free, Made in the USA, USDA Organic

What’s in it:

Review - Naturalia Fruit Wich

Brand:  Naturalia

Flavor:  Pineapple Mango Fruit Wich

Where to get it: Looks to be available in HEB stores, I couldn't find anywhere online. 

                Another super creative fruit snack! It really does surprise me that a company can take literally just fruit and turn it into a unique snack. This snack contains pineapple and mango – nothing else, and it’s still super unique. It’s not a bar or leather, it’s crispy little chippies that taste like fruit, but don’t disintegrate like an actual chip. More than once, I’ve eaten so much pineapple that my mouth has taken on that weird-acid-pain-uh-oh feeling. The presence of the mango tempers that acidic pineapple situation quite a bit, which makes it really nice while still having the pineapple taste.

               

Tastes like:   Less acidic pineapple

Taste rating:  10/10

Qualities:   Gluten free, vegetarian, vegan, all-natural, raw, Non-GMO

What’s in it:

Review - Rise Bar

Brand:  Rise Bar

Flavor:  Almond Honey Mini Protein Bar

Where to get it: here @ RiseBar.com

I really enjoy a true-honey taste, and this bar provides that really nicely. It’s literally made of almonds, honey, and whey protein isolate. I don’t think you’ll find a more straight-forward protein bar on the market, anywhere.

Imagine taking a scoop of your favorite protein powder. Now, smash up some almonds, and then glob it all together with a nice dollop of honey. Gross right? Rise Bar takes the dirty work out of the process, but gives you exactly that. The blueberry coconut energy bar has more ingredients, but they’re all whole ingredients – no weird stuff.

               

If you’re into simplicity that tastes pretty good to boot – Rise Bar is YOUR bar.

               

Tastes like:   Subdued Honey

Taste rating:  7/10

Qualities:   Non-GMO, Gluten free, Kosher

What’s in it:

Review - Bare Deelights BOA Bar

Brand:  Bare Deelights

Flavor:  Chocolate BOA Bar

Where to get it: here @ TheBOABar.com

                 I think this bar had a more distinct “banana bread” flavor than many other products that I’ve tried that claimed to be “banana bread” flavor. The bananas and oats are a really nice complement to each other there, and this bar doesn’t add a bunch of unnecessary junk to complicate the matter. No pumpkin seeds, no flax (barf), and no weird soy crisp chunks. THANK GOODNESS. I think I would have liked this bar a little better without the chocolate, just because I’m not a chocolate person, but it wasn’t an overpowering presence. That’s not a knock against the bar in any manner, that’s just me. The nutrition is just right for a good little snack, too – 160 calories, 8g fat, 7g protein, and only 4g sugars.

               

Tastes like:  Oaty banana

Taste rating:  7/10

Qualities:  Non-GMO, vegetarian, vegan, Kosher, Gluten free, Made in the USA, USDA Organic

What’s in it:

Review - Nuts About Granola Forager Nut & Seed

Brand:  Nuts About Granola

Flavor:  Forager Original Nut & Seed

Where to get it: here @ NutsAboutGranola.com

                I appreciate people trying to be low carb, or Paleo, or Primal, or whatever you want to call it…I really do. But that means there are some things you are just going to have to live without. Potatoes, bread, even granola. I don’t really care if you make an oatless granola, but you can’t just throw nuts and seeds in a bag and call it granola. The presence of raisins in this bag makes this trail mix at best. Dried quinoa, millet, amaranth, I don’t really care if your granola is “untraditional”, but you have to have something in there.

                This is literally nuts, seeds, and raisins. This is not granola in any form. I’m not saying nuts and seeds are bad, but THEY ARE NOT GRANOLA. If you want granola, this won’t do. If you want to use this for anything you have traditionally used granola for in the past, this will also definitely not do. Also, it wasn’t even remarkable in any manner when evaluated on a “nuts & seeds” platform, rather than a granola one. Sorry guys, this is a big miss no matter what you call it.

               

Tastes like:  Nuts & seeds and not granola

Taste rating:  0 if you wanted granola, still just a 5 if you wanted nuts & seeds

Qualities:  Vegetarian, Kosher, Gluten free, Non-GMO

What’s in it:     

Review - Chicken Nacho Meat Chips

Brand:  Meat Chips

Flavor:  Chicken Nacho

Where to get it: here @ MeatChips.com

                                                                                                                                                      

                “Meat Chips,” well, that’s certainly an attention-grabbing name! I didn’t know if they would be jerky, tortilla chips, or some weird freeze-dried experience. Turns out, they taste pretty much like your standard tortilla chip with some seasoning on them. Not exactly like a true tortilla chip, but I’d say maybe 85% like them. I ate them plain, but you could totally bust into these with some salsa and be pretty dang happy, I’d say. I’ve had a lot of protein chips, and they have pretty much all had varying degrees of weirditude. Not these. No weird texture, no bizarre aftertaste, no sticking-to-the-roof-of-your-mouth…kaplech!

                As far as I can tell, the chicken is ground with the corn in the chip making process, which I am sure is essential to making it not ultra-weird, like it sounds like it might be. The nutritionals on these might scare you off – 380 calories, 17g fat, and 31g carbs – but I did find that they didn’t spike my blood sugar AT ALL, which I was not expecting.. I checked it about an hour after eating them, on a day I DID NOT go to the gym, and it was cruising along at a very pleasant 99.Plus, they have 21g of protein in the same parameters as the other stats, which is really killer. If you’re going to eat tortilla chips, you’re going to get all that fat and calorie content anyway; you might as well get a massive dose of protein while you’re at it.

                These are going on my short list of snacks that I’ll continue to eat even though I’ve already reviewed them.

                 

               

Tastes like:  Lightly seasoned tortilla chips

Taste rating:  9/10

Qualities:  Gluten free, Made in the USA

What’s in it:

Review - Fly Joy Snack Bars

Brand:  Fly Joy

Flavor:  Cashew Cookie Dough Snack Bar

Where to get it: here @ FlyJoy.com

                 So good so good so good!! With all of the nutritional boxes that this bar checks, I really can’t believe how good it is! I have four flavors, but so far I have only eaten the Cashew Cookie Dough bar, and man, it’s (as I mentioned) SO GOOD. I really can’t explain the flavor much more than, it tastes exactly like chocolate chip cookie dough, but soft and chewy. It’s definitely on the sweet side, but what a fantastic treat. I would eat this over a traditional candy bar ten times out of ten. That includes Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, which are my all-time bad girl favorite. The fat content is a really reasonable 8g, and I’m okay with the 24g of carbs (including 11g) of sugar, because darn it, sometimes you just need a treat – and there are much worse treats that you could choose. Caloric content under 200, and vegan to boot, this is one that you will want to buy by the box.

               

Tastes like:  Chocolate chip cookie dough

Taste rating:  10/10

Qualities:  Non-GMO, vegetarian, vegan, Kosher, Gluten free, Made in the USA, all natural

What’s in it:

Review - Eat Real Yoghurt Coated Fruit and Nut Bar

Brand:  Eat Real

Flavor:   Yoghurt Coated Fruit & Nut Bar

Where to get it: here @ assorted locations

                Have I ever given a fruit & nut bar a 10? I don’t recall, but if I have, it hasn’t been for a long time, and it hasn’t happened very often. This bar FAR exceeded my expectations. It’s part granola bar, part fruit bar, and then there’s this delicious, soft layer of yogurt coating on the bottom that is just so spot on. This Eat Real company has some really good stuff, but I think it’s only widely available in the UK & Australia/NZ. If you’re in the States you might be out of luck, but I’m in the States and I managed to get my hands on a couple of these somehow, so they’re out there. Grab ‘em if you can.

               

Tastes like:   The perfect fruit & oat bar

Taste rating:  10/10

Qualities:   Gluten free, all natural

What’s in it:

Review - Dipperz

Brand:  Wonderfully Raw

Flavor:  Dipperz Cheezy

Where to get it: here @ mycocoroons.com

                I’ve had kale prepared like this, but I was super intrigued to see this 3-veggie mix coated in cashew cheese. Also, broccoli is one of my most favorite things, so this was even more exciting for me. Dipperz really earns the “z” in “cheezy” with these guys. The cheese presence is a heavy one, which is pretty exciting considering that these are vegan (so there’s no actual cheese in them). I liked the broccoli pieces best, they remained fluffier and held more of the coating, I found. The carrots and cauliflower kind of got all mixed up into a cheezy pile of stuff, but that’s alright, just tip the bag up into your face. Hands-free fun!         

               

Tastes like:  Cheezy veggies, but crunchy  

Taste rating:  7/10

Qualities:  Organic, Gluten free, Non-GMO, vegetarian, vegan, raw

What’s in it:

Review - Fiber Gourmet Cheese Thinables

Brand:  Fiber Gourmet

Flavor:  Cheese Thinables

Where to get it: here @ fibergourmet.com

                If you were dieting, and you could eat Cheez-its for 140 calories per serving, or you could eat these Cheese Thinables which are almost as good as Cheez-its for 60 calories, would you make that trade? I sure would. I’m not going to tell you that you won’t be able to tell the difference, because I think you probably will. Although…maybe not as much if you’re dipping these in hummus or some yogurt-dill concoction (side note:  dill is just the BEST). I think the point of these crackers is that they have a truckload of fiber (11g per 28g of crackers), but I got distracted by how low the calories are for how similar-tasting the crackers are to the Big CI that we’re all used to. Either way, this is a no-brainer swap!

               

Tastes like:  Generic Cheez-Its?

Taste rating:  8/10

Qualities:  Kosher, vegetarian

What’s in it:

Chipz Happen, and they're freakin' awesome!

                A short while ago I wrote this review about some chips (Chipz, as it were) that had me over the moon. Well, the nice people who make these Chipz noticed, and were just heartbroken that I had only been able to try one of the four flavors that they make, so they sent me a big ol’ delicious box of their Chipz! Alright, maaaaaaaaybe heartbroken is a stretch and they didn’t use those exact words, but the end result was the same – Chipz have happened to me!

                The three flavors that I hadn’t tried are Himalayan Pink Salt, Spice-z Parmesan Garlic, and Cinnful  Sweet Heat. They also included the Parmesan Garlic which I had tried, and honestly I’m pretty thrilled to have more of. The Himalayan Pink Salt and Cinnful Sweet Heat are vegan, so there’s really no reason for anyone to have to miss out on these snacks.

                Something else these fine folks have done is start the Kidz Happen Foundation - kidzHappen.org. This foundation awards scholarships to kids who might not be able to attend college without financial assistance. Chipz Happen donates a percent of their sales to these kids. As a small business, this isn’t something they’re obligated to do for PR reasons, or to get a big tax break at the end of the year, this is something that they have wanted to do for the sake of the kids. That’s a big deal.

                Thanks again for the love, Chipz Happen. Small businesses with fantastic products are the reason I’m here, eating my way through the best snacks I can get my grabby little hands on. Not only are these chipz totally delicious (which I said even before they sent me goodies, so don’t accuse me of taking bribes!), but they sure do care about their product, their reputation, and their customers.

                Have Chipz Happen-ed to you yet? Don’t pass them up if you get the chance!

The site!

Buy the Chipz!

And don't forget kidzHappen!

Review - R Bar

Brand:  Well Rounded Snacks

Flavor:  PB & J R Bar

Where to get it: here @ RBarEnergy.com

                Organic dates, organic raisins, organic peanuts. That’s it. That’s what you’re getting with this bar. I happen to really like all three of those components, so this bar was a hit with me. If you don’t like raisins, you will certainly not like this bar. I’m not too sure about the “PB & J” claim here…maybe R Bites was trying to take the angle that the raisins equate to grape jelly? Whatever the angle, it’s not really working out that way; this tastes nothing like a PB & J anything. That doesn’t mean it’s not good, though. I must confess that I was missing the salt in a big way, since this is basically trail mix all smooshed into a puck. However, I will admit that not everyone is as debased as I, and this is certainly a more healthy option without salt in it.

                 

               

Tastes like:  A giant raisin

Taste rating:  8/10

Qualities:  All natural, Gluten free, Vegetarian, Vegan, organic, Made in the USA

What’s in it:

Review - Zing Bar

Brand:  Zing Bar

Flavor:  Almond Blueberry

Where to get it: here @ ZingBars.com

                 A bar is a bar is a bar…how to choose? If this Zing bar is available in your pile of choices, I highly recommend that you give it a go. This bar has real blueberry taste, like when you mix fresh blueberries into pancake batter. The almonds mellow out the grains and create a really great mix in this bar. It’s also uncrushable, so it’s great on the go to throw in a purse or backpack – especially if you’re like me, and bars roll around in your purse for a couple weeks before you remember that they’re there, usually smashed into oblivion.

               

Tastes like:  Real blueberries and grains

Taste rating:  7/10

Qualities: Kosher, gluten-free, vegetarian

What’s in it:

Review - 18 Rabbits Jr. Granola Bars

Brand:  18 Rabbits Jr.

Flavor:  Various

Where to get it: here @ 18rabbits.com

                 The wrapper says (in part) “Perfect for lunch boxes and purses”. Can I just take a second to let everyone know how much I appreciate this? Kids need healthy snacks, it’s true…but so do adults! And do you know WHY this little bar is perfect for purses? Aside from its portable size, which nearly all bars have, it’s basically uncrushable. It’s not very fun to be on-the-go, starving, and realize that your package of peanut butter crackers has become obliterated into literal dust at the bottom of your purse.

                Despite being totally sturdy, they have the consistency of a chew granola bar. The fruit flavors are fairly muted, which is fine with me, because we’re all here for the oatmeal cookie-type experience anyway, stop lying to yourself. They also donate at least 1 out of every 100 bars made, and at 130 calories, this is a snacker’s snack.

               

Tastes like:  Super yummy granola bars

Taste rating:  8/10

Qualities:  Non-GMO, Organic, Kosher, vegetarian,

What’s in it: (Chocolate Banana Flavor)

Review - Skout Apple Cinnamon Trail Bar

Brand:  Skout Bar

Flavor:  Apple Cinnamon

Where to get it: here @ SkoutOrganic.com

                I’ve tried Skout products before, and I’m always impressed with how simple, easy, and good-tasting they are. This bar was absolutely no exception - it’s one of the best fruit bars that I’ve tried. The texture is thick and chewy, and the apple flavor shines through in a very genuine way. I think it’s safe to say that any Skout snack is a great choice if you want something simple, good for you, and true to flavor.

Tastes like:  Sweet apple happiness

Taste rating:  10/10

Qualities:  Gluten free, Non-GMO, vegetarian, vegan, Certified organic

What’s in it:

Review - B'Bites Peanut Butter Crisp

Brand:  B’ Bites

Flavor:  Peanut Butter Crisp

Where to get it: here @ bbitesnacks.com

                These little blocks are full of admirable ingredients, low calories, and low fat. They just taste so similar to so many other products on the market that I wouldn’t seek them out. The peanut butter flavor is not central to these like the title implies, the brown rice syrup flavor is the front runner here. The texture is good - they aren’t dry or sawdust-y at all. I hate that I don’t have more to say about them, I think if I hadn’t already tried so many other products, I might have a fresher outlook on these. If you don’t know what my “tastes like” on these mean, I think you should try them to form your own opinion. So snacky, so jaded. ‘Tis the life I have chosen to lead.

                 

               

Tastes like:  Everything else in the Brown Rice Syrup Brigade

Taste rating:  5/10

Qualities:  All natural, Gluten free, Vegetarian, Vegan

What’s in it:

Review - Don't Go Nuts Bar

Brand:  Don’t Go Nuts

Flavor:  Blueberry Blast Bar

Where to get it: here @ Amazon.com

                Something bad happened to this bar. I’m convinced. Bad batch? Bad life choices? Bad hair day? It has to be something. These can’t ALL taste like this. Unfortunately, I had but one bar to try. The initial taste was really good – soft, nice white chocolate flavor…I even made a little “ooooh” noise. Several seconds later, I was ditching the rest of the bar in the garbage can. The blueberry presence has such a weird aftertaste, I really feel like something might have been wrong. There was just this overwhelming blueberry taste, but also like it was chemical- or perfume-related. If I see these bars again, or am sent some, I will certainly get you guys an update.

                 

               

Tastes like:  Like a tasty blueberry cake…that’s been doused in grandma’s perfume

Taste rating:  2/10

Qualities:  Non-GMO, Kosher, Certified Organic

What’s in it:

Review - One Bar

Brand:  One Bar

Flavor:  Cherry

Where to get it: here @ theonebar.com

                You really can’t argue with this bar. It’s little, it’s simple. It’s good for you. Pick a fruit that you like, and you’ll enjoy this bar as a quick snacky. It’s more than a fruit leather, it’s thicker and takes more time to chew. I also really like the simplicity of the packaging to go along with the simplicity of the product. Thanks for not putting dancing cherries or apples on rollercoasters on the front of your wonderful little product, One Bar.

                 

               

Tastes like:  Meaty fruit

Taste rating:  8/10

Qualities:  Gluten free, Vegetarian, Vegan

What’s in it:

Review - Bakery On Main Granola

Brand:  Bakery on Main

Flavor:  Apple Raisin Walnut Gluten-Free Granola

Where to get it: here @ BakeryOnMain.com

                A long time ago, I went on one of those popular prepackaged food diets (one of the most popular ones here in the US). I didn’t work, but they had a cereal packet that I was OBSESSED with. It had little balls of whatsit (as does this granola) and things that looked like Cheerios. It was ridiculously expensive, and of course even more so if you tried to order it outside of one of their weekly meal plans. I said goodbye to that cereal, and have yet to find anything like it…until now.

                This is marketed as granola, but it’s not really like any other granola that I’ve had. I typically like to mix my granolas into a yogurt, which I would not recommend with this, as there are no oats to get deliciously al dente, and the circles (that you can see in the picture) are corn-based. I dumped this stuff into a mug with some unsweetened vanilla almond milk, and BAM! I was right back in fancy cereal town! Sweet, cinnamon-y, apple-y deliciousness. As a granola, I say nay. As a cereal, I say yay!

                 

               

Tastes like:  Apple-y cereal

Taste rating:  8/10

Qualities:  Non-GMO, Kosher, vegetarian, Gluten-free, vegan

What’s in it: