Mariani Honey Bar Trail Mix

Mariani Honey Bar Trail Mix
Photograph Copyright 2012 by Kelsey Wyatt

One of the primary ingredients in bars that are labeled as an energy bar or a snack bar is oats and a lot of people who are sensitive or allergic to gluten will also have problems with oats as well. And most of those bars also have a high chance to possess gluten or some sort of wheat-related ingredients anyway, so finding a simple snack bar that doesn't have such components can be a challenge.

But the snack food industry and companies that have long been making snack bars have definitely realized that there is a huge market for gluten-free bars and there are many companies that have not only started to provide such bars with zero gluten included, but which have also created several different gluten-free options instead of just a single token gluten-free bar.

Mariani Honey Bar Trail Mix
Photograph Copyright 2012 by Kelsey Wyatt

Generally, snack bars and protein bars are going to come in one of two different kinds. They'll either be a solid sort of bar, kind of like the "Think Thin" bars (of which the white chocolate covered kind is delicious), or they'll be breakable and nutty, sort of like the KIND Protein Bars that have recently started to become so popular that major cafes and restaurants have started including them as an option.

The Mariani Honey Bar Trail Mix is definitely one that mimics the KIND style of bars where it's a bunch of nuts that's held together by some sort of adhesive (made of honey in this case, although some competing bars use a sugar glaze). And the combination is one that seems easy to duplicate as many companies have started to make nutty bars that offer a good boost of protein. And while such bars will usually be a little high with their fat content, nutritionists would likely be quick to point out that it's "good" fat and not the bad trans-fat kind that might be in a bag of potato chips.

For anyone who is particularly interested in eating natural ingredients that might also be vegetarian or free of preservatives, this particular bar seems to fit the bill there as the manufacturer has printed a whole host of labels on the bar's wrapper that declare things like "gluten free" and vegetarian. It's fairly interesting, but many gluten-free food makers these day seem to believe that anyone who might want (or need) to eat a gluten-free lifestyle would also be on the lookout for natural foods.

Overall, this bar tastes fine and is exactly what one would expect from a nut-style protein or energy bar, but there's no wow-factor as far as the general recipe is concerned. It's just a very basic bar that will probably give someone an afternoon boost when they're fading in the late afternoon and need some protein.

Mariani Honey Bar Trail Mix
Photograph Copyright 2012 by Kelsey Wyatt

Mariani Honey Bar Trail Mix Report Card

The Good Stuff:

This bar does what it needs to do. It's natural, nutty and gluten-free. But it's probably not something that you'll search for should the grocery store fail to stock them one week. It's a trail mix bar that won't stand out from the competition, but since it's gluten-free, it does have a purpose.

What Could Improve:

The bar seems to have an overwhelming amount of peanuts and the manufacturer might benefit from the inclusion of a few different types of nuts in their recipe. It's just a very basic bar that might be forgotten if it wasn't otherwise a handy option for people who need a shot of protein and who also need to eat a gluten-free li

Think Thin Brownie Crunch High Protein Bar

Think Thin Brownie Crunch High Protein Bar
Photograph Copyright 2012 by Kelsey Wyatt

For decades now energy bars have come in two distinct formats. The candy format and the dirt format. Invariably, an energy bar is either going to taste like you're eating an Oreo cookie or is going to give someone a realistic view of the way dirt happens to taste. 

An energy bar or protein bar company will usually try to make its bars taste like candy by filling them with the nutritional equivalent of a bag of M&Ms or they will try and try to get people to eat their sawdust-inspired concoctions withe promise of "oh, but they're so healthy for you!"

How can someone expect to get healthier if they're eating something that's covered in a pound of chocolate? And who cares if something is healthy for you if it tastes like you're eating the softly woven strands of a pair of muddied shoelaces?

Think Thin Brownie Crunch High Protein Bar
Photograph Copyright 2012 by Kelsey Wyatt

Unfortunately, it's often absolutely impossible to determine whether an energy bar is actually going to taste good (like candy) or if it's going to be hard to get through the whole thing without tossing it out. At the grocery store, there have got to be at least fifty different brands of health food style bars out there that promise everything from a "low glycemic index" to a high protein jolt of energy.

For the Think Thin brand of energy bars, they have all the markings of a regular candy bar (they're usually covered in what appears to be a candy or chocolate coating) and yet the bars are usually stamped with keywords like "high protein" and "natural," which are definitely supposed to inspire confidence in whoever tries the bars.

But it's hard to actually believe an energy bar is healthy when the whole thing is covered in a layer of chocolate (as the Brownie Crunch variety is). And one of the interesting things about this particular company and their "health" bars is that they suggest on the front that the bar has zero grams of sugar and yet on the ingredients for the bar, there is 20g of "sugar alcohol" listed.

Think Thin Brownie Crunch High Protein Bar
Photograph Copyright 2012 by Kelsey Wyatt

Most people will never have heard of sugar alcohols before, so here's a rundown: it's essentially a "hydrogenated form of carbohydrate," and this means that it's often something that is used to reduce the intensity of fake sweeteners. The Think Thin people are (likely) utilizing sugar alcohols so as to provide sweetness in their protein bars without causing a spike in that person's blood sugar.

So, given the fact that these bars actually taste good and seem to be a great choice for a boost of protein in the middle of the day or perhaps before a large workout, the fact that they have this "sugar alcohol" as part of their ingredients is something that you might have to consider as sugar alcohols do impact the blood sugar somewhat so if you're sensitive to sugar, don't pop too many of these things.

And really, you shouldn't have to as they are nicely filling and are probably a much better way to pass the day or prepare for a workout than eating an actual candy bar. This variety does indeed taste like a brownie and has the nice bonus of a chocolate shell around its exterior. As a protein bar (and something that is advertised as a healthy option), these bars are quite good and are worth a try if you're looking for a gluten-free energy bar option.

Think Thin Brownie Crunch High Protein Bar
Photograph Copyright 2012 by Kelsey Wyatt

Think Thin Browning Crunch High Protein Bar Report Card

The Good Stuff:

This thing tastes like a brownie and it's got the advertised protein in it. As protein bars are notoriously low on taste or are often just a candy bar disguised by some clever marketing, the Think Thin people seem to have pulled only a minor amount of tomfoolery with the fact that they print "zero sugar" on the front of the bar yet there is a level of sugar alcohols in the bar. Fake sugar, but a type of sweetener nevertheless.

What Could be Improved:

The bar is quite dense and although that's almost to be expected with protein bars, this variety could benefit from a less compact nature. It tastes good, so it's definitely worth a try, but it is a little dense sort of beast (and it'll probably make you thirsty as well so have a glass of water nearby!).

NuGo FREE Carrot Cake Bars

NuGo FREE Carrot Cake Bars
Photograph Copyright 2012 by Kelsey Wyatt

Way back in the dark ages known as the 1980s, there were many efforts by food manufacturers to make foods that were labeled as "healthy" and "nutritious." These generally sawdust inspired meal options were often found in health food stores where it was usually best to go in, get some vitamins and run out of there before you were seduced into purchasing a Tiger's Milk Bar on accident.

(those folks might bill their food as the "first" nutrition bar, but that isn't always something that warrants acclaim... let's hope they've improved their recipe over the past several decades)

NuGo FREE Carrot Cake Bars
Photograph Copyright 2012 by Kelsey Wyatt

And it's not hard at all to find various types of bars that are meant for everything from increasing energy to weight loss to nutritional boosts and for the most part, the majority of manufacturers of these things have accepted the idea that if something doesn't taste good, nobody will eat it. Notice the word "majority" in the last sentence since it would seem that not everyone has caught onto the wisdom that food needs to taste good.

Even if someone is staring at a bowlful of beets, those things better have been prepared in such a way that they will end up being tasty. For the folks who are in charge of making the recipes for NuGo FREE Carrot Cake Bars, it would seem as though they missed the mark a bit not only with the actual recipe, but also with the labeling on the exterior packaging. One might even suggest that a small amount of false advertising was at work here.

On the packaging, one might think that this bar was supposed to taste approximately like a piece of carrot cake, albeit in some sort of bar form. But interestingly, in examining the overall packaging, it's rather easy to notice that there really isn't anything of note said regarding the fact that this is anything other than a piece of carrot cake hidden beneath a solid plastic wrapper.

NuGo FREE Carrot Cake Bars
Photograph Copyright 2012 by Kelsey Wyatt

The picture, the description and the title of the item on the front of the bar say nothing about the fact that what's inside doesn't bear any resemblance to carrot cake either in form and appearance or regarding taste. 

The subtle hint that the bar is "made delicious with cinnamon" is simply the company's way of trying to cover up the fact that they've pulled a fast one. There is not carrot cake here!

The company should be given a "thank you" regarding their attempt to offer some sort of snack bar (or nutrition bar? energy bar? who knows what this bar's purpose is...) to people who have gluten allergies, but it's hard to do with the current recipe. Really, the bar does seem as though it would be appetizing even though it sort of looks like a Rice Krispy Treat with some odd stripes of frosting on it, but the taste is just odd.

The nutritional content of the bar isn't that shocking and while the calories seem  ten or twenty above where they should be, the fat content and sodium shouldn't scare anyone away. The sugar in the bar is a tad bit high and if someone is actually worried about their calorie consumption and their daily dose of sugar and other ingredients, this particular bar probably isn't the right snack to eat.

NuGo FREE Carrot Cake Bars
Photograph Copyright 2012 by Kelsey Wyatt

NuGo FREE Carrot Cake Bars Report Card:

The Good Stuff:

Drawing a blank here. It's honestly not something this writer would recommend to anyone whether they needed a gluten free snack or not. In addition, suggesting that someone who was a fan of carrot cake try this bar might put them off carrot cake forever. This bar is best left on the shelf. Perhaps the company's other flavors would be a better choice.

Things to Improve:

Essentially, the entire recipe for this bar should be tossed and a new recipe should be created. The contents of this bar just don't remind one of carrot cake and while the advertised cinnamon is certainly apparent, this spice is hardly enough to cover up the fact that the bar tastes like a failed 1980s energy bar experiment and not a delicious slice of carrot cake.

There are certainly other gluten free bar options that are leagues better than NuGo FREE's carrot cake flavor and it shouldn't be that hard to find a suitable replacement for a gluten free snack.

KIND Protein Bars - Gluten and Wheat Free

KIND Plus Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate + Protein Bar
Photograph Copyright 2012 Kelsey Wyatt

There are often several shelves of energy bars and protein bars in the average grocery store and it doesn't matter whether you're looking at a store shelf in an organic paradise or just a regular grocery store - most of those bars are going to be filled to the brim with all sorts of evil contents like wheat, oats and gluten. In fact, one of the interesting things about such bars is that they're often called "protein" bars, but the first several ingredients aren't anything that resemble protein.

But this doesn't mean that all the protein and energy bars out there are full of wheat and several proclaim to be free of gluten. Now, the problem with most protein bars is that they're usually a bit on the dry side. The more ingredients that are banned from the bars for allergy reasons, the more protein bars tend to taste like sawdust. And then the problem with the bars that don't taste like sawdust is the fact that they're basically just a candy bar and if your allergies permit it, it's often a better idea to just go pick up a Snickers bar.

KIND Plus Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate + Protein Bar
Photograph Copyright 2012 Kelsey Wyatt

A recent addition to the wide array of protein and energy bars on the market are a series called KIND Plus bars which are produced by a company hailing from New York. The company makes a number of different styles of bars with varying ingredients such as fruit, nuts and various types of sweets. And that's definitely one of the selling points of these bars. They taste like candy bars. 

And they're not always low on fat so if you find a particular bar that strikes your fancy, make sure you don't toss back three or four at a sitting.

If your tastes run to chocolate, it's definitely recommended that you try the KIND Plus Peanut Butter & Dark Chocolate + Protein bar as there are a lot of great nuts in it and it's got a heavy dose of chocolate as well. But be warned, the small 120 calorie item does have 13 grams of fat. For the average active adult, this is a full 20% of your daily fat allowance.

KIND Plus Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate + Protein Bar
Photograph Copyright 2012 Kelsey Wyatt

The one redeeming thing about the fat content is that it's likely a significant portion of it comes from the nuts that are included in the bar. The ingredient list on the Peanut Butter & Dark Chocolate variety reads like a can of mixed nuts:

• Peanuts
• Almonds
• Walnuts
• Macadamias
• Cashews
• Brazil Nuts

Another great aspect of these bars is the fact that the manufacturer prints that they are non-GMO, which is not something that every protein and energy bar company strives to provide with their products. As an added bonus, certain varieties of KIND bars are also low in sugar and some do have a nice amount of fiber in them as well.

KIND Plus Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate + Protein Bar
Photograph Copyright 2012 Kelsey Wyatt

KIND Protein Bars Report Card

The Good Things:

KIND makes a large variety of different bars and there is likely to be one that suits anyone's tastes. It is this author's suggestion that everyone should try the Peanut Butter & Dark Chocolate variety. 

The company also promises non-GMO ingredients and one of the bonuses is that they offer varieties that are not only gluten free, but are also wheat free as well. This is something that some companies overlook when producing gluten free products.

What Could Be Improved:

It's not really an improvement that the company could make since nuts (which are a consistent and significant ingredient in most bars) do have a lot of fat in them, but if you find a bar from KIND that you like, it's vital that they're not treated like snack size candy bars! Go easy on these delicious bars!

Tips for a Better Protein Bar Experience:

Consider eating one of these bars before going out on a run or before a workout. The high protein content granted from the nuts is a great way to get some instant energy for a hard workout.

To learn more about KIND PLUS bars and all of the varieties of protein bars that the company offers, click here.