Review: Genuine Health Fermented Vegan Proteins+

Tweet

Pin It

I'm not vegan and I'm actually not even vegetarian anymore - after 12 or so years of being strictly vegetarian, I'm now a pescatarian. That manifests itself as occasionally ordering salmon at a restaurant or, more frequently, enjoying sushi and sashimi. 

It's a recent change, but I've been positively surprised by how easily my body adapted to it! I have a sensitive stomach and worried it could cause me some pain, but my body has been happy having fish once or twice a week for the last month or two, since the switch to pescetarianism. Yay!

Still, I love vegetarian and vegan food and the vast majority of the time I still order vegetarian and vegan food when I'm out and still eat mostly vegetarian food at home. A mostly plantbased diet gives me energy, keeps my stomach and my skin happy, and just suits my tastes the best. Since most of my days are still vegetarian, I'm still always interested in learning about healthy plantbased sources of protein. 

So many protein bars and powders are full of ingredients that I wouldn't even want in a skincare product, much less in something I'm eating. Genuine Health is different - they're committed to creating products that are actually good for you. 

They're the self-proclaimed fermentation experts and the products in their fermented vegan proteins+ line feature fermented organic spirulina, fermented alfalfa, fermented mung bean sprouts, fermented organic quinoa sprouts, fermented pea protein isolate, fermented organic hemp, and fermented brown rice. I love that it's all stuff that I recognize as food!

Why choose fermented protein, especially when there are so few brands out there doing it? Easy - fermented plant protein is 40% better absorbed and utilized by the body than the same protein, unfermented. 

Read More...

Review + Giveaway: GoMacro's Thrive Bars

Tweet

Pin It

MacroBars are delicious and GoMacro, the company behind them, has recently released a new line of Thrive bars! 

Thrive bars are made up of a superfood ancient grain blend, are vegan, and provide plant-based protein, essential fatty acids, and prebiotic fiber.

I tried six delicious flavors - chocolate, nuts & sea salt, blueberry lavender, chocolate peanut butter chip, ginger lemon, almond apricot, and caramel coconut.

How delicious do those flavors sound? Especially chocolate, nuts & sea salt, peanut butter chocolate chip (noticing a trend?), and caramel coconut.

Thrive Bars are all USDA-certified organic, non-gmo, kosher, certified gluten-free, soy-free, and 100% vegan. There's nothing in them that you don't want in you! 

And unlike some bars, where it feels like you either have to suck it up and pay shipping fees or you have to go on an epic journey to hunt them down, Thrive Bars are available in stores at Whole Foods as of this month, October 2016. Yay!

I can definitely stand behind their front of package pitch 'Ingredients: Grown Not Made.' Works for me!

Especially because they're chewy, the right amount of sweet, and flavorful.

They're filling, hearty, chewy, and have a nice crunch from the ancient grains. I liked all the flavors, but was surprised to find that I liked the fruit flavors, like Ginger Lemon (above) a lot more than I expected! They're not boring or flat at all, likely due to the spices that they mix in.

But don't take my word for it - try them yourselves! The team at GoMacro is giving away one box of assorted Thrive bars (MSRP $26.28) to one lucky Living, Learning, Eating reader. 

Just enter below by midnight on 11/05. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

If you don't want to wait, get 30% off of your order of Thrive bars using the promo code Thrive30.

Read More...

Recipe: Nutty for Nuts Bars

Tweet

Pin It

We're well into June now and with the warm weather and long days comes a lot more time spent outside and, by extension, a lot more fun social activities like potlucks and parties for many of us!

I love baking, so I always try to get dibs on dessert when I go to a potluck. Not only is making desserts loads of fun, but desserts are often also easier to make ahead of time and transport to the party location, since they generally don't have to be kept particularly hot or cold in transport.

These nutty bars are a sweet, delicious, and indulgent dessert that's a big hit at parties, potlucks, and bake sales. They're fun to make, a great way to switch things up from the typical chocolate chip cookies and brownies, and are perfect served at room temperature. They're very rich, so you get a lot of bars out of the batch. Read on for the recipe!

Read More...

Tips for Better Train Travel (AKA There's Spinach in My Chocolate)

Tweet

Pin It

I'm moving to Boston for the summer on Sunday (summer is coming so quickly!) and I'm going to take the Amtrak up again, like last year.

I go/have gone back and forth between NYC and Boston quite often over the years and Amtrak is almost always my choice. It's faster, more reliable, and more comfortable than a bus. It's slower than flying, but if you account for the time spent getting to the airports, which are, unlike train stations, outside of the city, as well as TSA time. It also has less strict limits on the amount of luggage allowed, which is great when the trip will last multi-months and you have to pack a lot.



I would honestly have expected it to be much cheaper than a flight, but it's usually only slightly cheaper. It's still always the overall cheaper option, however, because you can take the subway to the train stations easily whereas airports generally require a cab or Uber ride.

Still, there's no perfect form of transportation. Here are my tips for a better train trip!

Read More...

Review: That's It Bars

Tweet

Pin It

I love the chewy sweetness of dried fruits and I love the on-the-go convenience of snack bars. That's It bars have both!

Many dried fruits (and snack bars, for that matter) can be loaded with added sugars. That's really just not necessary when you consider how sweet fruit is naturally and that dried fruit has all of that sweetness, but concentrated! 

Many of us eat too much sugar as is, since it's in everything from ketchup to pasta sauce to cereal to yogurt. I was thrilled to see that That's It bars are 100% natural dried fruit with no added sugars or other unhealthy fillers.

They don't need them! The bars are chewy, sweet, flavorful, and satisfying. I tried ten delicious That's It bar flavors and they were all unique, but all delicious.

Read More...

Review: New Detour SMART Bar Flavor - Cranberry Flax

Tweet

Pin It

Detour, a staple in the protein bar aisle, branched out into the natural foods industry a while ago with two SMART bars. They've recently debuted a new bar to join their original blueberry and apple cinnamon SMART bars.



I really enjoyed the other two SMART bars, am a general fan of bars. like that these are natural, and enjoy both cranberries and flax seeds, so I was excited to try the new Detour SMART Cranberry Flax bars!

Like the other Detour SMART bars, the new Cranberry Flax bar is certified gluten free, with only 140 calories and 3 grams of sugar. Instead of keeping the sugar content so low with artificial sweeteners, as some competitors do, Detour uses all-natural Stevia to sweeten their smart bars.



There's a great balance of (gluten-free) whole grains, fruit, and whey protein that make these bars a great snack and their portion-controlled sizes make them great for both kids and adults!



The sweet Greek style yogurt drizzle on top doesn't hurt either. I know my little sister would like them. She's probably even tickle-fight me for them...

Have you tried the new Detour SMART bars?

What are your favorite go-to snacks?

What bars are your staples?

Read More...

Recipe Review: Peanut Butter Jam Bars

Tweet

Pin It

I love peanut butter and peanut butter and jelly (or honey) sandwiches are delicious, so today's recipe is what happens when a PB&J has an identity crisis and decides to become a dessert! Or, Une Gamine Dans La Cuisine's Peanut Butter Jam Bars.

Basically, you make a peanut butter dough, press part of the dough into a pan (I didn't measure to make sure I had the right sized pan), and top with a pre-made jam (probably best if you use homemade jam, but I didn't have the time attention span for that today).



Then you drop the remaining dough on top in globs and sort of connect them with your wooden spoon (or fingers - WASH YOUR HANDS before you start baking, always, please). Don't worry about gaps in the dough where the filling shows through.



Now you top with chopped walnuts, pecans, or peanuts. I used chopped pecans because I had a huge bag in the pantry (WHOOT, Sam's Club).



The pan ended up being a little small for everything that needed to fit into it, so I decided to make a little round on a baking sheet, as well.

To make it a little more interesting than just a little leftover from the big, proper thing, I topped it with peanuts and did half raspberry jam and half grape jelly (shhh - I actually sort of preferred the grape half).

I decided to blacken the smaller one to achieve that gourmet smoky flavor that really accents the richness of the peanut butter and develops a more nuanced flavor profile...or I was reading and completely forgot that I had something in the oven, so the little one burned.

It's whatever one you choose to believe.



Burn or no burn, the sun decided to swing around for its gorgeous mid-afternoon warm lights display through my window right as I was photographing the poor little burnt puck of a thing, so it became the subject of a mini-photoseries.

It actually tasted pretty good, considering how over-baked it was.

I just scraped off the burnt bottom and the rest was still delicious and moist. 

I know how you guys love that word. You're welcome, dears. 

Anyway, this is how the large pan turned out. The time was perfect, though it was longer than suggested in the recipe (just check the center to make sure yours is done, since I don't have an exact time to give you).

However, let's have a quick reminder of how the bars looked on Une Gamine Dans La Cuisine.

Lovely.

In reality, the bars are crumbled.

Disclaimer - I used margarine instead of butter (since I didn't have any of the latter) and I probably cut the bars too warm, anyway, since the ragamuffins from next door were over and what under ten has any sort of patience?

Let's be honest - I'm 20 and have no patience. So maybe that will show up around menopause? 

The next day they cut much better, but are still very moist and gooey and a little messy.

These bars are delicious but also very rich, so a small slice suffices and we ended up having to freeze/give away most of the pan because it way just way too much to eat by ourselves, even over the few days/week that it would probably stay good.

These bars are great if you want to make a sweet treat to keep in the freezer or just a fun dessert spin on a PB&J for a party or to share with friends/neighbors.

What are your favorite nuts?

What's your favorite dessert?

What is your favorite type of sandwich?

Read More...

Recipe Reviews: Little Bites of Comfort Oatmeal Jam Bars

Tweet

Pin It

The new semester is starting around now (or soon) and the holiday glow is starting to wear off for a lot of us. As are lives become more stressful and less Christmas happiness-tinted, it's important to take some breaks to enjoy life. It's a long time until Christmas rolls around again, so we need to make the most of the rest of the year, too!

While baking won't cure SAD (seasonal affective disorder), it can cheer us all up a little. It's a stress buster to relax elbow-deep in flour and it's spirit-lifting for those that you share the treats with, too!

Stresscake's Little Bites of Comfort Oatmeal Jam Bars might make you feel like erecting one of these guard snowmen in your yard so that you have more for yourself.

But the batch makes a lot and they're easy to make, so forget about the evil snowman and share!

This is what the bars look like on her blog:



And here's how they turned out for me!

....

Okay, so somehow my camera ate all the photographs of the finished product. Because they looked that delicious? Anyway, my bars looked very much like her picture, so I was pleased.

Pre-baking

 The only changes I made where the size of the pan (not quite sure what the size of mine was, but I doubt it was whatever she asked for) and that I used water instead of rum.

I'm 20, I can't buy alcohol in this country. I also don't like the taste of alcohol and my roommates both don't drink for religious reasons, so we don't keep alcohol in the apartment. No loss, the bars were amazing without rum!

I also didn't use high quality jam because it was the evening and I didn't feel like making a grocery run. I was in a sort of anti-social mood and while taking a break to bake (especially since I needed to for a class get-together) was fine, I didn't feel like extending that break and risking social interaction by going grocery shopping. 

My textbooks would miss me too much and small talk was not high on my priorities list.

So instead of going out and hunting for a vague 'high quality jam' I used Smucker's orange marmalade. Deal with it.

It was delicious and none of my classmates (aka undiscerning college students) are foodie-sophisticated enough to turn up their nose at this fresh-baked dessert.

These were a huge hit at my Thursday evening class party/study group (only at Harvard can that be a thing) and I think my classmates are thoroughly impressed.

Shhhh, don't tell them how easy these are to make.

Or that I used Smucker's jam. So not hipster, ya know.

When were (are) the holidays over for you?

How do you keep balance in your life when you're busy?

How often do you bake?

Read More...

Happy November and a Review!

Tweet

Pin It

Happy November, everyone!

I swear - I said this back on October 1 but I have to say it again: I can't believe how fast this year is flying by! It's already November, whaaaaaaaaat? But I always get really excited on November 1, because that means we're heading into late fall, which means Thanksgiving is coming up, which means Black Friday is coming up, which means I can start celebrating Christmas!

My general policy, to try to keep my crazy levels of holiday spirit somewhat in control (I should come with a warning label, no joke) is that I try to hold my celebrating off until Black Friday and then only let myself crank it up to 100% Christmas Craziness on December 1.

Pixie Dust? Snow? It's all equally magical to me.

Anyway, it's November now. YAY!

To kick off a month full of delightful indulgent treats (I'm most definitely most excited about the pecan pie a la mode and candied, roasted winter squash - oh haaaiiiiiii sweet tooth), I have a light review for you today!

ThinSlim Foods makes a variety of light treats that taste surprisingly good and are surprisingly decently portioned for treats as light as they are. If you've had an indulgent day/week/month and want something sweet, but not as heavy as a proper brownie or big pie, these are great for a little something sweet! I tried some bars and muffins, which have a pretty similar consistency.



I like that they're not too artificial - unlike a lot of preservative-packed snack cakes, these need to be consumed either immediately upon delivery or frozen. Maybe not super convenient, but definitely worth the (tiny) inconvenience when you consider how much better for you that is!



I was expecting a really light, cakey consistency when I saw that these are decently sized, but they were actually really moist and flavorful!



They aren't particularly dense, by any means, but they're definitely not as light-tasting as I'd expected.

And they're moist! What??? I was pleased.



The brownie was delicious, of course, and you don't even need to ask about the peanut butter bar (yum) but I was curious about the banana bar. Banana-flavored treats can often taste really artificial and just generally icky. This one didn't!



It was fruity, but not overwhelmingly so, and overall just a night light little piece of cake. Perfect to finish off the night with or have after a big lunch for a little something sweet!

There is one con to these treats and that's that they're pretty pricey - $2.75 for one small bar! I can bake half a batch of brownies for about the same amount - or buy an enormous bakery brownie for just a bit more.

I'm obviously still going to eat the 'real thing' most of the time (I love baking and you have to eat what you make - I also love travel and there are always great cafes and better treats to try!) but these are really great to mix it up!

Have you tried these?

What are your Thanksgiving break plans?

Are you going to go shopping on Black Friday this year? I generally don't - I guess I was never big enough of a shopaholic. Unfortunately for my finances, however, I've become more and more a fan of shopping over the years. Uh-oh...

Read More...

Review: Wave Bar

Tweet

Pin It

So y'all know how I'm obsessed with bars, right? I've only reviewed roughly a million varieties.

And I've just had my mind blown again by a completely revolutionary bar - a hidden veggie bar with half a serving of fruit AND half a full serving of vegetables in every bar that still has a taste and texture that would make my 8 year old sister ask to have it in her lunchbox.

Wave Bar is pretty new and still only has two flavors, Baked Apple and Mixed Berry, but quality over quantity definitely holds true here. They may not have a laundry list of varieties (yet, I hope) but the two that they have are delicious and so nutritious that they're easily a great addition as a daily snack.



Around 75% of American children don't get their daily vegetable requirement, but these snacks make it easy to remedy that - the very first ingredient is Natural G Foods' special blend of vegetables and fruits!



After all, it's a food company that's made by health-conscious parents for health-conscious parents, so they know exactly what you need to make it work.

They know what parents want in a bar and they know what kids don't. They know that detectable veggies in a bar will have kids running and screaming from the table, but that a soft, sweet, normal-looking bar will keep both parties satisfied and prevent a snack-time war.



Um, kale in a kid's snack bar? But I swear you can't taste it (or, equally important for kids!) see it at all.



They look just like your standard Nutrigrain-style soft baked fruit and grain bar and taste the same - sweet, chewy, soft, and vaguely pastry-like. AKA, very kid friendly.

And just me-friendly, in general. I travel a lot and especially this fall, what with trying to get a job and be a gainfully employed adult next year (definitely a more attractive option than taking my expensive Harvard diploma and heading into Boston to be a hobo) I'm traveling a lot for interviews and whatnot. Last week, I spent more than half of the week outside of my state and was in five different states in three days.

Um, EXHAUSTING. But I beasted it.

Emperor Kuzco style.

Still, a hectic schedule like that is not exactly healthy-eating-friendly. When I'm out and about, carbs take over (even more than usual, haha) and produce doesn't really make it into the picture. I don't want to risk food poisoning and I don't want to schlep a mini-fridge around with me (aka: that's not possible) so bars, sandwiches, cereal bags, and fast food make up the bulk of my diet. This has the comforting carb-y taste and convenience, but also some veggies in there to make sure that I don't become all sorts of vitamin deficient while I'm out and about trying to make a future happen!



And once life settles down a bit more (or, if life ever settles down a bit) I love babysitting and these are the kind of snack that I can pack in my bag and enjoy with the kiddos at the park or when we're slaying dragons down by the river.

Um, no I'm not five. I swear I'm a grown-up, I have a government-issued ID and everything.

Anyway, make sure to check out Wave bars here, where you can learn more and even order some online!

Don't these sound amazing?

Do you have/want kids?

Where are you in your career journey?

Read More...

Enjoy Life Decadent Soft Baked Bars Review

Tweet

Pin It

It feels like I haven't done very many reviews lately, so it's time for another one - and this one even comes with a coupon!



But that's at the end of the post (a ploy to get you to read the whole thing, but you could just skip to the end to get 10% off).

Anyway, Enjoy Life has a new gluten-free product line out, that's super allergy-friendly. Like their other products, the new Decadent Soft Baked Bars are free of wheat, dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, egg, soy, fish, and shellfish.

They come in four flavors - Cherry Cobbler, Chocolate Sunbutter, Cinnamon Bun, and S'mores. Yum!



The bars are decent-sized, approximately the size of a Chewy bar, and just right for a healthy, light dessert type snack.



It was bigger than I expected from the picture of the bar on the box and more rectangular than square-like.



While it does have a bit of sugar, slightly on the higher side for a granola bar of its size (and the first ingredient is some sort of syrup), it isn't a ridiculous amount and was less than a proper dessert of the same size.



All of the bars are under 150 calories, making them totally suitable for anyone on a diet.



Though they're obviously not a 1:1 replacement for a traditional dessert, but more along the lines of a sweet snack bar, the Cherry Cobbler bar microwaved does taste pretty cherry cobbler-esque.



If you aren't on a diet, I recommend topping the microwaved bar with vanilla ice cream, as I did immediately after taking the following photo.



Yum! It's even better when eaten with peanuts on top make it even better.

The cinnamon bun bar was also pretty great. It reminded me of the love child of a real cinnamon bun and a Lara Bar cinnamon roll bar.

The only thing that I would have changed about the bars is that I would have wanted them to be whole grain. I don't know why they couldn't use brown rice powder instead of white rice powder, for a little bit of a nutritional boost.



Anyway, now for the good part - enter the code DECBLOG10 at checkout to get 10% off of your first order of Decadent Bars at the online store. Enjoy!

Have you tried the new Enjoy Life Decadent Soft Baked Bars?

Which flavor of the three sounds best to you?

How often do you use coupons and coupon codes?

Read More...