Best protein bar?

[Slidergirl]

I hope you have a bag that you are checking, not just carryon. The TSA has a bug up their butt about peanut butter. It shows up rather dense on the xray and some of them will say it is a liquid!!! I do love those peanut butter squeezies. If I start to feel the shakes coming on, they are a great thing to have in my bag to pop open. And, they make a nice addition to a roll bought along the way!!!

For protein bars, I like Pro Bars. I always have a few in my pack when I'm at work. I never know if I'll have enough time to take a lunch, so I can always grab one of the bars and munch in the lift shack. I'm a fan of the Koka Moca and Art's Original flavor bars. They are also a local Utah company, so I like buying local.

 

[SkiPow]

Before skiing, hiking or running, I always eat Power Bars. Don't really enjoy the taste but for some reason that bar works for me. For taste, the Cliff Mojo bars are excellent!

 

[BackCountryGirl]

Special K makes a few flavors in a cheap, decent, minimally caloric protein bar. It has tons of junk in it, but I always keep a few in the car as a last resort.

 

[arbusch]

snickers all the way

Sorry ladies --

I get sick of most protein bars and snickers has about the same amount of calories and taste so much better so --- just candy bar it.

 

[Jenn]

IMO the BEST "protein bar" ever

My Aunt's Recipe
And although you might groan about some of the ingredients the effort is well worth the result:

1 cup brown sugar (and if it's too sweet cut back the next time)
1 cup shortening (or butter or margarine)
1 egg

Mix that together and add
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp each of baking soda, baking powder and salt (less if you wish of the salt)
1- 1 1/4 cup of oatmeal


Mix that together and add any combination of the following to make one cup.
1/4 cup coconut
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup of nuts (ground or cut up)
1/4 cup carob chips or chocolate chips or raisins

Add
1 tsp vanilla
a grated lemon rind
grated nutmeg (about 1/2 tsp.

Bake in a preheated oven at 350 for about 12 minutes. If you overcook them they get really crunchy and break up like granola cereal.

They are the BEST!!!

 

[altagirl]

Sorry ladies --

I get sick of most protein bars and snickers has about the same amount of calories and taste so much better so --- just candy bar it.

I know what you're saying in a pinch, and the bottom line in terms of calories is pretty similar if that's your main concern. (And if it is, a Snickers is cheaper and easier to find.)

Personally - I put more focus on what's in the food I eat than counting calories. And on my list of foods that I avoid when I can are:


Partially Hydrogenated anything
Peanuts (bad omega 3/omega 6 fat ratio compared to other nuts)
Milk Chocolate (sticking with 70 percent dark chocolate gives you more taste with less sugar)
Corn Syrup (or much added sugar in general)


Heh, I think that covers most of what's in a snickers bar. So sticking with things like Pro bars, or the Clif Fruit, Nuts and Sea Salt bars (which are a nice small size), or things like that are definitely my preference when they are available.


I'm going to have to try making my own now! That recipe sounds yummy!

 

[JudyBlume]

I bought a couple boxes of Quest bars after trying out a sample and I'm pleased with these. If you're on any sort of low carb diet I'd definitely recommend these. I believe they just have a couple grams of sugar, and they taste good also. I like to avoid corn syrup at all times possible - they leave a terrible taste in my mouth.

 

[Kari_P]

Honey Stingers. They are relatively new, but they are a PROTEIN bar (unlike a bunch of the others mentioned in the thread, some of which are energy bars and some of which are just bars with no particular merit other than they contain some calories). They are DELICIOUS, not too sweet, and they are organic. The Dark Chocolate Mint is to die for, it tastes like an Andes candy.

I also really like LARABARS which are also organic, but are more like trail mix in a bar form than a protein bar. The ratio of protein to carbs to fat varies with the flavor, but they have no preservatives and real whole ingredients. They taste delicious as well, and when you eat them you know you are eating something good for you. My favorite flavors are probably the Apple Pie and Cherry Pie because of the tartness, although they are all pretty good. The sweeter sounding flavors (like Chocolate Coconut) are indeed sweeter.

Clif Bars are probably my favorite easy to find big company bars. They have real bits of real stuff in them, although the Clif Pro mix does have that slightly soy-cardboard taste. The Clif Bars with some sort of dried fruit in them taste the most like real food to me. The company claims to be fairly sustainable as well, and does use some organic ingredients.

Those three bars are the ones I'll spend money on and shove in my pack as quick meals for hikes and long days out.

Some others I've tried:

Kashi protein bars aren't too bad either. They taste a bit more like candy and a bit less like cardboard than others I've tried.

I personally think Powerbars are disgusting and taste like cardboard paste. The texture is just awful. I will eat the Powerbar Harvests, which aren't too awful tasting but won't eat a regular Powerbar.

SoyJoys and Odwalla bars taste too cardboard healthy and not flavorful to me.

Granola bars, like those from Kashi and Nature Valley, are mostly carbohydrate based and should not be considered protein bars, however tasty.

But seriously, try the Honey Stingers if you haven't. So yum!

 

[Sarah]

These do sound good and I've been looking to make something for this weekends group ski trip.

Do you bake these as cookies or in a brownie tray and cut them up to make bars?

Sarah

My Aunt's Recipe
And although you might groan about some of the ingredients the effort is well worth the result:

1 cup brown sugar (and if it's too sweet cut back the next time)
1 cup shortening (or butter or margarine)
1 egg

Mix that together and add
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp each of baking soda, baking powder and salt (less if you wish of the salt)
1- 1 1/4 cup of oatmeal


Mix that together and add any combination of the following to make one cup.
1/4 cup coconut
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup of nuts (ground or cut up)
1/4 cup carob chips or chocolate chips or raisins

Add
1 tsp vanilla
a grated lemon rind
grated nutmeg (about 1/2 tsp.

Bake in a preheated oven at 350 for about 12 minutes. If you overcook them they get really crunchy and break up like granola cereal.

They are the BEST!!!

 

[Jenn]

I roll them in my hand and then roll the ball in rolled oats and flatten them with a potato masher or fork. I think what makes them so good is the lemon rind - especially with chocolate chips (try to get just the yellow, not the white stuff). Check the time too, I've got 12 minutes written, but it's probably closer to 15-18. Good luck!

 

[zoomchick]

I like Cliff Mojo bars. High fat but good, nutty fat.

 

[teppaz]

I vouch for Larabars as well. They come in regular and mini sizes -- the latter are very convenient when you don't want a whole bar, and they're sold in boxes of 12.

Occasionally (on long bike rides and long tennis games, but haven't tried while skiing yet) I use energy gels. I like the basic Honey Stinger and the vanilla, strawberry/banana and tri-berry flavors from Gu best. PowerBar and Clif gels are gross in whatever flavor.

Keep in mind that you need to wash them down with a lot of water and that they can be messy so it's best to have them during a lunch break if you're on the slopes. Also many of those gels include caffeine, which may or may not be a good thing!