CLIF Bars

Why do so many sports/nutrition bars always sound SOOO good, but then, well, taste like nutrition bars?  While there are a few brands of these sorts of grab-n-go bars that I actually like (such as Perfect Bars, which I genuinely like), most tend to have a odd texture, bad aftertaste, or leave my stomach feeling unsettled (whey protein and my stomach are not friends).  And yet, I do keep trying them, because I often want an easy snack on hand when I'm out and about.  Plus, I'll admit, I can get drawn in by the flavor names.  

These days, you certainly have your choice of sports and nutrition bars to pick from.  Every grocery store, corner store, even vending machine will give you options for bars, some vegan, some high protein, some high maintenance that require refrigeration, etc.  So many choices.  But back in the day, there was CLIF, the original pioneer in the market, started back in 1992, and mainly targeted at hikers.  Now CLIF makes many different product lines, such as the classic CLIF energy bars, high protein BUILDERS bars, crunchy granola CRUNCH bars, trail mix style MOJO bars, and the children's Zbar line, along with the spin-off brand, LUNA, which is bars specially designed for women (that I've reviewed before), cereals, and gels.  So many products.  But back to those flavor names that draw me in.

"Spiced Pumpkin Pie", "Peanut Toffee Buzz", "Peanut Butter Pretzel", "Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough", "S'mores", "Caramel Nut Brownie" ... these are just some of the enticing product names from CLIF.  I've tried many of their products over the years, most I don't really care for, but I do sometimes find a hit (and I'll admit I don't mind most of the kids Zbars).s

Classic Clif Bars

"CLIF BAR® Energy Bar is the first bar we made, and it’s still everything we’re about. Nutritious, organic ingredients. Performance nutrition. And great taste. Whether you’re on a 150-mile bike ride or exploring a new trail, this energy bar is built to sustain your adventure."

The original product from the company is the signature CLIF energy bars.  They are all pretty much the same, made with mostly organic ingredients, focus is on sustained energy, a good blend of carbs, protein, and fiber.  They are designed to be eaten at least an hour before hard exercise, or afterwards as a recovery item.  They aren't really meant to just be snack foods, and uh, taste that way.  Maybe this is good, because if they tasted as good as their names, I'd probably try to eat them as snacks.

The base for the bars is all the same, a mix of oats, brown rice syrup, soy butter, and date paste, along with some Clif special mixtures: ClifPro® (made from a bunch of soy products) and ClifCrunch® (made from assorted products to add fiber).  This gives them all the same texture, just kinda mushy, very dense, with some oats in it.  The flavor variety comes from the mix-ins and drizzles on top, that sound good, but never really save the bars.  These things don't taste bad per se, but I don't know why I'd ever want to eat one.  Unless I was needing it for athletic nutrition.  Which ... gee, I guess that is what they are for after all ...

Sierra Trail Mix Clif Bar.

"Bringing together timeless trail mix ingredients such as peanuts, raisins, chocolate and seeds."

Mmm, who doesn't like trail mix (always called GORP in my household ... aka, "good old raisins and peanuts", usually made with M&Ms too).

This sounded like the most promising Clif bar to me.  It was their standard base, with added peanuts, chocolate chips, raisins, and pumpkin and sunflower seeds.

Like all the bars, it wasn't bad, but it wasn't very good.  The right thing for hiking, or sports recovery, but not something you'd ever want to just grab to eat.  Or at least, I don't.  **+.

Peanut Toffee Buzz.

"Crunchy peanut toffee meets roasted peanuts and organic peanut butter."

Now, this sounded good.  Crunchy toffee? Roasted peanuts?  Peanut butter?  Plus it contains caffeine from green tea extract, hence, the "buzz" part of the name.

It even looks good, drizzled with something on top.  But ... it is still a Clif bar.  The little bits of toffee were tasty, as were the chunks of peanuts, but, the texture and flavor of the base is just really not good.  I need to remember that I never actually like Clif bars and stop trying these!  **+.

Chocolate Chip Peanut Crunch.

"Chocolate chips and crunchy peanuts for serious satisfaction."

Ok, so I never like regular Clif bars, but ... chocolate chips and peanuts sounded so promising.

But chocolate chips and peanuts don't make up for a bar that is made from soy protein isolate, soybeans, oats and oat fiber, and strange flours.

Sure, the bits of chocolate and peanut "crunch" looked appealing, but they weren't actually tastable in the bar given the other dominant ingredients.

I don't like Clif bars.  *+.

Chocolate Chip Peanut Crunch.
(2023 Update).

"Chocolate chips and crunchy peanuts for serious satisfaction."

I was drawn in to this bar by the name, as, well, I like chocolate chips, peanuts, and crunchy things, but forgot that I had tried it, and not cared for it, years ago.

Given the first ingredient in the name, "chocolate chip", I was surprised to see so few chocolate chips.  This is not a chocolate dominant, or even all that noticeable, bar.  There was decent texture ("crunch") from the bits of peanut and protein isolate crisps, and very light peanut flavor, but mostly, it tasted like Clif fake chemical mixes.  

It had a nice chew, and is a bar that eats nicely, but, you really have to like the taste of the classic Clif mix, which, I don't.  **.

White Chocolate Macadamia Nut.

"Roasted macadamia nuts meet creamy, scrumptious white chocolate flavor."

I know I should give up but ... white chocolate and macadamia nuts are things I love!

The first time I had this, I liked the sweet white chocolate nuts, but couldn't really find the macadamia nuts.  I noted it was "the best Clif bar I’ve had, but I didn’t LOVE it.".

So I tried it again.

I was much less impressed this time.  As always, I hated the base.  I still didn't find anything I'd identify as a macadamia nut.  And I didn't find white chocolate really either.  There *were* white soft chunks, that seemed like they should be white chocolate, but, they instead tasted mostly like ... nothing?

Do not like. *.

Peanut Toffee Buzz.

"Crunchy peanut toffee meets roasted peanuts and organic peanut butter."
Surely this would be good right?  Peanuts? Toffee? Peanut butter and peanuts were early in the ingredient list.  I had hope.

I shouldn't have.  Still a Clif bar.  Still just such an awful mushy texture, awful taste from all the protein isolates.

I hunted for peanuts, as I could see bits of peanut, but, alas, they weren't really to be found.  I didn't taste any peanut.

I hunted for toffee, and what I found were little bits of soft mush, kinda sweet.  Was that the toffee?  It wasn't worth seeking out.

I have no idea what the icing drizzle on top was.

The "buzz" comes from green tea extract, also, not something I detected.

Sigh, Clif bars. *.

Blueberry Crisp.

"Inspired by the home-baked flavor of blueberry crisp fresh from the oven."

Great blueberry flavor, aroma of a blueberry muffin, dried blueberries soft and sweet, nice crunch from chopped almonds, and then ... the Clif bar funk.  #stillAClifBar *+.

Oatmeal Raisin Walnut.

"Plump raisins, sweet cinnamon and organic rolled oats combine for ol’ fashioned, home-baked goodness."

Great aroma.  Almost seemed like it was going to be a pleasant oatmeal raisin cookie-like experience.

And then it was a Clif Bar.  Horrible texture, strange flavor. Did not like. *.

Carrot Cake.

"Warm, sweet spices paired with the fresh taste of carrots, raisins & apples."

I don't know about you, but when I think of carrot cake, the spices, raisins, and apples (?) aren't exactly my focus.  Carrot cake is all about the cream cheese frosting!  I thought this would be drizzled with some kind of healthy icing, but alas, it wasn't.

I also don't think of soy protein isolate, soybeans, oat fiber, rolled oats, etc, obviously.

So the base of this met my Clif bar expectations, even though not my carrot cake expectations: horrible flavor and texture, lots of weird stuffs going on in there.  It did had actual chunks of carrots, and some classic carrot cake spicing (nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves), so, I'll give them that. *+.

Carrot Cake: Detail.

The thing that really surprised me was the white chunks, visible here on the underside.  Given the ingredient list, and description, I thought, "oh, chunks of dried apple, boo", but they turned out to be chunks of something sweet and actually tasty.  Like white chocolate or even sorta kinda cream cheese inspired.  I actually really liked them.

But I have no idea what they were.  There is no white chocolate ingredients, no dairy ingredients ... they were some magic combination of isolates and strange sweeteners that managed to taste good?  No idea.

Berry Pomegranate Chia.

"A sweet and tangy combination of strawberries, cranberries, pomegranates & organic chia seeds."

How did I wind up with this?  I have no idea.  I certainly didn't purchase it, given my general displeasure with Clif bars, my complete and utter dislike of chia, and general feelings of "eh" on cranberries and pomegranates.

Better question ... why did I bother try it?  Again, I have no idea, except my desire to try #allTheThings and you know, "do it for my readers".  Y'all are important to me!

The shocking thing to me is that I didn't hate it.  Maybe I was in the mood?  The texture was good, slight crunch.  It tasted healthy, but not in a bad way.  It was pretty fruity.  Sure, the fruits weren't ones I really wanted, but it was vaguely "kinda tart, kinda sweet berry" flavor, certainly not identifiable as pomegranate, which makes sense, since dried cranberries and dried strawberries come long long before the pomegranate powder in the ingredient list.

If you like chia and fruity-tart flavors, give this one a try. **+.

Additional flavors tried: 

• Chocolate Brownie: "The rich, indulgent flavor of a fresh-baked brownie.". Mushy texture, not very good flavor.  Did not deliver the "brownie" it promised! *.
• Chocolate Chip: "The classic, cravable taste of a fresh chocolate chip cookie." Same mushy base, little bits of decent chocolate chips, chocolate drizzle on top for a tiny bit more chocolate, but overall, just sweet and mushy and not something I want.  *+.
• Crunchy Peanut Butter: "Smooth, organic peanut butter mixed with crunchy peanut pieces.". Same mushy base, although with nice peanut butter flavor.  But I'd much rather taste my peanut butter in another form. **.
• Coconut Chocolate Chip: "Sweet organic coconut paired with chocolate chips and a creamy chocolate drizzle." Again, mushy, but the coconut flakes added a little more texture, making it a bit crunchy.  This was better.  The flavor from the coconut was also good.  One of the better Clif bars, but I wouldn't really want more. **+.

Crunch

For a while, Clif made a line of bars known as "Crunch".  These are crunchy, fairly classic granola bars, marketed as a lighter option than the Clif energy bars.  They amp up the fiber content by incorporating rye flakes, barley flakes, oat bran, and oat flour, along with the standard toasted oats and rice crisps.

 They were discontinued, but I still tried one once.

Honey Oat CRUNCH bar.

This was a serious meh for me. I don't tend to like hard style granola bars, and this was no exception.  A hard, crisp granola bar.  Seemed very generic, although it had all sorts of different ingredients besides standard oats (rye flakes, barley flakes, rice crisps).  None of them really added any flavor, and this was majorly lacking in flavor.  I guess you don't expect much from honey oat flavor, but there was just nothing going on here.  It didn't even work chopped up on thrown on a fruit and yogurt parfait in place of granola. *+.

Mojo Bars

"Sometimes we get a craving for something sweet...and salty. That’s why we make CLIF Mojo™. It’s all about different flavors and textures to satisfy your sweet (and salty) tooth"

The Mojo line was the most candy bar like of all of their products.  Basically trail mix bars, loaded up with fruits, nuts, and candy.  Some are even dipped in chocolate.  They are sweet, salty, chewy, full of texture, and far less healthy.  These are of course, my favorites.  Yet, they were discontinued too.

Besides the soy rice crisps, they are mostly made from regular ingredients: whole macadamia nuts, peanuts, cashews, almonds, chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, white chocolate chips, pretzels, almond butter.  These are just sweet treats, no focus on sneaking fiber in there, balancing glycemic load, etc.  They are just for fun.

White Chocolate Macadamia.

First up, white chocolate macadamia.

This included pretzels, macadamia nuts, white chocolate chips, and cashews.  It sounded like a winner, but was a lot more bland than I expected.  It was mostly just sweetened stuck together soy crisps, with some pretzel pieces scattered throughout.  The pretzels didn't add the crunch nor the salt that I expected, and there was barely any white chocolate nor macadamia, so I didn't get any of those flavors either.  Sadness, as this sounded so promising!  Still, better than regular Clif bars. **+.

Dark Chocolate Almond Coconut.

"Toasted coconut, chunks of chocolate, and whole roasted almonds."

Now this was very good!

Generous sized chunks of chocolate and flakes of coconut.  Nice combination of flavors, good crunch, nicely sweet.  I didn't taste any salty component though, as advertised, but still, for a granola bar, this was quite good.  ***+.

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Other Varieties Tried.

• Dipped Chocolate Peanut: Peanuts, chocolate, pretzels, dipped in more chocolate.  This was  really great.  Whole flavorful peanuts, salty, and chocolately, all in one?  Yes please!  ****.  Subsequent review: Nice chunks of peanuts.  Slightly salty, kinda hard though, would have liked it softer.  Very little chocolate dip, just a thin layer on the bottom, so you don’t taste it much.  Good bits of pretzel, rice crispies, peanuts, and honey roasted peanuts.  ***+. 
• Mountain Mix: Made from almonds, peanuts, raisins, and chocolate chips.  It was really chewy, kinda hard to chew.  Least favorite that I tried.  Mostly just tasted like raisins and crappy peanuts.  Did not like. *+.
• Peanut Butter Pretzel: This has pretzels, peanut butter filled pretzels, and even more peanut butter. The chunks of pretzels were a good size, and it was a delightful mix of sweet and salty.  Really good. ****.

Builder's Protein Bars

"We’re all building toward something great. That’s why delicious CLIF® Builders® and CLIF® Builders® Minis offer complete plant protein, including essential amino acids to help support, rebuild, and repair muscles."

If regular Clif bars aren't substantial enough for you, the BUILDER's bars are a step up in terms of protein content, with 20g protein each.  Loaded up with all sorts of ... stuff.  Designed for building muscle.

They are layered bars, with the bottom layer made up of soy rice crisps, the top layer is a smooth concoction, and the whole thing is coated in chocolate.  Don't let the chocolate fool you.  They taste absolutely horrible.  I'd never eat these, even if I was a body builder.  There have to be better tasting ways to get an easy 20g of protein.

Cookies 'n Cream.

I lost my notes on the Cookies 'n Cream bar pictured here, but did try several others as well.

Crunchy Peanut Butter:

"No chocolate here, just a heap of crunchy, peanut-buttery, protein-packed goodness."

This tasted like paste. Not even really peanut butter flavored paste. Totally nasty.

Chocolate Mint: 

"Chocolate and protein don't get cooler than in this tasty, well-earned reward for a workout."

Every aspect of this was nasty. It did have a subtle mint flavor that was ok, but besides that, the flavors, the textures, everything was just really horrible. *.  Subsequent review:  I forgot how much I hated this before, and tried it again. So gross! The mint flavor was nice, but everything else about it was awful. *.

Organic Trail Mix Bars

"CLIF® Organic Trail Mix Bar is made for mixing it up and discovering all the good stuff the day has to offer. Combining simple and organic ingredients that are good for both our bodies and the planet, our trail mix bar comes in flavors for just about every occasion no matter where the trail takes you."

Next up, trail mix bars, another discontinued line.  These came in 4 flavors, all featuring dark chocolate: Dark Chocolate Almond Sea Salt, Dark Chocolate Cherry Almond, Dark Chocolate Pomegranate Raspberry, and Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter.

The bars are also organic and gluten-free.

Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter.

"Featuring big chunks of organic dark chocolate and organic peanut butter."

This one wasn't too bad for you, not too high in sugar (8 grams), and has moderate amount of protein (6 grams).

The base is a mix of peanuts, almonds, soybeans, and rice crisps, plus peanut butter and dark chocolate chunks.  The bottom side is coated with a dark chocolate coating.

I was pretty excited for this one, as I love peanut butter and chocolate.  But somehow, despite having both peanuts and peanut butter, I didn't really taste much peanut flavor.  The large chunks of dark chocolate were nice, but, the chocolate wasn't that intense.  The nuts were fine, but I didn't like the rice crisps.

It was also not soft, instead, it was a very hard style.  Not crispy like some bars, actually just hard.  I didn't like this. *+.

Coconut Almond Peanut.

"Featuring rich and nutty organic peanuts and organic coconut."

Like the other trail mix bar, this one isn't too high in sugar (6 grams), has a moderate amount of protein (6 grams), although might be a bit high in fat for some (13 g), due to the nuts.

The base is similar to the dark chocolate peanut butter, a mix of peanuts, almonds, soybeans, and rice crisps, plus coconut.  The bottom side was not coated like the previous bar.

This one actually tasted more peanuty than the dark chocolate peanut butter, but I didn't taste all that much coconut.  I again didn't care for the crisps.

This was a hard style bar, basically just nuts and the crisps bound together by sweeteners (tapioca syrup, cane syrup, and honey).  It wasn't bad, but, it just wasn't interesting. **.

Nut Butter Filled Bars

"The athletes and foodies in the Clif kitchen have crafted a different kind of energy bar. CLIF® Nut Butter Filled Energy Bar brings together two great energy foods – a delicious, creamy nut butter inside an organic energy bar – to deliver sustained energy."

Nut Butter filled bars are one of the newer product lines from Clif, bars filled with assorted nut butters.  These are small, but not light items, 230+ calories, and 5-7g of protein, designed truly for fuel for activity.  Some of these were decent.

Coconut Almond Butter.

"An organic energy bar filled with delicious, creamy almond butter."

I don't generally like almond butter as much as other nut butters, but I gave this bar a chance, since they were giving them out at an event I attended.  It was the first kind I tried.

And ... yeah, not for me.

The almond butter was blended with cashew butter, which didn't make it any better for me, since that was bitter.  I also didn't care for the date paste used as sweetener.  It did have nice coconut flavor to it though, and the texture (and oats) were quite nice, but, as someone who doesn't go for almond butter, cashew butter, and dates, this was just not for me. **.

Chocolate Hazelnut Butter.

"An organic energy bar filled with delicious, creamy hazelnut butter."

I moved on to a more promising sounding bar - chocolate hazelnut!

Again though, the nut butter wasn't quite as advertised.  The hazelnut butter was really a mix of hazelnut, cashew, and almond butter.  There was enough hazelnut though to balance out the others, so I didn't mind it too much.  The nut butter is also where the chocolate is, blended in, which I'm sure also helps mask the other nuts.  The filling was creamy and actually pretty enjoyable.  A healthy version of Nutella?

I again liked the texture of the outer part of the bar, the oat base was enjoyable.

This was far more successful than the first, and something I'd consider eating again, if I wanted a healthy but mid-range calorie bar. ***+.

Peanut Butter.

"An organic energy bar filled with delicious, creamy peanut butter."

Finally, my favorite kind of nut butter: peanut butter.  Yup, I guess I'm just traditional.

I was most excited for this filling, as it was just pure peanut based peanut butter, no other nuts mixed in.

The peanut butter was .. fine.  Better than the blended butters, but, it wasn't very creamy.  It was rather dry.  I actually preferred the chocolate hazelnut butter.

The wrapper layer was again decent enough.

This was very close to something I liked, I just wished the peanut butter had a bit more to offer.  And ... maybe some chocolate chips or something?  Still, I finished it with no problem. ****.

Chocolate Peanut Butter.

"An organic energy bar filled with delicious, creamy peanut butter."

I expected the Chocolate Peanut Butter to be like the Chocolate Hazelnut Butter.  That is, the oat based plain bar filled with chocolate nut butter.  Instead, it was reversed; the cocoa was in the bar, the filling was the same plain peanut butter from the standard peanut butter bar.

And again, the peanut butter just wasn't great.  Not that much flavor, not creamy.

The chocolate in the base didn't really come through.  Yes, it was dark, but, it didn't taste of much chocolate at all.

This was the bar I expected to be the highlight, since I like peanut butter, and chocolate makes better, but it really let me down.  I liked it less than the plain peanut butter.  ***.

Clif Kids

For kids, Clif has a number of product lines: zbar, zbar protein, zbar fruit & veggie, zfruit, and zfruit & veggie, the later two which ditch the grain, aka, bar, elements.

zbar

"CLIF Kid Zbar® is an organic, baked whole grain energy snack, made with a blend of carbohydrates, fiber, protein, and fat to give kids energy so they can keep zipping and zooming along. Our products never include high fructose corn syrup or artificial flavors."

I believe this was the first product line from Clif for kids.  Zbars come in 5 kid friendly varieties: chocolate brownie, chocolate chip, iced oatmeal cookie, iced lemon cookies, s'mores, all of which feature an organic oat blend as the base, with flax seed and soy butter, sweetened with cane syrup, maple syrup, and fig paste.  The bars are smaller than the adult versions, and come with attractive packaging and a drizzle over them.

Chocolate Chip.

"All the thick, chewy, goodness of a chocolate chip cookie – gone nutritious!"

The first zbar I tried was the chocolate chip.

Perhaps they can trick a child into thinking this is anything like a chocolate chip cookie, but, they sure didn't trick me.  I did not like this.

It was a dense granola bar, too bitter from the flax, and strangely sweet from the date paste.  Yes, there were tiny little chocolate chips, and a chocolate drizzle on top, but tasty this was not.

**.

Iced Oatmeal Cookie.

"A delicious and nutritious blend of organic whole grain oats with a touch of cinnamon and vanilla."

Next up, "iced oatmeal cookie".  Again, not a cookie!

A dense, hearty, healthy tasting oat based bar.  Yes, it had some cinnamon and vanilla, so had spicing like an oatmeal cookie.  Yes, it had a drizzle of icing on top.  But, no, a cookie it was not.

Maybe for a healthy bar it was fine, but if you want something remotely cookie-like, this is not it.

***.

Iced Oatmeal Cookie: Limited Edition (2022).

"A delicious and nutritious blend of organic whole grain oats with a hint of cinnamon and vanilla that your kids will ask for again and again."

The iced oatmeal cookie bar was reformulated, and came back out as a "limited edition" (that then stayed part of the lineup).   It looked nearly identical, but had 12 whole grains now instead of the prior 9 ...

My bar was approaching its expiration date when I ate it, which I think resulted in it being fairly hard.  I remember these being far softer?  I had boiling water on hand, and dipped it in that, and then microwaved on medium for a minute, and it totally transformed it - back into a nice soft moist bar, with melty little creamy sweet chips inside.  No, I don't think they recommend doing this to them, but it totally worked.  I really enjoyed the spicing, it reminded me of Christmas cookies, slightly gingerbread like, slightly, well, "holiday" spiced, if that makes sense.  The oat base made it a touch healthy and hearty tasting, but it was drizzled with very sweet icing, and the little chips inside made it even sweeter.

I knew not to expect a dessert-like cookie, so I pulled this out on a morning when I wanted a supplementary easy item with my breakfast, not a dessert.  While I still don't think this would ever satisfy my dessert cravings, I'll admit that it felt a bit too sweet and certainly more in the dessert direction than I had thought previously.  Think, breakfast appropriate if you also think a glazed cinnamon roll or donut is breakfast appropriate.

***+.

Apple Filled with Almond Butter.

"Oats, apples, and cinnamon, oh my! This organic, soft-baked bar with creamy almond butter filling is ready to take on the fly!"

This really was almost good.  It was just the particular flavors (apple, almond) that weren't great for me.

The soft, sweet, oatmeal cookie-like bar really did feel like, well, a cookie.  But it tasted faintly of apples, not exactly my thing.  The drizzle of icing certainly helped this feel like an indulgent treat.

The filling was a fairly smooth creamy almond butter.  A nice touch, except, I really wanted peanut butter.

So, very close to being something I'd like.  How about some kind of berry (strawberry, raspberry, etc) and peanut butter filled?

***.

Cinnamon Roll.

"Nothing warms your heart quite like a freshly baked cinnamon roll. Made with 12 grams of whole grains and swirls of cinnamon, this snack bar has everything you love about soft, doughy cinnamon rolls without the mess."

I kinda thought I had tried this flavor before, but, besides the vague memory that most of the ZBar varieties I tried always sounded like great desserts, but then, in fact, were not actually a "real dessert", I didn't remember this specifically.  And, it turns out, maybe I never did try it before?  I was surprised to find I didn't have a prior review.

I decided to try this for breakfast, alongside yogurt, fruit, and chocolate, you know, very balanced.  Cinnamon rolls, after all, are morning pastries right?

I took one bite, and decided breakfast was not appropriate.  Or maybe I just wasn't in the mood.  But I didn't dislike it, I just didn't actually want with breakfast.  The bar had a nice chew, a slightly hearty base flavor (yay whole grains?), and was plenty sweet from the drizzle on top.  It did, indeed, sorta taste like a cinnamon roll, in bar form.

I immediately set about getting some granola to throw on top of my yogurt + fruit instead though, and decided this would be best actually as a dessert, dunked into fall spiced homemade whipped cream, that of course I just happened to have.

***.

zbar Protein

"Made for little hands and busy bodies, CLIF Kid Zbar® Protein’s balanced blend of plant-based pea protein and crispy, delicious flavors make these bars a perfect back- to-school snack. Made with organic oats, these hunger-busting snacks also have no high fructose corn syrup or artificial flavors – and they’re non-GMO and gluten free."

The kid's protein bars, Zbar Protein, remind me of more standard protein bars, just made a touch more kid friendly - they use crispy bits, come in flavors that kids might be drawn to (chocolate chip, cinnamon crunch, cookies n creme, etc), and are slightly smaller.  But besides that, they are still protein bars, still have things like whey protein in them, and wouldn't really trick you into thinking they are a candy bar.

Cookies 'N Creme.

"Classic creamy cookie crunch."

I tried the cookies 'n creme flavor, which had a crispy chocolately rice base studded with a tiny tiny chips ("creme"?), and an undercoating of white creme.  The little chips weren't distinctly white chocolate, nor yogurt, but I liked them as little pops of sweet, the same with the coating on the bottom.  The bar had a nice chew, a slight touch of chocolatelyness.  It did sorta taste like cookies and cream.  It also had a touch of "protein bar funk", just that kinda odd-off taste that many have, although that was minor.  Perhaps the whey protein caused it?

Overall, better than many protein bars, and I liked the smaller size, but I'm not sure a kid would really like this, the slightly odd taste and bitter aftertaste doesn't seem particularly kid friendly.

***.

zfruit

The zfruit line has been discontinued, it was a foray into non-grain bar based items, instead, fruit sticks.

Clif Kids ZFruit Rope - Strawberry.

This reminded me of a fruit roll up in its flavor, but obviously wasn't thin.  I kinda liked the flavor, not quite real strawberry, but really not bad.

What I didn't like was the chew.  I wanted it chewier, like licorice, but it was softer.  I'm sure this appeals more to kids, the actual target audience for it, but I would have preferred something more substantial to bite into.

Overall though, tasty enough, and apparently, a full serving of fruit! ***.

Other Products

BLOKS Energy Chews

"CLIF® BLOKS® Energy Chews provide quick, chewable, energy to athletes while training and racing. BLOKS® come in 33 calorie cubes, with sleek and portable packaging, making it easy to customize and track caloric and electrolyte intake during long outings and races."

Shot Bloks are energy chews, like caffeinated gummy candy.  The ones I tried all had a good chew to them, decent flavor, and definitely gave me a kick of caffeine.  Whee!  I of course just ate them for fun, but they would make sense to eat during a workout for a little hit of power.  Dangerously tasty. ****.

Shot Electrolyte Drink

Another discontinued product, but in the same product family as the BLOKS, Clif also made a drink mix in several flavors.

Cranberry-Razz: Good flavor, sweet but not too sweet, and actually kinda refreshing. ***+.

Read More...

Il Morso Chocolate

Chocolate.  Such a guilt-free little indulgence.  We all love to sneak a little chunk of chocolate from time to time (or, uh, daily in my case), right?  I always pair mine in the morning with my cup of coffee, I love how the sweetness and bitterness compliment each other so well.

But, after my first cup, I do drink mostly decaf, since I drink a lot of coffee, and don't want to be bouncing off the walls (nor do I want to deal with caffeine addiction again - been there, suffered through that).  It still adds up to normal amounts of caffeine, but, is far more controllable this way.  But sometimes, even I need an extra jolt to get going in the morning.

"The Coffee Shortcut. Open & Eat Coffee. No water needed."

Enter Il Morso chocolate.  This isn't just any old chocolate, it is ... caffeinated chocolate.  Oh boy.  Their tag line is "Feel a noticeable lift, similar to a shot of Espresso!"  Oh yes.  And, feel good about it!  The chocolate is 100% organic, 100% fair trade.  Only 1 gram of sugar, 2.5 grams of fat, and 15 - 25 calories in each shot (er, bar).

They make 4 varieties, each with differing amounts of caffeine ranging from Matcha Green Tea with
the lowest (7 mg) to Americano with the highest (18 mg).  All start with a base of cocoa butter and sugar, and add very little else.  Notably, no soy lecithin.  I've tried them all, and genuinely enjoyed them.

Matcha Green Tea (7 mg).

"Elegant & Soothing - Ceremonial grade Matcha Green Tea with a dash of organic sugar and a dollop of cream. We are mindful that the world enjoys a fine brew - we humbly offer this deliciously svelte Queen of teas. A mouth melting tea indulgence."

Like all the bars, the ingredient list is simple, with only milk powder and matcha green tea added to the base.  This is the only variety made with tea rather than coffee/espresso.

This did have some cocoa butter in it, but, it really tasted like white chocolate to me.  The chocolate was very smooth, with a pleasant, subtle matcha flavor, and a slight bitterness.

My favorite of their bars. ****.

Mocha (14mg).

"Devour Il Morso like chocolate - Feel the energy of coffee!"

The jump in caffeine content from the tea to coffee varieties is large, doubling from 7 mg to 14 mg in the next dose up, Mocha.  The mocha flavor is made with 70% chocolate and milk powder, in addition to the regular base and espresso beans.  It is also the lowest calorie, only 15 calories per square.

This was the first espresso/coffee variety I tried, and I wasn't quite sure what to expect.  The description of a mocha seems about right, although, it was still far more bitter than I was expecting, and not nearly as ... chocolately, which is interesting, given that it is a piece of chocolate after all.

The chocolate was smooth, with a nice snap, but, it was very bitter from the espresso.  I drink coffee black all the time, so I am used to the taste of unadulterated coffee, but I didn't really care for this.  Perhaps I just wasn't in the mood for this style of chocolate?  ***.

Coffee & Cream (16 mg).

Next up, amping up the caffeine a bit more, to 16mg.

You can likely guess the ingredients by now.  Same base of cocoa butter and sugar.  Espresso beans.  And, for the "cream", milk powder, just like in the mocha.  The highest calorie, 25 per square.

The chocolate was shockingly smooth.  It had the mouthfeel of a milk chocolate, both in creaminess and and texture.  But, it was bitter.  Very bitter.  So it eat like a milk chocolate, and tasted like a dark, and then some.  Really, it tasted like chocolate covered espresso beans, which, essentially it was.

I certainly didn't taste the "cream" component, and would have never guessed it was a milk chocolate, but it was an impressive piece of chocolate nonetheless.

And yes, it definitely gave me a zing.  My second favorite.  ****.

I also tried the Americano, the most caffeinated, at 18 mg, but seem to have lost my notes on it.

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Napa Farms Market @ SFO

If you've ever flown out of Terminal 2 in SFO, you've likely grown to hate basically every other terminal in every other airport.  Shiny, clean, and new, with water ports to refill your water bottles everywhere, and an actual decent selection of places to get food.  Not a McDonald's nor Starbucks in sight.  There are chains, but they are things like Pinkberry and Peet's, both of which are actually, well, excellent, particularly if you are a captive audience and froyo or caffeine strike your fancy.  There is a Cat Cora restaurant (where I did unfortunately dislike the grilled octopus), a candy store (ALWAYS a must stop!), and, Napa Farms Market.

Napa Farms Market is a glorious place to stock up on snacks (or meals) for your flight, self-described as an "Artisan Marketplace and Café".  Usually I just cruise through to grab some snacks (they have a fantastic selection of every sort of high-end, local, organic munchy you can imagine).  They have an incredible cheese selection from Cowgirl Creamery and they sell Acme Bread (yes, is is rather like a mini-Ferry Building!).  The coffee is from Equator Coffee.  They sell Kara's Cupcakes (which I've reviewed before too).  The chocolate selection is incredible.  So is the wine.  Really, just a well curated selection.

Napa Farms Market also operates a cafe, Tyler Florence Fresh.  At breakfast there is a bagel bar (with everything ranging from cream cheese to bacon, egg, and cheese on a bagel), a yogurt bar, a granola bar, and an oatmeal bar, to construct your perfect parfait.  At lunch, the cuisine changes to sandwiches (mostly with rotisserie meats), hand-tossed salads, soups, pizzas, and more.  They also have plentiful prepared salads and sandwiches.

These aren't really the sort of food I go for though, so, besides the snacks, coffee, and treats, I've generally never paid that much attention to the "real food" lineup.  But a traveling companion got a salad one time, and has been hooked since.  After multiple trips with him raving about the quality of the pre-made salads and sandwiches, I finally decided to try.

Greek Chicken Salad. $13.95.

"Mary’s Chicken, tomato, cucumber, herbed feta, mediterranean olives, shaved red onion, red bell peppers and an aged sherry vinaigrette, over organic greens."

Ok, so salad? Chicken?  Greek salad?  Obviously, this was not for me, it was my traveling companions.  But after so much raving, I decided to try some.  Also, he keeps telling me how huge the salads are, and, while they look big, I didn't quite grasp it.  Until I opened it up.

Wowzer.  They pack more into the salad than you could possibly realize.  It doesn't necessarily look it, but, its jammed in there.  Sooo many greens, all somehow ridiculously fresh and crispy.  And not just generic spring mix, there were more types of greens and baby lettuces in there than I could enumerate.  I still don't understand how it was so crisp and fresh, when, it wasn't made to order.

There were also decent sized chunks of tomato, not amazing, but, it was December, so what could you expect?  One corner was filled with fresh, juicy and crispy slices of cucumber.  Lots of sliced black olives and thinly shaved red onion added some zing.  Plentiful herbed feta and a ridiculously huge portion of chicken from Mary's Chicken, a local, organic farm.  And then, the dressing.  Swoon.  I couldn't believe how delicious it was.  While the greens were impressive in their freshness, it is the dressing that blew me away.  Creamy, flavorful, and ridiculously delicious.

This was totally not a salad I'd ever pick, as I don't like nor really care for pretty much any of it, but I couldn't get over how delicious the dressing was, and was happy to use up whatever lettuce and extra veggies my companion didn't get to.

Is $13.95 expensive for a salad?  Sure, but this is in an airport.  And, it is massive.  And, well, the quality is crazy high.  Totally reasonable, actually.

Field of Greens Salad. $10.95.

"Organic mixed greens with asiago cheese, grapes, sundried tomato, legumes, Italian vinaigrette."

Every single time we have flown out of Terminal 2 for the past ... several years, my companion has opted to pick up a salad from Napa Farms to take on the flight.  And every single time he picks that Greek salad.  He loved it so much the first time that he hasn't been able to bring himself to try something else, no matter how much I encourage it.

Finally, after years of this, he agreed to try a new one.  I was so excited.  And then he picked the "Field of Greens", another salad mostly consisting of ingredients I don't care for.  Sigh.

Still, of course I tried it.  The base was much like the Greek salad, a ridiculous amount of greens that somehow stayed perfectly fresh and crispy, really quite impressive.

I tried some sundried tomatoes, and well, they were sundried tomatoes.  I didn't try the grapes or beans.  I'm not a vinaigrette lover, but, I tried the vinaigrette anyway.  And ... it was great!  Seriously, they make such ridiculously good dressings.

He ate more than half early on in the flight, but couldn't finish it, even though he had dressed it all.  He left it, and had more a few hours later.  He loved it even more.  “This dressing is just really good.  It is super soaked into everything now!”  So, even though a bit soggy, he enjoyed it even more.  Swoon, that dressing.

So, again, not a salad I'd pick, but, quality ingredients, huge size, very fresh, tasty dressing.  He enjoyed it and said that now he isn't sure which he likes more, this or the Greek.

Romaine & Kale Caesar Salad.$7.95.

Caesar salad has become my goto salad from places at SFO it seems, and I was thrilled to see Napa Farms had one, with both kale and romaine base.  I looked forward to it.

Unfortunately, and surprisingly considering how great the others were, it was one of the worst caesar salads I've had in recent memory, and certainly the worst I've had at the airport (the Kale Caesar from Yankee Pier remains my favorite - fantastic real anchovy based dressing, and well seasoned croutons, and the Kale Caesar from The Giants Clubhouse is a good option too - really fresh crispy chunks of kale, and also real anchovy dressing).

This one just ... kinda failed at every element.  I also dub it the "croutons and parmesan" salad ... as they were far more prominent the romaine and kale.  The balance of ingredients was all off.

The base of romaine and kale, what there was of it, wasn't very fresh.  The lettuce was soft, wilty, and browning.  Not crisp at all.  I can't say I *wanted* more, but, the amount of greens didn't really seem appropriate.

The shredded parmesan cheese was fine, but ... there was a comical amount of it.  Literally, a cup of cheese, if not more.  Cheese must be more expensive than lettuce, so its not like they were saving costs here.  I liked the shredded style, but ... it was actually just ridiculous quantity.

Next, the croutons.  Much like the cheese, I felt there was far too many for the amount of salad base, but it wasn't quite as extreme as the cheese.  They were fairly soft (which, kinda makes sense, a pre-made item, with them sitting on top of lettuce), and decently seasoned I guess, but certainly not the kind of crouton that inspired me in any way.

And finally ... the dressing.  Sadly, not the style I like.  No anchovy, too tangy.  And loaded with ... yup, more parmesan cheese.  It tasted more like a thick parmesan vinaigrette than Caesar to me.

Overall, this was just not a winner, and I would clearly not get again.  It is also available as a larger salad with a chicken breast on top.

Roasted Corn and Poblano Dip. $4.95.

I'm not entirely sure why I got this.

I mean, I do know that I love dips, and I had just had several days of attending events with lots of yummy dips, so I guess dips were on my mind?  But I had no practical plan for this, I didn't even have anything to put it on ...

The dip was a mix of cream cheese, Monterey jack, and aioli, with roasted corn, chives, garlic, and poblanos.

It was ... creamy.  It tasted like, well, cream cheese mixed with mayo and a cheese I don't care for (I didn't realize there was Monterey jack in it until after I bought it, I'm not a fan).  The roasted corn was nice enough, but I barely detected any poblanos.

Meh.  And $4.95?!

Strange impulse buy, not one I'd get again.

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Mac and Local Cheese. $5.

Napa Farms Market also has a hot foods section, and it is always very popular.  One day I decided to try the mac and cheese.  It looked pretty good, nicely creamy, crispy on top, tons of cheese, orecchiette pasta.  Warm comfort food sounded great.  I knew they gave samples, so I asked to try it first.

I didn't care for it at all, and I'm really glad I asked to try it first.

The pasta was mushy.  It somehow didn't taste cheesy.  As the guy who gave me the sample said, "Yeah, it's really greasy, I don't know why people like it."  That wasn't entirely my problem, but, yeah.  Not good.

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Creamed Corn. $5.

Another time I got the creamed corn.  Or, what they called creamed corn.  It was more like ... milked corn?

This was the most watery creamed corn I've ever experienced.  It was not rich nor creamy, just, watery milk and corn.

SKIP.

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Clam Chowder.

Another day, another comfort food craving.  This time, clam chowder.  It sounded comforting and light but satisfying at the same time.  Just what my travel confused body needed.

But again ... meh.  Creamy, thick, but not particularly well seasoned, and really not many clams at all.

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Dosa @ Napa Farms

On my recent trip through SFO, I discovered that Napa Farms is now carrying items by Dosa, the popular Indian restaurant in San Francisco, that I've visited and reviewed before.  Dosa also went through a phase of partnering with Munchery (which I also reviewed), so this was interesting to see them doing another packaged product offering

They had a bunch of different entree salads, and naan based wraps (called Frankies), which Napa Farms would heat up for you over at the grill station.

Brussels Sprout, Butternut Squash & Paneer Salad. $13.95.

"Chickpea, toasted walnut, kale, baby spinach, romaine, sweet cilantro dressing." 

I was very tempted by the paneer wrap, but decided on the salad with paneer instead.  I was fairly fascinated by the description, calling it a "brussels sprout,  butternut squash, & paneer salad", but I saw no brussels sprouts and no butternut squash, and yet there was tons of chickpeas (something I hate).

But I was in it for the paneer and the dressing that sounded tasty, and although the paneer wasn't the form I was expecting (not cubes), it still looked interesting enough to try.

It was quite pricey, as are most things at Napa Farms (nearly $15 for a salad), but it was large, and, according to the nutrition facts on the back, 3 servings (lol).

Brussels Sprout, Butternut Squash, & Paneer Salad: Contents.

"Poriyal is the Tamil word for vegetable dish and this healthy Indian salad features roasted butternut squash and Brussels sprout poriyal, rich in color, nutrients, and flavor, served over kale, spinach and romaine, drizzled wtih sweet cilantro dressing."

Once I took off the lid, I found the namesake ingredients.

Well, kinda.

There was exactly one half of one brussels sprout.  Literally.  Not entirely sure why the name of the salad, and the first ingredient listed, as brussels sprouts!  I felt a bit cheated.

The sole brussels sprout was in a pile with 5 cubes of butternut squash, top center.  All were cooked nicely, not too soft, and slightly seasoned, including a few visible mustard seeds.

To the left was the chickpea mix, another small pile.  This was a significant component, and not included in the dish title, the short description on the top, nor the longer one on the side.  Not sure why they didn't think it was worth mentioning ...  As expected, I didn't want this, but it was a nice way to turn this into a real entree with additional protein.  It too was spiced, with plenty of Indian spices: coriander, turmeric, ginger, mustard seed, cumin, fennel seed, garam masala, star anise, cinnamon, cloves ... I think there was coconut flakes in here too.

To the right was a small pile that was the paneer.  As I mentioned, it wasn't cubes, or batons, or any style of paneer I've seen before.  Instead it was kinda shredded, and it too was mixed with similar Indian seasonings, and I think tomato paste.

All of this was served over a bed of baby spinach, romaine, and kale, with a few shreds of carrot and red cabbage, and exactly 3 slices of radish.  The greens were all fresh and crisp, and I really liked the crispy slices of radish.  I was clearly raving vegetables.

One little container inside contained walnuts, just toasted walnuts.  Nothing particularly interesting about them, but nice to add more crunch, and perhaps some protein.  I found myself wishing they were pumpkin seeds instead though.

And finally, the dressing.  I somewhat liked it, and I somewhat hated it.  It was described as "sweet cilantro", and it reminded me a bit of cilantro chutney, just slightly less thick.  And sweet.  Very, very, very sweet.  I like sweet, and I like chutney, but, this was just too sweet.  It almost worked as a salad dressing, and I liked the idea behind it, but, alas, it was too sweet.

I was really into the idea of Indian entree salads though, even if this didn't quite do it for me.  I love Indian flavors and ingredients, but salad form isn't how I normally have them.  This salad was thoughtfully composed, with good balance of protein and textures, and I think they are onto something.

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Organic Prairie Mighty Bars

Organic Prairie is a retailer of organic, farm raised meats, ranging from chicken and turkey, to pork and beef.  Their selections span from items like steaks and burgers, to bratwurst and hotdogs, to sausage and bacon, to even items like spiral cut ham and ribs, along with ground meat of all varieties (turkey, chicken, pork, beef, etc).

But those aren't really the type of foods I review, are they?  No, but snack foods are.  The only shelf-stable product Organic Prairie makes is "Mighty Bars", basically, really fancy Slim Jims, available in two varieties.  I've tried both.

Uncured Bacon & Apple Packaging.

"Organic Prairie Mighty Bars are hearty, delicious, protein-rich meat bar snacks made from 100% grassfed, organic beef. These wholesome, healthy pick-me-ups are conveniently packaged for busy, on-the-go lifestyles."

Meat bars.  Like I said, basically fancy Slim Jims.  Except not slim.  Hmm.

They are individually packaged, with labels boasting all the buzz words (grass fed, organic, yadda yadda).  The bars are shelf-stable, no refrigeration required.

Uncured Bacon & Apple - Back.

The back of the packaging is clear, so you can see the product.  Don't mind the bite taken out of this one, I took a bite, not really expecting to write a review of these, because I don't really review meat sticks, but, uh, it was really good, so I changed my mind.

Yes, it was a dried meat stick.  No, this isn't the sort of snack I normally gravitate towards, but, sometimes you just need some protein, and want something savory.  And this  totally fit the bill.

I keep describing these as like Slim Jims, but, the form factor is more like a slice out of a sausage, rather than a Slim Jim, as it is much wider, flat, and fairly thin.

The texture was good, just a bit of a chew to it, not enough to require gnawing.  The meat seemed quality, no gristle.  The flavor was great, you could certainly pick out the bacon, some garlic, and a touch of sweetness from molasses, in addition to the apple.

I was quite satisfied with this, and would gladly eat another, when the mood strikes to just eat some grab-n-go meat.

Cranberry & Sunflower Seed.

Next I tried the second flavor, cranberry and sunflower seed.  It was far less successful.

I didn't really like the chew to it, it had a bit too much casing.  And, I didn't like the flavor, which I guess makes sense, as I don't actually like cranberry or sunflower seeds much. I couldn't pick them out as distinct flavors, but, there was a bitterness and just strangeness to the flavor that I didn't like.

So, I definitely didn't want another of these, but I'd gladly go for another bacon one.  Another example of bacon does make just about everything better.

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