Reviews: Pure NRG Bar & Gardein Chik’n

Today I was so grateful for having the day off.  Our power went on & off three times in the course of the night, and the bang of the electricity powering on and off kept me up all night. I got to sleep in while poor D had to go off to work.  I considered all the things I could use my time for, but decided to stay home and pick up and clean all the messes I didn’t get to yesterday.

While I was keeping busy the doorbell rang – I had received a package from Keri at IEatTrees.com.  I won her giveaway and received a box of 12 Pure NRG bars! Thank you so much Keri! Pure NRG bars are vegan and gluten free, and have laudable nutritionals. They keep for 21 days on the counter, 90 days in the refrigerator, and 6 months in the freezer.

I received Blueberry, Carob Peanut Butter, Cherry Almond, and Carob Coconut.

I stuck 4 bars in the refrigerator, and the rest in the freezer.  However I really couldn’t wait to try them and ripped open the carob coconut, as it was just eyeing me down.  Check out the nutrition facts:

Calories: 240, Fat: 9g, Carbohydrates: 35g, Protein: 6g, Dietary Fiber: 9g.

Ingredients: coconut flour, rice flour, tapioca flour, hemp protein, unsweetened applesauce, agave nectar, xylitol, olive oil, baking soda, baking powder, sea salt, rice milk, vanilla extract, xantham gum, cinnamon, coconut, carob.

Review? I love all of those ingredients listed above!  So natural and healthy, and no soy! They are a bit high in calories and fat, however given what the bar is comprised of I think it’s well worth a healthy treat. This bar was delicious!  It was sweet with a mild hint of coconut, moist and chewy, and the carob chips balanced out the flavors perfectly.  I only allowed myself half, but I can easily see the other half being my “treat” after dinner.  I can’t wait to try the rest of the flavors!

Lunch rolled around before I realized what time it was, and I was anxious to dig into a Gardein product, as they generously sent me three coupons to try out their products!  Gardein proteins are all vegan, and made up of soy, grain, and vegetable bases. I picked up two products yesterday and whipped out the Tuscan breasts today.

Check out those nutritionals! The ingredients are pretty well based as well:  water, soy protein, vital wheat gluten, ancient grains (quinoa, amaranth, millet and kamut®), natural flavors (from plant sources), potato starch, expeller pressed canola oil and/or safflower oil, pea protein, modified vegetable gum, carrot fiber, organic beet root fiber, organic evaporated cane juice, yeast extract, sea salt. marinade: water, tomato paste, spices, herbs (rosemary, oregano, basil), red bell pepper flakes, vinegar, citric acid, xanthan gum

I heated the chik’n for 2-minutes in the microwave before cutting it in half and piling onto a sandwich.  The chik’n was moist and cooked in a tomato sauce.  I toasted two pieces of Ezekial 7-grain bread,  spread one side with the best hummus in the world (Sabra roasted red pepper), stacked some spinach and canned artichokes, and then the gardein chik’n.

The first bite of the sandwich made me drool for me, everything was so moist and flavorful!  The chik’n didn’t have a chewy texture (think: morningstar or quorn), and was much more moist.  I would say from what I remember it wasn’t as chicken-like in flavor or texture, but was close.  I enjoyed the first half of the sandwich immensely; however by the time I got to the second half the overwhelming presence of the chicken-like protein began to nag at me, and iIfound myself picking some chunks of it out.

Results? I found the chik’n to be quite delicious, and I would and will go to it as a chicken replacement again.  I can see this being quite delicious shredded up in mexican dishes (think: quesadillas and enchiladas), where there are many other big flavor and texture components at play. I probably will not make a whole piece the center of a sandwich again, and I think I may cut a piece in half and have better results.  Overall, I absolutely recommend this product to someone looking to add some vegan protein to their diet in a quick fashion.

I can’t wait to try to the chik’n tenders next! What’s your favorite meat replacer? Before I switched to a vegan diet I loved morning star crumbles, and wish they figure out a way to remove the egg whites!

Stay tuned for tonight’s dinner, and if you haven’t please check out and enter my Vegan Bites giveaway that runs the rest of this week! All you have to do is comment on what you’d like to try!