Friday, November 9, 2012

Food Review: Barre Bar - Ballerina Spirulina



In my vegan Conscious Box last month I received a rather intriguing-looking food bar called Barre, which is marketed as “a real food bar developed by two professional dancers (made with whole foods for real athletes)”. To be honest, I was sold on the cute name of the particular bar I received, which was “Ballerina Spirulina”!

I have always wanted to try spirulina, a superfood packed with awesome nutrients, so I figured this bar was a good start! I had it for breakfast during a hectic work morning in hopes that the natural and good for you ingredients would power me through ‘til lunch.

I was struck by the purity of the ingredients, which included dates, walnuts, agave, hemp seed, rolled oats, hemp protein, ground flax seed, coconut flakes, brown rice protein, spirulina, vanilla, sea salt and peanuts! No weird unpronounceable ingredients here and it contains all whole food ingredients, no refined sugars and is high in omega-3s.

The initial taste of the bar was pretty good, and it had a nutty, slightly coconut-like taste. However, the spirulina aftertaste was a little too strong for my liking, especially since I had never had spirulina before and wasn't quite sure what to expect! Although the aftertaste was a bit off-putting, I finished the whole bar and it actually filled me up and kept me full until lunch (about 3 – 3.5 hours). I usually have Luna or Larabars, and while I love them both, they usually don’t keep me full all morning. I gotta give props to the Barre bar for keeping me going through a busy morning!

The nutritional value of the bar is pretty impressive. One bar contains 210 calories, 11 grams of total fat (1 gram saturated fat and 0 grams trans fat) and 25 grams of carbohydrates, with 4 grams of fiber and 6 grams of protein. I also liked how the bar incorporates hemp, flax, oats, brown rice protein and spirulina along with the nuts and coconut, making it nutritious and wholesome.

If spirulina isn't your bag (and I’m not sure it is mine), there are other flavors to try, like Black Swan Chocolate Berry and Pirouette Cinnamon Pecan (dying to try that one!). I would definitely buy the Barre Bar again (just maybe not in the Ballerina Spirulina flavor) and recommend it for its whole food ingredients and how long it keeps you full and satisfied.

Find more info at realfoodbarre.com!

2 comments:

  1. I think spirulina kinda tastes like green chalk or something. I try to like it but it just overpowers other tastes...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ya, it is definitely a taste that takes some getting used to!

      Delete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...