I’ve been meaning to give these Raw Revolution bars a shot for a very long time. I happen to love “green superfoods” like spirulina and chlorella so long as they’re not too aggressively bitter, so I thought that I might like this one if it actually tasted like banana, but there’s always that chance that it could end up tasting like a freshly mowed lawn.

I love it when companies make an effort to listen to the dietary needs and wants of consumers by making their products as inoffensive as possible. This one is gluten free, dairy free, soy free, peanut free, vegan, kosher, and contains no artificial preservatives or ingredients to speak of. While I may not necessarily need all of those things, I feel better knowing that this is an extremely “clean” product free of any crap that I don’t need to put in my body.

It clocks in at 170 calories. Not bad, but I tend to feel like 200 to 250 is best for a snack that actually satisfies your hunger for more than a minute. 18 grams of sugar is a little high, but most of the sugars are fruit sugars and the rest is agave nectar, not the worst sweeteners out there. Those are the two things I look at most often when selecting these bars, calorie content and sugar.

Appearance: Darker than expected, definitely from the dates. Looks smooth and ingredients are evenly distributed.

Taste: Mmm! I expected this to taste like banana bread as many banana-based bars do, but it actually tastes like a pina colada! A very present and natural-tasting banana flavor with a twinge of what tastes like pineapple, though there is no pineapple in the bar. And though it’s packed to the gills with green stuff, there really isn’t any bitter or grassy flavor to speak of, just tastes like delicious bananas and dates.

Texture: Smooth and pasty like a Larabar but with little bits of nuts mixed in.

Overall, I loved this one! It’s a really original flavor that I haven’t come across elsewhere. I like that I can take in some healthy green stuff without my mouth tasting like it’s packed full of lawn clippings soaked in algae. And while it has the similar smooth and pasty texture of a Larabar that I love so much, it’s a bit larger and therefore more satisfying than a Larabar. WIN!

Do you prefer smooth or crunchy bars?

July 10, 2011 Alayna Discussion 3 comments

I am such a dork. I nearly waited until Monday to eat this breakfast just so I could fill this post with references to “Blue Monday.” You know, that song by New Order (and Orgy, which I must confess I liked better.) At least I didn’t wait until January.

That glistening blue blob on the banana (wow that sounds gross, but it’s so aliterative!) is a scoop of blueberry Noosa yogurt. I made the mistake of going to “the big Whole Foods” in my area and came home with a bunch of novelty products I’ve never seen before at “the little Whole Foods.” This yogurt was one of them.

I could not resist those plump little berries!

The yogurt part itself has a great cheesy flavor and texture that I really like. The blueberry stuff didn’t taste too much like blueberries, but it was a nice fruity and sweet contrast to the yogurt.

In other blue news…

I bought nail polish on an impulse yesterday. I am not an impulse shopper. But my blue nails make me happy every time I look at them.

What color always makes you happy?

June 30, 2011 Alayna Discussion 7 comments

Good morning!

Another nanner for breakfast today. I’m really starting to get addicted to this nut butter, I love how salty it is!

Last night I made a pan of enchiladas in green chili sauce. They’re filled with brown rice, vegetarian refried beans, black beans, salsa, and pickled jalapenos. I ended up going back for another half of one, so good!

And yesterday afternoon I made a recipe that I intended to write as a separate post, but it didn’t turn out so I’ll have to try it again.

These are Chines tea eggs, essentially boiled eggs that are marinated in an aromatic sauce. The marbling effect comes from cracking the shells before marinating, but I might not have cracked them hard enough because they didn’t get as intensely marbled as they’re supposed to.

They taste great, but I want a better picture for the recipe page so I’ll try them again when I get more eggs.

I did manage to complete some of the blog changes I mentioned yesterday but I’m having some issues implementing them, so I’ll probably have to wait until Jeff get’s home today to get some help with it. My Blogroll page has been updated though, if you wanna check it out!

Workout time!

June 22, 2011 Alayna Discussion 8 comments