First off, know that this is not a “paid” endorsement. Two months ago I was given an opportunity to beta-test a new product from Kellogg’s. Their FiberPlus Bars. I was contacted by a very nice saleswoman, Martha, who asked if I was willing to participate in this product launch since I was a “frugal” mom and had my own blog. Wow! “Cool!” I thought, free product and an opportunity to voice my opinion to people who want it.” How fun is that? (Can you tell I’m used to teenagers?)
Anyhow, I received in the mail a week later a nice little lunch bag complete with three FiberPlus Bars:
Chocolate Chip
Dark Chocolate Almond (Turned out to be my favorite of the three)
Chocolatey Peanut Butter
It just so happened that I was doing a lot of traveling during this time so I quickly stuffed the free bars into my bags and literally ran out the door to make sure I wouldn’t be late for the plane.
You know me, I’m not one that really “does” prepared food. I usually cook from scratch and the only time I buy processed stuff is when I am on-the-road. And even with that I don’t stop off at fast-food places. I stop off at grocery stores and buy from their deli counters. Not only do I save money with this, but I get food that is a bit better for my digestion. (And the kids each get exactly what they want, did I mention I have four kids? LOL!)
Well, dear reader, I have to admit. I was really surprised at how good these bars were. I mean, come on, “FIBERPLUS” Bars? The name doesn’t even ring like a good thing for me. It is not an item I would have reached for on my grocer’s shelf! However, they tasted great as I was flying over the Rocky Mountains headed for San Diego. As I was given my beverage by the airline, I munched happily on the Chocolatey Peanut Butter Bar. It was the perfect snack for this trip since I was unable to grab breakfast before I left for the airport.
Data: Being trained as a bench chemist (in my pre-mom life), you know how I love my data so here you go:
Calories for a FiberPlus Bar (Dark Chocolate Almond) relative to leading name-brand dark chocolate bar that I adore and has nuts and caramel.
130 calories to FiberPlus whereas 271 calories for my chocolate bar (ouch!)
FiberPlus 5 grams fat; 13.6 for chocolate bar (Oh, man, really?)
FiberPlus 24 grams carbs; 34 grams for chocolate bar (I’m starting to really whimper here!)
FiberPlus 7 grams sugar; 29 grams for chocolate bar (I’m feel’n pain.)
FiberPlus 2 grams protein; 4 grams for chocolate bar (of course.)
Now, this is far from a scientific study, but for me I had only one complaint with the bar. It was a tad too sweet for my taste. That’s because I make a lot of my own food and I really cut down on sugar. Even in cakes and cookies, I’ll use 1/3 to 1/2 less the sugar in the recipes. Because of this, to me, the bars were too sweet.
However, as much as I dislike processed food, I have to admit that the next time I’m traveling and need a quick snack, I’ll be reaching for these silly bars from Kellogg’s. Grrrr! Why?
- The calories are less than my favorite chocolate bar (Dark chocolate with almonds and caramel!)
- The sugar content is WAY, WAY less. sigh.
- Those dratted FiberPlus bars kept me “full” filling far longer than my other bar does.
- It took longer for me to chew them then my chocolate bar and hence I felt like I “had” more to eat then my alternative snack treat. Psychological tricks that worked.
Bummer, it looks like, yet again, I’ll have to make a change in the way I eat. So, there you go, dear one, I totally thought I would dislike this processed food (Talk to Martha the salesperson for Kellogg, I actually told her I wasn’t suited for her demographic!) However, I have to eat crow here and say that under certain situations, I’ll be reaching for one of these bars over other treats.
Dang it! I hate it when that happens!
Have a great summer everyone.
