LARABAR The Original Fruit & Nut Food Bar Review

To the Point

I first found and fell in love with LARABAR when I was offered a sample in Whole Foods. I walked out of the store with a dozen of them.

A Closer View

Lara, the founder of these wonderful bars describes her moment like this: “It stared on a hike in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Little did I know I was about to come up with a mountain of an idea: Combine wholesome ingredients such as fruits and nuts to create a food product that's tasty, healthy and convenient. In that instant, in May 2000, LARABAR (with two dots over the A) was born.”

I couldn't possibly make the claim that I have tried every bar on the market. I can say I've tried 75%. They've included meal replacement bars, bars that taste like candy, bars that don't taste like candy but that are supposed to be good for you. I have liked some; I have hated some. It wasn't until I met LARABAR that I loved one.

These bars are made from 100% whole food. Each flavor contains no more than six ingredients. This is really important to me. I like to eat as close to the ground as I can and prefer the ability to not only pronounce the ingredients but know what they are. LARABAR provides one serving of fruit; has no added sugar; is gluten, diary and soy free; is vegan and kosher. All of the vitamins, minerals, fiber, protein, good carbohydrates and healthy fats are derived exclusively from the whole, raw food used to make LARABAR

LARABAR are uncooked and unprocessed. Sound good? They're great. I haven't tried all the flavors. There are two new ones I saw at the website www.larbar.com. They are pistachio and key lime pie. I have tried the other ten flavors. My two favorites are 1.Chocolate Coconut which has dates, almonds, walnuts, unsweetened cocoa and unsweetened coconut. It’s so delicious. I tend to go for the chocolate/nut flavors finding the ones such as apple pie a bit tart.  “The unsweetened cocoa, however, is actually good for you, providing more antioxidants than green tea. All told the bar is a whole-food source of 16 essential vitamins and minerals, fiber, Vitamin E, folic acid and more than 2 grams of Omega 3 & 6 essential fatty acids” and 2. Cashew Cookie described as “Two ingredients, one incredible flavor! The unprocessed, creamy cashews are rich in iron, zinc and B Vitamins. The chewy dates have more potassium than bananas. Together they form a bar rich in fiber with 2 grams of heart-healthy Omega-6 fatty acids and 15 essential vitamins and minerals.”

Don't worry about the large amount of fat. Plant-based fats are healthier than animal fats. Omega 3 and 6 essential fatty acids have been proven to reduce LDL cholesterol and help protect the heart.

I just finished the Cherry Pie.  While not my favorite because of the slight tart flavor it was delicious.  The ingredients: dates, almonds and unsweetened cherries. It has 8 grams of fat and a whopping 28 grams of carbohydrates which should give you a little pick me up. It has 190 calories.

 They don’t all taste the same because there is a difference if one has raisins and one has cinnamon or one has cashews and one has pecans but the taste is really subtle. I do tend to go for the ones mentioned and another favorite is Pecan Pie. I can’t wait to taste the Pistachio – one of my favorite flavors!

These 7-ounce bars sell from $1.29 to $1.99 depending on where you buy them. They are delicious and healthy! And I mean really delicious and healthy though please note that although these bars contain vitamins and minerals the % is low. A bar a day isn't a substitute for a multi-vitamin. 

The complete list: Pistachio, Key Lime Pie, Apple Pie, Ginger Snap, Lemon Bar, Banana Cookie, Cashew Cookie, Pecan Pie, Cinnamon Roll, Apple Pie, Cherry Pie, Cocoa Mole, and Coconut Cashew.

Jo’s Viewpoint

I love it and would love it more if LARABARs were organic.