I ate a Lara bar

[Rmiller]

I've got to agree - Lara Bars aren't that great. I've never bought them but I got a bunch of free samples. They are only about a 1/4 of the regular size Lara Bars so that size is just enough - I couldn't eat anymore of it at once.

I personally prefer this simple recipe to munch on. It is quick and convenient.

- grind up 1/8 to 1/4 cup nuts or seeds

Put this in a small sandwich baggie

Later when you are out and need a pick-me-up, pull out the small baggie with the ground up nuts, add a ripe banana to it, close up the bag and use your hands to mash up the banana with the ground up nuts.

Open up the bag, grap a spoon and dig in. It is so tasty and fresh and raw. I use this all the time if I'm going to be out for a few hours and will need a snack.

Enjoy :)

[Apples'nAvos]

Yeah, I need to agree with RP and MonkeyBoy on this. I tried Lara bars for the first time a few months ago, and I was surprisingly disappointed. They just didn't do anything for me? I tried to apple kind, and the banana kind.
I thought it was kind of funny though because I had read many rave reviews of them, but at the end of the day, I prefer a good ol' banana or apple :P

[JenniferSeed]

Most Laura bars are just ok. But I am in love with the coco mole. A little sweet, a little spicy, yum! And I have bought some that seemed fresher than others.

[PATH301]

I bought a larabar - a lemon one at a raw resturant in Santa Monica, C.A. for 2.50, It was my first it tasted pretty good. Misslinda talks about them all the time. So of course I had to try one. I have'nt found any here in the midwest.

[Eastersky]

My favorite is the Banana Cookie and the Cashew Cookie. I have never really liked the chocolate coconut chew. The Chocolate Mole is pretty good if you are looking for chocolate.

[JennaBoBenna]

i like cashew cookie and pecan pie mmmmmmm

[onesmartcookie]

banana cookie, pecan pie, ginger snap and cocoa mole are my favs =) I wasn't a fan of cashew cookie, apple pie or cherry. On the fence with the coconut one. I think they have a cinnamon roll flavor too, which I would like to try (though I'm soooo going to make rawkinlocs' raw cinnamon rolls...they sound *so* amazing)

[misslinda]

KOi! I do Path ? I had a short bout of Lara craziness last month but I don'T even eat them anymore. LIke RP said nothing beats a fresh banana or apple. Larabars seems too dry and nutty. Are we sure the brand THinkOrganic is truly RAW? If any of them I like the pecan pie that Cherie mentioned.


I hope there is raw bar coming out soon that uses more vegetables instead.


:)

[Dimond]

For those that aren't super picky with raw, Organic Food bars said the ingredients in their green bars are cooked/dehydrated under 100 degrees. The only thing that isn't raw is the brown rice protein cooked at 130. I like having them on hand for something more substantial than a Lara Bar. Think Organic is definitely tastier than Lara, but way too addictive. Garden Of Life is suppose to be coming out with a raw bar any day. Hopefully it's 100% raw.

[PATH301]

Hey there's another one out there called " smart monkey food". RawTruth knows more about it. She showed it to me, when I was in Long Beach area with her It's organic RAw organic as well.

[misslinda]

Yep, I love the trail mix and the pecan one!!!!!! I dig SmartMonkey but they are way too overpriced for those tiny things. At least here is is $ 2.79 for one. It's about a 2x2 sqaure.

[RawTruth]

The new bars put out by SmartMonkeyFood are not dehydrated. And they are organic -- and all raw. That was cool good news, huh!?? Uh oh, now the bad news: LaraBars aren't organic and the ones with chocolate are not raw -- and they've been warehoused for months and months and months; that's why they low price.

I'm with RP and MonkeyBoy; I've tried most all flavors and I have used them in a pinch (especially when I was first raw and out of Alissa's Fudge Balls), but, the longer I'm raw, the more cardboard like they seem.

I say -- do whatever it takes to stay raw. If they help, great! If you can make do with fresh food, great!

It's all good. :)

Oh yeah - SmartMonkeyFoods is my friend Ani's company. She is a woman of integrity, clarity, and a uniquely talented chef who has been devoted to living foods for years. If you are concerned about the intention of the people behind the foods we eat, you can know that Ani is not a huge corporation existing solely for profit, but if a beautiful human being who spent six months creating this latest bar because she wants to have a living food bar out there for us -- not just another one that's raw but not living.

You can check it out: http://www.smartmonkeyfoods.com/

[juliebove]

I've never tried one. I did buy the chocolate coconut one to try but then discovered after I got home that it had almonds in it and I am allergic to almonds. I put it in my daughter's snack basket along with some others I bought on sale. They are one of the few pre-made snacks she can eat with all of her food allergies. She had one before. Can't remember the flavor but it had cashews in it. She had gone in early to dance class and had said she didn't want a snack. But as soon as we got there she did want a snack and that meant something from the health food store next door since there was no other option. And even then the options are limited. They don't stock fresh produce on a regular basis. I do get my organic produce boxes from them once a week but on most other days they have none.

She ate the whole bar and said she liked it. But then after I bouught more of them she said she didn't really like them. She is one of those people who seems to think various foods are more appealing when she is really hungry. Salad for instance. Normally she whines about it and won't touch it. But if dinner isn't ready right away and she is hungry she will wolf it down and say that she liked it.

For me I would look at these like more of an emergency food. Something to tuck away for those times when there is a power outage like we had when I lived in NY. We had no power for about a week and all of the stores were closed because they couldn't operate the cash registers. It was during the hot summer and all the fresh food spoiled. It was then close to another week before they got new fresh food in! Now of course in that situation you'd be all set if you had a garden, but I did not. I had tried to grow tomatoes in a pot but had no luck there.

They would also be good for us to take with us during cross country moves. Good fresh food is hard to come by then, although it is getting better than it was 10 years ago. And then there's the issue of taking fresh produce across state lines. You can't do that in some states. So a few of those would be handy to have for a meal in a pinch. But they are not something I'd want on a regular basis.

[Secret Heart]

I agree with you Juliebove,

I prefer the Think Organic bars to the Lara ones...and I do tend to keep them for "emergencies" out on the road or wherever. Personally I find grawnola is just, if not more satisfying as I make it myself with buckwheat, sunflower seeds, almonds dates, pears, gojis, apricots and raisins and it's quite filling...

I know if I make my own Lara Bars at home I'll eat them all...I have no self control!!!

Heather