Dr. Weil Bars by Nature's Path

Nature's Path

Taste: ***
Price: *
Nutrition:**

EXPENSIVE. But, damn tasty. I've been trying a lot of date bars for these blog posts and didn't expect anything new from Dr. Weil. However, the flavor of the Pistachi-Oh! bar was very different and delicious. Nutritional content varies somewhat from flavor to flavor, but for the most part the vitamins and minerals included are limited by simplicity of ingredients. I wish they didn't cost so much!

LUNA Tea Cakes

http://www.lunabar.com/teacakes/

Taste: *
Price: ***
Nutrition: ***

Cliff bar does make a soy-free product, apparently. I tried the orange blossom flavor and wasn't pleased by the taste, but I asked a friend to try and they liked it a lot so maybe I'm just being picky. Some protein and lots of vitamins. Also, infused with tea and well priced. Not a bad option if the flavor suits you.

Snack Bars

Formerly, Cliff Bars were a staple of my life. But, like most vegan snack/meal bars, they are loaded with soy. This has been one of my biggest frustrations--I've read so many freakin labels, covered aisles worth of different bars, and haven't really found one yet that can hold up to the soy-based bars in terms of nutrition, taste, and economy. The quest has begun.

Here, I start a list of my findings. I will rate each bar according to taste, price, and nutrition by a three star system, one being the worst and three being the best.

LARABAR

Taste: ***
Price: **
Nutrition: **

They are tasty and attractively simplistic. All bars are date based and have some kind of nut in them (cashew, walnut). The ingredient lists are so short! No added sugar besides the fruit and creative flavors (cashew cookie, lemon bar...) keep things interesting. That said, dates are not everyone's thing, and these bars are too sugary for me sometimes. Also, nuts are fatty so if you're watching your waistline, the LARABAR probably isn't for you. Falls short in nutritional extras like vitamins--the trade-off for simple ingredients. Overall, one of my favorites.

EDIT: Walnuts are a great source of Omega 3's and many LARABAR flavors contain walnuts. I was wrong to generalize that the bars are low in Omega 3's!