Fit Crunch Bars

I've been eating protein bars for a few years now, but only in the last two years did I start to learn when to eat them, what ingredients to look for, etc. I usually opted for Balance bars and Power bars only because those were the biggest names, so I guessed they had to be reliable. And of course, since I don't eat chocolate except for Oreos, that eliminated 80 percent of the flavors.

Now anyone who knows me I'm a huge fan of food shows on the Food Network and the Travel Channel. My fixations evolve every few months, but over the last two years, I make sure to watch any show that Robert Irvine hosts. Dinner Impossible, Restaurant Impossible, and now Restaurant Express, I watch them all.

Irvine is known for his British background, his no-nonsense attitude, and dedication to bodybuilding and physical fitness. So when I found out on Twitter that he was creating a line of protein bars, I quickly became interested. On the website for FitCrunch bars, I saw I could sign up and get a free sample. Both flavors, peanut butter and cookies 'n cream, had chocolate, sadly, but I figured I would try them anyway. I like an occasion cookies 'n cream power bar after all as long as I have a huge glass of 1% milk to go with it.

So the cookies 'n cream bar came about a month after I initially ordered. The sample-sized bar is advertised as baked and having six layers. Well, I appreciate the attention to detail. And the nutrition info impressed me: 16 grams of whey protein and only 3 grams of sugar, although the calorie count was 190.

When I took my first bite, I was quite impressed. It didn't taste powdery like many bars do, it tasted very natural. I tasted a definite crunch in the middle and when I looked inside, I saw what looked like mini-Oreos! The chocolate flavor was pretty overwhelming for me, but it was manageable. Very filling and very satisfying.

Two weeks later, the peanut butter arrived. There was less chocolate this time, so that appealed to me. On my first bite, I was drawn to the layer of crunchy peanuts right in the middle. And on either side of the peanuts was a cookie core and a layer of very rich peanut butter. And on the outside, I liked the drizzle of peanut butter over the outer layer of dark chocolate. I preferred the peanut butter a little bit more because it tasted more balanced than the cookies n' cream.

I would definitely continue eating the FitCrunch bars. I'm not sure about buying a case of 12 bars online right now because with shipping, that would cost me around $45.00. So for now, I'm waiting to see when they'll be available in local stores and for what price. Also, in January, there will be a new flavor debuting, caramel nut. It has a cookie and caramel core with peanuts to give it the crunch. Then it also has chocolate crisps, and outer layer of chocolate and a drizzle of caramel on the outside. I'm sure I'll at least give that a try. But, I'm still waiting on that non-chocolate option...