Product Review:PowerBar Protein Plus® 30g Chocolate Brownie

PowerBar Protein Plus® 30g Chocolate Brownie

States Gluten Free: No

Gluten containing ingredients: No

Allergy Warnings on label: ALMOND, MILK, PEANUT

AND SOY INGREDIENTS. MADE ON EQUIPMENT

THAT ALSO PROCESSES WHEAT.

Purchased at: Wal-Mart Super Center, Pharmacy department

Price: $1.98

From the PowerBar website:

PowerBar ProteinPlus 30g protein bar — key features:

* Contains 30g TriSource protein blend

* Help build a lean body and provide sustained energy

* Contains leucine, a key essential amino acid for muscle protein synthesis

*No preservatives or artificial flavors

My Review:

$$$$$$$$$$

7 of 10 for:

Pros: Availability, taste

Cons: Possible allergen, too supplement rich

So, you may be wondering why I would choose to have a protein bar as my first review. One thought for you:Skinny husband. We still aren't sure to what extent DH is Gluten Intolerant, some of his symptoms are near Celiac Disease, but he doesn't seem to be as sensitive as most CD sufferers. He can tolerate 1 glutening a week with only mild discomfort. But if you are familiar with CD, you will know that it prevents the body from properly absorbing nutrients. DH has always been skinny. Even early in college when he was eating what seemed to be half a cow a day while in Weight Training class, he barely formed any muscles, just some toning. So he is a big fan of Protein bars and routinely will eat one instead of, after or with a meal. He thought he was going to have to give them up all together until we discovered that PowerBar has at least TWO lines of Gluten Free-ish protein bars. I will review the other in a separate post to pad my blog to give it a thorough review.

While it gives the warning of “Made on equipment that also processes wheat”, DH has never had a problem with them. The bars themselves look like a big candy bar, and the chocolate coating tastes just like normal chocolate and has a nice, not overly-sweet taste. The bar itself is rather dense, not fluffy as it looks like it should be and is a bit on the chewy side. My husband compared it to the Little Debbie brownies that were a gas station-snack favorite of his, which is one thing he has really missed on our road trips to see family. Not to say it taste “just like” a brownie. It definitely has that “I have a whole bottle of vitamins in me” taste. Not candy-sweet at all, but not near as bad as some others. A great option for the GI athlete, and I would say that it is tasty enough to be a snack for the non-athletic as well, in moderation. But with it's high protein content and “good-for-you” taste, not one for the kids. Though IE LOVED it, we would only give him one or two small nibbles, kids just don't need that much supplement in their diet.

A little housekeeping note: I will be moving Product Reviews over to Friday to give me one more day to procrastinate in case something comes up.

This is my own personal opinion, I received no samples or other compensation for this post.

Recipe Tuesday: Gluten Free Ham and Cheese Calzone

This recipe is out my desperation for something other than pizza that seemed "normal". Bob's Red Mill GF Pizza Crust Mix ($4.16 at Bob's Red Mill and available at some HEBs) has become a regular fixture in my home, but each package makes two 12 inch pizzas. You can only eat so many pizzas! So I went on a search for something to do with the other half of the dough. I modified a few other recipes and was pleasantly surprised when this came out right the first try. The next time I do it I will try making four calzones, as one of these big boys fed two adults and one hungry toddler. While the filling suited my family's taste, this could be easily modified to anyone's tastes, as long as there is something to keep the filling from drying out (IE cheese, dressing, sauce, etc). Enjoy!

Ham and Cheese Calzone

Preheat oven to 350F deg

1/2 pound cooked pork, cubed
1 1/2 cup cooked broccoli
2 cups shredded cheese
1/2 cup Ranch dressing, or dressing of choice

1/2 package Bob's Red Mill Pizza dough(follow directions on label)


Also:
Lightly Greased baking sheet
LARGE cutting board
Plastic Wrap
Large bowl
Mixing Spoon

Brown pork in pan with spices of choice, I used salt, pepper, ground mustard and balsamic vinegar.

In large bowl combine broccoli, cheese, cubed pork. Mix well. Add ranch dressing, mix until all is thoroughly coated. Set aside

On a large cutting board, layout a large piece of plastic wrap, app. 1 ft long. Place 1/2 of dough on plastic(it helps with removal later if the underside is slightly wet before it is placed). With wet hands, press as flat as possible without misshaping too much.


Rinse hands of "slimy" feeling, with wet hand, make smooth semicircular motions while pressing out, turning the board to keep the dough even.

Smooth until about 1/8" thick, with edges thinner. Place 1/2 contents of bowl on one side of the dough, leaving 1/2" from edge free.

On the free side of dough, take the corners of the plastic wrap and gently, but firmly pull to cover filling.

Press on the edges of the dough through the plastic to seal. Carefully pull plastic back from the top, and gently cradle in both hands as if a newborn.

Carefully rotate until you can lay it on the greased pan, as it stays where it lands! Repeat process for second calzone, using a new sheet of plastic wrap.

Bake at 350 deg. for 30 minutes

Gluten Free: Sticker Shock and Kitchen Phobia

When I was younger, I thought allergies were a lot like fashion trends: there always seemed to be a new "trendy" allergy. I can remember watching my mother mournfully explain to other moms how my two sisters were "lactose intolerant", watching the reactive condolences with equally mournful expressions. Then came the peanut allergy, the MSG allergy, and, I now feel bad about this, I actually laughed when I met some one with a Soy allergy, because I found it so ironic that they had been replacing peanuts with soy in so many products, that now they find people are allergic to it as well! The latest "fad" allergy seemed to be the Gluten Allergy. I pretty much ignored all my mom said about how she had "discovered" she was Gluten Intolerant and what wonders it did for her and blah blah blah. She had said the same thing about MSG! But she kept saying that my husband of (at that point) 2 years seemed to have similar symptoms. He and I both brushed it off...preposterous! But I started watching...and noticing that once again, my mother was right *grimace*

It took a lot of convincing, but my Darling Hubby (DH from here out) finally agreed to go 1 week without a single hamburger, pizza, or Italian dish. And in just a few days, he felt the difference. No abdominal cramps, no "issues of Gastronomical proportions", he seemed to be free of his IBS symptoms. It took another week, but we decided to go Gluten Free 100%, so much to the point that I gave away all my wheat products, instead of the original plan of eating through them and not replacing them. We then discovered that our 18-month-old son (IE from here on out) was also Gluten Intolerant. Oh joy. I am apparently the only one not afflicted. And yet, to a degree, I am the one with the biggest burden. I am responsible for feeding our little trio. Needless to say, I no longer think of allergies with such off-handed amusement.

As soon as we were on the bandwagon, my mom started sending in recommendations, I scoured the web for recipes and blogs. What I found both shocked me and intimidated me. HAVE YOU SEEN THE PRICE FOR THIS STUFF? A loaf of GF bread is nearly $6! And a tiny bag of flour is $4! I went on to search for alternatives, and here in came the blogs. Women armed up to the hilt with Kitchen Aid mixers, milling machines and pantries full of exotic sounding flours that they mix together by the 1/8 cup. *sweat dripping down my forehead*

Don't get me wrong, I love to cook. I am actually rather good at it, despite pretending to be completely Kitchen Phobic all through High School. But still, I rely on things from the local grocer and avoid things that are too extravagant (but don't ask about my Norwegian cuisine obsession that calls for things like Cardamon...) So asking me to drop the breading off the baked chicken, the biscuits off the Country Chicken Casserole and totally forget waffles seemed like a death sentence to DH and a nervous break down to me! But, slowly I have found a few ways to cut costs and even discover a few new things that DH loves but never would have tried before. (Oh, and it turns out much of Norwegian cuisine is GF, hehe, major win for me!)

What my hope is for this blog to chronicle what I have learned, to follow me as I continue to learn and hopefully bridge the gap for those, who like me, are a little intimidated of milling my own flour or restricted on what we can spend for what boils down to luxury items like crackers and cookies.

I plan on updating twice a week, hopefully a Tuesday & Thursday schedule with one recipe and one product review a week.