Each of these things warrants their own post but I’m so far behind I have to consolidate!
First up…
Pure Bars!
Let me start by saying I’m NOT a big bar person. I used to stock granola bars as a quick snack on the run but since I started working from home I’ve eased off them. Most have tons of extra ingredients I’m not that into anyway. Remember the conversation this quick review of Fiber One bars started? HYSTERICAL!
Anyway, when Pure contacted me and asked if I was interested, I hesitantly said yes. An organic, vegan, raw bar full of Omega-3s, could there any more buzz words in there? Honestly, most health food labels cause involuntary eye rolls anymore. I’m tired of seeing products littered with these descriptors only to be disappointed by the ingredient list and nutritional information. But I was willing to get them a shot anyway.
When the pure bars arrived I immediately turned one over to see the ingredient list and it made me chuckle, in a good way.
Organic Dates, organic apples, organic agave nectar, organic walnuts, organic cashews, organic almonds, organic rice protein concentrate, organic cinnamon. That’s all!
That list is from their Apple Cinnamon bar, my favorite. Let’s take the word organic out just to see how simple the list really is.
Dates, apples, agave nectar, walnuts, cashews, almonds, rice protein concentrate, cinnamon.
In my opinion, for a convenience food, that’s not too shabby! But what about the taste?
Honesty, DIVINE! Sweet, moist, FULL of flavor. I really wasn’t sure if I was going to like them but I have to admit they are tasty and FILLING! Or should I say satisfying? A really great option to keep in your bag those days you aren’t sure you’ll be able to grab lunch.
Nutritionally they are a bit higher in calories then your average dieter may be into but a bargain for the fullness factor if you ask me. Not too mention I’d rather eat REAL food at slightly higher points then "light" fake foods and lower. This wasn’t always how I felt, but over time I learned to value real food more and more. At 190 calories, 8g of fat, 28g of carbs, 3g of fiber and 5g of protein they weigh in at 4 WWP and 5 new WWPP
The bars come in 6 flavors, Apple Cinnamon, Chocolate Brownie, Cranberry Orange, Wild Blueberry, Cherry Cashew, and Trail Mix. All are tasty but that’s the order I like them in as well. Seriously, Apple Cinnamon ROCKS!
Click here to learn more on the Pure Web Site
Crio Brü
Yet another product I was VERY hesitant to try. I actually turned down the opportunity until the the company convinced me otherwise. This was in their original pitch…
I thought you might be interested to learn about a new chocolate drink that brews like coffee. It’s called Crio Brü – www.criobru.com. Crio Brü is incredibly delicious and made from 100% pure cocoa
All I saw was "brews like coffee" and I was completely uninterested. See, I HATE coffee. I just do. Never liked it even though it smells divine. When I taste it, blech!
So I wrote back,
Thanks Jon, but I’m not interested. I don’t "do" coffee. But it sounds interesting!
To which he responded.
That is what makes this different, however, is that it isn’t coffee…it’s made from 100% cocoa.
Hmmm a ‘coffee like’ drink made with cocoa beans INSTEAD of coffee beans? Ok, I’m game.
When I opened the bag I was overcome by the GLORIOUS smell. Oh my word.. chocolate lovers will understand. I seriously wanted to bath in it.
The grinds looked like coffee but not as fine and uniform…
I brewed a cup not knowing what to expect and was pleasantly surprised! It was like a non-creamy, less sweet hot chocolate. That may sounds odd or bad but it was actually pleasant. A warm cup of cocoa, complex with flavor and deliciously satisfying. I added a spash of vanilla almond milk to cool it down and simply fell in love. For the first time ever I think I understand the lure of coffee.
According to the Crio Brü site a cup has about has 20 calories and 3g of carbs. They also make a lot of health claims I tend to take with a grain of salt. All I know is I like the way it tastes. And as a non-coffee drinker, I think it’s fun to have an alternative to tea when I’m in the mood for a hot beverage.
Click here to learn more on the Crio Brü web site.
A Cherry-rific Giveaway
Finally! The giveaway. Are you still with me? I feel like this is the longest post ever!
Here’s the deal…. The Cherry Marketing Institute is hosting a fabulous Recipe contest using, what else but CHERRIES! I outlined all the details here on FitBloggin’ BUT I forgot one teeny, tiny thing… they are giving away an awesome Cherry Red Gift pack to not only the winners of the contest but for one of my readers as well! Look at it up there, it’s a beautiful set! Simply leave a comment below to be entered to win the Cherry Red Cookware giveaway pictured above.
Click here to learn all about the Cherry Recipe Contest and how you can enter your cherry recipe!
Full Disclosure: Pure and Crio Brü both sent me products to review free of charge. However, they did not pay me for the review. My opinion about their products are my own. The Cherry Marketing Institute is a paying sponsor of the FitBloggin’ conference and they sent me the gift pack pictured above in exchange for publicizing the Cherry Recipe contest.
Update: Winner announced! It was Brooke! – A big thanks too all those that entered!
Winner selected using the Pick Giveaway winner plugin. Click here to learn more.
189 Responses to 2 Awesome Reviews with a Cherry-rific Giveaway on Top!
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I Published a Cook Book!
BlogToLose
What's Cooking in my kitchen?
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About Roni
Roni started this blog in '05 to journal her weight loss. 70lbs later, she's committed to living a conscious, healthy life and hopes to inspire others along the way. Read more on the about page.
So cute! I would love it!!
I love cherries! Also love kitchen gadgets and these are adorable. Thanks for the opportunity to enter the give away!
I would love the Cherry-rific Giveaway prize pack!! I need new measuring cups and a new recipe box…. and how cute are these!
Also, I’m so excited to try the pure bars! Great review! I really appreciate your honesty and trying to be try to you. Thank you!
Those would look fabulous in my kitchen! Thanks for the giveaway.
Great products, and great reviews!
That cocoa stuff DOES sound interesting…hmmm…. might have to try it.
The set would totally match my kitchen!! :)
i too love the smell and hate the taste of coffee. i may have to try that stuff. i’d love to win a prize pack for my new kitchen!
Pick me, please pick me, please , please, oh ,oh me me
LOVE the gift set! It would SO match my kitchen decor and help me cook better….
Still loving the Fiber One bar conversation! It was an instant classic!
I would love to have that in my kitchen. It would bring some warmth.
Thanks for the reviews! I have seen the Pure bars and was wondering if they were good. Sounds like a winner!
Lucky number 163!?
I used to eat Lara bars all the time and loved them until I started having allergic-type reactions to nuts. :( Nuts were always my go-to snack. I’ve learned to eat fruit or veggies instead. You would not believe the snack items that have been exposed to tree nuts and peanuts. sigh.
I am a fan of coffee but my husband hates it. Won’t kiss me after I’ve had a cup so I am always on the lookout for something other than tea to cure that hot cup o’ joe craving in the morning.
Great giveaway. I would love to have them.
Love the cheery red color – beautiful! Pick me! Pick me!
I’m really excited to try these bars. I’m always buying new ones to try for a quick purse snack and 99% of the time they are epic fails! Thanks for trying these for us! Love the red, if I were Oprah it would totally be on my favorite things list.
Hi! The gift set looks great… and the bars you reviewed sound great, too. Wonder if I can buy them around here. :)
Oh what I wouldn’t give for those nested mixing bowls…
The bars sound DELISH! Thanks for letting us know about them. The RED set pictured above is very stylish. What a pretty shade of red!
Love the red set! Will be looking for those bars….
The red set looks great! I might have to give those bars a try. They sound really good!
im a faithful blog reader and rare commenter… but first you won me over with bars… i love bars. second you won me over with the less sweet and less creamy hot cocoa (i love hot cocoa but i hate how sweet they usually are) I also love coffee, so i wonder if doing a half coffee grounds and half cocoa grinds would give you a mocha taste without many added calories.
AND A GIVE AWAY! As someone who has lost many of their kitchen things to moving back home, the thought of me moving out again (whenever that ever so elusive job happens) and having a good set of “making tools” is great!
Oh, my. Gotta try that cocoa drink! I love the gift set. Those bowls are awesome!
Love it! And I’ll have to try the Pure bars.
What a great set; it’s nice of you to offer it as a prize :)
I love this set of cherry red items!
The PURE bars look good! I”ve always seen them in the stores and wanted to try them out (especially the Chocolate flavor!) but have thought they were always too expensive. :P The ingredient list seems similiar to Lara bars though which I like.
The Cocoa also sounds yumm!
What a fabulous giveaway! I love all the kitchen goodies… and my kitchen could totally use some goodies! :-)
i love it, pure bar yummie. thanks
pretty red! I might have to try that cocoa stuff. I do love coffee, but sometimes I’m not in the mood for it.
As usual you have a knack for the camera and are a natural! Great reviews, love your honesty, and the kitchen set.
Gasp! What a gorgeous set! Our whole kitchen is basically turquoise, and these would look absolutely lovely in our kitchen. By the way, we are hoping to make your My Super Bowl Spiced Wings and Tenders this weekend. YUM!
Love love love the pretty red!
How can you not love the word cherry-rific! This would all look great in my red kitchen. And so much of my kitchen stuff is getting worn out – most of what I’m using is what I got for a wedding present in 1989!
Boy I could make good use of that high-performance cookware!
oo!oo! pick me! pick me! I cannot believe I missed this post. Well I guess I can as I’ve been a victim of the icy weather in Texas and holed up in a hotel room with no laptop!
Hey Roni
Those bars sound and look AMAZING!
I am moving into my first appartment on May 1st and this AWESOME cherry kitchen set would be a GREAT addition to my very small amount of kitchen wear.
Thanks for your post Roni! So GREAT
Tiffany
I really enjoy reading your blog, lots of great info. I just tried a Pure bar, liked it too. Would love to win the Cherry kitchen set, just renovated my kitchen and it would match great.
G
Love the set. Such a gorgeous color! I’ll have to get my hands on some Crio Brü too.