Tags: whole grain

13 Aug 2010, Comments (0)

New England Naturals Honey Nuts & Cinnamon Granola

Author: Healthnuttxo

 

I’m in the mood for cereal reviews lately! And today? New England Naturals Honey Nuts & Cinnamon Granola!

One of the foods I love to eat is cereal. By itself, with milk, with yogurt, etc. I also ESPECIALLY love granola! I find it super flavorful, crunchy and tasty.

New England Naturals sent me some of their granolas to try, including the Honey Nuts & Cinnamon Granola. According to the front of this package, there are “Brazil Nuts, Cashews, Cinnamon & Honey” in this granola.  Sounds good to me! I loooove cashews, and cinnamon & honey are always a pleasure! :)

Looking at the bag, I liked that there was an area where you could actually see the granola. It looked like big clusters of oats, and big pieces of both brazil nuts and cashews. I opened up the bag, and this smells AMAZING! Very fresh cinnamon flavor and just a hint of honey.

As for the taste? The granola itself wasn’t as crunchy as I had hoped, but more chewy. It really wasn’t that sweet, but had a good cinnamon and a light coconut flavor. It also had a toasted flavor, like it was baked in the oven. The brazil nuts were great- crunchy and fresh. And the cashews had a rather plain taste- as if they weren’t toasted.

Overall, I give this 3 1/2 stars. I do wish it was a bit sweeter, and had more of a honey flavor. I did like that there was a light coconut flavor, and that it had a GREAT cinnamon flavor. However, a 1/2 cup serving is 270 calories and 12 grams of fat, which is a little bit much for a granola gal like me :)

**What’s your favorite type of granola? If you’d like to answer, please leave a comment below!***

1/2 cup (60 g) is 270 calories, 12 grams of fat, 35 grams of carbohydrates, 4 grams of fiber, 11 grams of sugar, and 7 grams of protein.

Whole Rolled Oats, Honey, Expeller Pressed Canola Oil, Cashewes, Brazil Nuts, Dairy Whey  Powder, Coconut, Cinnamon.

11 Aug 2010, Comments (2)

Nature’s Path Organic Peanut Butter Granola

Author: Healthnuttxo

Presenting… one of the BEST granolas I have ever tasted! Nature’s Path sent me a box of their Organic Peanut Butter Granola to try, and all I can say is this is the yummiest peanut butter granola I have ever had (and I LOVE peanut butter!!)

According to the box, this granola is vegan, organic, provides 7 grams of protein per serving (3/4 cup or 55 grams), and is whole grain. I was so excited to try this- peanut butter? Granola? Organic? Let me taste it, please!! : )

The granola itself is softer than what I am used to, but still crunchy. There are also little peanuts scattered throughout the box, which I found quite enjoyable. It really added to the overall DELICIOUS, rich, and just a tad bit sweet peanut butter flavor this granola provided.

What really made me fall in love was that I got some “peanut butter chunks” in my box- as in melt-in-my mouth, soft, peanut buttery GOODNESS! They were quite big, too, and absolutely delicious. I was actually upset that there were only a few in the box, it was the best part!

Overall, this granola gets 5 stars. Seriously- if you are a fan of peanut butter, I HIGHLY recommend giving this cereal a try. The only thing stopping me from eating this straight from the box all day is that 3/4 of a cup is 260 calories, with 11 grams of fat. A tad bit high for my preferences for that portion size. Otherwise, this granola ROCKS!!!! : )

3/4 cup (55 grams) is 260 calories, 11 grams of fat, 35 grams of carbohydrates, 4 grams of fiber, 9 grams of sugar, and 7 grams of protein.

Organic rolled oats, organic evaporated cane juice, organic soy oil, organic peanut butter, organic brown rice flour, organic roasted peanuts, organic oat syrup solids, sea salt, tocopherols (natural Vitamin E), organic molasses, organic rice bran extract.

27 Jul 2010, Comments (3)

Nature’s Path Organic Yogurt Chewy Granola Bars

Author: Healthnuttxo

Nature’s Path is one of my favorite brands when it comes to snacks, cereals, oatmeals, etc. I love that their products are made with wholesome, real ingredients. To me, Nature’s Path seems like a company that really cares about the food they make.

I was sent some granola bars to try from the people at Nature’s Path, including the Yogurt Lotta’ Apricotta and Yogurt Berry Strawberry Chewy Granola Bars. How could it get better than this? Organic, yogurt covered, whole grains, all in one? : )

Each bar is chewy and actually some-what dense. What I liked was that these had good “holding power”- meaning to me that they didn’t  fall apart SUPER easy, which I find can happen with hewy-type granola bars. They were still soft, of course, but held together quite nicely.

Lotta’ Apricotta- wow! What flavor! Quite unexpected and a unique flavor, but really tasty. It had a sticky texture, with a fruit, sweet apricot flavor. There was also a slight coconut flavor that I tasted which complimented the apricot flavor quite well. There was a light, yogurt drizzle that tasted like vanilla icing, and little chunks of almonds that also added a nice touch. Yum! 4 1/2 stars

Berry Strawberry- Also an awesome flavor! I liked that I could smell strawberry flavors as I opened my bar. This one was also very chewy and sweet with visible tiny flaxseeds. The strawberry flavor was really good- not too tart, but almost reminded me of what strawbery fruit leathers taste like. The yogurt drizzle also was really good- a light vanilla flavor that went very well with the strawberry flavors. 4 stars

Overall, these are really tasty! I love that they are organic and provide some whole grains per bar. I think I will use these as a pre-workout snack or maybe as a light breakfast on the go with some yogurt and fruit, as they are a little short on protein and fiber for me to be eaten alone. I definitely recommend these- very tasty, and worth giving a try!

Lotta’ Apricotta- 1 bar is 140 calories, 5 grams of fat, 23 grams of carbohydrates,12 grams of sugar, 2 grams of fiber, and 2 grams of protein.

Berry Strawberry-1 bar is 140 calories, 3.5 grams of fat, 25 grams of carbohydrates, 11 grams of sugar, 2 grams of fiber, and 2 grams of protein.

For ingredient information and more, you can visit here.

26 Jul 2010, Comments (0)

Granola Gourmet Energy Bars

Author: Healthnuttxo

Energy Bars- I either love them, or, well, could do without them. Some are really tasty, but the ingredients aren’t so good, and some have great ingredients, but, the taste isn’t so good. I have found a few energy bars that I do enjoy throughout the years, and here’s hoping to add something new to my list…

Granola Gourmet makes all natural energy bars, but that also offer a bit more. What’s really cool is that according to the package, “A portion of your purchase helps fight diabetes!” I love when companies give back to other things like funds, or the environment. That’s great!! : )

 I was sent the Brownie and Very Berry flavors to try from Granola Gourmet.

Brownie- according to the package, these contain no dairy, no wheat, and no refined sugar. I opened the package, and was pleased with the smell.  It sort of smelled like a chocolate fudge- yum! Each bar is a bit tiny, about the size of a business card in length, and about 1/2 inch in thickness. These have a light chocolate flavor, more of a fruity taste. I let my mom try a piece, and she even asked if there were raisins in it! It has a good amount of sweetness, and there are just tons of visible flaxseeds,oats, and sunflower seeds. It wasn’t dense, more of a “fudgy” tasting brownie. It kind of reminded me of a chocolate covered fig, or date. Like I said it is a bit small, and 150 calories for 1 serving. I could easily eat 2 ! 4 stars

Very Berry- According to the front of this package, these have no sodium no dairy and no wheat. This one was definetely chewy and provided a ‘nutty/grainy’ texture. It wasn’t as sweet as I had hoped, and was a bit bland. It sort of reminded me of the flavor of plain oatmeal, but chewy, with just a bit of strawberry flavor. 3 stars

Overall, these are good. I like that they provide some whole grains, are dairy and wheat free, and are all natural! I think the Brownie flavor is the better of the two, as it had a good amount of sweetness and helped me when I was craving something chocolatey. If you would like to buy these bars, you can visit this website.

For more information on  nutrition of these bars, you can visit the website here

23 Jul 2010, Comments (6)

Clif Crunch Peanut Butter & White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Granola Bars

Author: Healthnuttxo

Clif bars. A true love of mine. I haven’t really found one yet that disappointed me. And as an addition to my lineup of favorite bars is now the Clif Crunch bars :)

Clif Bar & Company sent me some of their Clif Crunch bars to try. These bars come in Peanut Butter, White Chocolate Macadamia Nut, Chocolate Chip and Honey Oat. They are all natural (70% organic), and are made with whole grains. Being a fan of granola bars, I was so excited to try these. Obviously I opened up the boxes once they arrived at my house! :)

Each package comes with 2 bars, for a total of 42 grams. What I liked about these bars was that although they were crunchy, they were NOT super hard. It was sort of a “soft” crunch, and was really quite enjoyable!

Peanut Butter- oh. my. goodness. This is one of the BEST peanut butter granola bars EVER!! It was just perfect, and even drizzled with peanut butter on top (some even melted right on my wrapper. Yum!!!). Very peanut buttery, and was salty and slightly sweet. It gave me that “dry mouth I need water” kind of peanut butter taste-which in my opinion, ROCKS! Honestly, these tasted like peanut butter COOKIES. Just amazing.  5 stars

White Chocolate Macadamia- my tastebuds are singing, yet again. Another delicious bar. Light and crispy, with buttery sweet white chocolate chips throughout the bar. A nice, vanilla flavor was easily detected-but I didn’t taste much Macadamia Nut. No worries, still a winner in my eyes. 4 1/2 stars

Overall, these absolutely ROCK. I had these for breakfast with some fruit before a workout, and it fueled me up and kept me going! I really enjoyed these! Although they are a bit high in fat (both flavors have 9 grams per 2 bars), it is worth the delicious taste. They are also a little low in protein for my likings, but paired with some yogurt or fruit and I think they can make a perfect breakfast, or light lunch. Plus, these are 70% organic, made with whole grains, and just yummy! :)

2 bars is 190 calories, 9 grams of fat, 25-26 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of fiber, 10-11 grams of sugar, and 4-5 grams of protein.

Peanut Butter- Organic Rolled Oats, Organic Evaporated Cane Juice, Organic Sunflower Oil, Peanut Butter, Peanut Butter Chips (Evaporated Cane Juice, Palm Kernel Oil, Peanut Flour, Soy Lecithin), Rice Crisp (Rice Flour, Barley Malt Extract, Evaporated Cane Juice, Salt, Calcium Carbonate), Honey, Organic Barley Flakes, Organic Rye Flakes, Roasted Peanut Extract, Oat Bran, Oat Fiber, Sea Salt (Real Salt®), Natural Flavor, Inulin (Chicory Extract).

White Chocolate Macadamia Nut-Organic Rolled Oats, Organic Evaporated Cane Juice, Organic Sunflower Oil, Soy White Chocolate (Organic Evaporated Cane Juice, Cocoa Butter, Soy Flour, Soy Lecithin, Vanilla Extract), Roasted Macadamia Nuts, Rice Crisp (Rice Flour, Barley Malt Extract, Evaporated Cane Juice, Salt, Calcium Carbonate), Organic Barley Flakes, Organic Rye Flakes, Oat Bran, Oat Fiber, Sea Salt (Real Salt®), Natural Flavors, Inulin (Chicory Extract).

27 May 2010, Comments (2)

Bear Naked Heavenly Chocolate all natural granola

Author: Healthnuttxo

Seeing as I’m going with a chocolate theme for the last few posts, I figured a review of Bear Naked Heavenly Chocolate all natural granola fit the bill quite nicely.

I got a coupon for a free bag of Bear Naked’s cereals from the company, and brought it with me to the store. I always remember seeing these cereals on the shelves, but I rarely buy granola- too calorie dense and too delicious to stop at the measly serving size provided. But hey- this bag was free for me, so why not “splurge” a little? ;)

I decided to pick up the Heavenly Chocolate simply because it was different. I’m so used to fruity granolas, especially cinnamon & raisin types, or something with fruit and nuts. Plus, how can something called Heavenly Chocolate taste bad? Exactly.

At first I turned over the bag- not too shabby. Only 7 grams of sugar for one serving (I’ve seen granolas with sugar counts over TWENTY grams a serving. Sheesh!!), and 130 calories for 1/4 of a cup. Plus, it provides 16 grams of whole grains for one serving, and the first ingredient was oats. Alright, I can dig it.

So, I opened up the bag, and figured the best way to try this was…. straight out of the bag! It smells really good. Like a melted chocolate bar. Yum! Rather than individual oats, they are small “clumps” of brown-chocolately covered clusters, that are just the right mix of chewy and crunchy. I also spotted some baby chocolate chips in some of the “clusters”. It had a nice cocoa/chocolate flavor, without being overly sweet. Just right, in fact. The perfect cereal to have with milk (or soy milk or almond milk or _insert your favorite   milk) and a sliced banana. And, gotta love that it’s all natural and NO high fructose corn syrup. Woo-hoo!

Overall, I give this cereal 4 stars. It certainly was tasty, and quite addictive. I also think this is a great topping for yogurt or frozen yogurt (I’m already planning on having a raspberry Chobani yogurt with this cereal!!) I don’t think anyone can stick to the 1/4 of a cup serving size- too good! On the bright side, if you do have 1/2 a cup, it’s 260 calories, 8 grams of fat, 4 grams of fiber and a lot of chocolatey goodness! It loses some points because it included refined sugar in the ingredients, and I try to stay away from that as much as possible :)

What’s also really cool, is after you are done eating your granola- they accept your used bag! According to the bag, Bear Naked has a Sustainable Packaging Project, and their plan is “to help reduce the number of bags that end up in landfills by collecting them from you and repurposing them into unique accessories and products like umbrellas, shower curtains and tote bags”. Cool! You can find out more info at http://bearnaked.com/sustainable.asp !

1 serving, 1/4 of a cup, is 130 calories, 4 grams of fat, 21 carbohydrates, 2 grams of fiber, 7 grams of sugar and 3 grams of protein.

Whole Grain oats, Chocolate Chips (sugar, chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, soy lecithin, milk), Honey, Brown Rice Syrup, Evaporated Cane Juice, Canola Oil, Whole Grain Crisp Rice (whole grain rice, barley malt), Cocoa, Chocolate Extract, Ground Flax Seeds, Oat Bran, Natural Flavor, Coconut.

23 May 2010, Comments (6)

Penny’s Low Fat Desserts Banana Bran Muffin

Author: Healthnuttxo

Ah, two of my favorite things, finally combined. Penny’s Low Fat Desserts, and Banana muffins. I’ve had some of Penny’s lovely desserts before- like her delicious muffin tops, and her chocolate truffle and cinnamon toffee cookies. So how on EARTH could I turn Penny down when she offered me to try her new Banana Bran muffin? (Obviously I couldn’t- then you wouldn’t be reading a review! ;) )

Penny sent me a few of her new, all natural, no sugar added Banana Bran Muffins. Each muffin is only 100 calories and is sweetened naturally with rebiana, or stevia. They are a pretty decent size, 3 ounces, not as big as those super-muffins you get at the deli, but a good sized muffin. I popped it in the microwave for 10 seconds or so since I put them in my fridge( and I reccommend you heat it up for a few seconds when you try it!!), and sat down to review. The smell was awesome-I just knew I was going to like these. I. LOVE. BANANA! :D

I took a bite, and was actually quite pleased. It’s “fudgy” in texture-soft, and fluffy. It’s actually sweeter than I imagined it to be, but still good. The banana flavor was good too- no fake banana flavor, but a real ” there are actual bananas, not just banana extracts in this muffin” flavor.  It also had a buttery flavor as well. In other words, this muffin was GOOD! I liked that you could see bits of banana actually thoughout the muffin. Yum!

One tip I have- spread peanut butter on this muffin! (taking into consideration you are not allergic to peanut butter. Please, do not do that then!!) Oh my, it was SO amazing with a smear of all natural peanut butter. I’m just mad that I didn’t think of spreading peanut butter on it until I was halfway done with the muffin (woops! ).

Overall, this muffin gets 4 1/2 stars. Good job, yet again, Penny! This muffin also has only three grams of sugar and six grams of fiber. Can’t be beat in my books ;)

1 muffin is 90 calories, 1.5 grams of fat, 28 carbohydrates, 5 grams of fiber, 10 sugar alcohols, 2 sugars and 4 grams of protein.

water, wheat flour (wheat flour, malted barley flour, niacin, iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), erythritol, pasteurized egg whites, wheat bran, bananas, milk, chicory root, cellulose, natural flavors, leavening (sodium acid pyrophosphate, cornstarch, sodium bicarbonate), rice syrup solids, salt, palm oil, soy lecithin, xanthan gum, sodium alginate, guar gum, rebiana, soybean lecithin.

17 May 2010, Comments (4)

New England Naturals Chewy Granola Bars

Author: Healthnuttxo

New England Naturals is a new company for me. But after doing some research on their website, I discovered it truly is a great company. Not only do they make all of their products kosher and organic using on the finest ingredients, they also donate 10% of their profits to organizations  that also do business in an environmentally and socially responsible way.

They make a variety of products, such as all natural granola bars, granola & trail mixes. The company sent me a few of their products to try, so I decided to try the Organic Chocolate Omega Chewy Granola Bar. Each bar is designed to help in different ways- According to the website, ” Whether it’s slowing down the aging process with our Antioxidant Bar, promoting digestive health with our Maple Nut Fiber Bar, or saving brain function with our Chocolate Omega Bar, your health is what’s important! ” Cool! So, I’ll be helping my brain out by eating  savory chocolate-  I can get used to that ;)

The bar was about the size of a Quaker Chewy Bar, maybe a little bit bigger, and had an oaty appearance with chocolate chips dispersed throughout. It was soft and chewy, and fell apart easily. Seeing as the second ingredient was brown rice syrup, I would imagine why it had a little bit of give to it. Upon the first bite I tasted orange zest. Weird? Maybe. But I liked it. Ever have one of those “chocolate oranges” that you have to unwrap and then hit on the table for the “pieces” to come apart? And then you ate a “chocolate orange wedge”? I  HOPE someone knows what I’m talking about so I don’t sound crazy- but pretty much that’s what it reminded me of. A unique flavor combination of orange and chocolate. I would have preferred a bit more chocolatey flavor, including chocolate was in the name, but it was still pretty good. It was nice and sweet, too.

Overall, 4 stars. The nutritional stats are actually quite good, and the taste is unique and worth giving a shot. Each bar provides 410 mg of Omega-3s, has antioxidants, and provides at least 11 grams of whole grains. I like that there is flax meal, walnuts and hemp seed in this bar as well. Health benefits!! It loses some points because it’s not that filling on it’s own, but I do think it’s a good light snack paired with a glass of milk or some fruit. There is also naturally milled sugar listed in the ingredients. The bars also come in two other flavors, Maple Nut  and Antioxidant Bar.

1 bar is 140 calories, 4 grams of fat, 25 carbohydrates, 2 grams of fiber, 11 grams of sugar, and 3 grams of protein.

Organic whole rolled oats, organic rice syrup, organic crisp brown rice with organic rice syrup, organic tapioca syrup, organic naturally milled sugar, organic chocolate chips (organic sugar, organic chocolate liquor, organic cocoa butter, organic soy lecithin, organic vanilla), organic apricots with organic rice flour, organic flax meal, organic walnuts, organic hemp seed, organic soy fiber, organic expeller pressed canola oil, organic orange flavor.

*Note: I’m going to try to include sugar grams per serving of products I review- Seeing as we live in a sugar-crazed world, it’s good to see how much of what you are consuming is sweetened!- But please don’t be mad if I forget :)

12 Apr 2010, Comments (3)

Nature’s Path Mmmaple Pecan Granola Bars + health benefits of Maple Syrup!

Author: Healthnuttxo

Perfect time for a Nature’s Path review, seeing as my GIVEAWAY for granola bars, granola, a box of cereal AND reusable tote is going on AS WE SPEAK (or, as you READ, rather). One of the granola bars a reader has a chance to win is the Mmmaple Pecan Flax Plus Granola Bar, which I was so kindly sent to review from Nature’s Path.

These granola bars come in several flavors, in different groups. The Sweet & Salty fans can try the Peanut Buddy, Mmmaple Pecan and Peanut Choco flavors, those of you who like yogurt bars can try Lotta’ Apricotta and Berry Strawberry, trail mix fans can try Sunny Hemp and Pumpkin-N-Spice, and chocolate lovers can try Chococonut.

Today, I’m reviewing the Mmmaple Pecan Flax Plus chewy granola bar. It has 10g of whole grains per serving, provides .33g of Omega 3’s per serving (25% daily reccomendation), is all natural, and organic too. I’m super excited, we all know I LOVE MAPLE SYRUP! (who doesn’t, really?)

Upon my first bite, my first thought really was Mmm! What a perfect name for this bar, “Mmm!” fits the bill!! It has a sweet, buttery taste to it, and reminded me of buttery waffles drizzled with maple syrup. Ohh..delicious. It was definitely more sweet than salty, but still provided a little salty flavor due to the pecans. I really liked how there were chunks of pecans, not just itty bitty pieces. It was a  nice “crunch” in the chewy granola bar, which provided more satisfaction. The maple-butter drizzle on top was the best part- rich and sweet. Why can’t companies SELL things like this on it’s own!? :)
On the down side, the bar is a little tiny (35 g), about the size of a Quaker Chewy granola bar, but a bit thicker. There also is 6 grams of fat and little protein for a bar that is 150 calories.

Overall, I give this bar 4 stars. It deserves 4 1/2 stars on taste alone, but considering that it didn’t really fill me up by itself, and is low in protein and fiber, it lost half a star. However, it really was delicious, and is perfect for a light snack with some yogurt or an apple! Don’t forget to enter the giveaway and try one of the new granola bars for yourself!! :)

1 bar is 150 calories, 6 grams of fat, 22 carbohydrates, 2 grams of fiber and 2 grams of protein.

Granola* (rolled oats*, evaporated cane juice*, soy oil*), tapioca syrup*, pecans*, brown rice flour*, maple icing* (evaporated cane juice*, palm kernel oil* and/or cocoa butter*, cultured buttermilk powder* (skim milk*, starter culture), flavor*, non-fat dried milk*, citric acid, caramel color*, natural maple flavor, sea salt, soy lecithin*, annatto extract*, tapioca starch*), invert cane syrup*, dried coconut*, flaxseeds*, acacia gum*, soy oil*, sea salt, evaporated cane juice*, maple syrup*, natural maple flavor, molasses*.  * indicates Organic

Anndd…
 we have a Guest Post!

Sandy Harris at www.diabeticsnacks.org has provided us with some health benefits Maple Syrup has to offer, and how it can help a serious disease, Diabetes!

“The Secret to Prevent Cancer and Diabetes with Maple Syrup

Are you looking for a natural solution to reduce the risk of diabetes and
slow down the growth of cancer cells?  Your search is probably over
because recent studies have shown that maple syrup holds the key to these problems. US researchers have found that maple syrup has the ability to
substantially decrease the risk of diabetes.

The syrup also showed great potential in slowing down the growth of
cancerous cells. Maple syrup has thirteen active antioxidant substances.
These antioxidants were previously unknown but were discovered only
recently.Because of these antioxidants, researchers have firmed up that
maple syrup has a great potential in fighting cancer growth, diabetes, and
infections.

An Effective Solution or Diabetes Sufferers

Considerable amounts of the phytohormone, abscisic acid, are found in
maple syrup. This acid is a powerful defense against diabetes and
metabolic syndrome, because it encourages the release of insulin through
pancreatic cells and enhances fat cells’ sensitivity to insulin.

Seeram revealed the results of his tests on Canadian maple syrup during
the annual meeting of the American Chemical Society in San Francisco.

Maple Syrup as the Best Anti Cancer Food

A study punished in the Journal of Medicinal Food showed that maple syrup
can significantly inhibit the growth of cancerous cells. This study was
conducted by Quebec scholars. It seeks to prove the impact of maple syrup
against cancer cells.

Based on the Quebec research, the growth of cancer cells can be inhibited
by maple syrup. Specifically, the syrup is very effective against brain,
prostate, and lung cancer. Unfortunately, maple syrup has minimal impact
against breast cancer growth.

A Delicious Option in Fighting Cancer and Diabetes

The following is from a study titled: Antioxidant Activity, Inhibition of
Nitric Oxide Overproduction, and In Vitro Antiproliferative Effect of
Maple Sap and Syrup from Acer saccharum, published in the Journal of
Medicinal Food, and written by Jean Legault, Karl Girard-Lalancette,
Carole Grenon, Catherine Dussault and André Pichette:

Maple sap and syrup from 30 producers in three Quebec, Canada, regions
were evaluated concerning the time of harvest and abstract antioxidant
activity, inhibition of nitric oxide (NO) overproduction and the
antiproliferative effect of ethyl acetate extracts.

The harvest time does not have an analytically notable incidence on
antioxidant activity of either maple sap or syrup extracts. Their Oxygen
radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) values are 12 +/- 6 and 15 +/- 5 mumol
of Trolox equivalents (TE)/mg, respectively.

A cell-based assay also confirmed the antioxidant activity. The ORAC assay
was also used to establish the antioxidant activity of pure maple syrup.
The results show the pure maple syrup ORAC value of 8 +/- 2 mumol of TE/mL
to be lower than the blueberry juice value of 24 +/- 1 mumol of TE/mL but
similar to the strawberry juice value of 10.7 +/- 0.4 mumol of TE/mL and
the orange juice value of 10.8 +/- 0.5 mumol of TE/mL.

Lipopolysaccharide-induced NO overproduction in RAW264.7 murine
macrophages was considerably inhibited by maple sap and syrup extracts. It
is believed that transforming maple sap into syrup enhances NO inhibition
action, because the syrup extract was considerably more active than the
sap extract.

The maple syrup extracts induced the highest NO inhibition at the season’s
end, and the darker syrup was more active than the clear syrup. This
indicates that the activity could be partially attributed to some colored
oxidized compounds.

Maple syrup extracts (50% inhibitory concentration = 42 +/- 6 mug/mL) and
pure maple syrup have a discriminating in vitro antiproliferative action
against cancerous cells.

Reference: Journal of medicinal food. 01/02/2010; ISSN: 1557-7600, OI:
10.1089/jmf.2009.0029″

Thanks, Sandy! :) Don’t we all love maple just a little bit more ?

8 Apr 2010, Comments (1)

Morning Star Farms Sweet & Sour Chik’n

Author: Healthnuttxo

Break out the ChopSticks, but DON’T pick up the phone to order Chinese take-out!!

I found a new meal that whoops traditional fast food “sweet & sour chicken’s” BUTT! :)

Morning Star Farms Sweet & Sour Chik’n is a veggie entree with chik’n nuggets, peppers, carrots and pineapple chunks all slathered in a sweet and tangy sauce, over a bed of whole grain brown rice.I know your drooling by now. I certainly was when I read the box at my supermarket- I just had to try it!

So after a nice bike ride on this beautiful 80 degree day, my muscles were tired and my stomach was hungry. I decided to pop this entree in the microwave, along with some steamed broccoli for extra veggies. I transfered the entree to a plate, and was surprised to see how much actually came out! This was a NICE sized dinner- no skimpy portions here! I probably didn’t even need the side of broccoli, but I’ll never turn down extra veggies 8)

Onto each component of the meal…

The Chik’n- the chik’n was wrapped in a soft and doughy tempura batter, that I actually enjoyed. It was a little mushy due to the sauce, but tasty nonetheless. The actual “meat” part had the same consistency of chicken, and was similar in taste. When isolated, I could definietely taste a combination of soy and chicken flavors, but when eated with the tempura batter and the sauce- you would never be able to tell it’s not real chicken! I also liked that these were big CHUNKS of chik’n. I got about 4-5 chunks in my entree (see pic below after I took a bite! ;) )

blurry piece of chik'n. *sigh* i need a better camera!

The Sauce- TOTALLY makes the meal. It’s SO sweet (maybe even a tad bit too sweet- drink water with this meal), but I liked the sweetness, as it balanced the tang out nicely. There is a very strong pineapple/ketchup flavor, that blends nicely. There is also a TON of sauce- every component of this meal gets covered, no naked veggies or rice ! :)

The Veggies/Rice- this meal has primarily carrots, red, green & yellow peppers, and pineapple. The peppers and carrots were soft and tender, and went nicely with the meal. I loved the warm pineapple chunks- deeelish! Warm pineapple never fails, and it was juicy & sweet!  The rice was a tad bit chewy, but was actually quite good.

 Overall, don’t like the “chik’n” part of this meal scare you meat lovers (or veggie protein haters >:( ) away! This meal ROCKS! I give it 4 1/2 stars. It was filling, low in fat, and WAY better than Chinese Food. It was also relatively low in sodium for a frozen entree (550 mg, 23% daily values). The only reason this meal loses half a star is because there is only 4 grams of fiber ( I prefer my dinners to have at least a little more!), refined sugar (oh, man!), and contains some funky modified ingredients, like modified vegetable gum and modifed corn starch- “natural” per se, but not straight from the garden if you catch my drift.

Otherwise- this meal was carton-lickin’ GOOD!  You can bet all the sauce was GONE, and every morsel was eaten!! :)

1 entree is 340 calories, 6 grams of fat, 56 carbohydrates (12 sugars), 4 grams of fiber and 14 grams of protein.

WATER, TEMPURA VEGGIE CHIK’N NUGGETS (CHIK’N [WATER, SOY PROTEIN, WHEAT GLUTEN, NATURAL FLAVORS, POTATO STARCH, CANOLA OIL AND/OR SAFFLOWER OIL, PEA PROTEIN, MODIFIED VEGETABLE GUM, CARROT FIBER, BEET ROOT FIBER, EVAPORATED CANE JUICE, YEAST EXTRACT, SEA SALT], BATTER [WHEAT FLOUR, MODIFIED CORN STARCH, SALT, CORN FLOUR, YELLOW CORN MEAL, SUGAR, SODIUM ACID PYROPHOSPHATE, SODIUM BICARBONATE, GUAR GUM, SPICE, SUNFLOWER OIL, CALCIUM SILICATE], BREADING [OAT BRAN, WHEAT FLOUR, CORN FLOUR, SALT, SUGAR, SUNFLOWER SEED OIL, CALCIUM SILICATE]), BROWN RICE, RED BELL PEPPERS, GREEN BELL PEPPERS, WHITE VINEGAR (WHITE VINEGAR AND WATER), PINEAPPLE (PINEAPPLE, PINEAPPLE JUICE), CARROTS, SUGAR, TOMATO KETCHUP (WATER, TOMATO PASTE, SUGAR, CONTAINS TWO PERCENT OR LESS OF VINEGAR, SEA SALT, ONION POWDER, GARLIC POWDER, SPICES), TOMATO PASTE (TOMATOES), PINEAPPLE JUICE CONCENTRATE, RICE STARCH, GINGER PUREE (GINGER, WATER), SOY SAUCE (WATER, SOYBEANS, SALT, WHEAT), CANOLA OIL, ORANGE JUICE CONCENTRATE, TOASTED SESAME OIL, ROASTED GARLIC, SALT, GARLIC.

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