Alright!
So a friend of mine told me about this brand called D’s Naturals. I personally never heard of them or have seen them in store, so I went to their website to check them out. I got the opportunity to try some of their No Cow bars, in 3 varieties- the Mint Chocolate Chip, Peanut Butter Cookie Dough, and Blueberry Cobbler.
What makes these bars special?
They are gluten free, vegan, dairy free, soy free, no sugar added, lactose free, and non GMO according to the label. They run roughly 170 calories per bar, with 20 grams of protein and 19 grams of fiber. They are sweetened with Erythritol, not sugar.
These were appealing to me, especially as a Type 1 Diabetic. I CANNOT have added sugar…well I mean I *can* but, it doesn’t lead to pretty blood sugars. However, protein bars are usually chock full of sugar (and sugar is also HONEY, CANE JUICE, do not be fooled!). These also appealed to me since they had a good dose of fiber and protein, so I would have optimal blood sugar regulation as well as being, well, full!
Here’s a sneak peek of the Mint Chocolate Chip Bar:
As you can see, these bars are dense and chewy, almost like a “fruit” based bar made with fig. They are a bit sticky too!
Peanut Butter Cookie Dough– Mmmmm. Nice peanut butter flavor. It has some sort of sweet, semi caramelish feel to it. It was chewy and super soft, with little pieces of nuts in the bar. I can definitely get a peanut butter cookie dough vibe from it though! Like a batter before peanut butter cookies are made, but less sweet. However, there is definitely a consistency thing going on here. It’s hard to explain but there is this “leftover” piece-y type feel on the tongue. Like the bar has broken down and leaves a residue behind. I think it’s from the pea protein that is used to make the bar, but I could be wrong. In this case, taste outweighs texture for me. 4 out of 5 stars
Blueberry Cobbler– This one is sweet and fruity!! I enjoyed the blueberry flavor, it was a mixture of a fresh blueberry feel alongside sweet and chewy dried blueberries. You can’t taste any protein flavor, so that is a plus. I liked the flavor, but again, that texture thing is prevalent here. It’s like I can “feel” the protein, because I am positive this is from the pea protein. A good bar, however. 3 1/2 stars
Mint Chocolate Chip- As a caveat, I am not a huge mint chocolate chip fan. I like Extra mint chocolate chip gum, and that’s about it. But I remained open minded about this bar. There are little pieces of cacao nibs in this bar which add a little crunch. It honestly tasted like a York peppermint patty, but in protein bar form. The consistency issue was NOT as bad here, still prevalent, but not as bad. The mint flavor is also pretty strong. Perhaps you can get a breath freshening while you dose up on your protein for the day (kidding). Given that I don’t generally like this flavor combination, I would still give it a 3 1/2 star rating.
Overall, not bad. I think the formula needs some tweaking. Personally, the consistency thing isn’t really an issue for me, as I go for nutrition and flavor over texture. For some it might be an issue. I think you have to pick your battles here though, the nutritional facts are pretty good AND these bars are vegan as well as dairy free, so they are limited with their protein sources. I can appreciate this company, so kudos D’s Naturals! I look forward to trying your products in the future, and maybe picking up some of those pb cookie dough bars if I see them 🙂
I received this item for free. This is an unbiased review.
