just wondering - I think they are great - what do you experienced raw fooders think?
Kelly

i always travel with larabars-
but i don't eat them at home.

they're like snickers or hersheys to me.
delicious, but not as nutritious as fruit and veggies.

i don't like some of them (cherry pie, or cashew cookie) but generally find them a fun and easy diversion from my fresh foods, and a nice treat.

esp the cacao rich ones now.... yum.

peace-

I like this bar on occasion also [www.amazon.com].

They are mostly good for a backup plan in my purse on an outing in case my blood sugar starts crashing.

I use larabars as a "back up" too. If I have to go into the city to meet with a client, there's a chance I can get stuck hungry. Nothing like being on a stuck train in the middle of Boston while you are starving!

I also keep a small baggie of dried fruit and raw nuts that are good if i want something but won't eat a whole bar.

Melissa

Just tried them this weekend. The chocolate one is great.

i love cashew cookie but i dont eat them anymore because they dont make me feel very good!

bananas are really portable and i always have one in my purse (lol).

I like them but they make me sick - they're not all raw and cashews have never agreed with me, though I love the taste. I like the cherry one, but they make my teeth hurt.

I was beginning to feel like the only one who doesn't care for these. I used to like the coconut/chocolate one, but anymore, the taste doesn't sit well with me and I get "oogy" feeling! :-) I like bananas too. Or, living fudge that I make.... Oh yeah!!!

As aquadecoco says, Larabars are not all raw. Even their labels admit that some of the bars are only 60-90% raw. Maybe the other flavors used to be 100% raw, as the label still implies, but not anymore.

I got to wondering whether the requirement that California-grown almonds must be pasteurized has had any effect on Larabars, so I emailed them, and got this reply: "Almonds are dry steamed processed or injected with propylene oxide (two different suppliers)." So their almonds are either cooked or poisoned -- take your pick!

Near as I recall, all Larabar flavors contain either almonds or cashews, and the general scuttlebutt is that cashews aren't really raw either, since virtually all cashews are heated to make them easier to peel.

Come to think of it, if they're not conscientious enough to make sure that the almonds in their "100% raw" bars are actually raw, it's hard to believe that they'd be any more careful with the dried fruit. The charts that came with both of my dehydrators recommend drying all fruit at 135 degrees, so I suspect that a lot of commercially-available dried fruit is not really raw. It's possible that most Larabars don't contain any raw ingredients! But that's just my paranoia talking.

I was never impressed with Larabars. Way to tiny and does nothing to satisfy hunger. Way better raw bars & other snacks available. Unfortunately they're not usually in the stores.

Simple Raw Recipes & Health Tips

my fave is the peanut butter/jelly. yeah baby

I like them when other people are eating something that smells very good, they are like cookies, yum.

I really like these as an alternative to all the processed bars out there. I especially like the cherry pie...

So,if they arent 100% raw - are there any alternatives that are 100%?

yuck i dont like these either.

Some of the many raw bars:
Love Force Bars, Kookie Karma, Gopal's, Awesome Foods, Baraka Bars, Kaia Foods, Jake's Unbaked, Wildbar, Aimee's Livin' Magic plus chocolate bars & tons of other types of snacks like granola, cookies, etc.

Simple Raw Recipes & Health Tips

I have been curious about the pasteurization of almonds lately.
Many stores still sell "raw" almonds like Whole Foods and Trader Joes.
Rainbow Grocery (in San Francisco) has some almonds imported and they cost twice as much. I wonder if the Whole Foods almonds are really raw. Probably not huh. And that chemical sounds pretty scary. Maybe its time to eat more walnuts and brazil nuts...

I used to like Lara Bars, but I agree that they are not too filling and they make me gassy (combining dried fruit and nut does not work well with me & maybe cuz the nuts are not soaked?) Also, nobody has mentioned this but they are NOT ORGANIC.

It is so easy to make a Lara Bar type thing at home. You can make a bunch of it and eat it all week..and it can be organic & you will save money..( I think)

Quote

I have been curious about the pasteurization of almonds lately.
Many stores still sell "raw" almonds like Whole Foods and Trader Joes.
Rainbow Grocery (in San Francisco) has some almonds imported and they cost twice as much. I wonder if the Whole Foods almonds are really raw. Probably not huh. And that chemical sounds pretty scary. Maybe its time to eat more walnuts and brazil nuts...

Whole Foods had a note up on their bulk almonds last year that said the almonds would all be pasteurized as per California law.

Don't they get the shells off of most nuts, even those marketed as raw, by boiling or steaming them?

Yes I get for those times when nothing else is at hand. Which isn't very often.
Don