Get Bear Naked

As a rule, I’m not a huge fan of granola. Too crunchy, and usually way too much sugar for my oh-so-delicate system. But something made me want to give this Bear Naked Peak Protein a try.

Could it be the catchy name? Maybe. Could it be because it’s “chewy” granola, not crunchy? Probably. Could it be because it’s delicious? As it turns out, YES!

Guys, this stuff is SO good. If you are the type of person who prefers a lower-sugar snack, this is for you.

Bear Naked makes several varieties of granola, including an appropriately named chocolate version that looks absolutely heavenly:

I bought the “Peak Protein”, original flavor. The Blueberry version looked AWESOME, and I even had it in my hand until I saw the dreaded word, “walnuts”. Sigh.

I don’t know if 5 grams of protein per ¼ cup serving qualifies for the moniker “Peak Protein”, but 5 grams is better than nothing, right? Because I know y’all will stick with the ¼-cup serving. I actually had to measure it out and put it in a baggie to bring it to work. You know me; I just knew if I brought the whole bag I would EAT THE WHOLE BAG. As it was, I brought it for an afternoon snack, but it didn’t make it past 10:30 am.

There is some refined sugar in this granola, but from what I could see from the ingredients list, it is contained within the dried cranberries. Which I picked out of mine and dutifully threw away. After I tried just one. (Yum!)

Obligatory nutritional information:

And the full ingredients list (so you don't strain your eyes trying to read it above):

Whole grain oats, Honey, soy flakes, canola oil, Sweetened dried cranberries (cranberries, sugar, glycerin, sunflower oil), soy protein isolate, Dry roasted sunflower seeds, whole grain crisp rice (whole grain rice, barley malt), Ground flax seed, cinnamon, natural flavors

Maybe a little pricier than some granola (about $5 for the bag), but I so rarely buy this type of thing that I was okay with that. And it was PERFECT for me. Like eating little clumps of guilt-free oatmeal cookies. Without the raisins.

Next on my list to try is from the Vanilla Almond Crunch, from the Fit Granola line.

The Vanilla Almond Crunch has ZERO refined sugar – so I won’t have to be wasting my precious eating time plucking the offending pieces from the mix.

Oh! And good news! You can get a free sample here!

The only problem I can see with this stuff is it’s REALLY HARD to stop eating it. If you’re trying to lose weight and you have limited willpower, probably best to stay away. But if you’re looking for a delicious all-natural snack, I highly recommend this.