I used to be a fan of PowerBars but have stopped eating them since my wife started baking me her trademark oatmeal-walnut-chocolate chip cookies. Most energy bars compare so closely to a sawdust sandwich that I’d just as soon avoid them altogether, though they are an alternative to having to actually cook something on a backpacking trip (many of us go to extravagant lengths to avoid mess duty, including sleeping on the ground in the middle of nowhere for days or weeks on end and eating stuff we can’t stand.)
I stopped by backpackgeartest.org to see what the reviews were saying. One guy was fond of the Clif bar shown here.
First and foremost, the Blueberry Crisps taste great. As noted in my Initial Report, it’s like a bar made of blueberry granola – pronounced flavors of blueberry, oats, and sugar, with a hint of apple. Thanks to their airtight packaging Clif Bars don’t dry out; they retain their chewy texture and their entire flavor. Once I ate half a Bar at lunch and returned the uneaten portion to the opened wrapper, rolled up the wrapper, and returned it to my pack. When I ate the remainder at the end of the day it was as tasty and chewy as ever. I ate half the frozen Bar for breakfast on a Monday and stored the other half in the refrigerator, without packaging, until Friday morning. Again the taste and texture remained the same. I waited about twenty minutes for the frozen bar to thaw, and when I ate half of it I detected no loss of flavor from a week’s freezing.
Wow, so these things might have some promise.
Men’s Vogue taste-tested — and assigned reprehensibility ratings — to a bunch of energy bars.
POWER BAR HARVEST
50% ReprehensibleBasically, this is one big granola cookie. So why not get a big granola cookie?
You could always make your own. Sarah at Freezerbag Cooking has a bunch of baked goodies, some of which could do energy-bar duty.
If you need more ideas, just google “homemade energy bars” — you’ll get gazillion hits.
And finally, here’s my wife’s recipe. Follow the instructions to the letter for best performance.
Melissa’s Magnificent Hiking Cookies
1-1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup Crisco Butter Flavor shortening (do not substitute butter or margarine)
1/3 cup milk (Must be whole milk or at least 2%. Do not use 1% or skim milk.)
1 large egg (Crack egg into 1/4 cup measuring cup. If egg does not equal a full 1/4 cup, add additional milk to to equal 1/4 cup.)
1 tablespoon vanilla
3 cups quick cooking oatmeal
1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped walnutsHeat oven to 375 degrees. Line cookies sheets with parchment paper.
Cream brown sugar and shortening together. Beat in milk, egg and vanilla until well blended.
Combine oatmeal, flour, baking soda and salt. Add to shortening mixture and mix just until blended. Do not over mix.
Stir in chocolate chips and walnuts.Drop dough by scant 1/4 cup (or extra large cookie scoop) onto prepared baking sheets, pressing dough down slightly.
Bake for 12 to 14 minutes or until cookies are just set and lightly browned. Cook 2 minutes on baking sheet.
Remove cookies to a sheet of aluminum foil to cool completely.Makes 18 large cookies.
*The secret to these cookies is is to mix the batter by hand. Also, the flour and oatmeal must be measured carefully by the scoop and level method.
Scoop the flour and/or oatmeal out of the bag or canister and level with a measuring cup level or table knife.
These are truly awesome cookies.
I like Clif Bars, I get them at Trader Joe’s for .99c each. Apricot is my new fav but I love apricots. Old fav: peanut butter and anything w/ chocolate chip.
Peanut M & M’s- are vastly superior to Cliff Bars. Carbs, fats & protein- don’t crumble & taste better. Can be eaten one at a time or as many as you want depending on hunger level. Man’s perfect food. Melissa’s Magnificient Hiking Cookies are a close second- but they do have a crumble factor- and its hard to eat more that one at a time!
The original power bars taste like ass.
I usually end up getting Clif Bars (ditto on the Apricots!) tho I usually also carry a couple of the caffinated gels for when I’m bonking.
I have been taking and eating Cliff bars on my hikes as a quick snack but I have to say that Melissa’s Magnificent Hiking Cookies sound way better. I’ll have to give her recipe a try. They sound great. If the hike is long enough, I’ll also take along a 6 inch Subway sub for lunch. I have a little insulated bag I can hang off my pack with some blue ice to keep it cold. And I have also been taking the caffeinated gel shots along too for a quick burst of energy but I have to say, they do give me gas, so much so that its almost like an added rocket booster on the trail. Just don’t let me near a campfire though. The blast would be overly spectacular, I’m sure. 🙂
I’ve always been into Clif Bars, Carrot Cake in particular since it’s a nice light flavor.
I can’t handle the chocolate ones ever since I bonked on mile 75 of an 80-mile bike ride, with only a splash of water and a Fudge Brownie bar left. Lessons learned, lessons learned.
I do not particularly care for energy bars but Cliff Bar’s chocolate almond is not to bad. My favorite trail snack is my version of gorp. After, thousands of miles of backpacking, I believe I have perfected it. Equal parts peanut M&M’s. Reece’s Pieces, and Raisinettes. Good old raisins and peanuts covered in chocolate and candy coated.
I like Cliff bars, but they’re definitely no match for a killer cookie recipe in terms of sheer enjoyment. I mostly eat them for convenience because they have a lot of good nutrients, are compact and lightweight, do not require preparation of any kind, and are non-perishable. I like various flavors, but my wife likes the apricot. I also eat a lot of tuna fish sandwiches, dried fruit, and nuts. I bet bears can smell tuna for 10 miles.
My friend, Brock Stoker, has always referred to my stash of Clif Bars as “expensive candy bars”. First, he’s woefully misinformed (but he knows what he knows!) . . .And yet, oh my, will he devour half of mine when his bonking sets in at mile 55. I do eat them, for most of the reasons listed above but have cut way back on them in favor of fig bars and cashews and other portable, light weight, non-perishable provender.
1 vote for the original..Power Bars – vanilla crisp or malt. Funny story. When I was touring the Giza pyramids, I came upon a mangy dog hanging around the ruins. I broke off a piece of my power bar and placed it down next to him. He sniffed it and walked away. Cracked me up!
Rick D.
http://www.hikehalfdome.com
Knew *someone* was still buying those original power bars.
You’re welcome to ’em 🙂
I’ve never really liked the Clif or Power Bars. I was fond of Lunas for a while, and then the Mojos, but they get boring after a case or two. The bars that I’ve stuck with the longest are ProBars and Odwalla Bars (always on sale at Safeway). Those are the only ones that I’ve ever taken a bite into and said “yum”.
However, my favorite trail food when I’m bonking or need an extra boost to get me over a pass is Scottish shortbread cookies with honey or peanut butter packets from minimus.biz. Taste *and* energy – it’s possible!
Used to eat all these same bars but when discovered I had Type-2 diabetes a couple of years ago had to totally reinvent my diet. I’ve become at least a journeyman, perhaps even master nutrition label interpretor. Now what I take with me, sometimes as the only food, are either “Heart Thrive” or “California Suncakes”. Several different flavors of each, all based on oats with a little soy protein, and of course real flavoring as in real fruit. You can check them out at http://www.suncakes.com .
These are very nourishing and long lasting. I usually eat a few almonds or walnuts with them which seems to make them last longer. Not widely available. Here in Santa Cruz can be found at most natural food stores, Shoppers Corner Market and a couple of the coffee houses. They are mostly the same content in the different bars but with a slightly different taste and texture. The hearts have two in a package with about the same nutrition as one of the suncakes.
These are real food and actually will mold in the package if you don’t eat them within about 3 months of purchase. Power bars and cliff bars and the like last for years. Why?