Food: Bars

Bars are such a staple in any backpack on the trail. People make them homemade, buy a bunch, or feel queazy after eating a protein bar (or is that just me?) I have never ventured into making them homemade, but think I will give it a try. I'll let you know the updates. Most people don't have to send themselves this kind of food, but I have found that I do. It's really hard to find bars without nuts in them. 

There are two cliff bars I can eat. That's only because my allergy isn't so sensitive so I can eat things that say may contain once and a while. That said, it's only two bars; chocolate chip and chocolate brownie. They get real boring real fast although I will still carry some and I do like them. I can also probably find these in stores along the way so no need to buy them now.

I have been shopping around for good nut-free options and they are mostly very expensive. Anita at Avalanche Bars was nice enough to give me some samples which I ate on my gear trial backpacking trip over my birthday weekend. These bars are a bit dry but much tastier than a Cliff bar; less sweet and more savory. They are my style with flax seeds and oats and sunflower butter and honey in each bar (sounds like my breakfast this morning). The Cranberry Pineapple is my favorite, with the chocolate cherry a close second. Maybe I like them so much because they taste nutty so I almost feel like I'm cheating. They are also nut free (no 'may contain' labeling) so I can eat as many as I want (there are six flavors so it will take me longer to get tired of them). If you can sense my excitement it's because it has been hard to find a bar that tastes good, doesn't hurt my stomach, is nut free, and isn't as hard as a rock.

For a cheaper option, Quaker now makes nut free chewy bars. So I will have some of those sprinkled in too. But honestly I get sick of these super fast. It goes back to what I said about super sweet things; I just don't crave them. I'll eat them for calories.

No Nuttin' Granola bars are free of gluten, dairy, all other major allergens. They are sweet and hard. I might buy a box just to have one here and there, but this won't become a staple.

EnerPro make two chewy nut free protein bars, but they are double chocolate and chocolate chip so very similar to the majority of other bars I can eat. I will buy some of these too, but make sure to pair them with Avalanche Bars so I can have a sweet and then a savory bar.

Candice Foods makes a variety of granola bars but I haven't gotten up the courage to actually buy one. They are very expensive ($3 each) and when I asked if I could have some free samples I never got a reply. It would just be nice to know that I like them before I spend $25 on six bars...I probably just won't and leave these off the resupply bandwagon.

Well, that's about it. Doesn't a apply to many but I can't be the only one with a nut allergy into backpacking right? If anyone has any advice or experience with nut-free bars I would love to hear it...please.