A Quest for the Best

Happy Friday, loves!

T-G-I-Effffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff!

I haven’t been this excited for the weekend to finally get here since…well, last weekend, but still…was it just me or did this week just DRAG on forever?

Maybe it’s because I’m uncool and didn’t have any Halloween plans…

But hey, at least I was still festive! ๐Ÿ˜‰

Anywho, since this week has been more or less full of link-ups,

MIMM: Marvelous Meal Preppingย 

WIAW: Spookalicious

FPP: A Noodle-ly Foodie [Pen Pal]

I thought I’d do a “Best of” post showcasing some of my best eats of the week.

Whatdya think? Sound fun? Mmmkay, good!

Best Brinner:

TJ’s harvest grain mix, cottage cheese, fresh figs, Earth Balance coconut peanut spread, and of course, cinnamon.

Best Lunch:ย 

Sauteed spinach and onion, grilled turkey breast, and Cranberry Syrup (yeah, I’m addicted) all stuffed in a Kuri squash…cinnamon added post pic ๐Ÿ˜‰

Can you say Thanksgiving dinner? Omg, I can’t stop thinking about how good this was!

Best Snack:

Kashi Autumn Wheat with lots of MARSHMALLOWS…like seriously, there’s a layer under the cereal!

Hmm, Kashi Charms? ๐Ÿ˜‰

Best Food Porn:

Aka, “How to bastardize a vegan burger”

Kristina’s Quinoa Basil Bean Burger topped with melted roasted garlic cheddarย “nuggets” and a perrrrrrrrrfectly fried egg!

And finally…

Best Breakfast:

Pumpkin Pie Casein topped with a Quest Cravings Chocolate Crunch Bar

I’m sorry, wha?!

Oh yeah! Just when I thought the genius combo of vanilla casein,ย pumpkin puree,ย maple extract, and pumpkin pie spice couldn’t get any better, I added CHOCOLATE!

But not just ANY chocolate…

Only the best chocolate protein bar CANDY to ever cross my lips!

A few weeks ago, the people over at Quest Nutrition were kind enough to send me a package of some of their bars for me to review.*

To my surprise, I received not one but TWO boxes!

And while the Quest Cravings bars were AMAZING, they have only just been launched and therefore not available in stores yet so I’ll do my best not to tease you with them! I’ll just say they remind me a lot of a Nestle Crunch Bar, only they to NOT hold together well…I’ve found that they are best suited as a topping than an “on-the-go” type bar.

As for the others…

I was sent 12 bars (11 flavors) to try.

After seeing these babies plastered all over Instagram, I decided ahead of time which ones I thought were going to be my most favorite…

Chocolate Peanut Butter, Peanut Butter & Jelly, Cinnamon Roll

And my least favorite…

Lemon Cream Pie, Mixed Berry Bliss, Chocolate Supreme

So how did my guesses turn out?

Note: I heated each bar in the microwave for about 10 seconds prior to eating…honestly, I didn’t think my teeth could handle the taffy-like texture without doing so.

A
Chocolate Brownie:ย Tasted JUST LIKE a Little Debbie brownie!
Mixed Berry Bliss:ย Each bite of the bar was filled with a different berry flavor…YUM!
Vanilla Almond Crunch:ย Hello BIRTHDAY CAKE!!!

B
Lemon Cream Pie:
Very light lemon flavor. I’m not a huge fan of lemon but I was happy to see this one didn’t have that fake “lemon cookie” taste.
Coconut Cashew: Tasted like fresh coconut, not bad, but I think it would be better with ย something as a topping…maybe a little FROG jam? ๐Ÿ˜‰

ย C
Peanut Butter Supreme: Had a hint of that fake peanut butter taste which is common with a lot of protein bars, but I spruced it up with some Healthy Chocolate Sauce.

D
Strawberry Cheesecake: Flavor was very faint strawberry, but nothing to make me think “cheesecake”
Peanut Butter & Jelly: WARNING: This is peanut butter and raspberry jelly….BIG disappointment when you’re expecting strawberry (whomp whomp).

F
Apple Pie: I didn’t taste apple at all…until the VERY last bite which had a small piece of apple in it.
Cinnamon Roll: The biggest disappointment. Here I am expecting Cinnabon and what do I get? CARDBOARD! No flavor AT ALL!

?
Chocolate Peanut Butter: Can you believe this? In an effort to “save the best for last” I LOST IT!! I know…I cried a little. ๐Ÿ™

I’m guessing my cries made they’re way to the ears of the people at Quest, because right about the time I realized it was missing, I got ANOTHER surprise…

Yeah, Reese’s? What are those??

At first I was a little disappointed to see that a pack of two of these cups came in at 240 calories as that’s a bit of a BIG snack for me, but then I bit into one…

They are SO rich and decadent (you can tell that the peanut butter center has protein in it since it’s a teensy bit dry). I swear if you have ANY candy/chocolate/junk food craving, these are the cure all!

Ugh, I so wish these were available for sale, but unfortunately, like the Chocolate Crunch bars, they are new and haven’t made it to the shelves yet (online or in stores).

But you better BELIEVE that once they do, I will be buyingย 25 cases a box of them!

Thank you so much, Quest!

*All bars seen in this post were sent to me for review purposes free of charge. All the opinions expressed in the review are of my own. In no way was I compensated for this review…although I’d gladly take payment in more bars. Please note my favorites! ๐Ÿ˜‰

What are a few of your “best of’s” for the week?

Have you ever tried Quest bars?

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29 Responses to A Quest for the Best

  1. I love your thorough review of the Quest bars- but I’m bummed that they’re not vegan. Booo.. I’ll have to wait.
    Best of lately for me? DEFINITELY the potato-kale enchiladas from the other night. OMG. I’m making them AGAIN next week!

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Whoa! Potato kale enchiladas? How did I miss THAT! I’ve never tried a vegan version, but I’ll admit, I’ve NEVER met an enchilada I didn’t like! ๐Ÿ˜‰

  2. Yolk porn, chocolate peanut butter cups, marshmallows, and basterdizing all in one post. I can barely contain myself. “I want some more please,” she says with a twist.

  3. lindsay says:

    seriously hungry after that post, so thank you! Ahh, love the quest bars too!

  4. I’ve never tried quest bars, but they look good!

  5. Julie says:

    I’ve been wanting to try these so I’m glad you did this! Takes all the guest work out of it.

  6. Lee says:

    I’ve never seen Quest bars before, but I’ll have to check them out if i do, especially the new crunch ones.

    Such a bummer that I’m going to be out of town next weekend when you are here.

  7. Jessie says:

    well they hooked you up & i’m completely jealous!! Mmm.. eat one for me please ๐Ÿ™‚

  8. Mmm you had me at “fresh figs”. I hate that they are so pricey, but they are sooo worth the splurge!

    A few of my “best ofs” for the week were pumpkin banana oatmeal for breakfast, Eat, Live, Run’s mushroom and kale quesadillas, and homemade applesauce!

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      I said the same thing to myself as I shelled out $5 for the small package that I got from the store…then I sunk my teeth into one and forgot all about that! Mmm, you’re best ofs are making me hungry! Lol

  9. Love your nail polish in the first pic. ๐Ÿ™‚ Oh my gosh, that is one awesome looking snack. Awesome! I’ve been wanting to try Quest bars for the longest time. Everyone says they’re just plain amazing! ๐Ÿ˜€

  10. I tried the Cravings but I was not a fan… I tried the chocolate crunch bar and I think it tastes like shit. I spared them a review because I’m sure they wouldn’t enjoy my honest thoughts on that one. I got the PB cups too and I hate that they are so caloric. I wasn’t a fan at first but now they are starting to grow on me…

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Aww, I guess everyone’s tastes are a little different. It probably helps too that I’m not a huge chocolate person. I mean, I know enough to realize that the chocolate flavor is not the same as the “real stuff” but since I have it so infrequently, I liked the healthified version. The PB cups were a bit dry to me at first, but they just recently came out with a reformulated one that is supposed to be creamier. Honestly, they are so rich tasting to me that I can only have one at a time so the higher calorie count isn’t really a problem.

  11. Bahaha I just about died when you commented my blog saying you could lose a tooth for eating one of these without microwaving. It’s so true! Some of them are easier than others.. but microwaving is the best for sure!

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Yeah, I think I had ONE in the entire box that I could have eaten straight up, but gah, they are just SO much better warm…like cookies! Mmmm, coooooooookies! ๐Ÿ˜‰

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  13. Wow, girl, you are one lucky duck! That’s a lot of tasting… ๐Ÿ™‚

    Love the yolk porn, always…AND the place that supplies my pumpkin powder for Nutty Butter has those marshmallows! I almost ordered some when I last ordered pumpkin powder, but marshmallows aren’t vegan, and I was in Vegan Mo Fo. Now, though…

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Please, puh-leeeeeeeease tell me where you’re ordering from! And tell me that I can order pumpkin powder in an amount that’s not too obscene! ๐Ÿ˜‰ I yearn to infuse everything with concentrated pumpkin flavah!! Lol

  14. Wendy says:

    Heather- I am a new follower- love your recipes! I looked under your recipage for the Pumpkin Pie Casein- do you have that recipe posted somewhere- it sounds really yummy! I’m looking forward to making some of your pancake recipes!

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Hey Wendy! Thank you so much! the pumpkin pie casein isn’t really a recipe…just 1/2 cup pumpkin, 1 scoop vanilla casein, a bit of maple extract and pumpkin pie spice and enough water to thin. Then I like to pop it in the microwave for about a 30 seconds to a minute so it ends up tasting like fresh outta the oven pie! ๐Ÿ™‚

      I’d love to know what you think of the pancakes when you make them. If you like raisins, I definitely suggest trying my latest, the Oatmeal Raisin Flax pancakes…they taste JUST LIKE oatmeal raisin cookies! http://www.kissmybroccoliblog.com/2012/11/04/oatmeal-raisin-flax-pancakes/

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  17. ana says:

    Hey, I came across your site after searching “quest bars” on google. I’m just wondering if you’ve tried the cookies and cream quest bar? And which bar you would recommend to someone new to the brand?

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Hey there, Ana! Yes, I have tried the cookies & cream bar and it’s actually one of my favorites (too funny, but I’ll be mentioning it in my post today)! Since I published this post, I’ve been able to go back and give some of the flavors another shot and I’ll be honest, there really aren’t but a couple that I don’t like. My top favorites though are the chocolate chip cookie dough, cookies & cream, and the apple pie. I have a thing for textures so I really like that these bars aren’t just plain. The white chocolate raspberry is good too, but the fact that every time I eat one, I end up having to dig raspberry seeds out of my mouth gets to be a bit of a pain. #firstworldproblems, right? ๐Ÿ˜‰ Anyway, hope that helps!

      Also if you want to order your bars from iherb.com, you can use my discount code: QQQ940 for 5-10% off your order! ๐Ÿ™‚

  18. ana says:

    Dear Heather,
    Thank you and I am happy to report that ,I too, am a quest believer(addict?)!!

    Ahhhhh. So good. I tried the double chocolate chunk and cashew coconut (your favorites were sold out :'( so sad!)
    It’s true that they taste better when heated up. I’m going to try out the other flavors and thennnn stock up!

    Okay, so now that I trust your judgment/taste buds…. i am also looking for a protein powder. I have been DYING to try protein pancakes. What you got for me? What are your favorites?

    BTW, thank you for the discount code. You best believe I will put it to good use!! ๐Ÿ˜‰

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Awww, YAY!!! You just made my day, love! So happy to hear you were a fan…I know they seem to be hit or miss with people…though for the life of me, I can’t figure out what is WRONG with the people who don’t like them! Haha!

      Hooookay…so protein powders! I’ve tried a LOT! I typically go with whey protein powders (even with my lactose challenged gut, they seem to work alright with me and I have actually read that whey is one of the easier proteins for the human body to digest…just don’t ask me where I read that! Ha!). I used to work at GNC when I was in college so I did a lot of my research then. I also know that whey isolates are better/higher quality/easier to absorb than whey concentrates. My top favorites for whey are: Syntrax Nectar Whey (there are like a MILLION flavors…I’ve tried just about every one and have loved them all!), and MGN Pure Protein Isolate (only ever tried the vanilla, but I would KILL A BABY BIRD to get my hands on their cake batter!).

      For vegan protein powders, Vega is definitely the my top favorite …though anything you make with it will end up looking like pond scum! The best is their vanilla chai. But just FYI, if you’re looking to make protein pancakes, I haven’t ever had much luck with vegan protein powders…for some reason, they never seem to hold together or cook all the way through.

      Hope all that helps…and I hope I haven’t given you information overload! Ps, if you end up getting that cake batter…just know that I will be haunting your dreams every night from here on out! ๐Ÿ˜‰

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