ProBar is based in one of my favorite places – Park City, Utah! Great place to ski and snowboard and there’s an amazing little Thai restaurant downtown that serves incredible vegan dishes. But, I digress, let’s talk about this Cookie Dough ProBar in front of me.
Jeff Coleman, founder of ProBar, moved to Park City, UT in 2002 where he began to live a more active lifestyle (of course he did, Park City is an outdoor playground!). A more active lifestyle meant Jeff needed nutrition-on-the-go, so he started looking for options. He tried a locally made energy bar and was surprised that the bar didn’t taste like flavored cardboard. That energy bar was ProBar. Jeff became such a fan of ProBar that he eventually bought the company and grew it to the nation-wide nutrition bar company we know today. ProBar’s mission is to create delicious, convenient, healthy, sustainable, plant-based food products.
The ProBar Base Bars are marketed as a higher protein, sports performance bar. They are significantly larger than other bars on the market (2.46 ounces versus the standard 1.5 to 2 ounces). Think of them like a king size candy bar but made from real food. Each ProBar Base bar packs 20 grams of plant-based protein – that’s the same amount as in 1 1/3 cup cooked lentils or about 3oz of meat – holy cannoli! There’s lots more to its nutrition, which you’ll find snuggled below.
The ProBar Base bars are available in the following flavors: Cookie Dough, Mint Chocolate, Peanut Butter Chocolate, Chocolate Bliss, Coffee Crunch, Frosted Coconut, and Frosted Peanut Butter. Today we’re going to test out the Cookie Dough flavor.
Taste Experience – Score: 5 out of 10
I decided to start with the Cookie Dough flavor because a friend said they were his favorite. He loves the Cookie Dough flavor so much that he bought an entire box for “hurricane food” for Hurricane Irma (the joys of living in Florida). You can imagine my interest. I wanted Cookie Dough deliciousness too!
My first bite of the ProBar Base Bar Cookie Dough bar (ain’t that a mouthful) was in the car. I was running errands and needed a hearty snack to sustain me through the rest of the afternoon. I don’t know about you, but I’m always packing (food) in the car. First thing I taste is lots of sweetener, which makes sense since a sweetener is the second, third, and fourth ingredient in this bar (tapioca syrup, dried cane syrup, and agave syrup). Next, the 20 gram protein bomb hits me with a dry, chalky texture. I want to believe ProBar’s “real food” mantra, but that’s not what my taste buds are experiencing. This ProBar Base Bar Cookie Dough bar tastes manufactured. Not terrible tasting, but not great either. You can tell ProBar tried to mask the soy isolate protein with a bunch of sweeteners. I don’t blame them for doing this because it’s really hard to provide this much protein in a bar and make it taste great too. As for the flavoring, I’m sorry, but this bar does not taste like any Cookie Dough I’ve ever had. A big let down in the flavor department. I’m also thirsty now, which is probably because of the 390 milligrams of sodium in this bar.
Not the most glowing taste review, right? Well, don’t discount the ProBar Base Bar Cookie Dough bar yet. I did some Googling to see what other people had to say about the Cookie Dough version of this bar and the reviews are consistently great. People love the taste and report that it’s not overly sweet but does hit a sweet tooth craving – who knows, maybe I’m alone on this one. I have a pretty picky palate. I suggest giving these a try for yourself. You may love them like my Hurricane Irma friend. You can get all of the flavors on Amazon by clicking HERE.
Nutrition – Score: 7 out of 10
The best part about the ProBar Base bar is the protein content. 20 grams is a massive amount of protein and will cover almost half of your protein needs for the day. The main protein source in the ProBar Base bar is soy protein isolate. Soybeans are a great quality food: high in protein with a near ideal amino acid content and a substantial source of vitamins, minerals, and fiber. To create soy protein isolate, soybeans are processed to “isolate” the protein away from the other parts of the bean. This processing isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Yes, you’re giving up some vitamins and minerals from the soybean, but on the other hand, you’re getting a concentrated amount of plant-based protein in a convenient bar.
The ProBar Base bar also packs in chia and flax seeds, which add protein but more importantly provide super-duper, game changing omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids help prevent inflammation, reduce the risk of a heart attack (by decreasing the risk of your blood clotting), and potentially improving cognition and reducing depression symptoms. I’m a big believer in chia and flax seeds. I probably eat them every day and you should too.
When it comes to the sweetness, the Cookie Dough Base bar has 16 grams of sugar coming from tapioca syrup, dried cane syrup, and agave syrup. This amount of added sugar is in line with other nutrition bars and is a completely reasonably amount for a highly active individual. From a nutrition science perspective, the syrups are added to maintain moistness and counteract any potential bitterness from the soy protein isolate.
The ProBar Base nutrition bar is fairly high in sodium with 390 milligrams per bar. If you’re on a high blood pressure/low sodium diet, which is typically restricted to 1500 milligrams per day, this bar would be 26% of your sodium intake. On the other hand, if you’re an athlete, endurance training, or sweating it out on a daily basis, the sodium content in the ProBar Base bar can be quite helpful in replacing sodium lost during training.
Here’s a summary of all the goodness in the ProBar Base protein bars:
- 20g Plant Protein
- 4g Fiber
- Chia and Flax Seeds
- Gluten Free
- Non-GMO Project Certified
You can try all of the flavors by buying the variety pack on Amazon by clicking HERE.
The Non-Vegan Review – Score: 8 out of 10
I really like this bar, but I’d change the name to Chocolate Caramel Love, because I’m getting a whole lot of loving from the chocolate and caramel flavors in this ProBar Base bar. Texture is a bit on the crunchy, crumbly side, so make sure you get that entire bite in your mouth. I love that these bars have 290 calories and 20 grams of protein per bar. That’s perfect for a breakfast replacement or pre-workout snack. Drink plenty of beer with these, since they are kinda salty. Overall, I approve of the ProBar Base bar. Get you some of that chocolate caramel lovin now. Non-vegan husband out.
Parting Thoughts
If you’re trying to include more convenient plant-based protein options into your day, the ProBar Base bar is a great option. The ProBar Base protein bar is available on Amazon for less than $2.00 per bar. I would recommend buying an assortment of flavors to find the ones you enjoy the most. If you liked my review, please consider supporting this site by buying the ProBar Base bars from Amazon using this link HERE.