Cookies in a protein bar? And it’s vegan? If you’ve been doing a double take on Lenny and Larry’s Protein bars review this first!
I give my personal opinion, and put on my dietitian hat to talk about the nutrition in this article!
Lets dive in!
Disclaimer: This review is based on the authors opinion. It is not personal dietary advice. Talk to your doctor about any health concerns or dietary changes. See our disclaimers for more details.
Quick Summary
I tried the chocolate sea salt and peanut butter chocolate chip flavors, and liked the peanut butter one better, but wouldn’t but either again.
Here’s a quick pros and cons:
Pros:
- Low in added sugar
- Decent amount of fiber
- Better price for a vegan protein bar (compared to several other ones)
Cons:
- Notable protein flavor. Sticks to your teeth.
- Visually looks on the smaller side
- Unsure about the cocoa sourcing.
What are Lenny and Larry’s The Complete Cookie-fied Cookie Bars?
The Complete Cookie-Fied Bar® from Lenny & Larry’s is a snack bar that is has 12 grams of protein per bar, and is marketed as:
- Vegan
- Non GMO Project verified
- Gluten Free
- No high fructose corn syrup
The term cookie-fied likely refers to the crunchy cookie bits on the bar.
These can found at stores like Walmart, Target and online at Amazon or the Lenny & Larry’s website (of course, availability will vary).
There are currently 4 flavors available on the Lenny and Larry’s site as of the date of this post. They are:
- Chocolate Almond Sea Salt
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip
- Cookies & Creme
- Strawberries & Creme
I review the Chocolate Almond Sea Salt and Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip flavors in this article.
Lenny and Larry’s Protein Bar Review
Taste
Here’s a video of me trying the bars for the first time!
Chocolate Almond Sea salt
3/10
This one hit like a brick! The protein powdery taste was overpowering. Chocolate flavor did not shine through very well.
It was not very sweet (but maybe that can be expected for the sugar content it has!
The almonds were not very noticeable. Texture was both grainy and gummy. Bits stuck to my teeth.
Husband said it seems ok compared to other protein bars, but does notes too that it has a strong protein flavor and a bit “sandy.”
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip
6/10
This one Hits you with peanut butter flavor that helps mask the protein flavor a bit! This one also had a amore grainy feel, and was quite dry.
I thought this one has a nice amount of sweetness. The Chocolate chips notes complement it.
Husband also agreed this one tasted better than the chocolate almond sea salt flavor. Mainly because the peanut flavor is strong.
Ingredients
Chocolate Almond Sea salt
Here’s the list of ingredients as noted from the image above:
“Ingredients: Protein Blend (brown rice protein, pea protein), tapioca syrup, inulin, almonds, semi-sweet chocolate chips (organic cane sugar, unsweetened chocolate, cocoa butter) alkalized cocoa powder, gluten free sugar cookie pieces (rice flour, sugar, palm oil, tapioca starch, water, molasses, natural flavors, salt) organic agave syrup, sunflower oil, sea salt, natural flavor.”
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip
Here’s the ingredients as also shown in the picture above:
“Ingredients: peanuts, tapioca syrup, protein blend (brown rice protein, pea protein), semi-sweet chocolate chips (organic cane sugar, unsweetened chocolate, cocoa butter). inulin, gluten free sugar cookie pieces (rice flour, sugar, palm oil, tapioca starch, water, molasses, natural flavors, salt) organic agave syrup, natural flavor, sea salt.”
After I compared the ingredients, I was like, ah! That’s probably why I liked the peanut butter chocolate chip flavor better!
Ingredients are listed in order of ingredients with the most to the least weight.
The Chocolate Almond Sea Salt flavor had the protein blend at the beginning, meaning it contributed the most weight to the over all product. That’s probably why I got a stronger protein powder flavor!
The Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip bar instead had peanuts as the first ingredient, followed by sweet tasting tapioca syrup.
A couple more notes about the ingredients: the protein blend does contain brown rice protein. Rice crops tend to pick up more arsenic several other crops. You can learn about ways to decrease your exposure to arsenic here.
I could not find information about whether the protein blends are tested for heavy metals. Basically, I would prefer for the proteins blend to have a different plant based protein.
I’m also not sure where the cocoa and chocolate chips are sourced from. On the FAQ page of the Lenny & Larry site, it does say that the cocoa suppliers practice fair trade laws, however, I could not find certification.
There are also many issues with fair trade laws that you can read more about here. Lenny and Larry’s is also on the “cannot recommend” category on the Food Empowerment Project’s Chocolate list ( I personally wish I would have checked this list before buying these items). This is a company that looks into the chocolate sourcing of various companies to find out if they come from areas that are practicing unfair labor practices.
You can learn more in my article about vegan chocolate here.
Nutrition
Chocolate Almond Sea salt
Here’s some of the nutrition facts as taken from picture above.
- Calories: 170
- Saturated Fat: 1.5 grams
- Trans Fat: 0 grams
- Sodium: 90 milligrams
- Carbohydrates: 20 grams
- Fiber: 5 grams
- Added Sugars: 3 grams
- Protein: 12 grams
- Iron: 3 milligrams
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip
- Calories: 180 calories
- Saturated Fat: 2 grams
- Trans Fat: 0 grams
- Sodium: 90 milligrams
- Carbohydrates: 20 grams
- Fiber: 5 grams
- Added Sugars: 3 grams
- Protein: 12 grams
- Iron: 2 milligrams
These bars are very similar in their nutrition facts. They both have a good amount of fiber at 5 grams per bar. Most of the fiber likely comes from inulin. This fiber can help with regularity(1), but too much can have unwanted side effects like diarrhea.
Both bars are also considered low sodium. Too much sodium in the diet has been associated with high blood pressure(2).
It’s also a plus that added sugars are quite low for a protein bar at only 3 grams per serving.
These bars do contribute some saturated fat which is also important to be mindful of.
As you would expect, in a protein bar, these products are considered high protein at 12 grams per bar.
Portion
Both bars are listed as being 45 grams per serving. Visually this looked pretty small to me!
But since the flavor was not my favorite, I didn’t really mind that it looked on the smaller side.
And one benefit of a smaller size is that it fits more easily when taken on the go, so it might have that going for it!
Price
I got these as individual bars at Whole Foods. The Chocolate Almond Sea Salt flavor was on sale for about 1.50 USD (usual price was listed as $1.99 USD) each, and the Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip was 1.37 USD (can’t remember if that one was on sale as well).
Here’s how these prices compare to other stores.
- Walmart (bulk box of 4 bars – chocolate almond sea salt flavor): $ 5.56 USD ( about $1.39 per bar) (4)
- Target (Box of 4 bars): $5.99 USD ( about $1.50 USD per bar) (5)
- Whole Foods: $1.99 USD per bar
Compared to other vegan protein bars, the price may be cheaper.
For example, one 4 count box of Go Macro Double Chocolate + Peanut butter chips bars is about $8.76 USD and No Cow Dipped Protein Bars- Chocolate Sprinkled Donut (pack of 4) is about $8.68 USD Walmart.
Would I Buy These Again?
I would not buy these again! Here’s a summary of the pros and cons I noted:
Pros
- Decent amount of protein.
- Good amount of fiber.
- Lower in added sugars.
- Cheaper than several other vegan protein bars.
Cons
- Taste was not very enjoyable. Has a notable protein powder like flavor.
- Would prefer a different concentrated protein source than brown rice protein.
- Chocolate sourcing is not clear. Would prefer more transparency.
- Visually appears small.
What did you think about this product? I think that there are healthier snack options that taste way better!
If you enjoyed this review, your in luck, cause I’ve got more for you to explore! Here’s a sampling of other vegan food reviews:
–Harvest Snaps Review
–Vegan Babybel Review
–Aldi Vegan Meatballs Review
–Sunrise Energy Bars Review
Want to keep up with future vegan food reviews and nutrition info for? Sign up for emails from Plant Powered You right here! ❤✌