One of the greatest things about fall is the arrival of seasonal Clif Bars. For the past few weeks every time my wife went to the grocery store she looked for the seasonal Clif Bars and last week they finally arrived! In addition to Spiced Pumpkin Pie and Iced Gingerbread, this year Clif introduced the new Peppermint Stick flavored bars. If you want to try these delicious bars you had better hurry because they are only available until the end of December (or until they run out).
Clif Bar Seasonal Flavors
I have been an avid consumer of Clif Bars for nearly ten years. During my first year of cycling I tried to eat PowerBar Energy Gels on my rides, but those things always tasted like a high school chemistry experiment gone bad. The first time I tried a Clif Bar was the day I quit buying anything from PowerBar.
Clif Bars come is sixteen regular flavors plus the three seasonal flavors. The Iced Gingerbread is my favorite seasonal flavor and the Black Cherry Almond is my favorite during the rest of the year. Each bar has between 230 and 250 calories and they average around 44 grams of carbohydrates and 10 grams of protein each. And, if you are interested, Clif Bars are also Kosher and vegan approved.
Clif Bars are made with 70% organic ingredients. However, I am more impressed by what they do not contain. Clif Bars are made without high fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oils, trans fats, or artificial flavors, sweeteners and preservatives.
I am not going to try to list the ingredients in every flavor of Clif Bar, but I think you can get a general idea by looking at the ingredient list for the Iced Gingerbread Clif Bar: Organic Brown Rice Syrup, ClifPro (Soy Rice Crisps [Soy Protein Isolate, Rice Flour, Barley Malt Extract], Organic Roasted Soybeans, Organic Soy Flour), Organic Rolled Oats, Organic Toasted Oats (Organic Oats, Organic Evaporated Cane Juice), Organic Molasses, Soy White Chocolate (Organic Evaporated Cane Juice, Cocoa Butter, Soy Flour, Soy Lecithin, Natural Flavors), Safflower Oil Roasted Pecans, ClifCrunch (Organic Oat Fiber, Inulin [Chicory Extract], Organic Milled Flaxseed, Organic Oat Bran, Psyllium), Crystallized Ginger (Ginger, Cane Sugar), Organic Soy Butter, Organic Raisins, Natural Flavors, Sea Salt, Ginger, Cinnamon, and Spices.
Clif Bars retail for around $1.50 at the grocery stores in my area, and they are cheaper if you buy them in a 12 pack. The best I can tell, fresh-baked Clif Bars have about a nine month shelf life. The grocery store where we shop has a high turnover rate on their Clif Bars, so I have never had a stale bar. However, Amazon.com has a terrible reputation for sending out expired or short-dated Clif Bars, so I think you would be better off finding them from a local store than buying them online.
