It has been a while since I posted about my vegan journey. I'm proud to say that it's still going strong! I've now been vegan for one month and 11 days. In addition to Thanksgiving, I've survived several other social gatherings in people's homes and at restaurants. It IS possible to be vegan and have a social life with non-vegan friends and families! 

I have to admit, it has actually been fun shopping for specialty vegan items, especially now that I can at least have stuff with sugar. I've continued to keep my sugar intake at a minimum and have found myself sugar counting instead of calorie counting. 

I discovered a couple energy bars that have been a lifesaver for mornings when I don't have time to eat breakfast or for those afternoon hunger pangs. Best part is that they have very few ingredients, which means they're healthier than the ones with ingredient lists that go on and on and on.

LÄRABAR: My #1 Vegan Obsession

LÄRABAR flavor varieties sound like a list of desserts, but they use dates as a natural sweetener instead of icky refined sugar. Regardless of whether or not you've already eaten, this list of LÄRABAR flavors  will make you salivate:

• Apple Pie
• Banana Bread 
• Blueberry Muffin
• Carrrot Cake
• Cappucino
• Cashew Cookie (yum!)
• Cherry Pie
• Chocolate Chip Brownie (yum!)
• Chocolate Chip Cherry Torte
• Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough (yum!)
• Chocolate Coconut Chew (yum!)
• Coconut Chocolate Chip (yum!)
• Coconut Cream Pie (yum!)
• Gingerbread
• Key Lime Pie
• Lemon Bar
• Peanut Butter & Jelly
• Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip (yum!)
• Peanut Butter Cookie
• Pecan Pie
• Pumpkin Pie
• Snickerdoodle

The only reason not all of them have my "yum!" stamp of approval is because I haven't tried them yet. I am determined to try all flavors available at my local health food stores, and will let you know how they are. I mean, really, with protein, fiber and potassium (those are just saw of the major nutrients in them) rolled into a vegan, gluten-free bar with no more than nine ingredients, can you really go wrong with any flavor??

Pure Bars - Pure, Organic Ingredients

Should you need more flavor variety than what LÄRABAR offers, Pure Bars also offer delicious, good-for-you treats. Their Fruit and Nut Bars are soft and chewy and deliver 5-6 grams of protein and 3-5 grams of fiber. For those of you counting calories, you'll be happy to know that there are only about 200 calories in each bar. They come in the following flavors:

• Chocolate Brownie (yum!)
• Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip (yum!)
• Cherry Cashew
• Wild Blueberry
• Dark Chocolate Berry
• Banana Coconut
• Cashew Coconut
• Cranberry Orange
• Apple Cinnamon

Santosha Chocolate Coconut Creme: My #2 Vegan Obsession

At around $8-9, this little gem is well worth every penny, especially after reading up on how the company processes its cacao. Santosha Chocolate is essentially a process in which the living enzymes and other micronutrients are preserved in the fair-trade, organic, raw cacao beans used. It uses organic coconut palm sugar that’s both sustainable and safe for most diabetics. You can read more about the process here.

Their good-for-you practices are consistent with the product as well as the packaging—using environmentally-friendly recycled materials and vegetable-based inks.

For anyone with strict dietary restrictions, you’ll be happy to know that Santosha Chocolate has:

• NO soy
• NO nuts
• NO dairy
• NO gluten
• NO emulsifiers
• NO fillers
• NO cacao butter
• NO animal products

And if that’s not enough to sell you on it, you’ll love why the company chose Santosha as its name. Here’s the definition they provide:

\’san-tō-shə\संतोष 
1. Contentment, not requiring more than you have to achieve contentment
2. Having peace with what is, in this moment

You can contact them to see if the 200+ stores they sell their products are near you. Or you can buy Santosha Chocolate Coconut Creme and their other products online.

BTW, these product reviews were published solely for the benefit of vegans and non-vegans alike. I was in no way paid to post about these products, especially with my little blog just getting started.