Product Review: Go Raw!

Sometime last year, I was given the awesome privilege to receive a giant box loaded with ALL of Go Raw’s products! (THANK YOU GO RAW!!!) I promised a review on our blog and finally here it is! Prior to receiving this amazing box of goodies, I was hooked, and I still am, on Go Raw’s Spirulina Snack Bar. Made with only a few ingredients – sprouted organic sesame seeds, organic bananas, organic unsulphured coconut, organic dates and organic spirulina – and loaded with protein, B-12 and the chlorella, this snack bar will keep you full, satisfied and energized. It’s a great pre-workout bar! All of their products are made the same way with whole, organic, unprocessed, raw ingredients and provide the same wonderful benefits of energy and satisfaction.

To top it off, Go Raw is also an amazing, family owned company that has a “goal and passion for contributing to this area of the food industry”. Their products were one of the very first products I leaned on to help me transition into a raw foods diet. In addition, they opened up a L.I.F.E. center in Cali (Oh how I Wish I lived there!) that serves to help those who wish to explore and transition to a healthy, raw lifestyle by providing meal plans that include a salad, an entrée, desserts and drinks. For more infor and to explore their products check out their website here. Also, you can like them on FB at Go Raw and the L.I.F.E. Center…I warn you, the pics will have you looking for plane tickets to Cali. 

Ok back to the products. I’d love to write review on everything I received but that would be a long post, and trust me, this is long enough! So, here is a quick review for each category along with my faves and least faves. 

Bars: Banana Bread Flax, Live Granola, Live Pumpkin, Live Apricot, Spirulina Energy.

My favorite is the Spirulina Energy of course! It’s best enjoyed cold, right out the refrigerator with a tall glass of water. My advice when choosing one is to give it a little squeeze to make sure it’s crisp and not bendable. A bendable spirulina bar leads to serious jaw ache due to excessive chewing.  It is good to note though, that the other bars are more flexible and a bit chewy, but one, they are meant to be in that form with that texture, and two, they easier to chew that way than this one. Still tasty, but a painful process! As for taste, it may look green, but the flavor is sweet and nutty and addictive. Trust me. One bite and you will be hooked!

Honestly, I liked them all for the most part. If I had to choose a least fave, I’d have to go with the Live Pumpkin bar just because it’s not as sweet as the other bars. However, for those who prefer savory over sweet, this bar is perfect!

Flax Snax: Spicy, Sunflower, Pizza, Simple, Flax Snax

Okay, I’ll be honest I loved them ALL!!! The most popular among us was the Pizza Flax. The secret to telling if a product is a GREAT product is when my picky, omni husband tries it, likes it, and continues to buy it and eat it. 

Quick story, I had actually shared my stash with Kerry and as we were splitting each product, my husband and her BF were both taste testing them. When they tasted the Pizza Flax, my husband andher BF immediately stole our bags! For a moment there, I thought a fight was going to break out  among us all..yes, over food. LOL.

 Touch the hearts of the non-raw, non-vegan crowd and you have scored big! That is EXACTLY what these Pizza Flax Snax did. Made with predominantly flax seed and spices, these crunchy round bites provide a ton of flavor and are a great source of heart healthy fats, fiber and protein. Only 180 calories in one serving and you already added 5 grams of fiber and protein into your diet. Seriously, these babies are gold! The other ones are just as tasty. I loved the Sunflower ones. Nutty, salty, crunchy goodness. Yumm!

Super Cookies/Chips: Spirulina, Pumpkin, Original, Ginger Snaps, Chocolate, Lemon, Masala Chai and Carrot Cake

Do you even have to ask me which one was my fave!? Yep, Spirulina scored again! In all honesty, all of these were tasty in their own way. If you love spices, Masala Chai, Carrot Cake and Ginger Snap are for you. I really liked the lemon. It was not too sweet and slightly tart. All these are worth trying. It just all depends on your taste preferences as to which one you should choose. 

Granola: Live, Simple, Chocolate and Apple Cinnamon

I wasn’t a huge fan of the granolas. They were actually the last thing to leave my pantry. The only one I would recommend is the simple granola made with sprouted buckwheat groats and flax only because it’s perfect on top of sweet parfaits and used in a lot of raw dishes as a base for a crust or to add texture into a mixed dish. Actually, Go Raw’s Simple Granola is my go to for sprouted buckwheat groats so if you ever need any, go get a bag of these ones! As for the others, the taste was okay, but I definitely think both the taste and texture can be improved.

Sprouts: Sprouted Pumpkin Seeds, Sunflower seeds, Spicy Seed Mix, Simple Seed Mix

Seriously, you can’t go wrong with seeds that have already been soaked, sprouted and dehydrated for you. They taste just as delicious, if not better than, their original raw and toasted counterparts. No doubts, if I need pumpkin or sunflower seeds, I just buy a bag of Go Raw, toss them in the fridge and use as needed. The boost in nutritional value is worth the cost! 

However, if you’re looking for a delicious, crunchy, nutty snack then you MUST grab a bag of the Spicy Seed Mix. This product was also omni approved and didn’t last very long at all. They taste insanely delish – seasoned with lime, jalapeno, cilantro and other fragrant spices – and if you’re like me, you’ll find every way possible to use them. I used them to make an awesome spicy pesto and topped everything with them. And when we got to the end of the bag, you better bet I did the chip bag head tilt to capture all the bottom of the bag spices. They’re the new raw alternative to Cool Ranch Doritos. Don’t believe me? Go BUY them and let me know what YOU think!

Chocolates: Original, Orange and Mint

Oh, Go Raw I seriously love you and I am a very devoted fan but these chocolates are just no good at all. I’ve had my share of raw chocolates and these I have to deem as my least favorite. They are overly sweet and the oils are way too strong in both the orange and peppermint flavors.  They oddly taste artificial. The texture is off; soft, chewy, and creamy yet dry. At first, I thought maybe my tastebuds just needed to adjust to the pure flavors and ingredients of true raw chocolate – and that may still be true – but I tried them over and over within a week span and just couldn’t find myself to like them. Cocoa butter truly makes a difference when it comes to creating chocolate, raw or not. 

So not ALL of their products are addictively tasty to me, and I wasn’t expecting them to. All that matters is that they have a customer hooked to at least one product and trust me, they have me hooked on MORE than one! I highly recommend giving these products a try and discovering which one you like the most! 

So which one of Go Raw’s products do YOU want to try??