Paleo Snacking with Wild Thing

The 4pm slump can be one of the greatest challenges to anyone embarking upon a healthier lifestyle. When the blood sugar levels drop, it can be really difficult to ignore the lure of unhealthy snacks that provide a quick fix. In an ideal world, we would only crave nuts and carrot sticks, or alternatively have a selection of homemade energy balls and treats to turn to. Unfortunately, crudités don't always cut it, and life can get in the way of the making of homemade creations. Luckily, a whole market based around innocent snacking has arisen, saving us from the vending machine temptation.

A new brand that has landed on the shelves on Planet Organic is Wild Thing paleo bars. What caught my eye is that these bars are also organic and vegan. Tick tick. Wild Thing bars, which don't look dissimilar to the popular Nakd bars, aren't specifically a post-workout protein bar, but instead contain a moderate protein content (around 5g), which makes them the perfect light snack. The bars are made with as few ingredients as possible, and the processing time is just 30 minutes before the bar is packaged up.

With a walk in the snow last week, I chucked a couple of bars in my rucksack and cracked them out midway along. Of all the bars, the chocolate and almond bar tastes most like a standard date and nut based bar: simple and tasty. Hands down, my favourite bar was coconut and chia. There was just the perfect amount of coconut flavour, balanced out by blended cashew nuts. Also included in the mix are a berry flavour and the subtle-tasting mixed seeds. Calorifically, each bar clocks in between 100-140 cal, with the seed based bars topping the scale. With up to 12g of sugar per 30g bar, you don't want to be having too many, but for the size this is just enough to perk you up. On top of this, most of the sugar comes from dates, which have a GI of 42, compared to 65 for caster sugar.

Wild Thing bars are a great snack that come with no hidden nasties, making them a really good light snack. Whether or not Wild Thing's push towards a paleo clientele will be enough to make the bars stand out from competitors, is a question, but I personally was really pleased with these slim snacks. Currently available from selected retailers including Planet Organic and Amazon, you will need to plan ahead to buy these bars. However, I look forward to seeing Wild Thing make it's way into more shops, as I would definitely pick up another coconut and chia packet or two!