Healthy Food Brands - Various

A little while ago Healthy Food Brands sent me some things to review, firstly I would like to say a big thank you to them. They sent several items which I was really happy with I will review them all below:

Please check out their website where you can see all the things they have to offer - http://www.healthyfoodbrands.co.uk/home


Clif Bars (68g)

I was sent two different flavours of the Clif bars to try, I got the Chocolate Chip and the Oatmeal Raisin Walnut.

The packaging is unique, if I were to see them on the shelf I would instantly know which brand they were, I have heard of these bars before trying them but up until recently I have never been interested in protein bars (I honestly thought they were only for body builders or something!).

Before trying for my second baby I wanted to get fit and lose some weight so I started to do running, I never really enjoyed protein bars or shakes and tried numerous different brands. I now have a 6 month old daughter and plan to start running again soon. For the purpose of this review I used the Clif bar as a healthy snack to keep me full so that I was not tempted to dip into the chocolate bars! However my partner tried one and he uses protein bars and shakes regularly to help with his exercise routine.

I gave the Oatmeal Raisin Walnut bar to my partner as I am not a big fan or raisins and thought he would enjoy it more. He was pleasantly surprised and said that they tasted great! He liked the texture of it as well he said it was chewier than other bars he has tried in the past.
I tried the Chocolate Chip bar and was very surprised at how much I liked it, the only thing I will say is it had the chalkiness that all protein bars seem to have - but you find that in all of them. The taste was a lot stronger and nicer than other bars I have tried (which I will admit is not a huge amount). I love chocolate and was a little bit afraid that it wouldn't be very 'chocolatey' but I could really taste it which is great. It was very filling and definitely suppressed my chocolate craving which is great, it kept me full for a few hours - which I  honestly didn't think would happen.

I am not sure on the amount of protein really needed for a post workout snack, upon research I found many different answers - the most common being around the 20-25g mark - this will obviously be different the bigger or smaller you are and for the outcomes you want to achieve.
Clif bars have around 10g per bar (it varies and is different in each bar) with the peanut butter being the highest. So a great snack post workout could be a Clif bar on its own or with a small portion of nuts - this sounds perfect to me. They are great for on the go, just to chuck in your gym bag, pocket, handbag or car, or just stocked up in your cupboard. I am going to be stocking up on these ready for my training and I am sure my partner will be stealing some too!

Clif bars retail at around £1.60 each which is a similar price to most bars on the market, you can buy multipacks which make them cheaper per bar and the price varies depending on where you buy.

Clif has a range of products which are for different types of exercises/needs - you can visit their site here. 

Here is the link to the Healthy Food Brands Clif Bar page where you can find out information and use links to find whats best for you - http://www.healthyfoodbrands.co.uk/clif_bar_page

For Clif Bars Facebook click here.
For their Twitter click here.
For Instagram try here. 
And for their YouTube click here.

Free & Easy ChickPea and Vegetable Curry (400g) 


I was sent a Free & Easy ready meal, it was the Chickpea and Vegetable Curry, unfortunately I took pictures of this on my old phone and it has since broken with no way to get the pictures so I have none to show you! :(

The packaging is quite simple, it has all the information you would need on there to help you decide wether you want the product or not. I felt the pattern around the product name was cute - I love the little pictures of ingredients around it. I would recognise the brand if I looked for it on the shelf which is always a good point. Although I think it could stand out a little more, with the background being black and the main colour on the packet being a picture of the meal itself perhaps the 'title' could be a little bolder? - It doesn't take away from any of the good points nor does it take away from the taste.

The Curry was very nice, it didn't look great I have to admit not quite as it looks on the package, and I am used to curry filled with big chunks of meat or veg - and this had neither. It was a mixture of Chickpeas and small chunks of carrot and different beans. I love veg so it wasn't a problem for me to try, but to be honest for anyone trying to cut meat down or out I don't think you would miss it with meals like this! It was spiced but not overwhelming and was made with tomato puree which I like and made it very tasty and thick. I ate this on its own for a quick lunch, but I think it would be great with rice, potatoes or pasta as a dinner or even with a slice of bread to dip in.

As you will probably know from previous posts I am really trying to be a lot healthier for myself and for my family. This ready meal was tinned and was so quick and easy to cook without using a microwave, it is low in fat which is great and it is also suitable for vegans which means it contains no animal products (all bonuses). It is Free From Celery, Free From Dairy, Free From Gluten, Free From Mustard, Free From Nuts, Free From Soya, Free From Wheat. I don't know if it would be suitable for my son but only because of the amount of spice it contains, he likes spicy but it was pretty hot. The site says medium spiced but I would say its more of a medium - high spiced to be completely honest. It has a very simple ingredients list which is great, I think the best meals are simple ones and it is also organic which is fantastic. I would definitely purchase this in the future and would like to try out other products in the range.

The price of a tin is around £1.50 - £2 depending on where you buy it, this is similar to other products which are available so it is good value for money. 

You can go to the Healthy Food Brands page where you can take a look at other products available in this range and find out what you might like to try - http://www.healthyfoodbrands.co.uk/free_and_easy_product_range


URTEKRAM Rose Shower Gel (500ml)

Lastly on the list today is the URTEKRAM shower gel, now I have to be honest and say I had never heard of this before contacting the company but they have a HUGE range of organic hair and body care products.

The packaging is lovely and depending on which ingredient/scent is present there is a little image at the top of the packaging which I think is so sweet. The scent is clear to see and so is the brands logo so it is easily recognisable.

I absolutely loved the scent of this, it made me think of turkish delight which I LOVE and we only really have it at Christmas for some reason so it was like Christmas had come early! As I showered the scent filled the room and it was amazing, I was sadly disappointed thought as it quickly disappeared and did not stay on my skin for very long - I wanted to carry it with me all day! It left me feeling clean and fresh and my skin felt soft for hours afterwards which is great. I have dry skin which I was hoping would be softened by the gel but I didn't see much of a difference there even after many uses!  I would like to try out the other scents because I really enjoyed this one, and want to be good to my body on the inside and the out.

The price of these shower gels are around the £7 mark which is quite expensive - however you get 500ml which is a big size and its full of good quality ingredients so it isn't bad value at all.

You can have a look at the full range here at the Healthy Food Brands website - http://www.healthyfoodbrands.co.uk/urtekram_products


Thanks for reading guys :)

Sophie Jo xx