Protein Bakery NZ

Two things I love...protein and cookies! My parents own a cookie bakery so I started baking and tasting at a very early age! Let's just say I know my cookies! I also love baking with protein powder.  I am a vegetarian and it is such a great way to get more protein into my diet without just drinking protein shakes all the time.  I would much rather eat a protein cookie instead of drinking a shake.  I was very excited when I stumbled across The Protein Bakery. I was even more excited when they sent me a huge box of goodies to try and review! This company was established in 2005 and is based in Wellington, New Zealand.  Right now they mainly ship to New Zealand and Australia. They are working with a site called Netrition and should be distributing to the states by late July 2014! However, If you contact them now, they will be happy to help you place an order. 

So many treats to try! I was blown away by the generosity of this company! I will be eating cookies for a long time.  And yes, I am perfectly OK with that!

They have so many different flavors, sizes, and types of cookies.  

These seem to be their most popular cookies.  They are the biggest and come in flavors like raspberry 'n' white chocolate, chocolate chip, ginger 'n' spice, mochaccino, and chocolate fudge. These remind me of those Grandma's Cookies that you can buy individually packaged.  Main difference is that these are much better for you! The macros vary a little depending on the flavor but are around 240 calories, 15g protein, 12g fat, and 5g carb.  And yes, they taste great!!

I love these low carb cookies.  Each one has about 190 calories,12g protein, 10g fat, and 5g carb.  The caramel flavor was my favorite!

These are such a nice alternative to all the protein bars I eat! Don't get me wrong, I love my protein bars, but I really love cookies that are packed with protein! 

They also have a mini LO CARB cookie.  These are the perfect size for a snack.  They come in flavors like double chocolate chip and white chocolate caramel. Yum!

These cookies are so soft and only 3 carbs a piece! 

You can also get bags of Protein Minis.  I love that they are still all individually packaged!

I hate when I open a bag of something, don't eat it all right away, and then half the bag gets stale.  Don't have to worry about that with these cookies!  Chocolate chip and raspberry 'n' chocolate!

They also sent me a ton of individually wrapped cookies in just about every flavor you can imagine! I was very excited for the epic tasting party that was about to take place. Here we have chocolate chip, peanut butter, caramel white chocolate, and chocolate fudge. 

These were all super soft! The chocolate chip and caramel white chocolate ended up being two of my overall favorites! The chocolate fudge had chunks all through it that gave it a great texture.  

The peanut butter one had peanut pieces and little chewy peanut butter chunks throughout.  

Of course I had to try putting peanut butter on my peanut butter cookie! I may have a slight obsession with the stuff... This was amazing!

I had to stop myself from eating the whole plate.  

I had more tasting to do!

Here we have some vegan options! Gotta love that.  There is vegan vanilla spelt, vegan brownie, and a vegan vanilla bean shortbread.

The vegan treats were not quite as soft as the first plate and a little chewier.  The vanilla spelt cookie had such a great vanilla flavor!

Of course, shortbread is supposed to be a little bit of a harder cookie.  Flavor was spot on! 

 This would be great with a cup of coffee!   

I decided to get a little creative with the brownie.  

I warmed it up in the microwave for about 8 seconds and topped it with some fat free cream cheese.  Talk about a guilt free dessert! 

Yes, there is more!! I call these the "crazy" flavors! How about lemon chia, chia seed honey, cocoa coconut, vegan macaroon cacao coconut, black forest superfruits, and almond amore?

The almond amore had an amazing flavor!! It was a little crunchy on the outside and then it literally just melted in your mouth! This one easily made my top 3 list!

The chia seed honey and black forest superfruits are considered breakfast cookies.  

I can see why! These would make a great breakfast.  Very hearty with big chunks of nuts and seeds.  These were a chewier cookie and had just the right amount of sweetness.  

The lemon chia was the softest cookie out of the bunch!

 I usually don't like lemony things but the lemon flavor was quite subtle and quite nice! 

You could actually see all the coconut flakes in the cacao coconut cookie.

Really nice flavor! The coconut and chocolate go really well together!

I was starting to get pretty full from all the tasting, but I knew there one more thing I had to try!

Who doesn't love milk and cookies?! Especially when they are packed with protein, have healthy fats from the goodness of almonds, are high in fiber and calcium, are wheat and gluten free, and have no aspartame, no artificial colorings, and no preservatives!

I will definitely be packing some of these in my lunchbox daily! 

With so many great flavors, it is going to be really hard to decide which one to eat first! 

Oh, and did I mention puppies love them too!

Don't worry, she did not consume any chocolate :)

Since I received such a generous box of goodies, I decided I could share a few with my husband. 

Thumbs up from the hubby!

This is what was left after the initial tasting party.  

Don't worry though, we will continue to taste and enjoy all these cookies! No bits or morsels will go to waste!

 I highly recommend checking out the Protein Bakery! They truly are a great company with a great product! Now I am off to eat more cookies...

Thank you Protein Bakery!

Peanut Butter Cup Blizzard

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream! Not many things taste better than a cold and creamy ice cream blizzard on a hot summer day.  While there is absolutely nothing wrong enjoying a DQ frozen treat, it isn't really something you will want to eat everyday...I am going to show you a super tasty Peanut Butter Cup Blizzard that you can eat everyday without guilt! 

Looks pretty awesome right?! I bet you can't even tell that it is low fat and high protein! 

I combined two of my favorite products from two of my favorite companies for this bowl of yum.

Quest and MTS! High protein peanut butter cups and extra protein from peanut butter fluff whey. 

You will need a few other ingredients as well.

Of course you need the ice cream, but Reddi Whip and chocolate sauce are completely optional.  I am using Turkey Hill no sugar added Vanilla Bean ice cream.  Highly recommend this brand! It doesn't taste low sugar or fat free at all!

Open up your peanut butter cups.  I know it will be hard, but don't eat them yet!!

Side note...these are great on their own right out of the freezer!

Chop them up!

I like really big chunks, but make them whatever size you want.  

You could just add one peanut butter cup, but I used both for my blizzard.

I guess you could add one and eat one...so good!

Serve up the ice cream!

One serving is all I needed.  You could use any flavor too! Try a chocolate peanut butter blizzard!

Add 1/2 scoop protein powder to the ice cream and mix it up.  The protein makes the blizzard extra thick! I love having one of these after a workout! 

Stir in the peanut butter cup chunks and stick back in the freezer for a bit.

Get whatever toppings your little heart desires! I kept it somewhat simple with the Reddi Whip and sugar free chocolate syrup.

Yea, it tastes as good as it looks! This bowl of peanut butter protein goodness is much better for you than any blizzard you will buy at a fast food restaurant!

Make sure you get some of everything in each bite!

YUM!!

Peanut Butter Cup Blizzard

• 1 package Quest Peanut Butter Cups
• 1/2 scoop MTS peanut butter fluff whey (15g)
• 1/2 cup fat free vanilla bean ice cream (68g)
• 1 T sugar free chocolate syrup (7g)
• 2 T fat free Reddi Whip (5g)

1. Chop up peanut butter cups and set aside.
2. Mix together protein powder and ice cream.
3. Stir in peanut butter cup chunks. 
4. Put in freezer for a bit to let it set up.
5. Add whatever toppings you like or just eat as is!!

Blizzard with toppings

380 calories

18g Fat

33g Carb

34g Protein

Quest Creation - Strawberry Cheesecake Bites

It is no secret that I LOVE Quest Bars!

Some may even call it an obsession...

Anywho...they are delicious, good for you, and you can just do so much with them! Most people think you just eat a protein bar out of the wrapper.  Wrong!! How about turning one into some Strawberry Cheesecake Bites!?

Now you see why I love these bars so much! What other protein bar can you turn into such an amazing and healthy treat!?

These are so simple too!

You just need a strawberry cheesecake bar, fat free cream cheese, sugar free strawberry jam, and vanilla.

*You can make this with other flavors bars too! Get creative!

Take the Quest Bar, unwrap it, and place it on a microwave safe plate. If you have some parchment paper it is helpful to put the bar in that.  Less sticky.

Microwave for about 10-15 seconds.  Just long enough to make it soft enough to work with.

Get whatever size baking dishes you want and coat with nonstick spray.  You could make one big dessert, but I chose two smaller ones. 

Just mold the softened bar into the dish! Easy!

Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes or until they are just a little brown around the edges.

Perfect! Let them cool a bit and then pop them out of the baking dishes.  They may stick a bit so I just run a knife along the edges.  

Make sure they are nice and cool before adding the filling.

We will mix up the cream cheese while they cool a little longer. 

All you need is fat free cream cheese and vanilla. You can add a little sweetener if you like too. I mixed up a whole batch of this, but will only use about 4 tablespoons. 

Is is also really good as a bagel spread, on rice cakes, or as a dip for all kinds of things!

Just fill your baked Quest cups with some of the cream cheese mixture and top with jam.  

So simple and so amazingly delicious! Best part is that these little desserts are quite healthy! They are sweet and creamy and packed with protein!

The first bite is heavenly! I made two of these treats so I could share with my husband...

I ate both of them...sorry not sorry!!

I have said it before and I will say it again. If you have not tried Quest Bars yet, I highly recommend it! You can order some online here or buy from health stores like GNC or Vitamin Shoppe.

 

You know you want to make these!

Strawberry Cheesecake Bites

• Strawberry Cheesecake Quest Bar
• 4 T fat free cream cheese (66g)
• 1 T sugar free jam (18g)
• 1/4 t vanilla

1. Unwrap bar, place on microwave safe plate.
2. Microwave 10-15 seconds or until soft enough to mold.
3. Spray baking dishes with nonstick spray.
4. Press softened bar into dish.
5. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.
6. Let cool.
7. Mix together cream cheese and vanilla.  
8. Fill Quest cups with cream cheese mixture and to with jam.
9. Enjoy!

230 calories for both bites

 5g Fat

 35g Carb

 28g Protein

Blueberry Protein Pancakes

The number one breakfast food in my opinion is pancakes!! I say this for many reasons. For starters, they taste great! Also, you can make them in basically any flavor, they are quick and easy, and if you follow my recipes, they are good for you! I have made pumpkin, carrot cake, spinach, chocolate, zucchini, broccoli, and now Blueberry Pancakes!!

These are light, fluffy, and super easy!

Very few ingredients needed as always.

Vanilla protein powder, nonfat plain greek yogurt, egg substitute, vanilla, baking powder, and blueberries.

I used fresh blueberries but I am sure frozen ones would work too. 

Blueberries are so pretty!! Such a great summer snack. 

Just dump all your ingredients into one bowl and mix! I do suggest mixing everything except the blueberries first, and then stirring them in last.  

So far so good! You could also add some other berries if you like.  I have tried with some chopped up cherries, strawberries, and raspberries.  This batch is going to be strictly blueberry though.

Get your pan nice and hot and coat with non stick spray.  

It has been a while since I posted a pancake recipe, but my flipping skills are really improving!

Ta da!! You could top these with a number of different things.  I usually keep is simple with some spray butter and sugar free syrup.

Try a sprinkle of cinnamon, some greek yogurt, honey, jam, cream cheese, or some whipped cream! 

I love using the MTS vanilla whey in this recipe.  It works really well for baking, but you could use any kind.  

I have heard some people even tried with chocolate protein.  I bet cinnamon would be tasty too!

As always, these are crazy good for you! They are packed with a ton of protein and are very low carb and low fat.  Great before or after a workout! 

I don't know about you, but I love pancakes for breakfast, lunch, or dinner! Pancakes as a snack? You bet!!! There is no wrong time for pancakes! 

You can order MTS Whey here! Use code KH30 and save 30%

Blueberry Pancakes

• 1 scoop vanilla protein powder (30g)
• 1/2 cup nonfat plain greek yogurt (112g)
• 3 T egg substitute (46g)
• 1/2 cup blueberries (74g)
• 1/2 t vanilla
• 1/2 t baking powder
• sweetener to taste

1. Mix all ingredients together and cook like pancakes! Be sure to use nonstick spray!
2. Top with sugar free syrup, whipped cream, jam, cream cheese, honey, cinnamon...

Whole batch -260 calories

 3g Fat 

19g Carb 

38g Protein

*Check out the video version too!  Blueberry Protein Pancakes