Enlightened Birthday Cake Crispy Marshmallow Treats Aren't Quite What One Might Hope!

The Good: Filling, Decent nutrition
The Bad: Does not taste like birthday cake . . . barely tastes like a Rice Crispie Treat, Expensive
The Basics: Enlightened Birthday Cake Crispy Marshmallow Treats are a mediocre protein-packed treat that is not overly satisfying to eat, especially for the price.


Eating healthy and getting "treats" that are designed to pack in a lot of a specific nutritional element - usually protein - almost always seems to lead to disappointment for me. I eat healthy-enough, but whenever I want to eat healthier, I tend to run into the problem that the foods offered either taste like crap, are inordinately expensive, or both. Enlightened Birthday Cake Crispy Marshmallow Treats do not taste terrible, but they do not taste very flavorful and for a treat that is so expensive, it is hard to want to eat healthy or include these in one's physical training/diet regimen.

Basics

Enlightened is a health food company and the Enlightened Birthday Cake Crispy Marshmallow Treats are the first product I have tried by the company. Locally, we only found this brand at GNC stores.

Each Birthday Cake Crispy Marshmallow Treats comes in a 2.65 oz. rice crispy style treat that is plastic-wrapped. Each treat represents a single serving and the marshmallow treats are each 3 1/4” wide by 5/8” thick by 4 1/2” long Snack Bar that is surprisingly solid, but squishable. A box of Birthday Cake Crispy Marshmallow Treats contains only five bars.

Ease Of Preparation

Eating Enlightened Birthday Cake Crispy Marshmallow Treats is simple. After removing the plastic wrapper, simply pull out the treats and stick it in your mouth. There is no particularly complicated equation to eating this snack; it is an entirely ready-to-eat food!

Taste

Unwrapping the Birthday Cake Crispy Marshmallow Treats, the crispy treat smells strongly of puffed rice and marshmallows. This treat smells exactly like every other Rice Crispie Treat I've ever smelled and consumed. The sprinkles in this treat do not appear to add anything to the aroma of the marshmallow treats, but the smell is familiar and inviting to anyone who loves Rice Crispie Treats!

On the tongue, the Enlightened Birthday Cake Crispy Marshmallow Treats tastes initially sweet, but that sugar and vague marshmallow flavor is quickly overcome by the dry protein blend. The dry, mealy base for the bar is only marginally flavored like a rice crispie-style treat. Instead, after the initial sugary flavor of the Enlightened Birthday Cake Crispy Marshmallow Treats passed, the treats taste like any generic protein bar with a grainy texture and an indistinct mealy flavor, much like cardboard or pressed sawdust.

The Enlightened Birthday Cake Crispy Marshmallow Treats have a dry, slightly fruity aftertaste to them. The aftertaste endures in the mouth until one takes a drink of water, which they are likely to want to do given how dry they leave the mouth.

Nutrition

Enlightened Crispy Marshmallow Treats are intended as a protein-packed treat and they do what they promise in that regard. Each 75 gram Crispy Marshmallow Treat represents a single serving and they are fairly nutrient-filled. Made primarily of a proprietary protein blend, brown rice, and brown rice syrup, the ingredient list is more chemical than recognizable food ingredients. These cereal bars were produced on equipment that may leave the bar with traces of coconut ingredients. Because there are eggs and milk in the treats, they are not Vegan-compliant. The Enlightened Birthday Cake Crispy Marshmallow Treats contain soy, but they are marked as gluten-free, but not marked as Kosher.

Enlightened's Birthday Cake Crispy Marshmallow Treats have 270 calories, 30 of which are from fat. A full serving represents 7% of one's RDA of saturated fat, but they are cholesterol-free. Surprisingly, they are comparatively low in sodium with only 230 mg (10% RDA) per serving and there are 15 grams of protein to be had by eating a full treat. These are not a significant source of vitamins or minerals, though they do have 6% of one’s daily RDA of Iron and Calcium.

Storage/Cleanup

As a healthy snack, Enlightened Birthday Cake Crispy Marshmallow Treats remain fresh so long as they are kept in their wrappers. Our pack had an expiration date of July 28, 2018, so these last for a while. As long as the treats are not heated up, they remain fresh and the only real clean-up for them comes from wiping up crumbs.

Overall

Enlightened Birthday Cake Crispy Marshmallow Treats meet the promised nutritional guidelines for someone who is trying to build muscle mass, but they do so in a way that is not very flavorful or enjoyable.

For other reviews of healthy food, please check out:
Made In Nature FiggyPops Choco Crunch Supersnacks
Quest Beyond Cinnamon Roll Cereal Protein Bar
Gatorade Prime Fuel Bar Chocolate Chip Energy Bars

2/10

For other food and drink reviews, please check out my Food And Drink Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2017 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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