Top 5 Sugar Free and Low Carb Products of 2009

This time of the year gets us really excited.  It’s fun to look back at all the tasty sugar free and low carb products we’ve tasted all year.  It’s also very uplifting to think of all the great products we’ll get to review in the coming year.  Thanks so much to all of our loyal readers.  We hope you’ve enjoyed some of 2009’s great products yourself.  Here are our Top 5 Favorites:

1. Atkins Endulge Peanut Butter Cups

This awesome candy was way out front.  It even lapped some traffic.  If we had to give up all but one dessert or snack forever, this one would be the one we would keep.  Seriously.

2. Welch’s Diet Black Cherry Juice

It’s entirely possible that the difference between the taste we expected and the taste we got landed this great juice in second place.  This product was the most pleasant surprise in our Top 5 for 2009.

3. Old Orchard Healthy Balance Apple Juice

We were most impressed with how unbelievably sweet this apple juice is.  We really look forward to trying more of the host of healthy juices from Old Orchard very soon.

4. Sweet Leaf Tea Diet Sweet Tea

Maybe next year we’ll come up with some Oscar-esque categories for our end of year awards.  This awesome tea would have won this year’s “Keep It Simple Stupid” award hands down.  Great tasting sweet tea without all the guilt – it doesn’t get much better than that.

5. SoBe Lifewater Black and Blue Berry

This drink is our favorite water beverage.  We don’t even miss sugar-filled sports drinks any longer thanks to the delicious, sweet flavor of this great product from the fine people at SoBe.

Please chime in and let is know about your favorite sugar free and low carb products for 2009.  We’re wishing for a safe, healthy, happy, and prosperous new year for all of our great readers in 2010.  Happy New Year!

Jif Natural Creamy Peanut Butter

Low Carb Foods - Jif Natural Creamy Peanut ButterJust in time for those low carb Christmas buckeyes, we were fortunate enough to find Jif Natural Creamy Peanut Butter. Now don’t worry, we’re not turning this into a “natural products” review site. The truth is, if we hadn’t gotten into the habit of checking labels on all new products we see, we would have passed on this one under the assumption that this peanut butter was full of carbs. Natural or not, this peanut butter is low in carbs and is absolutely delicious. It is very creamy and sweet. Whatever magic mixture of peanuts, oils, fats, salt, and sugar was concocted to make this peanut butter taste so great is the work of geniuses.

Seriously, if it weren’t for the lack of massive amounts of Omega fatty acids, this peanut butter would have taken over first place for our favorite peanut butter from Smart Balance. We also noticed that the packaging mentioned that there was no need to stir this peanut butter. On the nutrition label there is a statement about natural oil separation, which seems to be a contradiction. Most natural peanut butters we have tried really needed to be stirred quite often. We’ve been sampling this peanut butter for the better part of a week and have not been tempted to stir it in the least. This peanut butter will make you happy.

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Designer Whey Cranapple Protein Water

Low Carb Drinks - Designer Whey Cranapple Protein WaterWe were pleasantly surprised with the great flavor of Designer Whey Cranapple Protein Water. Having consumed just about every protein shake on the planet, we were looking for something new, and boy did we find it. This protein water was smooth, flavorful, and sweet. There was only the slightest hint of the dreaded vegetable-juice-blend taste, and the sweet cranapple taste more than made up for it. It has a little body, but is not like syrup. If you are looking for an alternative to mixing protein shakes, then you should definitely give this protein water a try. Its packaging is also cool, with a graduated scale on the rib of the bottle that shows how much protein you have consumed. We really liked this product, and we look forward to trying some of the other flavors from Designer Whey.

Each sixteen ounce serving of Designer Whey Cranapple Protein Water contains only 60 calories, 2mg of cholesterol, 25mg of sodium, and one gram of sugar. These are very good numbers, especially since each serving also provides 40mg of potassium, 12 grams of protein, and 5 grams of fiber. This protein water is sweetened with sucralose. The only allergent listed is milk.

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Murray Sugar Free Chocolate Chip Cookies With Pecans

Sugar Free Snacks - Murray Sugar Free Chocolate Chip Cookies With PecansWe hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving holiday! We ate all the turkey and ham we could get our hands on, and now we’re back to bring you another great sugar free snack. Over the last couple of years we’ve reviewed several of the Murray sugar free cookies. They have all been solid snacks, and the Chocolate Chip with Pecan cookies were no different. Adding pecans to a chocolate chip cookie was a great idea. Each bite marries the sensation of surprise and familiarity, and that’s not an easy task. As soon as you are about to say “this doesn’t taste like a chocolate chip cookie” you hit a chocolate chunk and all is right with the world. The pecans pieces are small and their texture somewhat reminds you of a macadamia nut cookie’s macadamia nuts. As most of its high carb competitors do, these cookies have more of a crunchy, powdery texture than the ones you usually bake at home. We would put these cookies up against those competitors any day. The other thing we’ve noticed about Murray cookies is that they always look so great. You’re pretty sure this is going to be a good snack when you open the container. This is another great product for the Murray brand at Kelloggs.

Each cookie is about 53 calories, 3 grams of fat, 42mg of sodium, and about 5 grams of digestible carbohydrate. Each cookie also provides about a gram of fiber and protein, and is sweetened with acesulfame potassium and Splenda. Based on the extensive list of allergens on the label, we would suggest staying away from these sugar free snacks if you have any food allergies. Otherwise, we hope you enjoy them!

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