Creation of a Low-Carb Snack Bar

[NulloModo]

Hiya,

Someone recently posted a question to me about how one would go about creating a low-carb snack bar, similar to the energy bars one might buy at a 7-11 or somesuch, but home-made, and hopefully tasting much much better.

As I am fairly clueless when it comes to baking, I figured I would post and ask about it here, and who knows, maybe some very tasty recipes could develop.

Here is what I am thinking the criteria should be:

1. Low-Carb, so no sugar (including fructose/other sugar-like things) and no flour/starch. Low-carb ingredients that are acceptable include almost all nuts, berries (in limited quantity), seeds, brans, soy flour, protein isolates, eggs, fats/oils/butters of any kind, and any non-starchy vegetables.

2. High caloric density, so it will be satisfying and not leave one feeling hungry when used as a 'meal on the go' for emergencies type of thing.

3. It would be best if it did not contain any transfats.

4. Long shelf life, and no need for refridgeration would be a big plus.

5. The texture should be firm enough that it won't fall apart easily.

6. A 'blank slate' base recipe could also be fun, that someone could then just play around with seasonings/flavorings etc to make into a bunch of types of bars.

I am thinking that ground walnuts and oat bran/flax-seed meal could be used as a base, but I am not sure if these will be solid enough. I think a chewier denser texture would be preferable to something that is too light and cakey, but I have no idea how to achieve this in baking. I am also wondering that if butter is used as the fat of choice in the dish, and if eggs are used, if that will mean the finished product will them require refridgeration.

Any ideas you may have will be most welcome.

[claire797]

I spend a lot of money on Carbwise, Zone and Strive Bars, so I would love it if somebody could come up with a protein (low carb) bar that actually tastes good!

The good low carb bars I've tried have a somewhat crunchy/chewy texture much like the ones mentioned above or Genisoy's "Crunch!" bar. So far, the recipes on line seem to be more similar to Atkins Bars, with that chalky, soft texture.

I've done some surfing around and found a few recipes, most of which use whey protein (either vanilla or chocolate), and peanut butter. A few of the recipes also use cream cheese, butter and Splenda. So far, none of them sound that good enough to convince me that I need to buy a canister of whey powder.

[scott123]

This article goes into how the big boys do it:

http://www.foodproductdesign.com/archive/1998/0798AP.html

The long shelf life is going to be tricky. Water is the enemy. The best way of tying up water in a bar like this is sugar.

Here are the ingredients for a chocolate peanut butter Atkins advantage bar:

Ingredients: Protein blend (Soy protein isolate, hydrolyzed collagen, whey protein isolate, calcium /sodium caseinate), glycerine, polydextrose (fiber), cocoa butter, peanut flour, water, peanuts, natural coconut oil (non-hydrogenated), cellulose, cocoa powder, natural and artificial flavor, olive oil, lecithin, maltodextrin, guar gum, citric acid (flavor enhancer), salt, sucralose (Splenda® brand non-nutritive sweetener).

Nutrition Blend: Calcium (tricalcium phosphate and calcium carbonate), magnesium (magnesium oxide), vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin B-1 (thiamin), vitamin B-2 (riboflavin), vitamin B-6 (pyridoxine), vitamin B-12 (cyanocobalamin), natural vitamin E (acetate), niacin, biotin, pantothenic acid, zinc, folic acid, chromium (chromium chelate), vitamin K, selenium.

I'm sure that the packaging places a large role in shelf life but from an ingredient perspective, here's what's helping to preserve it:

Polydextrose (by tying up water)

Glycerine (same)

Maltodextrin (same)

Salt (same)

Citric Acid (lowering the pH)

You will also notice that 'water' appears pretty far down the list.

From the number of times 'glassing' and crystallization are mentioned in the link above, I'd say that protein bars are a soy protein based fudge. A nougat also comes to mind. Both of these require the textural properties of sugar. So you either go with sugar alcohols, which many people eschew, or, you take the Atkins route and use polydextrose.

I've been baking a little bit with polydextrose lately, and let me tell you, it is amazing stuff. All the textural properties of sugar with a fraction of the carbs and almost no sweetness.

I would boil a polydextrose syrup down until it gets a soft ball stage, add your nut butters/protein isolates and then mold/let cool.

The chewy/dense protein bars are definitely not baked. The light/crunchy or oaty ones are.

If you go the soy route (almost all bars do), I recommend one of two forms. Soy protein isolate (kinda pricey) or Fearns brand Soy Powder. The soy 'powder' is a type of soy flour that's been processed differently and tastes better. The protein isolate shouldn't have a taste at all. I would stay away from soy flour for this application (or anything else).

Edited November 10, 2004 by scott123 (log)

[CompassRose]

If it were me, Nullo, I'd forego the "no refrigeration" part. Answer: preservatives. Even the best-quality energy bars (such as Trioplex, which despite labelling problems, still remains one of the few using genuine food ingredients) need to be kept in the fridge so's not to go fuzzy.

The nut butter/protein powder mixes aren't always bad, but they really depend on the flavour of the protein powder you use.

[jackal10]

Lots of ways you can glue it together:

Proteins: Soy, egg white/albumen, caesin (milk/whey powder); gelatine; agar.

High MP Fats: Cheese, lard, beeswax

For example mix your nuts seeds etc with egg white, form unto bars and dry in a low oven

[NulloModo]

Scott: Where do you get polydextrose? Any more info on it?

I suppose the no refridgeration thing could be bent easily, as long as a bar could last safely in a briefcase or something for several hours without going rancid.

[Mt Baker Bandit]

No perservatives, No trans fatties and no butter. What do you get? A wholesome, great tasting snack without high carb counts. I have been testing recipes like these for quite some time now and found that almond meal makes for a stable base.

Stay clear of perervatives and fake sweeteners as these will make a healthy product pointless.

Check this out if you are interested in a low carb cookie that is all natural.

www.bbcookies.com

[Mt Baker Bandit]

Inulin is a natural preservative and lengthens shelf life pretty well.

Eurithritol is a sugar alternative that is used in low carb products.

[NulloModo]

Mt Baker - do you mean Erythritol?

Also, is there a reason I should be avoiding butter?

[Rebel Rose]

Greetings, Mt Baker Bandit, and congratulations on your first post!

Better be careful with your spelling--these guys are a tough crowd!

[NulloModo]

Lol, sorry, I didn't mean the spelling thing as a snarky comment, I was just curious if that was what was meant, or if he was referring to a new sugar-alcohol I was unfamiliar with...

[Mt Baker Bandit]

Mt Baker - do you mean Erythritol? 

Also, is there a reason I should be avoiding butter?

←

Yes, I do mean Erythritol, thank you.

Although I am a supporter of butter in cookies (it just makes them so much better!), many people are currently trying to stay clear of Trans fats which has been a significant contributor to coronary disease. These tran fatties are created by using hydrogenated oils. Trans fat also increases your LDL cholesterol (bad kind) while lowering your HDL cholesterol (good kind). Some butters also contain gluten. Also, butter contains many calories and a load of sodium.

I personaly say double the butter!

[Transparent]

Trans fats are in margarine, not butter. Butter has no trans fat. If it does, something is terribly, terribly wrong.

[Mt Baker Bandit]

I stand corrected, thank you.

Butter is very high in Sat. Fat and Cholesterol.

[Rebel Rose]

If a person wanted to experiment with her own low-carb cookie or snack, what would a basic recipe involve, as far as just fiber x fat x eggs-or-other-leavening ratios? Without worrying about the preservation--because in this household, nothing edible lasts more than a few days. I think most home cooks looking for a good low-carb snack/cookie would agree that preservation in a houshold is not a priority issue.

[scott123]

Scott:  Where do you get polydextrose?  Any more info on it?

I suppose the no refridgeration thing could be bent easily, as long as a bar could last safely in a briefcase or something for several hours without going rancid.

←

Nullo, so far the only place that I have found that carries polydextrose is Honeyville. I get a bunch of other low carb things there as well, including almond flour, corn bran and oat fiber.

Here is a good discussion on polydextrose.

Since I saw polydextrose in quite a few commercial low carb products, I had a good feeling about it for home baking. Now that I'm actually baking with it, I'm ecstatic. So far, all of the missing properties of splenda - sugar's preservative, bulking, textural, caramelizing, glassing qualities - are all there.

The biggest question mark is carb impact. Technically polydextrose is classified as 1 cal/g. This translates into .25 carb/g. There have been some studies, though, that show polydextrose to be non glycemic. If this is true, then we are looking at a zero carb impact. It's also supposed to be good for you in quite a few fiber like ways.

Recently I used polydextrose to make a glaze for chinese bbq spare ribs. The texture was incredibly sugarlike.