Review: Quaker High Fiber

It’s the weekend! I saw from the comments in my last post that many of you have awesome plans. Niice 8) I’m hanging out with Bobby and some of his friends tonight, so that should be…interesting! But what I’m really looking forward to is tomorrow’s football game and the chance that we will still be undefeated! Knock on wood.

As you all know from last week’s Blogger Secret Ingredient contest, I was recently contacted by a representative from Quaker to receive some samples of their new High Fiber products. I’ve had a chance to try everything out now, so I thought a formal review was in order!

Quaker High Fiber

I found some more information about these new products here. All of the quotes used in my review are from that site.

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Maple & Brown Sugar High Fiber Instant Oatmeal

Description:

“Each serving of High Fiber Cinnamon Swirl Quaker Instant Oatmeal provides you with 40% of the recommended daily value of fiber* combined with the comforting flavor of maple & brown sugar in every bite!”

*Based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Ingredients:

WHOLE GRAIN ROLLED OATS, MALTODEXTRIN, SUGAR, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS, SALT, CALCIUM CARBONATE, GUAR GUM, OAT FLOUR, SUCRALOSE, NIACINAMIDE*, VITAMIN A PALMITATE, REDUCED IRON, CARAMEL COLOR, PYRIDOXINE HYDROCHLORIDE*, RIBOFLAVIN*, THIAMIN MONONITRATE*, FOLIC ACID*.

*ONE OF THE B VITAMINS

Review:

If you’ve tried the regular Maple & Brown Sugar oatmeal packets before, you’ll find that this tastes just as yummy! This flavor is my favorite out of all the instant oatmeals. However, I am always slightly disappointed when I see sucralose (aka Splenda) on the ingredients list. Especially when it’s not specifically labeled as a “lower sugar” product. That said, these oatmeal packets are great for rushed mornings when you want something that cooks up quick in the microwave and will sustain you for a long period of time. I’ve also found that Quaker instant oatmeal is the least likely to explode in the microwave, which makes me a happy camper! I have no idea why that is, but I’m not complaining.

Nutrition Information (1 packet):

• 160 calories
• 2g fat
• 34g carbohydrates
• 10g fiber
• 4g protein

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Cinnamon Swirl High Fiber Instant Oatmeal

Description:

“Each serving of High Fiber Cinnamon Swirl Quaker Instant Oatmeal provides you with 40% of the recommended daily value of fiber* combined with the rich flavor of cinnamon in every bite!”

*Based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Ingredients:

WHOLE GRAIN ROLLED OATS, MALTODEXTRIN, SUGAR, SALT, CALCIUM CARBONATE, CINNAMON, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS, GUAR GUM, OAT FLOUR, SOY LECITHIN, SUCRALOSE, NIACINAMIDE*, VITAMIN A PALMITATE, REDUCED IRON, PYRIDOXINE HYDROCHLORIDE*, CARAMEL COLOR, RIBOFLAVIN*, THIAMIN MONONITRATE*, FOLIC ACID*.

*ONE OF THE B VITAMINS

CONTAINS SOY INGREDIENTS.

Review:

This was my first experience with the Cinnamon Swirl flavor. I really liked how you could see the pieces of cinnamon in the oatmeal, as shown above. As far as taste goes, it definitely reminded me of a Cinnabon – remember those?! – and was very sweet. In fact, if I have anything bad to say about this flavor – other than the sucralose – it would be that it was almost too sweet. It doesn’t really make sense because it has essentially the same ingredients as Maple & Brown Sugar, but perhaps it caught me on an off day. Overall, this flavor is again a great way to get a quick and filling breakfast that keeps you fueled for hours. I would recommend adding something to dilute the sweetness – perhaps a bit of protein powder, cottage cheese or pumpkin, since those are the trends in the blogosphere these days!

Nutrition Information (1 packet):

• 160 calories
• 2g fat
• 34g carbohydrates
• 10g fiber
• 4g protein

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Maple Brown Sugar High Fiber Quaker Oatmeal to Go

Description:

“Maple Brown Sugar High Fiber Quaker Oatmeal to Go has the rich, delicious flavor of maple brown sugar and 40% of the daily recommended value of fiber* baked into every delicious, moist square. Finally, a breakfast that is ready to go when you are.”

*Based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Ingredients:

WHOLE GRAIN ROLLED OATS, HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, INULIN (SOURCED FROM THE CHICORY ROOT), OAT BRAN CONCENTRATE, RICE FLOUR, SUGAR, OAT FLOUR, POLYDEXTROSE, MARGARINE (PARTIALLY HYDROGENATED SOYBEAN OIL**, SOYBEAN OIL, WATER, PARTIALLY HYDROGENATED COTTONSEED OIL**, SALT, MONO AND DIGLYCERIDES, SOY LECITHIN, CALCIUM DISODIUM EDTA [A PRESERVATIVE], ANNATTO COLOR, ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR, VITAMIN A PALMITATE), MODIFIED FOOD STARCH, GLYCERIN, CORN SYRUP, DRIED WHOLE EGGS, MALTED BARLEY EXTRACT, CALCIUM CARBONATE, WATER, SALT, MONO AND DIGLYCERIDES, SORBITOL, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS, CANE MOLASSES, CANE SYRUP, SODIUM BICARBONATE, MALT (CONTAINS BARLEY, SOY, AND WHEAT), CORN FLOUR, MALIC ACID, SODIUM ALGINATE, ENZYME MODIFIED SOY PROTEIN, NATURAL MIXED TOCOPHEROLS, CALCIUM PHOSPHATE, SODIUM HEXAMETAPHOSPHATE, ARTIFICIAL COLOR, POTASSIUM SORBATE (A PRESERVATIVE), NIACINAMIDE*, VITAMIN A PALMITATE, REDUCED IRON, SODIUM PHOSPHATE, PYRIDOXINE HYDROCHLORIDE*, RIBOFLAVIN*, THIAMIN MONONITRATE*, BHT (PRESERVATIVE), FOLIC ACID*.

*ONE OF THE B VITAMINS

Review:

I was a little skeptical of this bar from the get-go because not only is the ingredient list a mile long, it also features an ingredient we have recently become very familiar with thanks to Heather: HFCS. It’s also pretty small considering the nutritional value – maybe 1/2 to 3/4 the size of your average Clif bar, yet equal in calories. The icing also looked a bit painted on. Ok, so that’s the bad. The good news is that it tasted just like the Maple & Brown Sugar instant oatmeal but in a hardened bar form. I heated it up in the microwave for 10 seconds as the package suggested and it turned pretty soft and warm. But of course, just because it tastes good, it doesn’t mean I’m going to eat it all the time. I think I’d much rather get more bang for my buck with a Clif bar or, you know, perhaps just some real oatmeal! But hey, 2 out of 3 isn’t bad, right?

Nutrition Information (1 bar):

• 210 calories
• 4g fat
• 43g carbohydrates
• 10g fiber
• 4g protein

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I hope this review will be helpful if you come across these new products in stores. Thanks again to Quaker for the samples – now get that HFCS and sucralose out of there and you will have one satisfied customer!! Don’t get me wrong though – your old-fashioned oats are the BEST.EVER!

I’m off to hang out with boys. In a boy’s apartment. Oy 😉 Hope you all enjoy your Friday night!!