Cashew Caramel is a Healthy Protein Bar

October is National Caramel Month… our annual opportunity to savor all the gooey caramels we steal from our kids' trick-or-treat bags. But here at GoMacro we’re resisting traditional caramel and celebrating our protein paradise: cashew caramel MacroBar as a healthy protein bar. Traditionally caramel is made by heating and caramelizing (melting) sugar and combining it with a dairy based cream…everything you’ve been trying to avoid! Instead, we use mesquite powder, naturally sweet with a caramel-like flavor, with the creamy component derived from cashews and coconut oil. 

Is Mesquite the Next Nutritional Powerhouse?

Some people think so. The mesquite tree packs a lot of nutrition, because it has to. Mesquite powder is one of the few food sources available in the desert. Indigenous people who live in the desert, will usually aim to locate their settlements as close as possible to a stand of mesquite. The mesquite tree is provides food, shelter and firewood. It grows incredibly fast, with roots that will dig down over a hundred feet in search of any little bit of water in the ground. The mesquite tree prevents soil erosion, and puts nitrogen back into the soil, which allows other plants and food crops to grow around it.

Mesquite powder is dried and ground from the bean pods of the mesquite tree. It has a sweet, nutty, caramel flavor and was used as a sweetener and a flour by Native Americans for hundreds of years. Super high in protein and soluble fiber, it also digests slowly and doesn't spike your blood sugar.

OUR healthy protein bar IS Packed with Superfoods and Protein

Hang onto your seat here… the protein paradise: cashew caramel MacroBar contains a whopping 12 grams of protein! That’s 23% of your RDA, derived from the mesquite powder, organic flax sprouts, organic sprouted brown rice protein, and organic pea protein. And not a bit of cholesterol! This healthy protein bar is also high in calcium, magnesium, potassium, iron and zinc.

Cashews are rich in magnesium, which, like the calcium in mesquite is good for the bones. But excess of calcium can sometimes be bad for the nerves. Magnesium prevents calcium from getting to the nerve cells to quickly and activating them, which may lead to nervous disorders. Magnesium also decreases the frequency of migraines, lowers blood pressure, may help to prevent heart attacks.

Zinc is known to build up the immune system. A high calcium level is good for strong and healthy bones, and the amino acid lysine leads to better absorption of that calcium. The protein is bio-available; which means that the proteins are already partially broken down, so that they can be more easily digested and absorbed. GoMacro puts it all together for healthy plant-based protein bars: brown rice syrup, cashew butter, superfood protein blend, cashews, coconut sugar, puffed brown rice, flax sprouts, mesquite, coconut oil, and cinnamon.... Bet you never knew that caramel could be so healthy.

See Amelia’s recipe for cashew cream

Resources:

http://www.examiner.com/article/the-next-superfood-top-ten-benefits-of-mesquite-powder

http://www.healthdiaries.com/eatthis/7-health-benefits-of-cashews.html