Friday I'm in Love... with KIND Bars

I've known about KIND Bars for a while now, but I've only recently fallen in love. I bought them years ago, but in an effort to cut out calories from nuts, I stopped buying them. (Now that I understand the nutrition in nuts, though, I try to eat a little bit every day.) I was given a few samples last week at the Natural Products Expo in Boston, and from the first bite, I was in love.

KIND Bars are filled with fruits and nuts, unlike their granola bar counterparts which don't always have a lot of substance. The best part? They actually taste like what they're named. The Mango Macadamia (above) tastes like mango and macadamia nuts (with a little coconut thrown in), the Almond & Apricot tastes like almonds and apricot, and the snozzberries taste like snozzberries! (Wait, no...) The Fruit & Nut Delight is probably my favorite, filled with peanuts, almonds, Brazil nuts, walnuts, raisins, apricots, dates, and honey. And they're satisfying, thanks to the nuts and some added fiber.

KIND Bars are available at tons of locations, like Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, Shaw's, and Market Basket. They are also the gluten-free offering at Starbucks stores (now that Starbucks has done away with their awesome GF Valencia Orange cakes). Or, if you really love them, you can order them online through the KIND Advantage program.