Snack Review: Mid-day Squares
Indulge in your chocolate cravings in a healthy way.
Gluten Free | Vegan | Dairy Free | Soy Free | Fairtrade | Plant Based | High Fiber
One of the worst offenders for unhealthy eating in the snack section are chocolate bars. The incredibly high sugar, saturated fat, sodium and caloric content makes them a ticking bomb going directly to your cardiovascular system.
These bars might not look like much, but they definitely pack a punch in terms of silent damage. A common way to navigate this, if you are a chocolate lover, is to go for pure dark chocolate.
However, for some people the flavor of a standalone bar of dark chocolate can be too much, due to its naturally strong flavor profile. This is where snacks like the one in today’s review come in handy.
Mid-Day Squares.
Hailing as a mix between a Protein bar and a chocolate bar, they are made with a healthier approach in mind while keeping that classic decadent chocolate flavor we sure love.
Currently offering 5 flavors to choose from:
Crunchy Peanut
Peanut Butta
Cookie Dough
Almond Crunch
Brownie Batter
Today I have three flavor to try: Peanut Butta, Cookie Dough and Brownie batter, offering a nice array of flavor combinations for chocolate lovers.
The bars consist of two parts: The Dark Chocolate cover and the “flavor” filling.
The first thing you’ll notice right away is the recommendation to keep the bars refrigerated. According to the website, this is due to the lack of artificial preservatives. Outside the fridge, they will last up to 5 days.
This is completely understandable and expected from a product trying to keep themselves as natural as possible. However is important to mention there is a slight difference in the overall texture and flavor of the product when is fridge cold compared to room temperature.
Chocolate contains fat, and when the fat is chilled it affects the flavor, muting the subtle notes cacao contain3. . The only note that seems to retain its presence is the bitter element of the dark chocolate. I would recommend taking them out of the fridge and leaving them at room temp before eating to get the best flavor experience.
I tested two of the different bars this way: one directly from the fridge and the other room temp. The fridge-cold bars were quite tough to bite, as expected, and the flavor was dominated by the bitter dark chocolate. In comparison to the room temp one which had a better balance between the chocolate section and the “flavor” component.
Peanut Butta
Peanut butter and chocolate is a classic combination, and this one did decently.
I left this bar out of the fridge for around 45 minutes before I tried it. On the first bite the main thing you get right away is a very strong dark chocolate note, heavy enough that it prevents you from tasting the peanut butter part.
When tried separately I did notice the peanut butter side is quite mild, making it fairly weak against the bold flavor of the chocolate, the flavor IS good, but you can barely taste it when taking a complete bite, so it was a bit disappointing as I’m quite a fan of peanut butter and chocolate.
This bar was definitely not a clean eat as the oil from the peanut butter does stay in your fingers, so make sure you wipe your hands before using your computer or phone.
Of the three I tried, this one was the best. Despite the flavor imbalance, the snack tastes nice if chocolate is your thing.
Brownie Batter
This is where things start to take a bit of a decline. Brownie batter sets the expectation of a decadent almost fudge like treat— “extra chocolatey.” Yet we end up with a similar problem as before, the dark chocolate taking the wheel.
The brownie component felt a bit dry in my mouth. The dark chocolate high melting point and presence of alkaloids already contributes to the mouth dryness, and when paired with the batter style brownie, I was reaching immediately for a drink. The sweetness was also lacking making it fall under the bitterness of the chocolate yet again. While this is meant to be a healthy product low in sugar, there is a fine line that you have to walk when making snacks. Removing too much can make the product lose its sweet aspect, causing the flavor to feel flat.
This one also contains other products such as apple cider vinegar and hazelnut butter which, albeit quite healthy, will also drive the flavor away from the sweet side.
Overall this one made it feel more like an overcooked brownie than anything else.
Cookie Batter
Your deduction skills certainly need some praise, indeed we found ourselves on the same predicament— The Dark Chocolate taking over the flavor, which in this case is not a bad thing. This one was definitely not for me; the way the two flavors clash with each other made a very odd combination for my taste.
The delicate flavor of the cookie dough is overshadowed by the dark chocolate. Both of them being so opposite the blend falls apart as each bite goes in a different direction that has no synergy.
The texture of the dough feels more like a gritty paste than a dough, and when you combine that with the hard chocolate part the result is just unpleasant.
I do need to make a point that I’m not the biggest fan of cookie dough products, so my knowledge of how they are suppose to taste or feel might be lacking. But from the perspective of someone picking a flavor for the sake of trying it, these is what I’ve concluded.
Nutritional Value
These little squares do pack a nice selection of nutrients and healthy ingredients
Dairy-Free
High Protein
Gluten Free
Vegan
Low Sugar
Plant- Based
High in Fiber
Each bar contains 6 grams of protein, which is an acceptable amount given its size. With 4 grams of fiber —about 14% of your daily intake — it offers a good amount to get from such a small size.
In terms of sweeteners, maple syrup, tapioca syrup, coconut sugar and molasses are the ones commonly used here and great options as replacement for refined products.
The protein is derived from Fava beans, a complete protein containing essential amino acids and fiber.
The chocolate used here is Dark Chocolate, which is high in flavonoids that helps to prevent coronary heart disease and supports the immune system. Its content of zinc, phosphorus and magnesium also contributes to your immunity, teeth health and sleep quality.
The plant based nature of the product ensures that the ingredients are naturally sourced and free of food grade chemicals or palm oils commonly found in other bars.
All this packed in a bar for an average of 170 calories, making these a great choice to keep in your snack repertoire if you aim to reduce sugars yet still crave chocolate in various forms.
Cost
For a product that is created around the healthier versions of other chocolate bars, their price is actually quite acceptable given the circumstances.
A single bar is 33g and sells for $2.49 to $2.99
12 packs go for $30 and the bundle of 2 -12packs is $54
A little bit on the pricy side when choosing the boxes, but that’s the choice you take for going for healthier options. Personally, I find the individual bars accesible and as their availability expands I could see myself picking a couple here and there.
Where to find them
You can find them in plenty of stores ( check their store locator ) from Walmart to Health Stores.
Also Available in Amazon1 and Costco
USA
Rating
packaging 5/5
Flavor 3.5/5 for Peanut Butta | 3/5 for Brownie Batter | 2/5 Cookie Dough
Nutritional Content 5/5
Ingredient Quality 5/5
value for money 4/5
Mid-Day Squares aim to position themselves in a market with a fair bit of competition, yet their healthy approach allows them to offer a great choice for those aiming to lower their sugar intake and keeping an eye on the quality of the ingredients they are consuming.
Creating a snack that is both healthy and flavorful is a challenging task, specially when trying to emulate traditionally sweet snacks. With this in mind I find it necessary to offer some leeway on the flavor. While the snacks weren’t bad per se, some lacked cohesion between the ingredients.
I understand that these are CHOCOLATE bars, primarily, but given that they are being combined with other ingredients I feel that is important to make a note on how the two parts of the snack synergize with each other, and in the case of the three bars that I tried, they didn’t. The dark chocolate was simply too strong and it was overpowering the other components. This lack of balance made the experience a bit underwhelming. A slight adjustment of the quantities of the chocolate might be just what is needed to attain that nice balance between the parts.
The part that helped offset some of the slight disappointment of the flavor were the ingredients used and the nutritional value they carry. Which is something I will put more value in losing a bit of flavor if it means to keep them healthy.
Overall, I do find the squares to be a good product, especially considering their other benefits, like the protein and fiber.
If you are a lover of dark chocolate, this is definitely the product for you. For everyone else, I’d still recommend giving them a try and see for yourself if the intensity of the dark chocolate suits your taste.
3. 5/5
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