I have long been a fan of Bakery on Main’s great tasting gluten-free granola so was excited when my fabulous friends at Bakery on Main sent me a sampling of some of their products I have always loved along with some new products and flavors for me to try.

My favorite local supermarket’s gluten-free section carries only two flavors of Bakery on Main granola, the Apple Raisin Walnut and Nutty Cranberry Maple granola varieties and I have long been a fan.  I always knew that Bakery on Main had other flavors but never actively sought them out – though after tasting some of their new items, this is going to change.

Let’s start with their traditional granolas.  I sampled their Apple Raisin Walnut and Nutty Cranberry Maple both of which I have enjoyed for a long time.  First, the Nutty Cranberry Maple has a perfect balance of tangy (from the dried cranberries), sweet from the (honey, cane juice, and maple flavor), and nuttiness from the nuts and seeds that make up the body of this wonderfully crunchy granola. 

Similarly the Apple Raisin Walnut is equally as delicious but quite different from the Nutty Cranberry in both taste and texture.  The Apple Raisin variety is again, perfectly balanced between the sweet fruit and rich nuttiness of the seeds and nuts.  All of the great ingredients are tied together with the wonderfully earthy maple flavor.  I have to confess, I was never a fan of walnuts – actually I don’t really care for them – but I LOVE this flavor, walnuts and all.  You don’t get the bitterness that is often associated with walnuts in this mix so it has definitely made a convert of me.

The Extreme Fruit and Nut granola was a new flavor to me and has quickly become my new favorite (though, can you really choose a favorite child).  I love the complexity of this one.  Not only do you get some of the delicious standard ingredients but this one adds coconut, apricot, raisins and a host of nuts (pecans, Brazil nuts, walnuts, and hazelnuts) that really help it live up to its extreme label.  I simply could not get enough of this one.  The fruit and nuts were the stars of this one and they were, again, perfectly balanced so that you could really enjoy both the sweet goodness of the fruit with the really rich and robust taste of the nuts and grains.

Oh, and if you think that you are buying the same granola with different flavors added, think again.  Bakery on Main keeps it interesting with subtle differences to the make-up of the granola base for each flavor that makes each one a truly unique experience.  Do not kid yourself that this granola is just for breakfast.  I love to sprinkle it over ice cream as it is the perfect topping.  I ave also been known to eat a bowl with milk for dessert

Now on to some delectable new (to me) Bakery on Main products…

First up is their Fiber Power Gluten Free Granola Triple Berry…whew, that’s a mouthful.  The fiber boosted variety was a real stand out in the products I sampled.  It had a really wonderful texture being extremely crunchy but the flavor is where this one shines.  There are subtle flavor notes that sneak up on you with this one.  You get the wonderfully earthiness of the oats and flax coupled with the sweet kick of raspberries, strawberries, and blueberries, rounded out with a wonderful sweetness that has a subtle kick of lemon on the back end of the flavors.  This is a complex variety that I urge you to give a try – not to mention it has 9 grams of dietary fiber and 3 grams of soluble fiber.

The final products I sampled were Bakery on Main’s Granola Bars.  No, that is not a typo.  Honest to goodness real soft granola bars.  I found myself tossing one of these into my bag each morning for a quick breakfast once at the office.  These wonderfully portable snacks are essentially the bar forms of some of Bakery on Main’s granola flavors.  I tried the Cranberry Maple Nut and Extreme Trail Mix bars and they are just as good as their bagged counterparts.  These will definitely be making it into my gluten-free travel packs that I take with me when traveling the globe.

So, if you are looking for great tasting granolas and portable treats, look know further than Bakery on Main.  You can view their full product portfolio on their Web site where you can also find a local store that carries their products or order right on the site and have their items shipped right to your door.  Oh, and while you are there, join there Eat Better, Live Better Club to get their newsletter and $1.50 off your next order.