I was sent a pack of Berryfeast Porridge Premix , 5 Raspberry and Honey Porridge Bars, a pack of 5 Blueberry and Honey Porridge Bars, an individual Strawberry and Coconut Über Bar, an individual Pineapple and Mango Über Bar, an individual White Chocolate and Hazelnut Porridge Bar and 2 individual Blueberry and Honey Porridge Bars. Yum Yum!

Stoats started out in 2004 by selling fresh porridge from their small mobile porridge bar at music festivals across the UK. The Stoats mobile porridge bar was actually THE WORLD’S FIRST PORRIDGE BAR! They had decided to sell the porridge at music festivals as they knew from their friends that festival goers were all looking for a filling but tasty breakfast. The customers then started to suggest that they make some oat bars so Stoats went ahead and made some. .. and as they say….the rest is history! They now sell 8 different varieties of Porridge Oat bars (a bit like flapjacks) and lots of different oat-based products, like Oatcakes, Über bars and Oat cookies. All of Stoats products are made from a blend of organic Scottish oats and completely natural ingredients. The Porridge Oat bars are available in Classic Original, Raspberry and Honey, Blueberry and Honey, Apricot and Sultana, Fig and Date, Cranberry and Macademia, Goji Berries and Flax Seeds and White chocolate and Hazelnut.  The Über bars were launched in October 2010 and they are a dairy and sugar free bar that has less calories than the porridge bars. They are available in Strawberry and Coconut or Pineapple and Mango.

I will admit that my first impressions of the Porridge Bars was not all that good. The first Porridge Bar I tried was a White Chocolate and Hazelnut bar and the first thing I thought when I bit in to it was that it wasn’t very sweet. It was about half way though the bar that I decided that actually I liked it because it wasn’t too sweet and that it when my first impression changed to a good one.  It certainly made a change from all the sweet buttery flapjacks I normally buy. I was shocked to find that the bar was very firm to bite and not soft and crumbly like the usual ones I purchase. I liked the fact that the porridge bars didn’t crumble as I could let my daughter have one to gnaw on and not have to worry about all the bits of oats that would no doubt end up trodden into the carpet. In my opinion, the porridge bars sound healthy and they are certainly healthier than some of the ones I currently purchase in the supermarkets and a lot more filling. The White Chocolate and Hazelnut bar weighed 40g and it contained Organic porridge oats, rolled oats, unsalted butter, demerara sugar, golden syrup, hazelnuts (8%), sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds and white chocolate (2%). I think the fact that the bar contains sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds is great as it is a way of including the seeds in both mine and my daughter’s diets.

The second bar I tried was a Blueberry and Honey 40g bar. As I know knew what to expect from the porridge bar I was pleased to say that this too tasted delicious. It is one of those snacks that makes you feel virtuous as you know it contains fruit, oats and seeds so you tell yourself it has to be good for you. I admit that the fact the bar contains butter, sugar and golden syrup probably isn’t that good for you but without them it wouldn’t be what it is and to be honest I wouldn’t eat it if it didn’t contain something sweet. I have a sweet tooth and I like the fact that although these bars don’t taste too sweet they are still enjoyable to eat. I’m now sitting here eating one of these bars as I write and I like the fact that you can taste the sweetness of the fruit but you have the crunchy nuttiness of the seeds. As the porridge bar is quite dense you actually have to chew the bar and this is a good thing as it means I actually have to take my time eating the bar and enjoying it.   The ingredients of the bar are as follows:-

The third bar I tried was a Raspberry and Honey Porridge 40g bar from the multi-pack. I opened the pack when I had one of my mummy friends round with her little boy.  She was also a bit taken aback that the flapjacks were not sweet like she had expected but , just like me, she decided half way though that actually…they are nice even though they are not very sweet. She gave her little boy one of the bars and he soon ate it all up, as did my daughter. I’m afraid I can’t write up the ingredients for this porridge bar as I didn’t think and binned the packaging. Sorry!

One of my best friends is a complete flapjack-a-holic! So…for Christmas I made her a flapjack hamper. I bought everything she needs to make her own flapjacks and wrapped it up. I’m happy to say that she loved the gift and can’t wait to make some flapjacks. In the hamper I’d put a selection of flapjacks I bought in the supermarket, a baking tin, golden syrup, demerara sugar, a block of butter and the pack of Stoats Berryfeast porridge premix. I also included the multi-pack of Blueberry and Honey bars and the two Über bars. I explained to her that I’d be reviewing the Stoats products and she was pleased to give me her opinion. She said that she thought it was good that you could buy a healthier version of flapjack/ porridge bar as there are some days when you just want a flapjack that is not too buttery or sweet and the Stoats flapjacks are perfect and fit the bill nicely. What a good endorsement from a true flapjack addict!

The multi-pack of 5 finger mini bars sells for £2.49, the Über bars sell for 99p and the Porridge Oat bars start at £4.00 for 4 individually wrapped ‘Classic Original’ bars.  I believe that the individually wrapped Porridge Oat bars weigh 85g … so you get a lot of flapjack for your money! The only down side to buying them online is the hefty delivery charge. At £6 for delivery within the UK it would make sense to bulk buy your oat products all at once.  They are available to buy in some shops and you can see a list of all the stockists if you click here.  I feel the delivery charge is too high for me personally to be able to warrant buying them online however I will keep an eye out for them when I’m in the shops and delis.  I think the prices of the products is very reasonable and I would definitely recommend you seek them out to try. 

You can buy the Stoats products from their online shop. If you’d like to visit the Stoats site please click here.