Meal Replacement Shakes, Raw Organic, Vanilla Protein Powder with Plant Based Pea Protein, Sprouts, Greens, Probiotics, Dairy Free 28 Servings

A few years ago, I tried ordering Shakeology, and actually loved the convenience of a healthy powder blend that I could use to whip up a healthy smoothie. The only problem? The price. It costs more than $130 for a 30 serving bag of the stuff! Also, I recently discovered that I have a sensitivity to dairy, so any products with whey protein are out. So, I stopped ordering it, and there weren't any comparable products on the market at that time for me to order. I recently wanted to find an alternative to Shakeology and found a couple of products that have the same idea in mind but at about a quarter of the price. I stuck with vegan products because I can't have whey protein. Also, I needed a product that was gluten free because of my gluten sensitivity. The two products are the Garden of Life RAW Organic meal replacement shake (in Slightly Sweet because I don't like stevia), and the Nutiva Organic Plant Protein Superfood 30 Shake (Vanilla). Here is my comprehensive review of the two. Price: Buying a jar of both of these powders will run you at about $40. The only difference is that the Nutiva shake has 18 servings per jar and GoL has 30 servings per jar. GoL also tends to be a little bit cheaper, depending on which flavor you get. Winner: GoL - 30 servings for less than $40 is a BARGAIN compared to Shakeology! Nutrient Macros: A scoop of either of these blends is going to be about 125 calories. The only difference is that the GoL has a little more fiber, and Nutiva has a little more healthy fat. Both brands have 20g of vegan protein, are still fairly high in fiber, and are low sugar. Winner: Tie. Ingredients: Here's where I am really impressed with the Garden of Life version. There are just dozens of health foods crammed into this powder that it is really reminiscent of Shakeology. Every ingredient comes from a pronounceable food, with the exception being the addition of digestive enzymes and probiotics (1.5 billion CFUs or colony forming units per scoop). I am a bit of a health nut, and seeing all of these healthy ingredients just makes me jazzed! In nearly every category here, GoL beats Nutiva. With two exceptions: flax seed meal and proteins from grains. I have to be really careful about what I eat because I have a mild form of crohn's disease that flares when I eat something I'm sensitive to. Something in the GoL powder causes me to react, and though I think it is the flax seed meal, it could also be the protein from rice, which can also cause celiac sufferers to flare. That being said, I am a rare case, and I am truly impressed with GoL here. Nutiva is also a great shake, with lots of grain free protein, digestive enzymes, and probiotics as well, though the ingredient list is about half as diverse as GoL. Winner: GoL by a landslide. Taste: Here is the kicker. I want to make this abundantly clear: these are HEALTH drinks, not a vanilla milkshake. Anything you make with these products is not going to taste like a milkshake. There are tons of reviews for both products about how bad it tastes. To be honest with you, I enjoy the taste of healthy things. And if you blend it up with some fruit for natural sweetness, they become downright delicious! Here's another thing: yes, I have been eating healthy for a long time, and I have a high tolerance for bitterness and grittiness when it comes to these powders. But as you put more healthy foods in your body, it begins to heal, and your brain will actually start to crave things that you used to hate. A perfect example for me is avocados. I couldn't stand avocados, but I ate them in whatever way I could stomach them because I knew they were good for you. In about a month, I got to the point where I craved them regularly! Sometimes you have to just push through the initial dislike before reaching nirvana. I think it is worth it! Okay, now that we have that aside, I'll compare the tastes one by one. I went with the Slightly Sweet flavor of RAW Meal, and I genuinely loved it! But I also blended it with other things! A typical smoothie for me consisted of unsweetened almond milk, RAW meal, some pumpkin seeds, some greens, and about a cup and a half of dark berries. This usually resulted in the perfect amount of sweetness for me, which is about the sweetness of 70% dark chocolate (slightly sweet but also bitter). Yum! The best part about blending it with other ingredients is that it also covers up the slight grittiness of the powder. Vegan proteins are never going to be as smooth as whey. The only downside to the RAW Meal powders is that you only have two options for sweetness: sweetened with stevia, and sweetened with sugar. There isn't a sweetener free option. The Nutiva shake powder smells better than the RAW meal powder - almost like a healthy cake batter. But Nutiva is sweetener free (except for a small amount of monk fruit extract, which you do NOT taste). This means that you can add in natural sugars, like from fruit, and have your smoothie sweetened that way. I actually like this option, because I prefer to sweeten my smoothies with bananas, which would make the RAW meal smoothie too sweet. Nutiva is also a little bit gritty, about the same level as RAW Meal. However, I did always notice that I enjoyed the RAW Meal smoothies more than the Nutiva ones. Winner: GoL - though if you want a sweetener free option, Nutiva still tastes pretty good! Drinkability: This category is similar to the 'Taste' category, but here is where I want to mention that both are a little gritty. Also, some other reviews mentioned that the powders congealed when left too long. I never had this problem, but I have a high power blender and always drank my smoothies fresh. Winner: Tie - with slight edge toward GoL. Final Thoughts: I really really wanted RAW Meal to be my new go to drink. It tastes better, has more flavors, is more cost effective, and has an incredible ingredient profile despite still being organic. However, I personally can't drink it. The flax meal in it causes my crohn's disease to flare up. I also know people who can't eat rice, and they would also react to RAW Meal (though Nutiva does have a little bit of 'rice extract' in it, the people I know don't react to the rice extract in Nutiva). Both are great alternatives to add a little extra dose of healthy to your morning shake, and, even though I can't drink the one I really like, I am grateful that Nutiva created a product that someone with my disease can drink!

It Works for me perfectly. It taste good & sort of like a vanilla/banana shake. First let me to all the people that keep saying that it mixes up to thick, well I found out why, it is because the scoop is actually really a double scoop because if you look insides of the scoop it has a fill to line inside of the scoop, so you are only suppose to fill only tip the line in the middle of the scoop & yes I agree with what your probably thinking because I thought the same thing & that is, why did they give a big scoop that is double what you should mix & the answer is I do not know, but I think they are trying to get you to make that mistake & use it up sooner then what it would last if you were mixing it up correctly or something. Who really know whats these companies do stuff for, but I thought at the time of grabbing this scoop that why didn't they just give us the right size scoop in the big bottle/canister? Don't really know, but all I know the first time I mixed this up I filled the scoop only tip the middle fill line that you can only see inside the scoop, so when I mixed the powder up it tuned out perfectly & I even mixed it with a banana & almond milk & spring water with no sugar because for me it does not need any because it is actually sweet enough. It is a really good probiotic & fiber supplement, not to mention all of the organic healthy plant based nutrition in it. It feels the stomach using the Psyllium Husk & Chia seeds & flax seeds in it & it just works perfectly for me. The pros part I am copy & pasting from this companies website Pros: (My Words): It taste similar to a vanilla/banana shake & it includes all of the healthy nutrition that your body needs especially vitamins, so you don't have to take a multivitamin because it has everything in it already. Love it Pros: (Now "Garden of Life's" Words): RAW Meal goes beyond organic by providing live probiotics and enzymes, Vitamin Code RAW Food-Created vitamins and minerals, as well as nutrient Code Factors such as beta-glucans, SOD, glutathione and CoQ10, enabling natural recognition by your body. Containing 26 superfoods from RAW organic seeds, sprouts and greens, RAW Meal provides 34 grams of protein, 9-16 grams of fiber (depending on flavor) and a healthy 2.5 grams of fat making it an excellent choice for "weight conscious" individuals. RAW Meal also offers 20 Vitamin Code vitamins and minerals providing at least 100% of the Daily Value of 16 key nutrients. Just as important is what's NOT included in RAW Meal. It is gluten-free, dairy-free and lactose-free. It has no fillers, no synthetic nutrients, no artificial flavors or sweeteners and no preservatives. What are the Key Benefits of RAW Meal? A convenient meal-on-the-go, RAW Meal is suitable for almost anyone including those on vegetarian or vegan diets, those on low carbohydrate diets or those with gastrointestinal sensitivities to milk, whey or other protein sources. RAW Meal offers the following: * Provides the nutrition of a well-balanced, healthy meal * Naturally filling, satisfies hunger, provides energy * Excellent source of RAW organic, plant-based protein (34g) - including all essential amino acids * Excellent source of 20 Vitamin Code vitamins and minerals - RAW Food-Created Nutrients and RAW Food-Chelated Minerals that enable targeted delivery and natural recognition by your body * Excellent source of soluble and insoluble fiber (9-16g) depending on flavor * Provides live probiotics and enzymes for healthy digestion * Made exclusively from RAW natural, plant-based, whole foods - uncooked, untreated, unadulterated * Contains 13 RAW organic sprouts, 4 RAW organic cereal grass juices, 5 RAW organic fruits, spirulina and chlorella * No Trans Fats RAW Meal naturally satisfies hunger and increases energy, making it great for those looking to manage their diet and looking for a convenient alternative to the pre-packaged or fast-food meals that dominate our on-the-go lifestyles. CONS: The huge double the size scoop which is very confusing for the purchaser & user of this product. I'm not taking any stars off from the five stars because I think it is a very good product & plus I was one of the ones that was not tricked by the size of the scoop because I looked at other peoples reviews first because when I pulled it out I knew/noticed this scoop looked just way to big especially for the amount of water, almond milk or liquid of your choice, so I immediately started looking for a fill line & plus I knew what to look for because I order & use a lot of plant based herbs, so a lot of them have fill line scoops, but usually the right size unlike this one. But all in all it's an excellent product & I surely recommend this product & I will most definitely be purchasing this product again & probably for a life time because it has everything in it that I was paying way more for by purchasing many of the plant based herb in this product by themselves, so this with everything was way cheaper for me because just my probiotic was 31 dollars by it self, so when I came across "Garden of Life Raw Meal" I was just totally stoked. Plus I like the fact that it is Organic Raw & Plant Based because I changed my diet to a mostly raw organic veggies & fruits by juicing them, making smoothies & eating fruits & veggies, making salads, No processed food's of any kind. I eat steamed veggies & soups, but only vegetable soups made by my own hands for health reasons & this program works out good for me personally. But anyway if you have not purchased this wonderful product, then do so now.

De lo mejor que puedan ofrecer las diferentes marcas comerciales

Excellent quality. Did not disappoint. Took ages to get here from the US. Best to order when "In stock" on the Australian site. Do I get a discount on my next purchase of this product, for taking the time, and waiting the time, on this product ?

When I first tried this I just had it with water and I would agree it's not incredibly palatable that way, but if you make it the right way it's delicious. It's important to put it in a blender to get rid of the powderiness. In the blender I put: 200ml fat reduced coconut milk 150ml water 2 scoops of Raw Meal powder. I give it a good blend and then pour it into a glass. If you keep a bottle of filtered water in the fridge and store your coconut milk in there too it's lovely on a hot day.

I assumed that this product will be similar from other protein shakes, but I am pleasantly surprised - it is not sweet. The flavour is not the best - but I know it will be a good meal replacement for me. Recommended for the health conscious.

1. kurzes Vorwort Ich weiß ja nicht was sich hier manch einer für Geschmacksrichtungen vorstellt bei den Inhaltsstoffen. Es gibt hier weder künstlichen Eiscremeflavour noch ein Sahne-Schoko-Schicht-Torten-Dessert. Es handelt sich schlicht um eine große Menge gemahlener Sprossen und Enzyme, die man sich mit Wasser anrührt. Der Hersteller gibt auch nicht an, dass man das Ganze trinken soll. Es heißt nicht umsonst "Raw MEAL". Man nimmt sich also einen Löffel zur Hand und isst sein Essen. Das verstehen die meisten Menschen aber wohl nicht, da sie entweder nicht lesen oder alles als "Shake" abstempeln, was in einer großen bunten Dose verkauft wird. 2. Warum habe ich dieses Produkt gekauft Ich nutze dieses "Raw Meal" tatsächlich als Mahlzeitenersatz. Dies dürfte der eigentliche Grund sein, warum es eben so heißt wie es heißt. Da sich die Welt (zumindest in den Köpfen vieler Arbeitgeber) immer schneller dreht, sich Pausen stetig verkürzen und man nebenbei viele verschiedene Nährstoffe für den heutigen turbulenten Alltag braucht ersetze ich durch 2 Löffel dieses Raw Meals eine Mahlzeit, die ich sonst auslassen müsste. 3. Meine Anwendung ganz einfach 2 Meßlöffel (liegt bei) in eine Schüssel und am besten mit einer Gabel (damit es nicht klumpt) und ausreichend Wasser stetig anrühren bis ein dicker Brei entsteht. Nicht zu wenig Wasser verwenden und ruhig 2 Minuten rühren und Wasser zufügen, weil das ganze noch ein paar Mal nachdickt. Wenn diese Prozedur abgeschlossen ist, ist das Essen schon fertig und kann einfach gelöffelt werden. 4. Mein Gewinn Es macht satt aber nicht voll. Ich kann nach dem Genuss dieses Raw Meals mit voller Power weiter arbeiten oder auch Sport machen ohne Völlegefühl oder Müdigkeit. Da dürften die zugefügten Enzyme (Papain, Bromelain etc.) hervorragende Arbeit leisten. Es gibt keine Gasbildung oder Verflüssigung des Stuhls. Ich habe also innerhalb von nur 3 Minuten (1 Minute Auspacken und Schüssel, Gabel, Löffel suchen, 2 Minuten anrühren) eine absolut vollwertige Mahlzeit die mir, im Fall der Geschmacksrichtung Vanille, auch noch schmeckt. Anfangs schmeckt es sogar leicht bananig. Finde es also sehr lecker. 5. Wem empfehle ich dieses Produkt Empfehlen tue ich dieses Produkt jedem Menschen, der im Alltag sonst nicht genug essen kann. Egal ob das Kind schreit, der Arbeitgeber Druck macht oder der nächste Supermarkt schon geschlossen hat. Jeder Mensch, der hier kein Plastikerdbeeraroma erwartet und tatsächlich noch Geschmacksknospen hat, die nicht stündlich mit Cola und Co verseucht werden wird den dezenten Geschmack sicher nicht unangenehm finden. 6. Fazit Hiermit führt man sich wirkliche Nährstoffe zu und keinen Plastikerdbeergeschmack mit vielen Kalorien und zero Nährstoffen. Wer allerdings mit diesem Produkt nach einer Rechtfertigung vor sich selbst sucht sich (geschmacklich) ein Stück Erdbeer-Sahne-Torte zu genehmigen wird mit diesem Produkt wohl nichts anfangen können. Nachtrag vom 17.11.2015: Neuerdings sind in der Dose nur noch 949g statt 1200g enthalten, was man beim genaueren Hinsehen auf den Fotos auch sieht. Allerdings hatte ich der Gewohnheit wegen über "nochmal bestellen" in meinem persönlichen Bereich nicht nochmal die Bilder des Produktes angeschaut. Laut Überschrift sollten allerdings 1200g enthalten sein. Sehr ärgerlich also: neue Rezeptur, neue schlankere Verpackung und weniger Inhalt für den gleichen Preis. Letzteres bringt mich dazu einen Stern abzuziehen, weil ich das doch sehr ärgerlich finde, dass die Überschrift nicht mit angepasst wurde. Mal sehen ob der Geschmack dennoch überzeugt. Nachtrag zum Preis: Ich kaufe das Raw Meal nur, wenn es ca. 33€ kostet. Zwischenzeitlich kostet es 70€ und mehr. Woher diese starken Preisschwankungen kommen weiß wohl niemand so recht. Wenns also bei 70€ ist dann einfach warten, bis es wieder billiger wird. Ein Schelm, wer hier böses denkt ;)