15 Innovative Grain-Based Products To Try

Despite today’s strong grain-free movement, many people still embrace grain-containing products. But gone are the days of bringing bleached, refined, highly processed baked goods into our homes. Today’s grain products tap into ancient wisdom and are made using processes that keep more of the nutrition intact and deliver on functionality and great taste. Here are some new stand-out grain products to look for at your local natural foods store.

Jovial Organic Einkorn Cookies Crispy Cocoa

Believed to be one of the world’s oldest wheat varieties (archeological findings suggest that humans ate wild-gathered einkorn), this unhybridized grain is a nutrient-dense grain sourced from a farm in Tuscany, Italy, that de-husks and packs wheat berries on site. Jovial makes the largely unknown grain super-approachable by baking it into a crispy, subtly sweet organic chocolate cookie.

Nature’s Path Pretzel & Peanut Butter Bars

These USDA Organic chewy bars are a sweet-salty snack that reminds us of a candy bar. Yes, that have 9 grams sugar per 170-calroeis bar. But thanks to the inclusion of crispy granola, brown rice crisps and cashew butter, they also have 5 grams of plant-based protein, which keeps you full for longer. A dark chocolate coating (made with Fair Trade cocoa powder) is an especially tasty addition.

Angelic Bakehouse Sprouted Garden Wraps Vibrant Beet

Perfect for filling with fresh mozzarella, hummus, veggies and meats, these sprouted sandwich wraps are made with a tasty blend of seven whole grains, including red wheat berries, quinoa, barley and more. Slightly sweetened with organic honey, we particularly love the inclusion of beet juice, which tints these wraps pink and makes for a very Instagrammable lunch. They’re also free from common allergens such as soy, eggs and dairy.

Ancient Harvest Pow! Pasta Red Lentil Rotini

Ancient Harvest is known for crafting products made from heirloom quinoa sourced from farmers in Bolivia. With its line of two-ingredient Pow! Pastas (made with just red lentil flour and organic quinoa), this 1983-founded company combines the popularity of high-protein foods with the benefits of quinoa. The result is a pasta with 14 grams protein per serving and a grain-containing product that appeals to carb-conscious eaters.

MadeGood Caramel Crispy Squares

A classic childhood rice treat retooled with USDA Organic ingredients, allergen-free claims and Certified Vegan and Certified Gluten-Free verifications, these delightful sweets feature crisp rice, sustainable palm fruit oil and a medley of vegetable extracts to add vitamins A, C, D, E and B6 to these snacks. MadeGood earns bonus points for being a B Corp brand, and for actively employing people from underrepresented populations.

Quinn Pretzels Peanut Butter Filled Nuggets

Peanut butter-filled pretzels have been available on store shelves for quite some time now. But the snack-obsessed folks at Quinn have cleaned up this filling snack—and made it gluten-free. By using a combo (get it?) of brown rice flour, whole-grain sorghum flour and even banana flour, these crispy pretzel pockets are Certified Gluten-Free. Creamy, sweet-salty peanut butter makes each bite one to remember.

Purely Elizabeth Collagen Protein Oats Blueberry Walnuts

Have you seen a breakfast with more functional ingredient than this collagen-containing oat cup? Made with a base of oats, quinoa and amaranth, this blend is lightly sweetened with coconut sugar. Grass-fed collagen ups the protein content to 11 grams per serving, and a unique partnership with the nut butter experts at NuttZo infuses the oatmeal with creamy organic cashews, Brazil nuts, falx seeds and more.

Gr8nola Charcoal Chia

An interesting take on a classic, Gr8nola infuses toasted whole-grain oats with food-grade activated charcoal derived from coconut shells (often touted as a detoxifying functional ingredient). We love this product because it’s sweetened with organic coconut sugar and monk fruit extract, and is packed with chia seeds, sunflower seeds and dried unsweetened coconut. Served with almond milk, it creates mesmerizing inky swirls in the breakfast bowl.

Kodiak Cakes Power Flapjacks Maple and Brown Sugar

Kodiak Cakes is famous for its commitment to use a blend of whole-grain wheat and whole-grain oat flour in its hearty flapjacks. This frozen pancake, perfect for the toaster or microwave, contains wheat protein and whey protein concentrate to infuse 14 grams protein into each three-pancake serving. Suitable for powering an active day out in the woods or a gauntlet of back-to-back meetings alike.

RightRice Original

A novel way to lure grain-wary shoppers down your rice aisle, this new product is a legume-and-rice-based grain that contains 10 grams of complete protein and 5 grams of fiber per serving. Inside each rice-sized grain, find lentils, chickpeas, green peas and, yes, rice—the combo reduces the carbohydrate content by 40 percent. Try the Original variety for dishes with a lot of flavorful sauce (like a curry); try the Spanish variety for a protein-packed paella.

Masienda Chef-Grade Masa Flour

The darling of discerning New York City chefs, Masienda’s heirloom corn flour (called “masa”) is processed using an ancient method called nixtamalization—soaking dry corn in limewater—which develops a nuanced flavor and makes the B vitamin niacin bioavailable. Masienda founder Jorge Gaviria is obsessed with sourcing from passionate farmers who want to grow the tastiest corn. You can use the masa to craft lovely corn tortillas or tamales at home.

Ezekiel 4:9 Sprouted Flourless Flake Cereal Almond

Made with a signature blend of USDA Organic sprouted wheat, barley, millet, lentils, soybeans and spelt, this filling cereal contains a whopping 8 grams of protein and 6 grams of dietary fiber—have a bowl in the morning and you’ll likely stay full until lunchtime. Sweetened with a combination of organic malted barley and organic agave, this cereal beautifully represents how a legacy brand can continue to bake up trendy, healthy products.

Bolder Tortillas Blue Corn Chips

If you didn’t catch it from the company name, these noticeably tastier tortilla chips (seriously!) are batch-made in Boulder, Colorado. Still a fledgling company, Bolder Tortillas are good to know thanks to their use of Ute Mountain blue corn sourced from Bow & Arrow Foods, a 7,700-acre Colorado farm owned and tended by the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe. The corn is sustainably grown, harvested and milled on-site.

SmartFlour Ancient Grains Pizza Four Cheese

SmartFlour’s special blend of sorghum, amaranth and teff is an example of how ancient grains can be both gluten free and nutritious. This Four Cheese pizza is piled with cheeses of different flavor and texture to foster that all-important stringiness and salty, umami taste.

Bob’s Red Mill Peanut Butter Apple Spice & Oats

Leave it to the grain experts at Bob’s Red Mill to whip up one of our favorite oat bars ever. Made with a wholesome blend of whole-grain oats, organic tapioca syrup, organic honey, apples and warming spices such as nutmeg, ginger and cloves, this chewy, not-too-sweet bar features 7 grams protein and 210 filling calories. Bob’s Red Mill is dedicated to using old-school processing techniques, such as stone-milling grains, in all of its products.

This post by Jenna Blumefeld was provided by New Hope Network. FoodTrients is a member of the New Hope Influencer Co-op, a network of health and wellness bloggers committed to spreading more health to more people. Blumenfeld is the senior food editor at New Hope Network and reports on new food and beverage trends and products.