Dole Fruit Crisps make decent snack

Dole Fruit Crisp. Apple Cinnamon, Apple Pear, and Pineapple Mango. $2.19 per 8-ounce package of two single-serve bowls.

Bonnie: Many companies make cups of shelf-stable fruit and others make granola. But Dole is the first company to think of smartly combining the two to make a shelf-stable fruit crisp that can be eaten at room temperature, chilled or warmed from the microwave oven.

It is certainly not your grandmother's fruit crisp, but is a decent snack to serve or pack in a lunch box. Each crisp contains some fruit, with 150 to 160 calories, 3.5 grams fat, 20 grams sugar and 2 grams fiber, and is an excellent source of vitamin C, with 40 percent of the recommended daily value.

Unfortunately, the crisps contain less than a serving of fruit and are currently available nationally only at Walmart and at grocery stores in some parts of the Northeast, South and Midwest (although they should be everywhere by January).

Carolyn: I'd like to join Bonnie in praise of Dole's new Fruit Crisps. This is not just a great idea but also a great idea extremely well-executed. I was amazed at how closely these heated Fruit Crisps resemble the oats-heavy fruit crisp I make and revere, without my from-scratch version's drawback of being a whole 8-by-8-inch pan of dessert temptation.

The character and texture of the fruits in this Dole version do seem to suffer in the processing. When I removed them from their cardboard carriers and mixed them up while testing, I had a hard time distinguishing the Apple Pear cup from the Apple Cinnamon variety.

But that's a minor complaint about this impressive new shelf-stable snack alternative for work, and a fruit dessert change-of-pace from single-serve cakes and brownies for home consumption.

Clif Crunch Granola Bars. Chocolate Chip, Honey Oat, Peanut Butter, and White Chocolate Macadamia Nut. $3.99 per 15-ounce box containing 10 bars.

Bonnie: A Clif Crunch bar is no more a "granola" bar than an Oreo, Chips Ahoy! or Pepperidge Farm Milano. In other words, they're sugary cookies, albeit ones made with wholesome nuts and grains.

First the good news: Each two-bar packet delivers a full serving of whole grains, 4 to 5 grams protein and 3 grams fiber. Now to the bad: Like the just-mentioned cookies, Clif Crunch has about 180 to 190 calories, 7 to 9 grams of fat and 10 to 11 grams sugar per serving.

Clif Crunch tastes good and uses no artificial flavors, sweeteners, preservatives or ingredients sourced from genetically modified organisms. That's why I can recommend them as an occasional treat, like cookies.