Flavor Tried: Blueberry & Chocolate Chip
Price: $17.76 for 8 on Amazon ($2.22 each)
Nutrition: 200 Calories, 11g Fat, 24g Carbs (10g Fiber, 2g Sugar, 11g Sugar Alcohol), 10g Protein
Quest is best known for their protein bars, but they’ve been branching out a lot lately. Their latest creations come in the form of a brand new “Bake Shop” line, featuring protein brownies and muffins.
I’ve tried Quest’s protein cookies before (both regular and frosted), so I was excited to see what they could do with muffins. I generally really like Quest products, but muffins and brownies are both difficult to get right, so we’ll see.
For this review, I originally only tried the blueberry flavor, but I’ve since hunted down the chocolate chip, so I’ll add that to this review as well.
Each muffin packs 200 calories and 10g of protein. Not a massive protein hit, but not bad for a decently sized muffin. The 10g of protein is decent enough for me, especially when you consider that a regular muffin might only have 3-4g of protein.
Much like all other Quest products, these muffins are high in both fiber and sugar alcohol with 10 and 11 grams, respectively.
When I first picked up this muffin, I was worried. It felt firm and looked pretty dry. I’ve had my fair share of cardboard-like protein baked goods, so I was preparing for the worst.
But I was pleasantly surprised when I took a bite. It’s actually pretty soft, with a nice crumb to it. That’s exactly what you want in a muffin.
The texture isn’t quite as moist as a fresh bakery muffin, but for a packaged protein product, it’s certainly not bad.
If you’ve had Quest’s blueberry protein bars (like their Blueberry Muffin or Blueberry Cobbler Hero bar), you’ll know what to expect here in the flavor department. The blueberry flavor is pretty similar.
It’s not exactly like biting into a muffin bursting with fresh blueberries, but it does capture that blueberry flavor pretty well without tasting fake.
One thing to note: you can definitely taste the sugar alcohols. It’s not overly artificial, but there’s a bit of bitterness that comes through from the sugar alcohol. If you’re sensitive to that, you might not love it.
But if you’re a regular Quest consumer, it’ll be familiar territory. This is pretty standard for Quest products, and it’s one of the trade-offs for getting a lower-sugar, higher-protein snack.
Quest Chocolate Chip Muffin Review
The chocolate chip muffin is very similar to the blueberry muffin. It looks like it’s going to be incredibly dry and firm, but once you unwrap it, you reveal a pretty nice crumb.
Unfortunately, I did find this flavor to be dry. Maybe the blueberries lend some extra moisture because it felt like this one was lacking a bit.
In terms of flavor, if you’ve had a Quest cookie before, you’ll know exactly what to expect here. In fact, I’d go as far as saying that the texture is very similar too.
Essentially, this is a chocolate chip Quest cookie in muffin form. I think Quest cookies are decent (as far as protein cookies go) but it has never been a product I’ve been running out to restock.
If you’ve never had Quest cookies, the flavor profile is very similar to the chocolate chunk Quest bar, too. If you enjoy those bars, you’ll like the overall flavor of this muffin.
For me, it’s simply a bit too dry to be an enjoyable muffin. I don’t mind the chocolate chip cookie-esque flavor profile, but it needs more moisture.
Overall Thoughts
I’d love a bit more moisture in these muffins, but for protein muffins, they’re pretty solid. Trust me, I’ve had way worse attempts at protein-packed baked goods
Some protein muffins I’ve tried in the past have been so dry they’re almost impossible to swallow without a gallon of water. This one, thankfully, doesn’t fall into that category.
The blueberry flavor is more moist and overall more enjoyable than the chocolate chip flavor, but that could also be the product of an unlucky batch and not necessarily prescriptive of how it will always be.
These Quest muffins remind me a lot of their cookies. They’re decent for what they are, but they’re not going to replace your favorite bakery muffins anytime soon.
But that’s okay – they don’t really need to.
It’s a good option for those days when you’re craving something muffin-like but don’t want to completely blow your macro goals, especially if you’re on a low-carb diet.
In the world of protein baked goods, these muffins are a solid addition. They’re not perfect, but they’re far from the flavorless, hard-as-rock protein snacks that many of us have endured in the name of gains.
If you’re a Quest fan looking to switch up your protein routine, these are worth the try.
