By EJ Linehan
Chocolate Chickpeas: A Healthy Snack for Kids and Adults
Healthy chocolate sounds like an oxymoron, doesn’t it? Chocolate is known for being high in fat and sugar, with no real nutritional value. Dieters and weight management consumers are always searching for a chocolate alternative that actually tastes good, but have little success finding such an item. But don’t worry – Biena Snacks is here to help!
Biena has three delicious chocolate-covered Chickpea Snacks available – Dark Chocolate, Milk Chocolate, and Salted Caramel. The snacks are made with Biena’s Sea Salt Roasted Chickpeas covered in a layer of real Dark Chocolate, Milk Chocolate or Salted Caramel. The Dark Chocolate used in the Biena Snacks has 55% cacao content to impart a smooth, dark chocolate flavor without excessive bitterness, while the Milk Chocolate has 35% cacao content. You’ll also notice we kept the ingredients very simple. For example, the Dark Chocolate flavor has only 4 ingredients: chickpeas, fair-trade certified dark chocolate, sunflower oil and sea salt. The snacks themselves don’t contain any shellac or some of those glazing ingredients in other chocolate snacks to make them shiny and smooth. We’ve kept our snacks simple because they taste amazing as is!
All three flavors contain 4 grams of protein and 4 grams of fiber. That’s more protein and fiber than you’d find in one serving from a chocolate bar. Not to mention our Chocolate Chickpeas contain half the fat and more healthy carbs to fill you up and limit overeating. Plus, one serving size of a chocolate bar is approximately 1-ounce while one serving of Biena Chocolate-Covered Chickpeas approximately 35 chickpeas!
For example, as you may know, dark chocolate is generally considered the healthiest type of chocolate. But a 1-ounce serving of dark chocolate still contains on average 12 grams of fat and 6.7 grams of sugar. Biena Dark Chocolate Chickpeas only contains 6 grams of fat and 5 grams of sugars! Not to mention our chickpeas have nearly 2X the protein and fiber. (I guess we did just mention it. 😆) And if dark chocolate isn’t your thing, we have you covered. You can enjoy our Milk Chocolate and Salted Caramel Chickpeas guilt-free as they contain the same protein, fiber, and low-fat grams as dark chocolate!
Another great thing about Biena Chocolate Chickpeas is that they are the perfect healthy snacks for work, at home and on the go. You can indulge in guilt-free chocolate anywhere.
Use discount code “Welcome” at checkout and get 10% off your first chocolate purchase.
Check out our Chocolate Covered Chickpeas here.
Sources: Nutrition Data, Livestrong
By EJ Linehan
Why Learn How to Roast Chickpeas When We’ll do the Work for You?
We meet lots and lots of people who tell us that they love Biena Chickpeas. Not only do they love our familiar flavors such as Sea Salt and Honey, but people love the fact that they don’t have to dry roast chickpeas themselves. And we don’t blame them! Roasting chickpeas takes a lot of prep and time. Biena Snacks handles all that hard work and allows you to simply enjoy the spoils of our crispy roasted chickpea snacks.
But what are the steps to roast chickpeas (garbanzo beans)?
Of course, we can’t tell you the super-secret Biena steps to making the perfect chickpea snack. It’s like asking your friend’s grandmother for her pasta sauce recipe. She’s never going to tell you, but would love to have you over for dinner to enjoy it!
We constantly hear from our fans how hard it is to make chickpeas at home and that the chickpeas never come out right. It can be frustrating spending so much time prepping and roasting only to get overly dry or rock-hard chickpeas.
Basically, you can spend a couple hours roasting chickpeas yourself or let your good friends at Biena Snacks do the work for you! Here’s a side-by-side (ish) comparison of how we can save you the time.
Are canned chickpeas already cooked?
Yes, but they are not roasted. So you need to spend hours to complete that process. Or you can pick-up a bag of our flavored chickpeas which are already roasted!
Do you need to soak chickpeas before roasting?
You should thoroughly clean and rinse garbanzo beans from a can. But our Biena Chickpeas are ready to eat right from the bag!
How long do you bake chickpeas?
About 40 minutes if you get them raw or from a can. Or, wait for it, you can eat Biena Chickpeas which are roasted and ready to eat immediately!
How long can you keep chickpeas after roasting them?
Chickpeas you roast at home last about two weeks before you need to dispose of them. Biena Chickpeas last on average for one year in an unopened package.
What spices go on roasted chickpeas?
This is really up to you. People have different taste pallets and enjoy different flavors. For this reason, Biena’s Roasted Chickpeas come in a variety of 10 flavors including Ranch, Sour Cream & Onion, Salted Caramel, and Dark Chocolate!
If we’ve sold you on allowing us to do your chickpea roasting for you, but don’t see the flavor you want, email us! We love suggestions and you may just inspire the next line of Biena Snacks!
Sources: All Recipes, Martha Stewart
Author: EJ Linehan
By EJ Linehan
Habanero is Coming for the Jalapeno
Habanero flavored snacks are quickly becoming a popular on-the-go treat. For years, people have enjoyed adding habanero hot sauce to their dinner for a little extra kick. Habanero peppers are for people who are ready to move past the universally popular jalapeno. Not that jalapeno peppers aren’t great – they are! But sometimes you need something new, something exciting, something that’ll make you “wow” when you eat it. And that’s why Biena Snacks created our Habanero Roasted Chickpeas!
But How Hot is a Habanero Pepper?
Good question. Habanero peppers get hotter as they ripen from their initial green to their final bright orange or red color. Once they are ripe, the peppers are very hot, rated 100,000–350,000 on the Scoville scale.
But don’t worry. Our crunchy habanero chickpeas are medium-spice. You’ll get a burst of flavor with just the right amount of spice! Our Habanero Chickpea Snacks are such a great balance of flavor and spice it has become our most award-winning flavor! The editors Shape Magazine and Cooking Light Magazine chose them as one of the best tasting healthy snacks on the market! You can check out the snacks HERE.
Are There Benefits to Eating Habaneros?
Another great question. According to LiveStrong.com, consuming habanero peppers can help fight against prostate cancer and obesity while lowering blood pressure and cholesterol. Obviously eating our habanero flavored chickpeas isn’t the same as eating a habanero. But our healthy snack does offer a delicious crunch with 6 grams of protein and fiber! Plus, our crispy chickpeas are low-fat, registering only 3 grams per serving. So, you can enjoy all of the spicy goodness with none of the guilt.
Source: Wikipedia, Habanero Madness
By EJ Linehan
Studies Show Chickpeas Ideal for Weight Management
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a new report stating that nearly 40% of Americans, along with 20% of adolescents, are obese. This is the highest rate ever recorded in the United States.
While the CDC report does not state the reason for the increase in obesity, Dr. Frank of the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health theorizes that "There’s still a huge amount of cheap, accessible, highly processed food available everywhere almost anytime.”
The line about “cheap, accessible, highly processed food” caught our eye at Biena Snacks. Snacking is a part of daily life. Many health experts even recommend eating 4-5 small meals and snacks each day for weight management. The hard part for most people is finding a healthier snack replacement with less fat along with more protein and fiber. Plus, you generally want something quick and easy to eat from a bag. At this point, you likely know we are going to talk about Biena Snacks!
Part of our mission from the beginning was to create the ultimate snack with zero sacrifice. When it comes to snacking – this means delicious crunch and tons of flavor. And Biena prides itself on being a plant-based snack packed with protein and fiber, which is scientifically good for you. In one study, eating chickpeas, which are considered a natural diet supplement by some, kept dieters from consuming more fatty foods.
Biena’s roasted chickpeas are the perfect swap for over-processed, sugary packaged snacks since Biena is made with simple ingredients and a filling combo of protein and fiber. The transition from items such as greasy potato chips to Biena’s chickpeas is easy because we use familiar flavors such as Sea Salt, Ranch, BBQ, and Sour Cream & Onion.
Of course, we are not saying quit all your favorite foods and only eat Biena (unless you want to!) But if you or someone you know is looking to fight back against the obesity epidemic, Biena Snacks is definitely a great item to add into your diet.
By EJ Linehan
High Fiber Foods Such as Chickpeas Can Help Reduce the Risk of Breast Cancer
As you likely know, October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. National Breast Cancer Awareness Month (NBCAM) was started in 1985 and is currently organized by major breast cancer charities to increase awareness of the disease. I’m sure you’re used to seeing experts appear on popular morning shows every October, giving advice on topics such as foods to eat in order to lower breast cancer risk. Which brings us to chickpeas (garbanzo beans) being a great food source that helps lower the risk of breast cancer!
ABC’s Good Morning America (GMA) hosted guest-nutritionist Rachel Beller today. Beller, along with Robin Roberts, gave a presentation demonstrating three of Rachel’s ten commandments for weight management and prevention of breast cancer. The second commandment involves eating a high-fiber diet. Beller states, “There’s a lot of research showing that a lot of women on a high fiber diet can decrease their breast cancer risk by 16%. And its good for weight loss.” One of the foods she strongly recommends is chickpeas!
In researching Rachel’s claims, John Hopkins Medicine does state: “High fiber intake may have a positive benefit by altering hormonal actions of breast cancer and other hormonal-dependent cancers. Daily fiber intake should be 25 to 30 grams of insoluble and soluble fiber.” They also include a suggested list of whole foods by plant family you should eat. They also recommend chickpeas!
We want to be clear, we are not suggesting chickpeas are some magic food that prevents breast cancer. But we are proud to make snacks that are part of a healthy lifestyle that can help to reduce breast cancer risk.
You can more of Rachel's tips here.
Sources: Wiki, John Hopkins Medicine, Beller Nutritional Institute
By EJ Linehan
Chickpeas are one of the Best Snack Foods to Stay Fit or Manage Weight?
Dietitians love Biena. And we love them! Part of the Biena mission is to not only provide a great tasting treat but to also provide a healthy snack that is good for you. Biena's chickpeas provide on average 5 grams of protein and 6 grams of fiber. The number one thing a group of registered dietitians recommends is to eat more whole plants such as beans. Chickpeas are a plant-based bean snack. So, you could say WE'RE NUMBER ONE! WE'RE NUMBER ONE!
Ok, ok. We're getting a little braggadocious. We apologize. That isn't the Biena way.
But, we do get a lot of support from the dietitian community, for which we are humbled and grateful. We wanted to share a couple of their posts to further establish Biena really does work towards creating a healthy & delicious snack.
Dietitian Jen from ShopRite
The Spicy RD from EAStewart.com
Dietitian Katie from ShopRite
Did We Mention ShopRite Dietitians Love Biena?
The Biena team is looking forward to meeting many more dietitians next month at FNCE 2017. If you're attending, make sure to stop by our booth and say hi! We'll even throw in a special treat if you mention this blog post. 😉
By EJ Linehan
The Biena team invaded the Natural Products Expo East from September 13-16. The 32nd annual event was held at the Baltimore Convention Center in Maryland, featuring more than 1,500 brands and 29,000 community members. While this wasn’t the first time Biena Snacks attended the expo, this was the first time we featured our new Chocolate line!
Biena was humbled by our first nomination for a NEXTY Award in the “Best New Sweet Snack” category for our Chocolate line. The NEXTY Awards, as described by Expo East, “recognize the most progressive, innovative, inspiring and trustworthy products in the natural products industry.” Our Chocolate line made us proud!
The founder and CEO of Biena, Poorvi Patodia, was a guest speaker at the The Nutrition Capital Network (NCN) Health & Wellness Investor Forum. Poorvi shared her perspective on closing an investment deal, as she recently secured Series A funding with Tastemaker Capital. She was joined onstage by Matt Clifford of Barnana and Dan Aziz of Premama.
The real excitement of attending Expo East happens when meet people from our demo booth! The Biena team gets to see the faces of people trying our flavored chickpeas for the first time. It warms our hearts when someone truly enjoys the snacks we work so hard to make. Even repeat visitors from last year were treated to something new as we debuted our new Chocolate Line. Wait, did we already mention that? Sorry. We are just so excited about it!
The entire Biena staff would like to thank the many people who left us glowing reviews on social media. Personalities and bloggers such as Arielle Says from Buzzfeed’s Goodful, Sophie from Tracking is the New Black, and Lauren Harris-Pincus made our chickpeas blush with the wonderful reviews they left.
Already counting down the days until next year!
By EJ Linehan
Chickpeas are becoming one of the most sought after snacks in the world. People want a healthy alternative to chips, and this plant-based protein snack does the job. Biena takes it one step further by making chickpeas taste good right out of the bag! Biena combines guilt-free snacking with popular flavors such as sea salt, ranch, BBQ, chocolate, and many more! Plus you get high levels of protein and fiber in every serving.
Here at Biena, we thought it would be helpful to answer some commonly asked questions about chickpeas.
What are chickpeas?
The chickpea or chick pea is a legume of the plant family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae. The plant is grown for its nutritious seeds. Its seeds are high in protein and fiber. Other names for chickpeas are gram, Bengal gram, garbanzo, garbanzo bean, and Egyptian pea.
What’s the difference between a chickpea and a garbanzo bean?
Nothing! They are different names for the same thing. Both names apply to the delicious beans found in all your favorite Biena snacks.
Are chickpeas good for you?
Chickpeas are a superfood with protein, fiber and nutrients such as calcium, iron and more. Biena chickpeas pack on average 5 grams of protein and 22% of your daily fiber in every serving! Our chickpea varieties are also gluten free with no artificial ingredients or flavors.
Are chickpeas good for weight loss and dieting?
Biena chickpeas are great for weight loss! Chickpeas are a great source of protein and dietary fiber, which are two nutrients that help with weight control. You can add Biena chickpeas to other healthy meals such as salad for an extra burst of flavor.
Are chickpeas a carb or a protein?
Both? Biena chickpeas have on average 5 grams of protein and 18 grams of carbs. Our chickpeas are also low in fat with an average of 4 grams per serving.
What are pulses in food? Is that related to chickpeas?
The term “pulse” refers to the dried seed of a legume. This includes dried peas, edible beans, lentils and, of course, chickpeas!
Do chickpeas make hummus?
Chickpeas are one of the main ingredients in hummus. Hummus is commonly made by mashing chickpeas into a paste with lemon juice, olive oil, and tahini (sesame paste.) While hummus is delicious, Biena Snacks focuses on making yummy, crunchy chickpeas you can eat straight from the bag.
Now that you are a chickpea expert, try one of our many deliciously flavored Chickpea Snacks!
Sources: Biena, Wikipedia, Livestrong, Healthline