Then, a few months ago, I interviewed WWE star CJ "Lana" Perry about what she eats to fuel her intense workouts. And one thing she said to me really stuck out: microwave your protein bar.
"If you heat it up in the microwave, it literally tastes like a brownie," she told me.
Come on girl, I thought. How much could a quick zap in the microwave really change things that much?
But then I found a Reddit thread that changed my mind.
"TIL if I microwave a protein bar for 20 seconds, I basically make a delicious chocolate peanut butter cake," shared Redditor meerjeya:
"I microwaved a CLIF builder bar today and ate it with a fork and a glass of milk. Oh god, so delicious! It also smelled great, couldn't put my finger on what it reminded me of, maybe warm mug cake? Thought I'd share for people with a sweet tooth that need a not-as-bad alternative."
And it wasn't just this one person—other people chimed in with their own experiences. "Quest bars taste like cookies when you microwave them!" wrote one person. "I left a Clif bar in my car on a warm day," added another person. "Turned into a delicious cookie waiting for me after a day of classes."
Now I was intrigued. I could DIY a high-protein dessert with just a few seconds in the microwave? Count me in.
So ~for science~ (and in the spirit of #SnacksWeek!) I decided to try it myself with basically the only protein bar I like, Think Thin High Protein Bar in Lemon Delight.
It's got 20 grams of protein and is very low in carbs, and the flavor is generally pretty good. I'm not mad about eating it on a busy morning for breakfast.
Following the instructions of the Reddit thread, I unwrapped my ThinkThin bar (don't want to accidentally start a fire!) and microwaved it for 20 seconds.
The hard white chocolate shell on the protein bar melted a little bit, basically turning into a sweet, delicious glaze. And when I cut into the bar with a fork, the inside was soft and crumbly like a cake—not firm and dense like protein bars normally are.
As for taste...well, it was mostly the same. But because the texture was so much better, I enjoyed eating this bar that much more. It felt like I was eating a warm lemon bar. And I freaking loved it.
So yeah, this whole "microwave your protein bars" thing really works. I'm now ready to try this on literally every ThinkThin flavor I can find. And maybe even some other healthy protein bars, too. I'm hooked.
A version of this article originally appeared on Women's Health US.