Here are a few product reviews posted this week from other blogs we follow.

So breading this fried ice cream ice cream and deep frying it would make it fried ice cream fried ice cream, right? My head hurts…or it’s brain freeze from thinking about fried ice cream fried ice cream too fast. (via So Good Blog)

Drinkin’ Surge in 2013! Sounds like someone built a time machine. (via BevNerd)

I wonder if I could borrow that time machine and get some Dublin Dr Pepper so that I can compare it with this Dr. Pepper. (via BevReview)

I’m not sure how to feel about this. Is it good for me because it tastes like vegetables? Or is it bad for me because it’s made with chocolate? (via Crazy From Kong)

A Southwest McDouble, Swiss and Dijon McDouble, and Bacon Buffalo McChicken? Bring it on! I love inexpensive ways to clog my arteries and raise my blood pressure. It’s why I love potato chips. (via Foodette Reviews)

Here are some interesting new and limited edition products found on store shelves by us and your fellow readers. If you’ve tried any of the products, share your thoughts about them in the comments.

Special K has new flavors of Pastry Crisps, or as I like to call them when I put them on my chest, Pastie Crisps. (Spotted by Deanna at Walmart.)

Pink Lemonade Magic Shell sounds gross. Freezes in seconds? More like ruins ice cream quicker than the sun does. (Spotted by Paige at Target.)

Why are they called Nekot cookies? According to the internets, Lance wanted to honor a retiring executive by naming the cookie Token. However, there was already a cookie named Token, so he just flipped the spelling around. Oh, that Lance was smart…or trams.(Spotted by Sara at Walmart.)

How weird it would be if Dale Jr.’s race car had Dale Jr. Foods as its main sponsor and the Number 88 car had a huge picture of his face on the hood and doors with a picture of his Dale Jr. Foods car which also has a picture of his face on the hood and doors? Chip Review has a chip review. (Spotted by Adam at Weis Markets.)

Thank you to all the photo contributors! If you’re out shopping and see an interesting new or limited edition product on the shelf, snap a picture of it, and send us an email (theimpulsivebuy@gmail.com) with where you found it and “Spotted” in the subject line. If you do so, you might see your picture in our next Spotted on Shelves post.

Here are some quick reviews of new-ish frozen products we’re too lazy to write full reviews for:

Item: Ha?agen-Dazs Stracciatella Gelato
Purchased Price: $2.99 (on sale+coupon)
Size: 14 oz.
Purchased at: Safeway
Rating: 7 out of 10
Pros: Delightful. Easier to scoop than regular Häagen-Dazs ice cream. Smooth gelato. Lots of chocolaty shavings made with cocoa butter; it looks like it was in a chocolate hailstorm.Fun name to say.
Cons: It doesn’t really taste that much different than ice cream. Chocolaty shaving are like speed bumps as you try to enjoy the smooth gelato. Looks and tastes like this ice cream. Name also sounds like an expensive violin and a throat infection. Only 14 ounces.
Nutrition Facts: 1/2 cup – 270 calories, 120 calories from fat, 13 grams of fat, 7 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 90 milligrams of cholesterol, 40 milligrams of sodium, 34 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 25 grams of sugar, and 4 grams of protein.
Other reviews: Crazy Food Dude, Matt Hearts Ice Cream (video)

Item: Ben & Jerry’s Liz Lemon Greek Frozen Yogurt
Purchased Price: FREE (I had a coupon)
Size: 1 pint
Purchased at: Target
Rating: 7 out of 10
Pros: More of a sweet lemon than tart. Nice lemon aroma. Lemon Greek frozen yogurt and blueberry swirl go well together. Thank goodness it wasn’t only lemon. Easy to scoop. The addition of lavender sounds gross, but it gives the flavor a little something, something.
Cons: Although made with lemon oil, it has an almost artificial lemon flavor. Doesn’t contain live and active cultures. 30 Rock no longer on the air. Blerg! Thankfully, it’s not Lutz’s Lemon.
Nutrition Facts: 1/2 cup – 180 calories, 40 calories from fat, 4.5 grams of fat, 2.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 30 milligrams of cholesterol, 70 milligrams of sodium, 29 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 21 grams of sugar, and 6 grams of protein.
Other reviews: On Second Scoop, Junk Food Guy, The Ice Cream Informant

Item: Ben & Jerry’s Pineapple Passionfruit Greek Frozen Yogurt
Purchased Price: FREE (I had a coupon)
Size: 1 pint
Purchased at: Target
Rating: 8 out of 10
Pros: It’s really Greekin’ good. Passionfruit pretty much overwhelms the pineapple, which is fine with me because I enjoy passionfruit. Smooth, creamy, and easy to scoop. Tastes like I’m in Hawaii…oh wait, I’m already in Hawaii.
Cons: Could use more pineapple chunks. Pineapple lovers might be upset with its mild pineapple flavor. Doesn’t contain live and active cultures. Hugging pineapples.
Nutrition Facts: 1/2 cup – 180 calories, 35 calories from fat, 4 grams of fat, 2.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 30 milligrams of cholesterol, 65 milligrams of sodium, 30 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 26 grams of sugar, and 5 grams of protein.
Other reviews: Junk Food Guy,

Here are some interesting new and limited edition products found on store shelves by us and your fellow readers. If you’ve tried any of the products, share your thoughts about them in the comments.

I’m not 100 percent sure about this, and I’m too lazy to Google it, but didn’t Jif once offer whipped peanut butter prior to these Jif Whips. Also, I’m not sure if it’s the product itself or the word “whips”, but I’m kind of excited about Jif Whips. (Spotted by Jamie at Walmart.)

Jif Cashew Butter AND Jif Almond Butter? It appears Jif has been really busy with their nuts. (Spotted by Kayla at Walmart.)

“Welcome to the 20th century, Tastykake!” said Cinnabon. (Spotted by Adam at Walmart.)

Honey Maid Teddy Grahams made with real fruit? How about making Teddy Grahams made with real teddies so I squeeze them and then eat them. (Spotted by Deanna at Walmart.)

Thank you to all the photo contributors! If you’re out shopping and see an interesting new or limited edition product on the shelf, snap a picture of it, and send us an email (theimpulsivebuy@gmail.com) with where you found it and “Spotted” in the subject line. If you do so, you might see your picture in our next Spotted on Shelves post.

Jack in the Box’s menu board has seen a number of deep fried finger food on it. Oh, let me count the salty, greasy ways. Stuffed jalapeños, mozzarella cheese sticks, chicken nuggets, egg rolls, chicken strips, onion rings, corn dogs, and now we can add their new Pizza Bites.

Yes, Jack in the Box is now offering something you might find being served as an appetizer at the birthday party of an 8-year-old. And, yes, it does seems like the fast food chain is heavily influenced by the finger food section in the frozen food aisle, and I look forward to Jack in the Box’s version of taquitos and Smucker’s Uncrustables.

Jack in the Box’s Pizza Bites are stuffed with the following stalwarts of pizza: pepperoni, mozzarella cheese, oven-dried tomatoes, garlic, and herbs. The exterior is called “pizza dough” on the fast food chain’s website, but it looks like the coating found on other deep fried finger foods. They come in either three or six pieces and are accompanied with a container (or containers if your get the six-piece offering) of Jack’s Buttermilk House Sauce. According to the press release, they were supposed to come with marinara sauce, but I didn’t receive any.

Their almost equilateral triangular-shape makes them easy to dip and, if you don’t have piece of paper around because you’re trying to live a “paperless” lifestyle, a decent replacement for a paper football. It will also make a game of paper football much more interesting if the loser has to eat the football, which will have landed on the ground enough times to collect hair, dirt, and possibly disease.

The first time I tried the Pizza Bites they looked a little burnt, as if they were toasted over a campfire, but the innards were perfectly gooey. I decided to give them another try from another location and got pieces that were as golden brown as the skin of a 20-something sunbather. However, while they looked good, the innards appeared dried up like the skin of 60-year-old lifelong sunbather.

During both tastings, I found the breaded dough to be thick and slightly chewy with a strong crunch. I also thought the exterior did a wonderful job of muting the flavors of the cheese, pepperoni chunks, and oven-dried tomatoes. It’s a little strange there wasn’t some kind of sauce within the confines of the Pizza Bites, which could’ve made a difference. Heck, the marinara sauce probably would’ve helped. Since the Pizza Bites weren’t bursting with pizza flavor, but bursting with crust flavor, I was glad it came with the supplied Buttermilk House Sauce.

To be honest, even if I got perfectly prepared Jack in the Box Pizza Bites, I’d bet they’d have an unsatisfying pizza flavor that would make me yearn for a regular pizza…or crash an 8-year-old’s birthday party to get some appetizers.

(Nutrition Facts – 6 pieces – 500 calories, 189 calories from fat, 21 grams of fat, 7 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 43 milligrams of cholesterol, 1969 milligrams of sodium, 413 milligrams of potassium, 56 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of fiber, 7 grams of sugar, and 22 grams of protein.)

Other Jack in the Box Pizza Bites reviews:
Brand Eating
The Food Chain Review

Item: Jack in the Box Pizza Bites
Purchased Price: $3.89
Size: 6 pieces
Purchased at: Jack in the Box
Rating: 5 out of 10
Pros: More deep fried finger food at Jack in the Box. Crunchy crust. Makes a good ball replacement for paper football. Lots of cheese. Buttermilk House Sauce makes them decent, but it really should taste like pizza.
Cons: Breaded crust mutes other flavors. Cooking inconsistencies. No sauce inside the Pizza Bites. Deep fried finger food at Jack in the Box seems tame compared with deep fried finger food at county fairs. Do not eat the six piece one by yourself; share it with someone. Losing paper football and eating the Pizza Bites that’s fallen to the ground too many times.

Here are some quick reviews of new and limited edition products we’re too lazy to write full reviews for:

Item: Lay’s Wavy Roasted Garlic & Sea Salt Potato Chips
Purchased Price: $3.99 (on sale)
Size: 9.5 oz.
Purchased at: Safeway
Rating: 7 out of 10
Pros: Nice mild creamy garlic flavor. Satisfying crunch. Ruffles have r-r-r…oh wait, wrong chip. Seasoning builds up on fingers, giving me a little treat after my willpower tells me I should stop eating the chips.
Cons: Not enough garlic flavor to make me unapproachable when I breathe. I was expecting it to have a stronger garlic flavor. A little hard to find.
Nutrition Facts: 1 oz. – 160 calories, 90 calories from fat, 10 grams of fat, 1.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 140 milligrams of sodium, 340 milligrams of sodium, 15 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 1 gram of sugar, 2 grams of protein, and 10% vitamin C.
Other reviews: Chip Review, Fatguy Food Blog

Item: Jolly Time Butter Made With Smart Balance Popcorn
Purchased Price: $3.00 (on sale)
Size: 3 bags/box
Purchased at: Safeway
Rating: 6 out of 10
Pros: Respectable butter flavor. Made with 100 percent whole grain. No diacetyl butter flavorings or trans fat. No partially hydrogenated oil. Contains polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats. Gluten free. May make watching the movie Battleship a little more tolerable.
Cons: Only three bags in the box. The texture of the popcorn feels a step below Orville Redenbacher microwave popcorn. If you eat a third of the bag (which is really easy to do), it’s not really healthy anymore.
Nutrition Facts: 1 cup popped – 40 calories, 20 calories from fat, 2.5 grams of fat, 1 gram of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 1 gram of polyunsaturated fat, 0.5 grams of monounsaturated fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 75 milligrams of sodium, 4 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, and less than 1 gram of protein.

Item: Pillsbury Limited Edition S’mores Toaster Strudel
Purchased Price: FREE (I had a coupon)
Size: 6 toaster strudels
Purchased at: Safeway
Rating: 7 out of 10
Pros: Tastes better than S’mores Pop-Tarts. Crispy, flaky crust. Wonderfully gooey filling and icing. Balanced chocolate and creme flavor. There is enough icing to draw a campfire on top of it, but it’s a bit hard to draw nicely with the packet.
Cons: Doesn’t really taste like s’mores. Made with partially hydrogenated oil, so there’s a trivial amount of trans fat. Really lazy folks may not like having to add the icing themselves. Can’t eat them straight out of the box (well, you can but I wouldn’t recommend it).
Nutrition Facts: 1 pastry with icing – 180 calories, 60 calories from fat, 7 grams of fat, 3 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat*, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 180 milligrams of sodium, 27 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, 10 grams of sugar, and 3 grams of protein.

*made with partially hydrogenated oil