According to Dreyer’s/Edy’s, they invented Rocky Road ice cream and came up with the iconic name in 1929 as something relatable for everyone, given the trying times (it seems worth noting that this claim has been contested by Fentons Ice Creamery in Oakland).
Nearly a century later, they have released The Rocky Road Collection to pay tribute to the original. This collection consists of three popular renditions and three entirely new flavors. As a devotee of bountiful mix-ins, I was excited to get my hands on these new varieties.
Side note: I had never heard of Edy’s before this, so I did some brief research. In the 1920s, ice cream maker William Dreyer and candy maker Joseph Edy joined forces and started making ice cream together. Today, Dreyer’s is sold in the western part of the U.S. and Edy’s in the eastern portion. It’s the ice cream equivalent of Hellmann’s/Best Foods!
All three flavors from this review are available in both the Dreyer’s and Edy’s lines.
On to the ice cream!
Salted Caramel Pretzel Path
Caramel ice cream is the base here. It is mild and sweet, which allows the mix-ins to shine. I don’t pick up any salty notes in the ice cream itself. The chunks of pretzel are covered in chocolate and provide a satisfying crunch, with just a hint of saltiness. They offer a nice textural contrast, but are outshined by the chocolate-covered toffee pieces.
The toffee is rich, buttery, and well-executed. Sometimes it can be a little hard on the teeth when it’s in ice cream, but that’s not the case here. It’s crunchy without being troublesome. Fudge is ribboned throughout the ice cream, remaining a constant sweet presence.
Salted Caramel Pretzel Path works well, but feels slightly boring in comparison to the other flavors. The toffee chunks are the reason to try this one. I appreciate that the ice cream isn’t overly salty, but salted caramel fans may be left wanting more.
Size: 1.5 quart carton
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (2/3 cup) 210 calories, 10 grams of fat, 7 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 20 milligrams of cholesterol, 120 mg of sodium, 27 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of dietary fiber, 21 grams of sugar, and 3 grams of protein.
Cookie Cobblestone
The chocolate ice cream base is sweet, without being cloying. It has the typical airy Dreyer’s texture, just like all three flavors. Again, this base exists primarily as a delivery vessel for the mix-ins.
The cookie dough chunks are standard fare and bring a chewy, pleasant texture to the fold. There are also chocolate cookie pieces, but these aren’t quite as prevalent. They mostly exist as a fine grain, present in every bite, rather than actual chunks. These provide a nice balancing grit to the rest of the ice cream. Marshmallow swirls act as the glue in this version, lending a typical rocky road familiarity.
Cookie Cobblestone is cohesive and ranks slightly higher than Salted Caramel Pretzel Path. The chocolate ice cream is more well-rounded than the caramel. The mix-ins ratio was good, but more chunks of chocolate cookie pieces would have been even better.
Size: 1.5 quart container
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (2/3 cup) 220 calories, 9 grams of fat, 5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 20 milligrams of cholesterol, 95 milligrams of sodium, 32 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 22 grams of sugar, and 3 grams of protein.
Brownie Brick Road
I love brownies, so I excitedly dug into this one without examining the components first. I was caught off guard by an inviting crunchy chunk in my first spoonful that exploded with the flavor of brownies. According to the carton, it is crispy brownie edges. These things are the main attraction.
The base of this flavor is a sweet cream ice cream, which is a smart choice. It allows the brownie flavor to be prominently displayed without being overshadowed by more chocolate. The actual brownie chunks are dense, chewy, and satisfying. Brownie batter swirl is incorporated throughout, but I take issue with this aspect. To me, it tastes more like standard chocolate sauce than brownie batter.
Brownie Brick Road is my favorite of the lot, but it could have been improved a little. If the brownie batter swirl had the taste and consistency of actual brownie batter, this would have been a home run. Regardless, this one is worth trying for the crispy brownie edges alone.
Size: 1.5 quart carton
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (2/3 cup) 230 calories, 11 gram of fat, 6 grams of saturated fat, 25 milligrams of cholesterol, 105 milligrams of sodium, 30 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 24 grams of sugar, and 3 grams of protein.
DISCLOSURE: I received free product samples from Dreyer’s/Edy’s. Doing so did not influence my review.
My God I need to start eating more ice cream again. All three of these sound delicious to me.
I found this by accident I usually by the chocolate fudge brownie which is my favorite but they were out so I kept looking and then I saw this one I said wow that looks yummy so I bought it and OMG ? I absolutely love it keep making this wonderful ice cream I’m addicted to it
My anaconda don’t want none, unless I could get these for free, hun.
There are six flavors, total, including regular Original Rocky Road. The other two flavors are Mocha Almond Avenue and (Chocolate) Peanut Butter Park. Peanut butter in ice cream sounds stomach-turning, as does coffee in anything. I also found I hate the texture of brownie in ice cream, so all I’ve tried are the cookie and caramel flavors. Cookie was. That’s about all I can say about it. If it came down to a free carton of that, or buy my own, it’d really depend on what my other options were. I might try the caramel flavor a second time, but I don’t see it being a regular purchase.
Sounds like you hate sweets regardless of what Edys is doing, stay out of the ice cream section then
Nonsense. Their Kit-Kat flavor is one of the best ice creams on the market right now. But if your flavor is just “sweet”, I might as well just toss a bag of sugar in the freezer. But even the Cookie flavor beat the pants off their Fruity Pebbles flavor, which tastes like the leftover milk after someone ate a bowl of Fruity Pebbles cereal. They’re not the only brand to have bland “flavors”. Turkey Hill has a Blueberry flavor that only tastes like blueberry ice cream if you cut it 1:1 with actual blueberries.
The rest is just personal preference. Everyone’s entitled to their own. I know mine well enough that most of the time when I try a flavor, I’d at least be willing to buy it again.
I’m not sure about how or why but my daughter was eating some of the Double Fudge Brownie ice cream when something cut the side of her tongue. She spit what she had put in her mouth and found a chunk of glass. I don’t know what or why it happened but needless to say her mother and I are not very happy with the Edy’s brand right now. I think that someone needs to do better quality control with this product before someone gets seriously hurt. I am putting my email and would really appreciate it