REVIEW: Cheetos White Cheddar Bites

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Cheetos White Cheddar Bites

Cheetos White Cheddar Bites continue Cheetos’ trend of rolling out white cheddar-flavored snacks during winter because “white cheddar” equal “winter.”

While their flavor is familiar if you’ve had Cheetos White Cheddar Bag of Bones for Halloween, Cheetos Winter White Cheddar Cheetos Curls during last year’s Olympics, or Cheetos Snowflakes White Cheddar during previous winters, their shape is new to the Cheetos Universe.

Like I wrote, if you’ve had any of the snacks I mentioned in the previous paragraph, you’ll know precisely what these taste like.

If you haven’t, they have a milder cheesy flavor than original radioactive orange Cheetos. But I find them to be as addictive. I ate the entire bag within 12 hours, looked into the mirror, asked my reflection if it was worth it, and it replied with a “yeah.”

What helped make that disappearing act happen is the size of the crunchy snack.

Cheetos White Cheddar Bites Closeup

Since I ate all of them before I could make a size comparison with regular Cheetos Puffs, I want you to imagine a straight Cheetos Puff. Then imagine that Puff split into thirds. That’s approximately how big they are. Although, their crunch is slightly different from their curvy cousin because they seem to be somewhat less airy.

They’re the textbook definition of “bite-sized.” Sure, I can fit an entire Cheetos Puff in my Cheetos hole. Heck, I could shove several if I really wanted to, but it would be a little uncomfortable. With these Bites, I can comfortably fit many in my mouth like I’m a Cheetos-loving pelican. I guess what I’m trying to say is, this bite-sized version should be the default Cheetos Puff. You hear me, Frito-Lay! D-fault! D-fault! D-fault! (everybody) D-fault!

Or just make Cheetos Balls.

Because they’re yellow and shaped like botulism-affected canned goods, if you have a fine point Sharpie pen, you could draw eyes (or an eye) on them to turn them into Minions. I would’ve shown that, but, again, I ate the entire bag within 12 hours and way before the idea for Cheetos Minions popped into my head.

Cheetos White Cheddar Bites are a snack that I will never buy again because they’re too easy to eat. Oh, who am I kidding? I can’t get off this white cheddar horse.

Purchased Price: $3.99
Size: 7 1/2 oz. bag
Purchased at: Times Supermarket
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (about 38 pieces) – 160 calories, 10 grams of fat, 1.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 260 milligrams of sodium, 15 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, less than 1 gram of sugars and 2 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Yoplait Dunkin’ Inspired Yogurt Flavors

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Yoplait Dunkin Inspired Yogurt Flavors

What are Yoplait Dunkin’ Inspired Yogurts?

While Dunkin’ is busy trying to make its coffees taste like Girl Scout Cookies, Yoplait has decided to translate the popular breakfast chain’s signature flavors into its perfectly portable 6-ounce yogurt cups. Released as a pair of both Original and Whips varieties, Yoplait’s Limited Edition Dunkin’ Inspired Yogurts aim to keep America running without making a run to their nearest coffee shop.

How are they?

Boston Kreme Donut

Starting with the two entries into their Original line, Boston Kreme Donut was the flavor I dove into first. Yoplait was apparently trying to recreate the treat’s filling as this flavor tasted closest to the sweet custard innards of the famous pastry. Even so, the slight tartness at play here continually reminded me that I was eating a cup of yogurt rather than a delicious, fresh-out-of-the-fryer donut, and its total lack of a chocolate element left my donut desires feeling unfulfilled.

Yoplait Original Dunkin Boston Kreme Donut Yogurt

Purchased Price: 77 cents
Size: 6 oz. container
Purchased at: Food Lion
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 container) 160 calories, 15 calories from fat, 2 grams of total fat, 1 gram of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 10 milligrams of cholesterol, 90 milligrams of sodium, 30 grams of total carbohydrates, 24 grams of total sugars, and 6 grams of protein.

Apple Fritter

Standing as the second newly-inducted member into Yoplait’s Original lineup, Apple Fritter also fell a bit short of my expectations. With a vanilla yogurt base with apple chunks and cinnamon spice mixed in, this flavor more closely resembled Chobani’s Apple Cinnamon Greek Yogurt than it did any pastry. Although I found it tasty enough, I didn’t think this flavor was anything unique, and you could easily recreate it at home by mixing some apple pie filling into a cup of vanilla yogurt.

Yoplait Original Dunkin Apple Fritter Yogurt

Purchased Price: 77 cents
Size: 6 oz. container
Purchased at: Food Lion
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 container) 150 calories, 15 calories from fat, 2 gram of total fat, 1 gram of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 10 milligram of cholesterol, 95 milligrams of sodium, 28 grams of total carbohydrates, 20 grams of total sugars, and 6 grams of protein.

Coffee Cinnamon Roll

As the first of their Whips additions, Coffee Cinnamon Roll immediately piqued my interest. I like drinking coffee while I eat cinnamon rolls, but I don’t necessarily associate the two flavors together in one food. After trying this, I realized why. While coffee and cinnamon buns generally complement each other, they canceled each other out in this case, which resulted in a bland, unappetizing flavor that can only be described as cloying. The whipped texture didn’t do this variety any favors either and just made it even harder to notice this yogurt’s resemblance to its indulgent inspiration.

Yoplait Whips Dunkin Cinnamon Coffee Roll Yogurt

Purchased Price: 77 cents
Size: 6 oz. container
Purchased at: Food Lion
Rating: 4 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 container) 160 calories, 35 calories from fat, 4 grams of total fat, 2.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 15 milligrams of cholesterol, 60 milligrams of sodium, 26 grams of total carbohydrates, 23 grams of total sugars, and 5 grams of protein.

French Vanilla Latte

Also joining into Yoplait’s Whips collection, French Vanilla Latte was perhaps the flavor I was anticipating the most, especially after my spectacular experience last year with Baskin Robbin’s take on Dunkin’s French Vanilla Coffee. Just as I had hoped, this variety ended up being my favorite out of the bunch. The whipped, mousse-like texture worked well here and made the yogurt seem reminiscent of the frothed milk on top of an actual vanilla latte.

Yoplait Whips Dunkin French Vanilla Latte Yogurt

Purchased Price: 77 cents
Size: 6 oz. container
Purchased at: Food Lion
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 container) 160 calories, 35 calories from fat, 4 grams of total fat, 2.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 20 milligrams of cholesterol, 65 milligrams of sodium, 25 grams of total carbohydrates, 21 grams of total sugars, and 5 grams of protein.

Is there anything else you need to know?

Although yogurt may seem like a healthy way to start the day, buyer beware, because some of these have more or about the same amount of sugar as the breakfast items that inspired them. For example, the Boston Kreme yogurt contains seven more grams of sugar than Dunkin’s actual Boston Kreme Donut.

Conclusion:

Despite most of these yogurts being good enough, they aren’t going to take the place of stopping by Dunkin’ on the way to work. Instead, I see them as a being a handy way to ward off the 3 P.M. snack slump without making you leave your office.

REVIEW: White Chocolate Marshmallow M&M’s

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White Chocolate Marshmallow M M s

What are White Chocolate Marshmallow M&M’s?

Because a bag of novelty-flavored M&M’s is easily stuffed into a bright plastic egg basket, Mars is dropping another installment of its special edition Easter flavors! This time, it’s white chocolate with marshmallow.

How are they?

You know how when you see cooking show contestants using the same batter/dough/base for multiple items, they are mostly likely not going to win? That’s what these M&M’s taste like. They’re essentially the same as the basic white chocolate M&M with the tiniest hint of another flavor zipping by at light speed.

White Chocolate Marshmallow M M s Plated

In this case, the flavor isn’t even the marshmallow advertised – it’s closer to fondant icing. You know how cooking show judges howl in disappointment when cakes or cookies get covered in fondant? It’s a polarizing flavor. Fondant is supposed to taste like marshmallow, but is more like what a replicator on the Enterprise that needs a tune-up would spit out.

The good news is there’s so little of it – and the white chocolate is dominant enough – that if you don’t know what fondant is, you might not even notice it here. I’ve been making cakes with it for 18 years, so I’d recognize that sugary dough anywhere.

White Chocolate Marshmallow M M s Pastels

While they taste perfectly pleasant (relying on the strength of their white chocolate base flavor), there’s a huge wasted opportunity here and I’m deducting points for that. Why didn’t they play around with texture? Swap out the crispy malted filling of the M&M’s Mini Eggs with a breakfast-cereal-style marshmallow center?

White Chocolate Marshmallow M M s Innards

Is there anything else you need to know?

The flesh-toned M&M’s are back in this mix, which is odd because they don’t seem to relate to the flavor here. As a color combination, I didn’t love it.

Conclusion:

If you love the white chocolate M&M’s, they’re not a bad purchase with lowered expectations. If you vehemently hate fondant and/or are a cooking show judge, proceed with caution.

Purchased Price: $3.19 (on sale)
Size: 8 oz. bag
Purchased at: Target
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 oz./16 pieces) 140 calories, 7 grams of fat, 4 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, less than 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 25 milligrams of sodium, 19 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 15 grams of total sugars, 17 grams of added sugars, and 1 gram of protein.

REVIEW: Hostess Limited Edition Birthday CupCakes

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Hostess Limited Edition Birthday CupCakes

What are Hostess Birthday CupCakes?

Hostess celebrates its centennial with a limited edition themed version of its iconic cupcake in a birthday variety. It’s a frosted speckled yellow cake with creamy filling complete with Hostess’ signature squiggle and tons of rainbow colored sprinkles.

How are they?

In some of my past reviews I have sometimes decreed something as a sugar bomb, but I need to rethink my definition because these things take the cake (and yes pun intended, of course). Between the squiggle, the sprinkles, the icing, and the cream on the inside, these were hard to eat and to be honest I had trouble finishing just one.

Hostess Limited Edition Birthday CupCakes Innards

If there was more cake a la a regular Twinkie or a different flavor going on to break it all up, it wouldn’t be so bad. But sadly it’s just sugar on top of sugar on top of more sugar filled with sugar that overall tastes like sugar.

To be fair, I guess that’s what a tried a true birthday cake is but again with not enough of the cake part and in such a compact form it comes together as disappointing. The biggest offender though is the icing which has a little bit of vanilla flavor but is on the harder side and overall seems sort of stale. It reminds me of fondant which isn’t known to be delicious, but it makes up for it because it’s used to create insanely decorated cake masterpieces, of which these are not.

Is there anything else you need to know?

Hostess Limited Edition Birthday CupCakes Icing

It’s not all birthday tears as there are some positives since the cake is sufficiently moist and Hostess didn’t skimp on the sprinkles, which are full size and represent every color of the rainbow.

Also, here’s some fun history about Hostess: Did you know the its cupcake was the first commercially produced one and it may have been the first snack cake ever introduced to the market? Although, rival Tastykake refutes this.

Conclusion:

I love snack cakes, birthday things, and all things Hostess, but these are not that good unless you have an extreme sweet tooth as they’re pretty one-note taste-wise. They’re festive with the colorful adornments, but it’s nothing mind-blowing (hello, Funfetti) that you need to see in person like those cool slime Ghostbusters Twinkies from years’ past.

If you want to celebrate Hostess’ birthday, pick up the O.G. chocolate ones and hum happy birthday as you indulge. There’s a reason they’ve lasted a century.

Purchased Price: $2.97
Size: 13.1 oz. box/8 count
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 3 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 cake) 190 calories, 9 grams of fat, 4.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 10 milligrams of cholesterol, 90 milligrams of sodium, 27 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of dietary fiber, 23 grams of sugar, and 0 grams of protein.

REVIEW: McDonald’s Donut Sticks

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McDonald s Donut Sticks

After the employee handed me the bag that contained my six-piece order of McDonald’s Donut Sticks (it’s also available with 12 pieces), I wondered if there were cameras around and I was being pranked. Because it was so light, it felt as if it contained only the obligatory napkins.

But after opening the bag, getting a sweet whiff of cinnamon sugar and not so sweet whiff of oil, and seeing six sticks staring back at me, my Punk’d fears subsided. I don’t know why I thought they’d be more substantial than they are.

McDonald s Donut Sticks Airy

The Donut Sticks are sweet golden-brown dough, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar, and made fresh every morning. They’re also a little disappointing. The cinnamon sugar is everywhere, but there’s no cinna-plosion in my mouth. Because I can taste a bit of the oil used, I thought its flavor dulled the sweet seasoning. However, even licking off whatever cinnamon sugar clung to my fingers didn’t have a strong taste.

No dipping sauce comes with them, although I imagine hot fudge or soft serve would pair well. Unfortunately, I read Donut Sticks are only available in the morning so it might be hard to get them with either, but they really should be an all-day thing.

If I had to compare these with Dunkin’s Donut Fries, these are better, but not by a whole lot. They’re thicker because they’re fluffier and airer. They also taste a little bit better, even though I wish the cinnamon sugar stood out more. Although, they do look freaky.

If you order these, don’t let them sit around. Eat them fresh because, just like McDonald’s World Famous Fries, they taste better when they are and have a bit of crispiness that fades if not eaten quickly. If you pick some up via the drive-thru, eat them while you drive, even though there is a 100 percent chance the Donut Sticks are the nimbus clouds that will rain cinnamon sugar onto your crotch.

Although, like most donuts, you could stick them in the microwave for about 10 seconds, to get some of that fresh-from-the-fryer quality back.

Overall, McDonald’s Donut Sticks are decent, if eaten fresh, and slightly less so, if not. They are not at the luscious level as my sorely missed Cinnamon Melts, but if you believe your breakfasts should end with dessert, which they should, this will do an adequate job.

Purchased Price: $2.29*
Size: 6 pieces
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 280 calories, 13 grams of fat, 4.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 gram of trans fat, 15 milligrams of cholesterol, 260 milligrams of sodium, 34 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 9 grams of sugar, and 6 grams of protein.

*Because I live on a rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, things are a bit pricier here. You’ll probably pay less than I did.

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