REVIEW: Haagen-Dazs Dulce de Leche Cookie Squares

/ / Reviews / 3 Comments

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I know winter is supposed to be all fuzzy slippers and hot cocoa and half a metric ton of cinnamon spice, but, as someone known to recite Shakespearean love sonnets to frozen dairy, I need little to entice me that the dead middle of winter is the perfect time for some ice cream. Especially if it involves cookies, chocolate, and caramel, and boom-shackalacka! Haagen-Dazs is delivering just that.

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If you don’t have soft spot in your heart for gooey, deeply nutty caramel, just turn away ‘cause this bar is ribboned with the stuff. Now, in case you haven’t yet had the near-holy, angels-singing-from-the-sky experience of dulce de leche yet, prepare thyself to be amazed! For dulce de leche is what becomes of sweetened condensed milk after being slowly caramelized, creating an effect that is less sharply sugary than regular caramel and more nutty-sweet.

Here, it serves as a thick, sweetened, gooey, nutty confection that strings out like mad from the surrounding sweeter caramel ice cream, which provided me with enough energy to hurl a monster truck across a football field.

And it doesn’t even stop there, folks. The chocolate coating is snappy, sweet, and drizzled with just a tad bit of semisweet chocolate to yin out the yang of the main milk chocolate base. The Oreo-like cookie wafer has a snap, crumble, chew, and durability that holds up to the weight of the ice cream above. Taken as a whole, the result is crispy, creamy, nutty, crumbly, chocolatey, and other delicious adjectives that end in “y.” It all makes for something so delicious.

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In this small three-dimensional square, Haagen-Dazs proves that, while it may be winter, dessert doesn’t have to taste like a Gingerbread Man’s spice drawer to be absolutely delicious in a blustery season. Indeed, sometimes, a simple, well-executed square of cookie, ice cream, and chocolate is just the thing to transform a callous-hearted, snowy-sludged humbug into a un-grumpified, semi-regularly-functioning human who has big dreams and has done adult things today and deserves something very, very spectacular.

Like you, dear reader.

You deserve something very, very spectacular. So go get you some! They may not be perfect and hardly toe the line of breaking new ground, but they are delicious. And, for today, delicious is enough.

(Nutrition Facts – 1 bar – 310 calories, 170 calories from fat, 18 grams of fat, 13 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 30 milligrams of cholesterol, 120 milligrams of sodium, 34 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of dietary fiber, 26 grams of sugar, and 4 grams of protein.)

Purchased Price: $3.34 (on sale)
Size: 1 box/3 bars
Purchased at: Ralph’s
Rating: 8 out of 10
Pros: Nutty, nutty dulce de leche. Milk and semisweet chocolate. Durable, Oreo-like cookie wafer. Enough sugar to hurl a monster truck across a football field.
Cons: Not the best if you’re looking for crazy mix-ins. Callous-hearted, snowy-sludged humbugs.

COMING SOON: Ben & Jerry’s Moo-phoria Light Ice Cream

/ / Coming Soon / 9 Comments

Ben Jerry s Moo phoria Light Ice Cream

Update: We reviewed it! Click here to read our review.

Ben & Jerry’s released a bunch of new products last month and this month it’s rolling out a new light ice cream line called Moo-phoria. Each 1/2 cup serving has 140-160 calories and 60-70 percent less fat than regular Ben & Jerry’s flavors. And it does this without using artificial sugar substitutes or sugar alcohols.

But how does Ben & Jerry’s do that? Magic? Science? A deal with the Devil, which I guess could be considered magic?

Moo-phoria pints are available in three flavors:

  • Chocolate Milk & Cookies – Chocolate and vanilla light ice cream swirled with chocolate chip cookies.
  • Caramel Cookie Fix – Vanilla light ice cream with shortbread cookies and a salted caramel swirl.
  • PB Dough – Chocolate light ice cream with gobs of chocolate chip peanut butter cookie dough.

The new light ice cream line will be available at grocery stores nationwide for a suggested price of $4.89. It will also be available at Ben & Jerry’s online store: store.benjerry.com.

SPOTTED ON SHELVES: Neapolitan M&M’s

/ / Spotted on Shelves / 6 Comments

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Ugh. How do I avoid eating the strawberry like I do with Neapolitan ice cream? (Spotted by Robbie at Target.)

If you’re out shopping and see an interesting new product on the shelf, snap a picture of it, and send us an email ([email protected]) with where you found it and “Spotted” in the subject line. Or reply to us (@theimpulsivebuy) on Twitter with the photo, where you spotted it, and the hashtag #spotted. If you’ve tried the product, share your thoughts about it in the comments.

Also, if you want to send in photos and are wondering if we’ve already covered something, don’t worry about it. Let us worry about it.

FAST FOOD NEWS: Jack in the Box Food Truck Series Sandwiches

/ / Fast Food News / 7 Comments

Jack in the Box Food Truck Series

Jack in the Box is now offering three new sandwiches that have been inspired by food truck cuisine.

The Asian Fried Chicken Sandwich features crispy all white meat chicken strips, crunchy Asian slaw, cucumbers, and a bold gochujang mayo on a toasted baguette. It has 660 calories, 27 grams of fat, 5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 1590 milligrams of sodium, 80 grams of carbohydrates, and 26 grams of protein.

Next up is the Prime Rib Cheesesteak that has prime rib steak strips that have been grilled with garlic butter, peppers, onions, and provolone cheese on a toasted baguette. This sandwich has 680 calories, 39 grams of fat, 17 grams of saturated fat, 1 gram of trans fat, 1460 milligrams of sodium, 57 grams of carbohydrates, and 28 grams of protein.

Finally, there’s the Pork Belly BLT. It’s built with two slabs of seared pork belly, green leaf lettuce, and tomatoes on a toasted baguette. It has 630 calories, 35 grams of fat, 13 grams of saturated fat, 1560 milligrams of sodium, 56 grams of carbohydrates, and 27 grams of protein.

If you’ve tried any of them, let us know what you think in the comments.

(Image via Jack in the Box’s website.)

QUICK REVIEW: Baskin-Robbins Cannoli Be With You Ice Cream

/ / Reviews

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I live life by a few simple principles gleaned from Hollywood.

For example:

  • Don’t eat vegetables after midnight… or before midnight… pretty much just don’t eat vegetables.
  • Always wear your anti-sea rhinoceros undergarments.
  • Never go in against a Sicilian when death is on the line.

Baskin-Robbins wants to add another rule involving Sicily to the list with its February Flavor of the Month, Cannoli Be With You Ice Cream. With mascarpone ice cream, cannoli shell pieces, chocolate chips and pistachios, having this cannoli on hand sounds like a great addition.

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The mascarpone cheese base might be the best and creamiest ice cream I’ve sampled at Baskin-Robbins. With a light touch of sweetness, it is rich, buttery and smooth; the perfect backdrop for the accompanying flavors. Things improve with the milk chocolate chips that are neither too sweet, nor too bitter but just right — no anti-sea bear circle required.

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If this were simply a mascarpone ice cream with chocolate chips, it would earn high marks for its simple but delicious execution. Dismayingly, both the cannoli shell and the pistachio pieces took the wrong lesson about hiding from a nuke in a fridge. The cannoli pieces’ texture is that of soggy corn flakes with about as impactful a flavor. The pistachios are rare, though large and overpowering, and hold no roasted notes I can detect. Crushed pistachios would create more consistency and balance bringing it closer to the genuine article.

With a fantastic first impression made by the mascarpone and chocolate chips, I’m disappointed in this flavor given its potential. A cannoli is a balance of distinct flavors that create a cohesive treat which is not the case here.

New rule for Baskin-Robbins: Never go in against a Sicilian when a cannoli is on the line.

Purchased Price: $2.39
Size: Small scoop (2.5 oz.)
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (Small Scoop) 180 calories, 11 grams of fat, 7 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams trans fat, 30 milligrams of cholesterol, 55 milligrams of sodium, 17 grams of carbohydrates, 12 grams of sugar, 1 gram of dietary fiber and 3 grams of protein.

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