REVIEW: SunChips 6 Grain Medley Creamy Roasted Garlic

SunChips 6 Grain Medley Creamy Roasted Garlic

I don’t think I’ve ever gotten happiness from SunChips, or sunshine from them, if you will. Potato chips have made me happy (and heavy), but never SunChips.

I do enjoy SunChips, but it’s just that they aren’t as gratifying and addictive as regular potato chips. I don’t know, maybe fried potato has a certain place in my heart…probably the clogged part.

Although there was a time when I regularly bought SunChips, but I did so more for the bag than the snack inside. It was when they came in those compostable bags that everyone complained about because they were too loud. I’d use them to get off the phone with someone I didn’t want to talk to anymore by touching the bag to create static noises and telling the caller, “You’re breaking up. I’ll call you later.”

I thought after eating SunChips 6 Grain Medley Creamy Roasted Garlic, SunChips would bring me happiness because I love garlic, but these don’t quite do it for me.

This isn’t the first SunChips 6 Grain Medley flavor. The line was originally a Target exclusive and came in two flavors — Onion & Thyme and Parmesan & Herb.

So what are the six grains found in these chips?

You’ll find corn, wheat, oats, brown rice, buckwheat, and quinoa. All these grains provide 21 grams of whole grain goodness per one ounce serving. However, it’s mostly corn, wheat, and oats, which are three of the first four ingredients listed. As for brown rice, buckwheat, and quinoa, they make up three of the last four ingredients listed.

SunChips 6 Grain Medley Creamy Roasted Garlic Moneyshot

As for the chip’s garlic flavor, I was hoping for something strong enough to ward off Twilight fans who are on Team Edward and make it uncomfortable for someone to have a conversation with me in a Fiat 500, but it had a disappointing garlic flavor. Actually, I wouldn’t really consider it garlic. The three different cheeses (cheddar, Romano, and Parmesan), spices, and roasted garlic on the chips created a flavor that tastes more like ranch seasoning. Also, the chips aren’t heavily seasoned. I expected to have a lot of powdery goodness on my fingers to suck off, like with many other Frito-Lay snacks (Doritos and Cheetos), but my fingertips were just lightly dusted with seasoning.

The SunChips 6 Grain Medley Creamy Roasted Garlic was disappointing, and I don’t ever see myself craving them, unless my body evolves into a baby making machine. Then, I could experience pregnancy cravings that may involve me wanting these SunChips, and other weird foods to crave, like pork rinds, mustard, pickles, and mustard pickle sandwiches.

(Nutrition Facts – 1 ounce/about 15 chips – 140 calories, 60 calories, 6 grams of fat, 0.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 1 gram of polyunsaturated fat, 3.5 grams of monounsaturated fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 150 milligrams of sodium, 18 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of fiber, 1 gram of sugar, and 2 grams of protein.)

Other SunChips 6 Grain Medley Creamy Roasted Garlic:
Junk Food Guy

Item: SunChips 6 Grain Medley Creamy Roasted Garlic
Price: $2.99 (on sale)
Size: 9 ounces
Purchased at: Safeway
Rating: 5 out of 10
Pros: Crunchy. Not horrible. 21 grams of whole grains per 1 ounce serving. No artificial flavors. No preservative. Getting to eat something called quinoa.
Cons: Weak garlic flavor that tasted more like ranch. Too lightly seasoned. Not addictive, like potato chips. Doesn’t come in noisy compostable bag. Having a conversation with a garlic lover in a Fiat 500.

REVIEW: Kellogg’s Eggo Low Fat Homestyle Waffles

Kellogg's Eggo Low Fat Homestyle Waffles

Let’s say we lived in a place where the mild and inoffensive ruled. Let’s call it Bland Town.

This is a place where the ellipsis is favored over the exclamation point… Where UFC championship fights have been replaced by Bob Ross reruns… Where people camp out for days in front of stadiums to see Bon Iver instead of Bon Jovi… Where Tabasco sauce is rare and unfathomable, shrouded in mystery and thought of only as an urban legend. In this innocuous little village, Eggo Low Fat Homestyle Waffles are King of Breakfast Foods.

I suppose that the Eggo branch of Kellogg’s has been given some kind of kick in the pants recently because the division has unleashed a cascade of new products within the past few months. One of these is the low-fat version of their Homestyle frozen waffles, already a pretty tasty product. It wasn’t a bad idea to make a more healthful and nutritious Homestyle waffle, especially since the only other low-fat Eggo waffle options were the positively ancient Low Fat Nutri-Grain waffles. It’s just that “healthier” shouldn’t mean “less delicious” or “boring.”

Kellogg's Eggo Low Fat Homestyle Waffles Closeup

Like most other Eggo frozen waffles, Low Fat Homestyle Waffles come in serving sizes of two. After toasting, they come out a lovely golden brown, smell great, and have a nice, crisp exterior upon first bite. But here’s where things go south. The texture of the Low Fat Homestyle waffle is rather chewy… much different than the full-fat version. It’s also not very flavorful, which is puzzling considering the aroma encourages visions of buttery, delicious homemade batter being poured into a waffle iron. Not so. These were some of the most uninspiring waffles I’ve ever eaten. And that means a lot coming from someone who’s frequently motivated to break into dance moves whenever she eats something delicious.

So, those of us who may want a lighter waffle breakfast are stuck with the somewhat rubbery, less-tasty version of the original Eggo’s Homestyle waffles. It’s not a terrible breakfast option, just blah. When you dine on Kellogg’s Eggo Low Fat Homestyle waffles, you’re firmly planted in Bland Town. And Bland Town, while clean and filled with nice, inoffensive residents who smile casually when they see you, maybe even tip their hats (because hats are still in fashion), is not where it’s at. Bland Town is a nice place to visit, but I wouldn’t want to live there, if you catch my drift.

(Nutrition Facts – 2 waffles – 160 calories, 20 calories from fat, 2.5 grams of fat, 0.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 15 milligrams of cholesterol, 280 milligrams of sodium, 65 milligrams of potassium, 31 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, 4 grams of sugar, and 4 grams of protein.)

Other Kellogg’s Eggo Low Fat Homestyle Waffles reviews:
Option Pitch and Waffle Crisp

Item: Kellogg’s Eggo Low Fat Homestyle Waffles
Price: $3.99
Size: 12.3 oz/10 waffles
Purchased at: Pavilions
Rating: 5 out of 10 (The perfect “meh” rating.)
Pros: Mild and inoffensive. Low in fat. Crispy and golden brown. The dulcet tones of Bob Ross.
Cons: Living in Bland Town. Chewy, rubbery texture. Spicy urban legends. Beard music.

NEWS: Nabisco Continues Oreo’s 100th Birthday Celebration With Limited Edition Birthday Cake Golden Oreo Fudge Cremes

Candled cake

Remember Golden Oreo Fudge Cremes?

Remember Limited Edition Birthday Cake Oreo cookies?

Now imagine Birthday Cake Oreo pointing a gun at Golden Oreo Fudge Cremes and telling it to strip down to its tight-whitey creme. Then Birthday Cake Oreo takes off its chocolate cookies and puts on Golden Oreo Fudge Cremes’ golden Oreo cookie and fudge coating, and then runs away in a candy sprinkle storm. If you can imagine that, then you can imagine what Nabisco’s new Limited Edition Birthday Cake Golden Oreo Fudge Cremes look like.

The naturally and artificially flavored fudge covered cookies with birthday cake flavored creme will be available in 11.3 ounce packages, but we don’t know when they’ll start showing up on store shelves or if they’re already available. If you’ve seen them or tried them, please let us know in the comments below.

Three cookies have 180 calories, 80 calories from fat, 9 grams of fat, 5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat*, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 55 milligrams of sodium, 25 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, 18 grams of sugar, and less than 1 gram of protein.

*contains partially hydrogenated oil

Image via flickr user moonlightbulb / CC BY 2.0

REVIEW: Häagen-Dazs Limited Edition Salted Caramel Truffle Ice Cream

Haagen-Dazs Salted Caramel Truffle

Just like yours truly in the bedroom, Häagen-Dazs ice cream doesn’t disappoint. I’ve purchased a number of Häagen-Dazs varieties and, just like 99 cent, physics-based iPhone games, they’re really hard to put down and I can’t say I’ve disliked any of them.

The only thing I don’t like about Häagen-Dazs is having to put that damn umlaut above the first “a” and remembering to include the hyphen whenever I type their name.

Häagen-Dazs’ Limited Edition Salted Caramel Truffle ice cream is another Häagen-Dazs flavor I’ve had trouble putting the lid back on and sticking back in the freezer. I want to eat the whole not-quite-a-pint container in one sitting, but I can’t. The only thing that prevents me from doing so is looking at the nutrition facts and calculating how much saturated fat, calories, and sugar I’d be consuming if I did so.

By the way, in case you were wondering, if I did eat the entire container, I’d take in 38.5 grams of saturated fat, or 192.5 percent of my recommended daily allowance; 980 calories; and 87.5 grams of sugar.

If you enjoy caramel, the Häagen-Dazs Limited Edition Salted Caramel Truffle ice cream has enough of it that it should be arrested For Unlawful Caramel Knowledge. The ice cream consists of sweet-cream ice cream, salted caramel ribbons, and chocolatey salted caramel truffles. What’s “sweet-cream ice cream”? After tasting it, it’s just a fancy way of saying vanilla ice cream.

Haagen-Dazs Salted Caramel Truffle Closeup

But back to the caramel. The salted caramel ribbons are rich and buttery, but, to be honest, the salted caramel didn’t taste any different from regular caramel. Häagen-Dazs says the French fleur de sel influenced this ice cream, so I was hoping there would be a slight salty crunch, but there wasn’t one.

There are lots of chocolatey salted caramel truffles. In fact, I’ve gone through half of the container, and I’ve been able to scoop one up with each spoonful. Though they’re sitting in frozen cream, the truffles aren’t rock hard, and, surprisingly, they’re more caramel-y than chocolatey in flavor.

Despite all the niggles I have with the Häagen-Dazs Limited Edition Salted Caramel Truffle Ice Cream, I really enjoyed it. But that’s because I love caramel. Thank goodness for the FDA-required nutrition label, because without it I’d eat a lot of this delicious ice cream.

(Nutrition Facts – 1/2 cup – 280 calories, 150 calories from fat, 17 grams of fat, 11 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 75 milligrams of cholesterol, 160 milligrams of sodium, 28 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 25 grams of sugar, and 4 grams of protein.)

Item: Häagen-Dazs Limited Edition Salted Caramel Truffle Ice Cream
Price: $4.69
Size: 14 ounces
Purchased at: Safeway
Rating: 7 out of 10
Pros: If you love caramel, you’ll enjoy this ice cream. Creamy sweet-cream ice cream. Slightly addictive. FDA-required nutrition labels. Rich and buttery caramel ribbons. Lots of truffles.
Cons: Limited edition flavor available from February to December. No salt granules to provide crunch. Salted caramel doesn’t taste any different than regular caramel. Constantly forgetting how to add an umlaut.

PRIZE DRAWING: Because I Want To Feed Your Starbucks Addiction

This month, the Impulsive Buy will be giving away a $25 Starbucks gift card to one lucky reader. For some of you, that’s a work week’s worth of Starbucks coffee. For others, that’s two or three days of Starbucks. And for one or two super-hyper people, a $25 Starbucks gift card will sustain them for less than eight hours.

To enter The Impulsive Buy’s Starbucks gift card drawing, leave a comment with THIS post. I don’t care what you say in your comment, but it would be awesome if you shared your go to Starbucks drink. Or leave behind the name of the barista you have a crush on.

Please don’t forget to fill out the email field because I’ll be emailing the winner for his or her mailing address. The Impulsive Buy will stop accepting entries on Wednesday, February 29, 2012 11:59 p.m. Hawaii Standard Time. Only one comment allowed per person, and it’s only open to U.S. residents who are at least 18 years old.

For those of you who have a Twitter account, you can get an additional entry by tweeting the following by Wednesday, February 29, 2012 11:59 p.m. Hawaii Standard Time:

@theimpulsivebuy The barista at this @starbucks is hotter than the coffee (he or she) is serving. #tsss

So just copy, paste, make the appropriate changes, and tweet. Only one tweet per Twitter account.

Good luck!

Fine Print: Starbucks is not affiliated with this prize drawing. The Impulsive Buy promises your email address will not be used to send you emails of things that were proven false on Snopes. The Impulsive Buy also promises your mailing address will not be used to send you Macy’s ads. Bribes will not be accepted. The Impulsive Buy will not be responsible for lost mail, damaged mail, or the long lines at Starbucks.