NOT FOOD: General Mills Cereal Scented Candles
Basic 4 Cereal gets the shaft AGAIN! But it looks like Reese’s Puffs and Cinnamon Toast Crunch got the shaft too. (Spotted by Robbie at Target.)
REVIEW: Taco Bell Cheesy Double Beef Burrito (2022)
Taco Bell’s website describes its Cheesy Double Beef Burrito as having “seasoned rice, seasoned beef, nacho cheese sauce, fiesta strips, three cheese blend, reduced fat sour cream wrapped in a warm tortilla.”
Oh, I’m sorry. I copied and pasted the ingredients for Taco Bell’s Beefy Melt Burrito.
Here’s what the website says the Cheesy Double Beef Burrito has: Double the seasoned beef as compared to a Crunchy Taco, seasoned rice, nacho cheese sauce, fiesta strips, reduced fat sour cream, and a three-cheese blend wrapped in a warm flour tortilla.
Hey, wait a minute. So the Cheesy Double Beef Burrito is a beefier Beefy Melt Burrito, or a Beeeefy Melt Burrito, if you will.
If you’re a regular Taco Bell-er I’m sure you already recognized this. And being so astute when it comes to all things Taco Bell, you probably knew there was a Cheesy Double Beef Burrito before that didn’t have the fiesta strips and sour cream.
As for how it tastes, well, the first thought that popped into my head after taking a bite was that it tastes like what I imagine is the textbook flavor definition of Taco Bell. And that’s because there’s nothing unique about the combination of ingredients, nor is there something that makes this product special, like Frito-Lay chips or a new sauce.
If you’ve eaten many different Taco Bell products over the years, there’s a 99 percent chance that you’ve eaten something with the combination of seasoned beef, seasoned rice, nacho cheese sauce, three cheese blend, and reduced fat sour cream. And let’s face it, the seasoned rice is more for filler than flavor, and the three cheese blend’s flavor gets lost when paired with nacho cheese sauce. So the ingredients that really get noticed here by my tongue are beef, nacho cheese, and sour cream, and I don’t have enough fingers to count the number of times those three ended up in the same product.
I will admit I was surprised by this burrito’s heft. I guess having double the seasoned beef as a crunchy taco makes a difference. Also, the fiesta strips still had some crunch even after I drove home and took photos.
Is it good? Yeah, it’s good. Is it inventive? No. Would I order it again? If I could buy it at the $2 advertised price, definitely. Even at the $3.59 price I paid because I live on a rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean where everything is more expensive, I probably would.
Purchased Price: $3.59
Size: N/A
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 620 calories, 30 grams of fat, 12 grams of saturated fat, 0.5 grams of trans fat, 60 milligrams of cholesterol, 1440 milligrams of sodium, 64 grams of carbohydrates, 7 grams of fiber, 4 grams of sugar, and 24 grams of protein.
SPOTTED: 7/8/2022
Here are some interesting new products found on store shelves by your fellow readers. If you’ve tried any of them, share your thoughts in the comments.
(Spotted by Amanda Y at Walmart.)
(Spotted by Robbie at H-E-B.)
(Spotted by Amanda Y at Kroger.)
(Spotted by Amanda Y at Kroger.)
(Spotted by Sarah R at Whole Foods.)
(Spotted by Amanda Y at Target.)
(Spotted by Sarah R at Whole Foods.)
(Spotted by Erin K at Target.)
SPOTTED: Nick’s Key Lime Pie Swedish-style Light Ice Cream
It’s key lime pie-flavored products season! Yes, Key Lime Pie M&M’s came out in January 2021 and Key Lime Pie Kit Kat came out in April 2021, but I think of it as a summer flavor. (See Key Lime Pie Oreo.) In my gut, it’ll always be a summer flavor. (Spotted by Tommy at Market Basket)
REVIEW: Dairy Queen Caramel Drumstick with Peanuts Blizzard
What is it?
Dairy Queen’s Caramel Drumstick with Peanuts Blizzard is proof that whoever decides the new Blizzard flavors used a bunch of vacation time recently because this “new” treat isn’t really that new. It’s similar to the Nestle Drumstick Blizzard we reviewed a couple years ago with Drumstick pieces and peanuts, except this version adds caramel (and drops the Nestle name). DQ is also offering a Drumstick Blizzard without caramel.
How is it?
I gave the original Drumstick Blizzard a 9-rating, and the addition of caramel to this version is an improvement, so the laws of math dictate that I must give this a perfect 10!
I’d also like to congratulate the DQ person who greenlit this flavor for getting maximum results with minimal effort, which is something I strive for every day. This might not be how it actually happened, but I can’t help thinking the Chief Executive of Blizzards was on a beach in Tahiti when his or her phone rang. It was DQ headquarters asking what the next new flavor was going to be. Now this person didn’t get into their position without being a quick thinker, so they pretended like all kinds of extensive research and focus group interviews went into this new flavor, even though all they did was add caramel to that Drumstick Blizzard from two years ago. OK, maybe that’s not how it went, but the results are wonderful just the same.
The best parts of this Blizzard are the Drumstick pieces, which are waffle cone squares covered in chocolate. The cone pieces remained delightfully crunchy inside their little chocolate blankets and the peanuts, which were pulverized into tiny morsels, added a bit of a different texture and a subtle but welcome saltiness. Then the caramel jumps in and hits you with a rich, creamy sweetness that makes this one of my all-time favorite Blizzards.
Anything else you need to know?
This flavor appears to just be a late addition to the DQ Summer Blizzard Menu rather than officially being named the July Blizzard of the Month (even though it was launched on July 1). So this flavor will probably hang around until at least the end of August.
Conclusion:
Even with Blizzards that I really enjoy, I can usually come up with at least a minor gripe or a suggestion to make it just a little bit better. In this case, I really can’t, and I’ll be sad to see this one go, whenever that might be.
Purchased Price: $4.49
Size: Small
Rating: 10 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (Small) 690 calories, 33 grams of fat, 22 grams of saturated fat, 0.5 grams of trans fat, 45 milligrams of cholesterol, 250 milligrams of sodium, 82 grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of dietary fiber, 66 grams of sugar, and 16 grams of protein.