A long time ago, I publicly wrote that I think Pillsbury should start making things for us instead of having us bake or cook everything ourselves. With Pillsbury cookies and these Funfetti frozen mini pancakes, it makes me feel as if Pillsbury is listening to lazy people like me. (Spotted by Amanda Y at Kroger.)
Oreo Thins debuted in 2015 as a thinner, crispier iteration of America’s Favorite Cookie. Initial reactions were varied — are these the Diet Coke of Oreo? Are these supposed to be marketed as a higher volume, lower calorie cookie? Or something else entirely?
While it is true that Thins carry a greater caloric bang for your buck, with four cookies equaling the calories of two regular Oreo, I view these as something entirely different: a satisfying crispy bite that falls somewhere between an OG Oreo wafer and an airier, Kit Kat-adjacent bite.
Their gentle crunch is notably unique when compared to the more abrasive classic wafer, and I really enjoy it. As much as I enjoyed the Thins and their various flavor offshoots, I’ve always had one qualm — I want more creme filling! Nearly seven years after their debut, Nabisco has answered my (silent) call with Oreo Thins Extra Stuf.
Notably, these aren’t Double Stuf, but “extra.” So exactly how much is extra? My gut feeling is that it’s even more than double the creme amount from original Oreo Thins, which is interesting because why not call it Double? Double Stuf is the pinnacle of Oreo perfection and applying that iconic title to the Thins line simply makes sense. But perhaps it’s too tricky because these don’t have the same amount of filling as full-sized Double Stuf. Okay, I’m confusing myself now. Either way, I’m not going to complain, there’s more than enough creme in there, and it’s great.
The creme is so much more pronounced than original Thins. It pushes against the thin and crispy wafer and really lets its presence be FELT. The taste is the same that you’ve known (and worshiped?) for your entire life, and the cookie has a gentle crunch, but it isn’t crumbly or lacking structural integrity. Bittersweet crunchy cocoa meets smooth sweet and sugary creme filling. What’s not to love?
The most exciting aspect of this overdue upgrade to the Thins line is the possibility of Extra Stuf’d limited offerings down the road. Thins have had a handful of more “adult” flavors never offered as full-sized big bro Oreo, most notably Coconut and Pistachio, that I would love to see beefed up with some extra creme.
Oreo Thins Extra Stuf feels like the rare product that has the potential to win over both fans and skeptics of the original release. If you liked the original version, you’d probably dig these, and if you didn’t, that extra Stuf might make you a believer.
Purchased Price: $3.49
Size: 13.97 ounces
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (3 Cookies) 130 calories, 6 grams of fat, 2 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 70 milligrams of sodium, 19 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, 12 grams of sugar, and less than 1 gram of protein.
I’ve always been astounded by the different types of vanilla ice cream with some brands. It doesn’t begin and end with vanilla. A quick look at Dreyer’s site tells me it has French Vanilla, Vanilla Bean, and a regular Vanilla. Breyers has Extra Creamy Vanilla, Natural Vanilla, Homemade Vanilla, and French Vanilla.
For many years, the two biggest coffee creamer brands haven’t expanded their vanilla portfolios beyond French Vanilla. But that has changed for Coffee mate with the rollout of its new Vanilla Bean variety. I’ll admit, it’s not as glamorous as the Rice Krispies Treats and Golden Grahams creamers that the brand introduced at the same time, but it’s nice to have another basic vanilla flavor.
If you’re wondering, unlike the ice cream, no vanilla bean specks are floating in this. I mean, I didn’t expect there would be because who wants something that looks like coffee grinds to be floating in their coffee.
The creamer smells like vanilla frosting and, straight out of the bottle and into my mouth, it tastes like a combination of frosting and ice cream. I’m not going to say it’s specifically vanilla bean ice cream, though.
I find it a bit more vanilla-y than Coffee mate’s French Vanilla. However, in coffee, its flavor doesn’t stand out as much as the older vanilla creamer does, which causes me to add more than I usually do to hide the coffee’s taste adequately, and in turn, I go through a bottle quicker.
That’s not a complete deal-breaker because this is still a perfectly okay tasting creamer. But when I’m half awake and don’t even know what day it is, I don’t think I’d like to be reminded every morning that I need to add more creamer than usual by taking my first sip of the day and then muttering “dammit” because I can still strongly taste the cheap McCafe ground coffee I use.
I had high hopes for this variety because last year’s Coffee mate Caramel was surprisingly great for a basic flavor. It had a potent, natural-ish taste when mixed in my coffee. Also, I was hoping for something I could occasionally switch with French Vanilla since I’ve had it way too many times, thanks to it being two bottles of a Coffee mate refrigerated creamer 3-pack that Costco sells. But it appears I’ll still be sticking with it and the Cold Stone Creamery Sweet Cream flavor that the other big creamer brand sells.
Maybe Coffee mate will add another vanilla variety someday. Might I recommend Extra Creamy Vanilla, Natural Vanilla, or Homemade Vanilla?
DISCLOSURE: I received a free product sample from Coffee mate. Doing so did not influence my review.
Purchased Price: FREE
Size: 32 fl oz bottle
Purchased at: Received from Coffee mate
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 tbsp) 35 calories, 1.5 grams of fat, 0 grams of saturated fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 10 milligrams of sodium, 5 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 5 grams of sugar (including 5 grams of added sugar), and 0 grams of protein.
Breyers used to make Oreo and Chips Ahoy ice…frozen dairy dessert. But, according to @CandyHunting, Nestle has the rights to the branding now. Don’t cry for Breyers, though. It still has M&M’s, Reese’s, Snickers, Heath, and Cinnabon…for now. (Spotted by David P at Meijer.)
As a part of the TIB community, I’m sure it comes as no surprise that I enjoy, or well, would TRY any flavor release that the whackos in the Frito-Lay flavor labs concoct. That commitment hits nary a roadblock when I see they’ve come up with a new chip format! No, crisp! No, “crispy layered potato bites.” Alright, fine, that. Gimme it!
Lay’s Layers come in two crowd-pleasing and fairly standard flavors — Sour Cream & Onion and Three Cheese. I’m on board with the flavors since the “New” aspect of this snack is absolutely its extruded physical format. And yes, Frito-Lay does make Doritos 3D, which initially launched in the ’90s and made a nostalgic comeback last year. Does anyone remember the mini 3D Doritos snack tube? That thing blew my middle-school brain. However, those are corn-based and only contain a single plebian layer! Lay’s Layers are potato-based and have a whole second floor of crunch — an ENTIRELY new snack.
I decided to start with the Sour Cream & Onion flavor and was immediately unimpressed at the level of air in the bag but assumed this must be the case as they don’t want all those painstakingly created layers to get crushed. The next thing I noticed was how incredibly crunchy the layers are. When you munch on these, everyone within earshot will know. The texture reminded me of Bugles (not affiliated with Frito-Lay) but much lighter and broke down faster in the mouth, presumably because they are made from potato, not cornmeal. The Sour Cream & Onion flavor was light, but something was off about the aftertaste. I think it’s tough to deliver such an iconic flavor profile in a new format, but while I enjoyed eating these, the lingering flavor in my mouth was like onion-flavored potato powder. Not the best.
I should also mention that I don’t believe I encountered a single one that maintained the perfectly circular shape as advertised on the front of the bag. It didn’t detract from the crunch delivery, but that little Pepsi logo shape is definitely not what these look like IRL.
Moving on to the Three Cheese, I was encouraged by the vibrant color and hoped this would indicate its cheese flavor level. I mean, if you’re going to claim you used three, it better taste cheesy. Much to my delight, the Three Cheese Layers were spot on, and the lingering potato taste wasn’t nearly as prevalent. They were crunchy, salty, cheesy, and reminded me very much of Cheddar & Sour Cream Ruffles but without so much oily residue. There was no mention of sour cream in the ingredient line, but I did catch buttermilk and onion powder, so maybe that’s where that profile came from? Either way, a winner in my book.
Overall I’d say Frito Lay is on to something with this format. The added crunch layer delivers a new texture experience, but they have a bit of an aftertaste curveball to manage with the lingering dehydrated potato flavor. I’ll be eagerly awaiting the next flavor iterations.
Purchased Price: $3.99 each
Size: 4.75oz Bag
Purchased at: Mariano’s (a Kroger store)
Rating: 6 out of 10 (Sour Cream & Onion), 9 out of 10 (Three Cheese)
Nutrition Facts: (22 pieces) Sour Cream & Onion – 150 calories, 10 grams of fat, 1.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 200 milligrams of sodium, 14 grams of carbohydrates, and less than 1 gram of protein. Three Cheese – 150 calories, 10 grams of fat, 1.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 200 milligrams of sodium, 15 grams of carbohydrates, and less than 1 gram of protein.
