Tag: Candy

REVIEW: Reese’s Dipped Animal Crackers

Marvo 26 Comments

I wasn’t planning on writing about these Reese’s Dipped Animal Crackers, but after getting sent some and devouring a bag about five minutes after opening it, I felt compelled to let people know how awesome they are.

These have been available for several weeks, and when I first learned about them, I rolled my eyes and said out loud to myself, “ANOTHER Reese’s product that probably doesn’t remind me of Reese’s at all.” From what I’ve noticed, when it comes to most products that are Reese’s branded, besides the actual candies, they have a more generic peanut butter and chocolate flavor. They don’t scream Reese’s. They scream an opportunity to make some money with the Reese’s name.

But after one bite of these Reese’s Dipped Animal Crackers, they made me shut my mouth because they proved me wrong, and it would be rude of me to chew these with my mouth open. I wouldn’t want any of this delectable snack to go flying out of my face.

Each animal cracker is dipped in a peanut butter-flavored candy, and then their bottom sides are dipped into milk chocolate. The peanut butter-flavored creme’s texture isn’t gritty like what’s inside a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup, Egg, Pumpkin, Tree, Mystery Shape, or whatever. It’s the same as the chocolate.

As for their flavor, saying they remind me of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups would be quite right. Instead, they’re more like Reese’s Eggs and Pumpkins, which I think have a slightly better peanut butter-to-chocolate ratio than the regular cups. Just having that flavor would’ve made an excellent product, but rumbling in soon after the sweet and salty hit my taste buds is the rattling crunch from the animal crackers. It’s a better crunch than ANYTHING Reese’s has stuffed into a peanut butter cup. And that cracker’s flavor doesn’t distract from the taste of the candy coatings.

While they have great flavor and texture, even with a barely passing grade in intro college zoology, I can’t tell what animals are coated in chocolate and peanut butter-flavored candy. Is it a bear? It could also be a rock with legs. Is it a lion? It could also be a rock with legs. They’re all mystery blobs to me. But who cares about that because this is the Best Reese’s Product That Isn’t Completely A Candy I’ve ever had.

Again, these have been out for weeks, so I imagine many of you have already tried them. But if you’re like me and haven’t because you pooh-poohed them, you should give them a chance because I woo-hoo them.

DISCLOSURE: I received free product samples from Hershey’s. Doing so did not influence my review.

Purchased Price: FREE
Size: 4.25 oz bag
Purchased at: N/A
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (4 pieces) 150 calories, 7 grams of fat, 5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 70 milligrams of sodium, 20 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 11 grams of sugar (including 10 grams of added sugar), and 3 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Hershey’s Chocolate Dipped Strawberry Kisses

Mark 7 Comments

What are they?

The package describes these new Valentine’s Day Kisses as “extra creamy milk chocolate with strawberry flavored center.”

How are they?

These Kisses have the same chocolate that the other filled Kisses have. It’s a little different from the solid Kisses, but it’s largely a vehicle for the filling.

The filling in this case is bright red, and I don’t know if I would have pegged the flavor as strawberry if the wrapper and the plume didn’t tell me.

I enjoy this candy, but it’s not one I would miss if it didn’t come back. It’s excessively sweet, and I say that as someone with a tremendous sweet tooth.

Anything else you need to know?

If the description sounds familiar, it should: I’m pretty sure these are exactly the same as Vampire Kisses the company has released for Halloween.

It might seem weird to recycle Halloween candy for Valentine’s Day, but they’re practically the same holiday. You don’t get the day off of work or school, and they both use candy to market age-inappropriate things to children (horror and romance).

The flavor itself might be more appropriate for February, but I prefer the blood-red concept for October. So many other candies use the strawberry chocolate flavor this time of year, and they execute it better.

Conclusion:

Hershey’s Chocolate Dipped Strawberry Kisses are fine and passable. They would be great in a Valentine’s goody bag. But the seasonal aisle is full of better and more interesting candies.

Purchased Price: $3.99
Size: 9 oz bag
Purchased at: Target
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (6 pieces) 120 calories, 5 grams of fat, 3 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, less than 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 20 milligrams of sodium, 18 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of dietary fiber, 16 grams of sugar including 13 grams of added sugar, and 2 grams of protein.

REVIEW: White Chocolate Marshmallow Crispy Treat M&M’s

Julie 3 Comments

I found White Chocolate Marshmallow Crispy Treat M&M’s at Sheetz on the first day I bothered to leave my home post-holiday and post-blizzard. Nestled on the shelf between springtime staples Reese’s Peanut Butter Eggs and Cadbury Creme Eggs, these new M&M’s consist of marshmallow-flavored white chocolate and a crisped rice center.

Although Mars previously released White Chocolate Marshmallow M&M’s in 2019, I was intrigued by the product and wondered: “Could White Chocolate Marshmallow Crispy Treat M&M’s be the perfect springtime treat?” If spring is the season of rebirth and renewal, fruit and floral flavors should step aside. Marshmallows deserve the springtime crown. After all, crispy cereal treats promise a second life to those stale marshmallows that never made it into your cocoa mug this winter. Still very much in the depths of winter, I look forward to renewing my pantry long before the first day of spring arrives.

Eager to test my theory and the product, I bought a Share Size package and was struck by the candy’s beautiful pastel color palette of yellow, blue, coral, and pink. Generally small and pebble-like, these M&M’s are smaller than the standard plain variety, comparable in size to the recent Milk Chocolate Honey Graham flavor. However, these M&M’s vary widely in size and shape. This variance, coupled with the candy’s lovely colors, reminds me of colorful aquarium gravel (aka “Forbidden Fruity Pebbles”) in the best possible way.

The small bites proved to be a great choice because the crispy center core added satisfying texture and balance to the white chocolate’s sweetness. The texture definitely enhances the candy and is a perfect representation of a crispy cereal treat. Even though the texture suggests crispy cereal treat so strongly, the marshmallow flavor underwhelms. It’s subtle and hard to recreate. This attempt reminds me of marshmallow fondant: sugary with a hint of artificial vanilla. The taste is definitely not bad, as evidenced by how easily I downed half a bag. The flavor just reminds me more of “white chocolate with a memory of marshmallow” than actual marshmallow.

This next detail didn’t factor into my rating, but I felt the need to share. Because the candies are irregularly-shaped, some of the M’s do not appear fully on every shell. At first, I thought the partial M’s were intended as other letters, spelling out a spring-themed message. For someone who loves words, I am terrible at Scrabble, especially when the only letters at my disposal are M, N, U, and I. (Plus that sideways M that looks like an E.) U MINE? Yikes.

Overall, the crispy texture of White Chocolate Marshmallow Crispy M&M’s offers an improvement upon the 2019 White Chocolate Marshmallow variety. I liked them less than other white chocolate offerings, especially the Key Lime Pie flavor. Maybe fruit flavors should keep the springtime flavor crown, but marshmallow should be assured that there is no shame in second place.

Purchased Price: $2.89
Size: 3.22 oz (91.3 g) – Share Size
Purchased at: Sheetz
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (per 1 serving, or 1/3 Share Size package) 150 calories, 7 grams of fat, 4 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, less than 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 50 milligrams of sodium, 22 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 18 grams of sugar, and 1 gram of protein.

REVIEW: Milky Way Cookie Dough Bar

Julie 6 Comments

What is it?

The Milky Way Cookie Dough bar consists of caramel and cookie dough-flavored nougat enrobed in milk chocolate. Look for its pink metallic wrapper beckoning to you from the candy aisle.

How is it?

The weight of my expectations fell on this Milky Way’s nougat, which is responsible for the bar’s cookie dough flavor. Cross-sectioned, the bar doesn’t look very different from a classic Milky Way. The nougat is a couple of shades darker, but it still has the fluffy texture one would expect from the brand. I thought I might find tiny chocolate chips flecked in the nougat to drive home the cookie dough theme, but no dice.

It takes a few chews for the cookie dough flavor to come through, and once it does, it is lovely. The nougat tastes buttery with hints of vanilla, a combination that definitely recalls cookie dough. Some textural element — those missing chips or a chewier nougat, maybe — could have reinforced that sensation of plucking gobs of cookie dough from the mixing bowl. But Milky Ways are all about their smooth centers, so I understand and respect the choice not to deviate too far from what is already a great thing.

Combined with the milk chocolate and caramel, this variety of Milky Way is a tempting addition to the candy aisle. I would choose Milky Way Cookie Dough over the classic Milky Way, but probably not over Milky Way Midnight (a criminally underrated bar).

Anything else you need to know?

Because one cookie is never enough, Twix has also recently released a Cookie Dough variety. Now you’ll have two metallic pink wrappers beckoning to you from the candy aisle.

Conclusion:

As any cookie dough recipe might attest, minor substitutions can yield positive changes. The Milky Way Cookie Dough bar’s flavorful nougat is simple, but it creates a delicious twist on a classic.

Purchased Price: $1.98
Size: 3.16 oz (89.6 g) – Share Size
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (per 1 serving, or 1/2 Share Size package) 210 calories, 8 grams of fat, 5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, less than 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 65 milligrams of sodium, 32 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 28 grams of sugar, and 2 grams of protein.

REVIEW: White Chocolate Strawberry Shake M&M’s

Jenna 3 Comments

I must admit that my relationship with these new White Chocolate Strawberry Shake M&M’s – whose rosy, heart-filled packaging seems tailor-made for Valentine’s Day – began with a bit of a shock. In my state of simultaneous and equally intense hunger and excitement, I may have forgotten to actually look closely at the bag, which clearly shows the three M&M colors that less impatient consumers can expect, before ripping it open. So I was baffled to see a sea of green in addition to the more strawberry-centric reds and pinks.

Of course, I’d already spent a not-insignificant portion of my own green to secure this bag (this flavor doesn’t seem to be widely available yet, so in my eagerness to review, I purchased – and, sure, overpaid for – these from a third-party seller on Walmart.com), so a little confusing coloration wasn’t going to deter me. Plus, I guess you could argue that the green represents the stem of the strawberry? Alternatively, maybe it was just an excuse to get that glamorous green M&M mascot on the packaging, and that’s fair!

Anyway, the aforementioned frenzied bag tearing released a welcome cloud of sweet smells into my room, appropriately strawberry-y but with a strongly saccharine underlying note that seemed ever so slightly artificial, a tell-tale sign of white chocolate’s presence. I reached into the generously filled bag to start my taste test and was immediately amused that the size and shape seemed to vary for each individual piece, from “normal M&M that just put on some weight during the holidays” to “Noticeably Larger and Chunkier” to “DOWNRIGHT SPHERICAL.”

So, how do these sometimes mysteriously colored, pleasantly fragrant, and appealingly rotund M&M’s actually taste? Anyone fearing that the “White Chocolate Strawberry Milkshake” name was just a ploy to re-release an old flavor under a fresher title (2016’s White Strawberry Shortcake might come to mind) can rest assured that they actually live up to the moniker quite well.

The “milkshake” element promises a creaminess that is certainly delivered, with the white chocolate providing a lovely, rich, just-short-of-being-too-sweet base for the strawberry flavor, a mellow, floral fruitiness that is identifiable but not overpowering. Sure, this means that the general taste skews a tad more milkshake than it does strawberry, but with my (some might say controversial) love of white chocolate, that wasn’t a problem for me. I can see others begging to differ, but hey, we’re here on a blog that reviews junk food, not fruit! I particularly enjoyed the texture too – you know that oddly satisfying snap when you break through an M&M’s candy shell and sink your teeth into the smooth, rich chocolate within? Since these are so hefty, that moment is gloriously amplified.

The recommended serving size is 16 pieces, and if all my praise-singing thus far isn’t enough of a testament to how tasty they are, I should also let you know that in the course of reviewing I consumed significantly more than that without even realizing. Pringles talks a big game with its “Once you pop, you can’t stop,” but I think these are addictive enough to merit their own rhymey slogan too. “Once you M&M, you won’t condemn”? … Okay, it’s a work in progress. One I won’t mind brainstorming over just a few more handfuls!

Purchased Price: $6.25
Size: 7.44 oz bag
Purchased at: Walmart.com
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (16 pieces) 140 calories, 7 grams of fat, 4.5 grams of saturated fat, less than 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 25 milligrams of sodium, 19 grams of carbohydrates, 18 grams of sugar, and 1 gram of protein.