Nabisco’s perpetual announcements of new Oreo flavors elicit varied feelings of jubilation, shock, and disgust from the general public. I, for one, was delighted when I learned they were releasing Carrot Cake Oreo, since carrot cake is my all-time favorite dessert.

Just like everyone else, I was surprised that this seemingly Easter-themed cookie was being released in early January. But if you don’t like that, you don’t have to buy it yet.

When I first opened the package, I got a strong whiff of the “cream cheese frosting flavor creme,” which I will just call “creme cheese.” On second thought, that sounds terrible. Even though the creme doesn’t use any real cream cheese, the aroma is spot on.

When I bit into the first cookie, I was amazed. Nabisco nailed it! It really does taste like carrot cake! There’s a bit of an aftertaste that doesn’t exactly mimic a real cake, but that’s a minor quibble.

Next, I isolated the elements. The creme tastes exactly like cream cheese frosting. I don’t know how they did it without any dairy products, but it works. (If you don’t like cream cheese frosting, stay far, far away.) It’s probably the same filling they use in the Red Velvet variety, but I didn’t compare them side by side.

On its own, the cookie is only vaguely reminiscent of carrot cake. It tastes like a graham cracker with spices; in fact, I’m guessing they took the graham cookie they use for some of the pie flavors and added “spice” to it. (“Spice” is what is named on the ingredient list.) But I’m not complaining, because it’s still a fine cookie, and it works so well with the filling. There might also be some orange-colored specks in there; it’s hard to tell.

Unfortunately, there are no carrots in the ingredients, so the stereotypes don’t apply here. These cookies won’t give you better eyesight, your pet rabbit won’t like them, and you won’t turn orange from eating too many.

Of course, any Oreo must be tried with milk. For this particular flavor, I didn’t much care for it when I dunked it. It made the cream cheese creme far too overpowering. But I did enjoy having the milk on the side.

I like my carrot cakes soft and moist. (I know some of you hate that word, but I don’t care. Moist moist moist!) If, however, you’re craving a carrot cake that is crunchy and dry, this is exactly what you need.

Purchased Price: $2.99
Size: 12.2 oz. package
Purchased at: Target
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (2 cookies) 140 calories, 6 grams of total fat, 2 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 65 milligrams of sodium, 21 grams of total carbohydrates, 0 grams of dietary fiber, 13 grams of total sugars, 13 grams of added sugars, and less than 1 gram of protein.

Oreo ended 2018 in peak novelty fashion with the release of the Oreo Music Box – a tiny turntable that “plays” Oreo cookies. Place any regulation-size Oreo on the disc and you’ll hear a selection of pre-loaded music. You can also record your own audio that subsequently gets tacked onto the start of the music. It comes in a tin with a selection of Oreos inside (as if anyone who would buy this doesn’t already have a stash?)

I was really happy to see an Oreo holiday item that wasn’t flavor-related. I love the flavor releases, but I appreciate it when well-known brands go deep with imagination and whimsy. This product debuted in China in Fall of 2017. I was thrilled to hear it was landing on our shores and even more so to find one under my Christmas tree.

The music box itself felt surprisingly sturdy, despite the cardboard and plastic exterior. When I placed an Oreo on and moved the stylus into place, it did “play” music. The volume was decent, and audio quality was exactly what I expected – not great, but not bad for what was essentially a novelty toy.

As promised, as I bit chunks from the cookie, the music tracks changed. Each cut was a slightly different take on a vaguely familiar tune I think I’d heard in past Oreo campaigns. Adorable! I was a little disappointed there was no way to program your own music or audio beyond the 30-second record feature.

The record feature also worked fine, although the volume was a notch lower than the pre-loaded music and the instructions had error in them. (The double red light never appeared – it went right to green and was recording.)

I say “play” in quotes because this music box doesn’t work like a record player. It’s not reading information stored in the cookie. It’s reading the presence and position of an object on the turntable to trigger a programmed audio clip.

As best I can tell, it works based on five sensors on the turntable. As long as one of them is covered by a solid object, it will spin and “play.” I tried it with various objects – a Wheat Thin, a pat of butter, a quarter and a tiny slip of paper. The only one that didn’t work was the paper, I suspect because the light in the stylus could shine through to the sensor.

This is a great gift for an Oreo-lover or toy for a child. It’s cute and does exactly what it says. I loved it. It’s well-made and could last, but the limited audio options make it something that may not hold attention long. The price point is a bit high for a novelty you use a handful of times, but possibly worth it in sheer delight.

Music Courtesy of Loyalty Freak Music.

Purchased Price: $19.99
Size: N/A
Purchased at: Amazon
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: N/A

Hey, did you guys finish your Halloween ensemble yet?

Are you starting to think about which side dishes you’re gonna be cooking up for Thanksgiving?

Well, guess what? None of that matters anymore, because it’s officially Christmas season.

Sorry, but I don’t make the rules, Nabisco does, and with the release of new Peppermint Bark Oreo, you might as well start duct-taping the Christmas lights to your gutter. It’s here. There’s no fighting it.

Peppermint Bark still feels like a relatively new thing to me. I feel like I never had it until about a decade ago, but it has already become one of my winter staples.

Chocolate and peppermint have always been a winning combo. But there’s something about the mix of white and dark chocolate with those peppermint pieces that do it for me. It’s as if someone reinvented a Hershey-style bar AND the candy cane while improving on both of them. (Hershey’s Candy Cane bar is also excellent.)

Peppermint Bark feels like a natural progression for the Oreo assembly line, and I couldn’t be more excited to try ’em.

This probably goes without saying, but these cookies smell fantastic. Just imagine that waft you get when tearing open a sleeve of Thin Mints because the scent is identical to that.

You get your standard chocolate Oreo wafers that are “always made with real cocoa” according to the packaging. Perhaps someone was calling the validity of the chocolate into question, so they felt the need to reassure everyone. I guess it’s nice to know.

While you can never go wrong with the iconic chocolate Oreo, the peppermint flavored crème is the star of the show here. It toes the line between minty and sweet nicely. I’m always a bit nervous companies will go overboard with the peppermint oil, and leave me feeling like I ate an Altoid instead of a cookie.

Not only does it taste good, it’s crispy. Yes, “Crispy Crème,” which I’m pretty sure Nabisco couldn’t flaunt due to trademark laws. The crème is peppered with sugar crystals that mimic peppermint candies. They give it a nice little crunch, and unlike actual candy canes, don’t chew like shards of glass.

Nabisco’s willingness to get creative with the crème has been my favorite thing about this seemingly endless Oreo-issance. Whether it be adding popping candies or rice crisps, any inclusion made to the crème has enhanced the Oreo. The peppermint crème and sugar crystals are so good here that I didn’t even bother eating the actual cookies a few times.

I know Oreo has had mint flavors in the past, but they’ve perfected it here. Peppermint Bark Oreo Cookies are a winner.

Here’s hoping these last on shelves long into the new year. If you love Peppermint Bark, but don’t feel like paying lots of money for the fancy tin it comes in, pick up Peppermint Bark Oreo, it’ll do the trick.

Purchased Price: $2.98
Size: 10.7 oz. package
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (2 cookies) 140 calories, 6 grams of fat, 2 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 85 milligrams of sodium, 21 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 13 grams of sugar (includes 13 grams of “added sugar.”) and less than 1 gram of protein.