Tag: Ice Cream

REVIEW: Haagen-Dazs Trio Limited Edition Ruby Cacao Crackle Ice Cream

Dustin 5 Comments

Haagen Dazs Trio Limited Edition Ruby Cacao Crackle Ice Cream

I have enjoyed the few varieties of Haagen-Dazs Trio Crispy Layers that I have tried so far. Texturally, they are a pleasure to devour. They also scratch a chocolate itch, that’s for sure. Each one has a variation of ice creams with oodles of chocolate layers throughout the container.

Recently, Haagen-Dazs launched a new flavor for the Trio Crispy Layers line: Ruby Cacao Crackle with Pistachio and Sweet Cream Ice Cream. I had heard of ruby chocolate before this, but have never gotten the chance to try it, so I was very excited to snag this.

The concept with the Ruby Cacao Crackle is similar to the rest of the Trio Crispy Layers line. Pistachio and sweet cream ice creams are stacked on top of each other with shards of ruby cacao in between every two layers.

Haagen Dazs Trio Limited Edition Ruby Cacao Crackle Ice Cream Swirl

The top of the pint has the sweet cream and pistachio ice creams swirled together for a nice aesthetic effect. Once you get past the top, it’s alternating layers of the two.

Haagen Dazs Trio Limited Edition Ruby Cacao Crackle Ice Cream Layers

Upon digging in, the first thing that hits me is the pistachio ice cream. It’s rich and earthy, but still very sweet. Unfortunately, it overpowers the sweet cream ice cream. There was not a single bite throughout the container that didn’t taste like pistachio. It’s not bad at all, but it’s uneven. Both are decadent without being too heavy and are a tad icy. It’s the typical Haagen-Dazs formula.

Haagen Dazs Trio Limited Edition Ruby Cacao Crackle Ice Cream Spoon

The supposed star of the show, the ruby cacao, is certainly interesting. The pistachio kept masking its flavor, so I had to isolate some pieces to really analyze it. It has more of a delicate flavor than I was expecting. It reminds me of white chocolate, but with some berry undertones coming through. There is a touch of tartness to its mild sweetness. Frankly, it’s just not that special. Texturally, the ruby cacao adds the satisfying crunch to the mix that I was hoping for.

All in all, this was a decent near-pint, but I don’t know if I’ll ever purchase it again. The pistachio ice cream completely dominated everything else. I would have preferred a little bit more balance between the flavors. If you like pistachio ice cream, you should definitely try this, though. Personally, I’ll probably stick with any of the other Trio Crispy Layers flavors available.

Purchased Price: $5.49
Size: 14 oz. container
Purchased at: Safeway
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (2/3 cup) 340 calories, 23 grams of fat, 14 grams of saturated fat, 80 milligrams of cholesterol, 65 milligrams of sodium, 28 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 27 grams of sugar, and 5 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Ben & Jerry’s Non-Dairy Frozen Dessert made with Sunflower Butter

Marvo

Ben Jerry s Non Dairy Frozen Dessert made with Sunflower Butter

When I look back at the 2010s, I think of the abundance of two food products — Oreo cookie varieties and products made with nuts, seeds, and grains that I didn’t know could be made with nuts, seeds, and grains.

I’m talking about milks made with almonds, cashews, macadamia nuts, peanuts, oats, hemp, peas, flax, and walnuts. I’m also talking about butters made with almonds, cashews, macadamia nuts, pecans, pistachios, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, and sunflower seeds.

Perhaps the most popular has been almond milk, which Ben & Jerry’s has been using it in its non-dairy varieties so far. But the company’s newest line of non-dairy pints uses the seldom seen sunflower butter, making Ben & Jerry’s the first national brand to offer frozen dessert made with the seed butter.

There are three flavors available: “Milk” & Cookies (vanilla non-dairy frozen dessert with chocolate chip cookies, chocolate sandwich cookies, and chocolate cookie swirls), Mint Chocolate Cookie (mint non-diary frozen dessert with chocolate sandwich cookies), and Creme Brûlée Cookie (burnt caramel non-dairy frozen dessert with brown sugar cookies, and salted caramel swirls).

If you’re a regular peruser of the Ben & Jerry’s section at your local grocery, you’d know two of these are non-dairy versions of standard flavors — Milk & Cookies and Mint Chocolate Cookie. As for Creme Brûlée Cookie, sadly, it isn’t a vegan version of the flavor that sits in Ben & Jerry’s Flavor Graveyard.

With “Milk” & Cookies and Creme Brûlée Cookie, I got a hint that I was eating something created with sunflower seeds. But if I told you these were made with almond milk, you might believe me because they have the same not-quite-as-creamy-as-ice-cream texture, and the flavor from the seeds could be confused for almond milk’s nuttiness.

“Milk” & Cookies and Mint Chocolate Cookie are great non-dairy versions of the popular varieties. Both are loaded with mix-ins. Mint Chocolate Cookie tastes like Thin Mints, but less chocolatey and minty, and only if your spoonful has a nice chunk of the soft cookies.

Ben Jerry s Milk Cookies Non Dairy Frozen Dessert made with Sunflower Butter

The photo above of “Milk” & Cookies doesn’t show the mix-in riches I discovered as I excavated more from the container, which I forgot to take a picture of because as soon as I saw it, I was like a gold rush prospector and dug up everything. The sunflower butter is most noticeable in this, which I’m okay with, but most of the time it gets overwhelmed by the chocolate from all the cookies and/or the brown sugar flavor from the chocolate chip cookies.

Ben Jerry s Mint Chocolate Cookie Non Dairy Frozen Dessert made with Sunflower Butter

While both are good and I have no problems recommending them, I’m partial to “Milk” & Cookies because the original version is one of my top 10 favorite Ben & Jerry’s flavors.

Ben Jerry s Creme Brulee Cookie Non Dairy Frozen Dessert made with Sunflower Butter

Creme Brûlée Cookie was the one I was most excited about, but it’s also the one I ended up have the most concerns about. It tastes more like a blondie brownie than a creme brûlée, which, I’ll be honest, might be a delicious nonissue to many. But with all the components’ flavors being from the same sweet family tree, this pint is a bit one-note to me. Also, I wish there was something in it to replicate the crunch of hardened caramelized sugar, which is THE BEST thing about creme brûlée. Actually, I wish all three pints has something to add some texture.

I’m a fan of most Ben & Jerry’s non-dairy almond milk frozen desserts. Heck, I even wrote that I preferred the non-dairy version over the dairy version of one of its recent flavors. So it’s not surprising to me that I found these pints to be enjoyable.

DISCLOSURE: I received a free samples from Ben & Jerry’s (Thanks, you awesome Vermonters). Getting them did not influence my review.

Purchased Price: FREE
Size: 1 pint
Purchased at: Received from Ben & Jerry’s
Rating: 8 out of 10 (“Milk” & Cookies), 7 out of 10 (Mint Chocolate Cookie), 6 out of 10 (Creme Brulee)
Nutrition Facts: (2/3 cup) “Milk” & Cookies – 350 calories, 18 grams of fat, 10 grams of saturated fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 125 milligrams of sodium, 44 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, 29 grams of sugar, and 3 grams of protein. Mint Chocolate Cookie – 300 calories, 14 grams of fat, 11 grams of saturated fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 120 milligrams of sodium, 40 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 27 grams of sugar, and 2 grams of protein. Creme Brûlée Cookie – 310 calories 14 grams of fat, 10 grams of saturated fat, 0 mg 160 milligrams of sodium, 46 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, 28 grams of sugar, and 2 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Magnum Mini Ruby Ice Cream Bars

Marvo 4 Comments

Magnum Mini Ruby Ice Cream Bars

You could give the person you love a rose. Or give them something much better — a Magnum Mini Ruby Ice Cream Bar.

I mean, look at that bar below. It screams ROMANTIC. Although “romantic” shouldn’t be screamed, it should be said in a seductive tone, preferable with an accent, with double come hither finger pulls and maybe some lip-licking after saying it.

Magnum Mini Ruby Ice Cream Bars Coating

Also, you can’t eat a rose. Well, actually, the flower is edible, but eating roses off of their stems or the petals like a salad is not an appealing look. Go ahead and imagine it yourself. Close your eyes and visualize your significant other or your one celebrity hall pass chewing on rose petals. Not a good look and probably doesn’t taste good.

But these Magnum Mini Ruby Ice Cream Bars, made with ruby chocolate, taste a hundred times better than roses.

If you’re not familiar with the pink chocolate, it’s the first new chocolate in 80 years and is considered the fourth variety (along with milk, dark, and white). It made its debut a few years ago and has been featured with a smattering of products. Now I’m going to type verbatim what it says on the info card Magnum sent to me so that I can make this review look more substantial:

Ruby Cacao beans are found in Ecuador, Brazil and the Ivory Coast. They add a unique berry fruitiness, luscious smoothness, and striking pink color to our new, mini bar offering. Like grapes for fine wines, cocoa beans are influenced by the terroir in which they grow. Only under unique climate conditions, will cocoa trees produce Ruby cocoa beans.

Magnum Mini Ruby Ice Cream Bars Innards

Of course, these small bars aren’t just ruby chocolate; there’s also sweet cream ice cream that’s so white it’s blinding when under photo studio lights. It looks like Casper the Friendly Ghost squeezed himself into the pink shell, or a Casper mattress squeezed into its box. As for its flavor, it has a nondescript sweetness. It’s a little disappointing, but understandable because it needs to be a little plain to showcase the ruby cocoa. But I wouldn’t want to eat a pint of it unless I have some sweet toppings and sunglasses.

The pink coating has a slight tanginess with an equally light berry flavor. I’m tickled pink about the color (sorry), and I find its flavor to be pleasing and I’d eat fun-sized versions of the chocolate. Still, at the same time, I’m not super impressed with the way it tastes because for something that’s promoted as the “fourth chocolate,” it sure tastes a lot like the third chocolate (white) with a berry finish.

Overall, Magnum Mini Ruby Ice Cream Bars are a nice sweet treat that’s tastier than roses. Eat a few yourself, and then gift one to your lover, Billie Jean, or someone who has never experienced ruby chocolate.

DISCLOSURE: I received a free sample of the product (Thanks Magnum!). Doing so did not influence my review in any way.

Purchased Price: FREE
Size: 6 bars
Purchased at: Received from Magnum
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 bar) 130 calories, 8 grams of fat, 5 grams of saturated fat, 15 milligrams of cholesterol, 20 milligrams of sodium, 12 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 10 grams of sugar, and 2 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Dairy Queen Double Fudge Cookie Dough Blizzard

Denis 2 Comments

Dairy Queen Double Fudge Cookie Dough Blizzard

What is the Double Fudge Cookie Dough Blizzard?

The Dairy Queen Blizzard of the Month for February includes vanilla soft serve forcibly mingled with chocolate chip cookie dough, choco chunks, and cocoa fudge.

How is it?

Dairy Queen Double Fudge Cookie Dough Blizzard Top

Pretty good for a Blizzard that’s basic in name and substance —- no movie tie-in with a cute play on words like the Jurassic Chomp and no declarations that it’s royal or outrageous in any way. It’s just the standard Cookie Dough Blizzard with more chocolate and more fudge. With that said, all the chocolate balances nicely with the non-chocolate part of the cookie dough. The dueling textures of the soft dough and crunchy choco chunks are also nice.

As an aside, sometimes I feel bad for whoever the Queen of Dairy has deemed worthy of creating and testing new Blizzard combinations for the kingdom to enjoy. Sure, it’s an awesome job and one that I would surely do for less money than whoever currently has said awesome job (note to any DQ exec reading this: please leave your contact info in the comments, and I’ll send my resume).

Dairy Queen Double Fudge Cookie Dough Blizzard Spoon

On the other hand, after all the monthly, seasonal, and special Blizzards over the years, it’s hard to come up with something truly unique. Case in point, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough was the Blizzard of the Month back in November…of 2010! The only difference here, after nearly a decade, is that this version has cocoa chunks and presumably double the fudge. Well done, unknown DQ employee, well done.

Is there anything else you need to know?

Dairy Queen Double Fudge Cookie Dough Blizzard Shark

I got a choco shark tooth in mine! Yes, I know it’s not as impressive as an Abe Lincoln-shaped Cheeto or the image of Kanye West appearing on a grilled cheese sandwich, but I thought it was pretty cool. Check eBay soon if you’d like the chance to own this rare and valuable piece of DQ history.

Conclusion:

This Blizzard falls into the category of satisfying but also forgettable. If you are a fan of action movies and The Rock, you know what I’m talking about. This is worth ordering next time you visit the realm of Dairy Queen, but it doesn’t quite rise to the level of worth ordering through DoorDash…unless you are really lazy, and can afford the mark-up and tip, and can deal with your Blizzard being slightly melted and not having a DQ employee flip it upside-down for your amusement. It’s not quite that good.

Purchased Price: $4.09
Size: Medium
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (Medium) 1,160 calories, 50 grams of fat, 28 grams of saturated fat, 1 gram of trans fat, 65 milligrams of cholesterol, 580 milligrams of sodium, 163 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of dietary fiber, 120 grams of sugar, and 19 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Ben & Jerry’s Netflix & Chilll’d Ice Cream and Non-Dairy Frozen Dessert

Marvo 1 Comment

Ben Jerry s Netflix Chilll d Ice Cream

Pretzels seem like an odd inclusion in Ben & Jerry’s new Netflix & Chilll’d Ice Cream. Is it popular among Netflix subscribers and password sharers? Maybe it’s just me, but popcorn and potato chips are probably munched on more during a binge-watching.

Is there something in Netflix’s algorithm that not only knows we might like Interior Design Masters because we’ve watched Queer Eye, but also what we like to eat while we watch Tan France turn folks from Le Eek to Le Chic? Or maybe Netflix’s algorithm watches us through the cameras in our phones, tablets, and compu…

(Knock at the door)

Hi. Who are you guys? Hey, nice red suits. Wait. W-w-what are you doing? Let me go! LET ME GO! HELP! HELP!

Oh, hello. I’m back. Forget that whole thing about Netflix’s algorithm binge watches our lives through our cameras. Netflix’s algorithm is definitely not watching us right now or threatening me with revealing the amount of high school romance anime I watch.

Ben Jerry s Netflix Chilll d Non Dairy Frozen Dessert

Just like Netflix has something for everyone in the family, Ben & Jerry’s is offering Netflix & Chilll’d in varieties that will satisfy everyone’s deal with dairy. The regular version features peanut butter ice cream with sweet and salty pretzel swirls and fudge brownies. The non-dairy one has peanut butter-flavored frozen dessert made with almond milk, sweet and salty pretzel swirls, and fudge brownies.

After trying both, I have to say I prefer the non-dairy one.

Ben Jerry s Netflix Chilll d Ice Cream Closeup

The combination of the peanut butter frozen dessert with the saltiness and flavor from the pretzel swirl tastes something like a Nutter Butter cookie to me, which is something I haven’t experienced with ice cream (or frozen dessert). Also, the PB flavor in the non-dairy one is more prominent than the dairy version. Maybe the almond milk used in the base makes it a little nuttier. The peanut butter ice cream in the regular Netflix & Chilll’d is fine, but the frozen dessert stands out a bit more.

Ben Jerry s Netflix Chilll d Non Dairy Frozen Dessert Closeup

The pretzel swirls in both pints add a welcomed saltiness that contrast and enhance the sweet components. The swirl in the non-dairy one also gives off toffee notes. I feel the flavor is more prominent in the regular one, but that might be because the peanut butter ice cream doesn’t have as strong a flavor as the frozen dessert. Also, although “pretzel” is in both descriptions, the swirls don’t provide any crunch, which is disappointing.

Unlike the pretzels and their lack of texture, the fudge brownies bring the expected chewiness to each spoonful. And, like we’ve seen hundreds of times with peanut butter and chocolate, combining it with the peanut butter ice cream/frozen dessert results in sweet tooth satisfaction. Actually, the fudge brownies help make the regular version taste similar to a peanut butter cup.

I know. The previous sentence makes it hard to believe I prefer the non-dairy and non-peanut-butter-cup-tasting one.

Chill Netflix

Both Netflix & Chilll’d pints are NOT binge-worthy. Well, they are, but I don’t want to encourage anyone to eat entire pints in one sitting. Again, I prefer the non-dairy one, but I feel you can’t go wrong with either.

Purchased Price: FREE
Size: 1 pint
Purchased at: Received from Ben & Jerry’s
Rating: 8 out of 10 (Non-Dairy), 7 out of 10 (Regular)
Nutrition Facts: (2/3 cup) Regular – 390 calories, 24 grams of fat, 10 grams of saturated fat, 0.5 grams of trans fat, 80 milligrams of cholesterol, 290 milligrams of sodium, 38 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 29 grams of sugar, 7 grams of protein. Non-Dairy – 380 calories, 22 grams of fat, 9 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 250 milligrams of sodium, 44 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, 27 grams of sugar, and 4 grams of protein.

DISCLOSURE: I received a free samples of the product from Ben & Jerry’s (thanks Ben & Jerry’s!). Doing so did not influence my review in any way. Although, with ratings like that, you might think it did. But I assure you it did not.