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Peanuts

Friday, July 15, 2005

Butterfinger Crisp

Name: Butterfinger Crisp
Brand: Butterfinger (Nestle)
Place Purchased: 99 Cent Only Store
Price: 33 cents
Size: 1.76 oz
Calories per ounce: 143
Type: Peanutbutter Crisp

I’ve always been fond of wafer and creme cookies. They’re a pure blast of sugar in a rather bland styrofoamy cookie. I figured this bar was similar to that, only butterfingery.

Essentially there are bland wafers with a butterfinger creme which is a sweet peanut butter flavored concoction. The whole bar is then enrobed in a chocolatey wax and some more crumbled “crunchety” bits.

What I can say, beyond the fact that this bar is a great mix of textures, is that it’s salty. I know that sounds like a weird thing to mention, but there’re 140 mgs of salt in this bar. Don’t get me wrong, I think that the salt is a great complement to the flavors in this bar, but it’s very noticeable.

That aside, the crisp wafers and smooth and strongly peanutty creme is a great combo and if I could just find that as a cookie, I’d be pretty happy. What makes this a candy bar though, is that they dipped the whole thing in some sort of chocolate flavored wax (similar to what they put on Butterfingers). This waxy coating is the reason I don’t enjoy Butterfingers. In fact, if you gave me a Butterfinger, I’d probably scrape the chocolate off and enjoy the great peanut butter crisp center. I couldn’t even find any mention of the chocolately coating in the description of the bar on the Butterfinger site, so they must not think it’s much of a selling point either.

What I should mention is that the bar I tried was manufactured in Venezuela. I don’t know if this is the norm for all bars sold in the states of if it’s how I was able to purchase a normally 75 cent bar for 33 cents. (And it was fresh.)

In general, if I feel like a nutty crisp bar covered in chocolate, I go for a 5th Avenue.

Rating - 6 out of 10

POSTED BY Cybele AT 8:54 am     CandyReviewNestleChocolateCookiePeanuts6-TemptingUnited States99 Cent Only Store

Wednesday, July 13, 2005

Hershey’s Take 5

Name: Take Five
Brand: Hershey’s
Place Purchased: 99 Cent Only Store
Price: 33 cents
Size: 1.5 oz
Calories per ounce: 147
Type: Chocolate/Caramel/Peanut butter

If I were to create the perfect candy bar, a great snack bar that would give me energy and taste good, it would contain the following: chocolate, pretzels, caramel and nuts. It’d be a great mix of simple carbs, fat and protein so as not to overwhelm the bloodstream with too much sugar. In my world it’d be a super turtle with a pretzel base, chewy caramel then pecans all covered in semi-sweet chocolate.

On a visit to the Chocolate Homeworld, er, sorry, Chocolate World in Hershey on New Year’s Day, this was the sample they gave us at the end of the ride. I quickly bargained with the other people in our party for theirs.

Hershey’s is dang close with the Take 5 bar. It’s got a pretzel center covered with peanut butter then a layer of caramel, a few chopped peanuts and then it’s all enrobed in milk chocolate. (Maybe I got that order wrong, it’s hard to tell.) The proportions are solid and the pretzel has got a great salty kick. If anything, the milk chocolate is a little sweet, but the salt on the pretzels and the slight saltiness of the peanut butter (which tastes like the center of a Reese’s ... maybe sweeter) balances well. If it only came in dark chocolate I might be in heaven.

The packaging is good, there are two little pieces in a tray and sealed in a the plastic packaging so they stay intact and are easy to slide out. I really wish they could figure out how to make this without hydrogenated oils, though it’s pretty far down on the list of ingredients and doesn’t show up on the nutrition part. For now I’ll keep buying it when I need a little boost during the day. It’s especially good with a morning cup of coffee, as I’m having the second piece right now.

As far as I’m concerned this bar could have lots of versions. A pecan/maple version, a pecan/dark chocolate turtle one, maybe white chocolate and walnuts or macadamias (not really for me, but a solid combo - I know that a white version of this same bar exists but I haven’t seen it yet) then another version with mint cookies and almonds.

Rating - 9 out of 10 (just make a dark version or a pecan one!)

See also: The Message Whore’s review (both milk chocolate & white)

Take 5UPDATE 9/2/2008: Sometime when I wasn’t looking (I photographed it last summer again) the Hershey’s Take 5 left the list of chocolate candy bars and joined the growing list of Hershey’s Real Mockolate

The package now says: made with chocolate & pretzels & caramel & peanuts & peanut butter. That “made with chocolate” part means that the coating may contain chocolate, but it has other additives such as vegetable oils that mean that it’s not pure chocolate. The actual chocolate as an ingredient comes far down on the list as the number 6 item, after vegetable oils and high fructose corn sweetener and before nonfat milk (you can imagine there’s not that much milk in there).

Take 5

The bars actually still look quite fetching. Little rather rectangular lumps with a pleasant sweet & peanutty scent.

Mine were exceptionally fresh, the pretzel was good and crunchy, a nice salty complement to the sweet coating. The coating didn’t have much flavor but did add a creamy texture.

This one was passably good, but I’ve had others in the past few months (I picked them out of a mix of snack size in a bowl at the office a couple of times) and I didn’t realize why they were kind of empty tasting for what I remembered. I just thought they were stale ... turns out that they’re just not designed to be good any longer.

Hershey’s still has an opportunity to reverse this and make it real chocolate again.

Product: Hershey’s Take 5
Previous Review: 7/13/2005
Change: milk chocolate coating is replaced with a fake chocolate coating (which contains chocolate but also other vegetable oils).
Result: For now they’re off my list but still get a passing rating of 5 out of 10.

Related Candies

  1. Revisit: Take 5, Sunkist Fruit Gems & Snickers Almond
  2. Head to Head: Twisted vs Take 5
  3. Take 5 Chocolate Cookie
  4. Take 5 Peanut Butter
  5. White Chocolate Take 5

POSTED BY Cybele AT 10:04 am     CandyReviewHershey'sCaramelChocolateCookiePeanuts9-YummyUnited States99 Cent Only Store

Thursday, June 30, 2005

Christopher’s Big Cherry is Big Peanuts

Name: Big Cherry
Brand: Christopher’s (Ben Meyerson Candy Co.)
Place Purchased: Los Angeles Farmer’s Market
Price: unknown
Size: 1.75 oz
Calories per ounce:
Type: Chocolate/Fruit

I had no idea there were made right here in Los Angeles. I also didn’t know that the Ben Meyerson Candy Co. is also behind all those Sunkist candy treats. It only makes sense then, that they’d have a big chocolate covered cherry in their repetoire. The primary curiosity of this candy, as Amy pointed out, is that the first ingredient on the label is not chocolate or cherries, but peanuts. Then sugar, corn syrup, CHERRIES and four items later is Cocoa. Hmm, might not be real chocolate on the outside.

It certainly smells nutty. Peanuts and cherries sound like a good combo. The wad is pretty big, picture a lumpy golf ball. Maybe it’s a bit bigger than that. It smelled chocolately and nutty and sweet.

I really should have taken a photo of the inside, because that’s the most interesting part. Inside is a bright pink cream - yes, pink like the package ... maybe brighter. The outside shell is thick and soft and the inside is well, thick and softer. There, far at the center was a dark, plump, red maraschino cherry.

I’m not overly fond of cherries and when I have chocolate I prefer the real stuff. The combo of peanuts and cherry cream was pretty good though a tad sweet without allowing the flavors to come through.

Rating: 5 out of 10 (because I don’t like cherries that much).

POSTED BY Cybele AT 11:37 am     CandyReviewAdams & BrooksChocolatePeanuts5-PleasantUnited States

Thursday, June 23, 2005

Reese’s Pieces with Peanuts

Name: Reese’s Pieces Peanuts and Peanut Butter
Brand: Reese’s (Hershey’s)
Place Purchased: Target
Price: $.89
Size: 3.2 oz
Calories per ounce: 164
Type: Nuts

Introduced last year, Reese’s Pieces Peanuts and Peanut Butter are a natural evolution of Reese’s Pieces (which have been around since 1978 ... why didn’t they do this sooner?).

They’re just Reese’s Pieces with a whole peanut at the center. The colors are the same RP colors, except for some reason they don’t quite have the consistent sheen to them, they’re slightly speckly. I don’t think it’s bad for the flavor or anything, they just aren’t as pretty as they could be.

I bought these at Target in a “theater box” and they’re a pretty good deal at 89 cents. I’ve not seen them in smaller bags anywhere. Actually, until I saw them at Target I didn’t even know they existed. The Reese’s site says that they’re a limited edition. Reese’s seems to be trying out a lot of different variations on their products lately, the inside out peanut butter cup, the white chocolate peanut butter cup and the Swoops. I still prefer just plain old Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. Not just for the nostalgia, but it was just a great combo and sometimes you get it right the first time.

I always found regular RPs just a little too artificial in the peanut butter part, a little too sweet, a little too creamy. Well, that an all the hydrogenated oils. Where these succeed is the pure peanut taste of a real peanut in the center. It really balances out the greasiness of the RP filling and makes a nice combo. I’m still not likely to buy these over Peanut M&Ms for movie snacking, but I’m not sorry I tried them. If I went to the theater and these were available, I might pick them up. Unless they were like, $3 a box, which they’d probably be. Then I’d regret not sneaking them in.

The other thing is that the name is just too long.

Rating: 7 out of 10

POSTED BY Cybele AT 9:49 am     CandyReese'sReviewHershey'sReese'sPeanuts7-Worth ItUnited StatesTarget

Tuesday, June 14, 2005

Wha Guru Chew

Name: Wha Guru Chew
Brand: Golden Temple of Oregon, Inc.
Place Purchased: Whole Foods
Price: $.79
Size: 1.13 oz
Calories per ounce: 140
Type: Caramel (Nuts)

Reading over the ingredients list, I’m wondering what this has to do with the Yogi Bhajan. But I suppose even the most enlightened among us wants a sweet now and then. While there’s nothing bad about these caramel nut bars, they contain no trans fat and use brown rice syrup and evaporated cane juice instead of corn syrup, I’m struggling with the health food aspects of this. Aw hell, let’s just call it candy and be done with it.

These are fab. I can’t tell you how fab these are. The caramel is flavorful and soft, the nuts are fresh and crunchy and the smell is pure buttery sweetness. The only problem I have with them is that they’re very soft, so you taking them out of the package is nearly impossible and even getting the package open without scissors ended up too much of a challenge for me.

Cashew Vanilla - the right sweet notes of vanilla blended with buttery cashews. There are also sunflower seeds in here, which add an extra crunch and earthy taste to the bar to balance the sweetness of the caramel. A little touch of salt balances it all out.

Almond Ginger - it doesn’t smell quite as inviting as the cashew vanilla bar (I don’t think ginger smells that good inherently, as it has a rooty/earthy smell). But biting into this bar wipes away any hesitation that this bar will be as good as the former. The ginger pops out as a spicy base for the sugary caramel and the mild almonds. A slight trace of lemon zest links all the flavors together well.

Peanut Cashew - this one diverges from the recipe of the above two which are sweetened primarily with brown rice syrup and evaporated cane juice. This is sweetened with clover honey (and barley malt syrup). This honey base makes for a less viscous caramel but really amps up the flavor. The first tone you get upon biting into it is a strong orange essence. In addition to the peanuts and cashews are sesame seeds and sunflower seeds. Of the three this was my least favorite, though still worthy of trying.

Rating:
Cashew Vanilla - 9 out of 10
Almond Ginger - 9 out of 10
Peanut Cashew - 8 out of 10

POSTED BY Cybele AT 10:27 pm     All NaturalCandyReviewCaramelChewsGingerNutsPeanuts8-Tasty9-YummyUnited States

Friday, June 3, 2005

Hershey Bites: York, Reese’s Peanut Butter and KitKat

Dovetailing with my earlier post about revisiting classics with new interpretations, Hershey’s recently launched “Candy to Go!” It’s just smaller packaging of their previously introduced Bites, but what I found interesting is that I thought most candy was packaged for going ...

 

These are perfect little bites of candy bars. I picked up three at the store on the lot today. Kit Kat Bites, Reese’s Peanut Butter Bites and York Bites. Each is about the size of a small marble, more or less. The York bites are exactly what you’d expect, dark chocolate covering a mint cream center. The Reese’s bites are covering a peanut butter cup filling (not that waxy Reese’s pieces stuff) and the Kit Kat bites are like little Kit Kat cubes.

Here’s my thing: I like appropriate ratios. In the case of the Reese’s bites and the York bites, the ratio of chocolate to filling is appropriate. Though the chocolate in these little poppers is slightly different - because it’s in a spherical shape, I think they toss a little resinous glaze on it. This makes for a slight waxy coating, which in one respect is good, because you can actually hold them in your hand for a moment without getting melty all over you, but it also means that you’re eating this resin and that you need to kind of get past that when you put it in your mouth.

In the Kit Kat bites, it feels like too much chocolate (Kit) and not enough crisp wafers (Kat).

The other odd thing about these are the portion size: 2.75 oz and that’s a full serving. Most candy bars are about 1.5 oz and have about 200 calories. The Reese’s bites have 410 calories! If you can control yourself and not eat them all at once, you’ll make it to fifty without a coronary. Me? I ate the whole York Bites and then moved on to the Reese’s and of course had to open the Kit Kat for a taste. Sadly, all that’s left now are some of the Kit Kats.

Name: York Bites
Brand: Hershey’s
Price: $.99
Size: 2.75 oz
Calories per ounce: 116
Type: Mint/Chocolate Candy

Good chocolate, nice mint, pretty much a tiny spherical peppermint patty. The only problem I had with these was the variation in quality. Some were soft and fresh, but others were rather hard. I wouldn’t go so far as to say that they’re spoiled, maybe the chocolate didn’t seal in the filling completely and they dried out.

Name: Reese’s Peanut Butter Bites
Brand: Hershey’s
Price: $.99
Size: 2.75 oz
Calories per ounce: 149
Type: Chocolate/Nuts

Okay, of the three, these smelled absolutely divine when I opened the package. A wonderful roasted peanut scent with the sweet overtone of chocolate. Really, these smelled awesome. They taste good, and I think I’d buy them again, especially as something to eat when at the movies, but I still prefer the miniatures for the ratio of chocolate to peanut butter.

Name: Kit Kat Bites
Brand: Hershey’s
Price: $.99
Size: 2.75 oz
Calories per ounce: 145
Type: Chocolate

My least favorite of the three, but I’ve always been fond of Kit Kats and buy them often. But my favorite thing about Kit Kats is deconstructing them while I eat, which means prying off each layer with my teeth. That’s not really feasible with this iteration, so I’d just have to eat them and where’s the fun in that?

I’m not always fond of miniatures or giganto bars, but I think that Hershey’s really did a nice job of inventing these as candy that stands alone without the other versions. As always, freshness helps, if these were old and had bloomed or something, I’d find them absolutely unappealing. But I find these to be the perfect movie food or good to tuck in your bag to share with others.

Ratings:
Kit Kat Bites - 5 out of 10
York Bites - 6 out of 10
Reese’s Bites - 8 out of 10

UPDATE: It looks like these didn’t go over very well and have been discontinued. The remaining inventory can still be found at discount stores like 99 Cent Only. (But be sure to look at the expiration date before you take a chance.)

POSTED BY Cybele AT 4:53 pm     CandyMorselizationReese'sReviewHershey'sChocolateCookieDiscontinuedKitKatMintsPeanuts5-Pleasant6-Tempting8-TastyUnited States

Friday, May 27, 2005

Butter Peanut Nougat

Name: Milk Nougat
Brand: The Foodstuffs Factory of the Jinji Restaurant
Place Purchased: Chinatown
Price: $1.69
Size: 16 oz
Calories per ounce: 120
Type: Nougat (Nut)

Nougat is tough stuff to define. Some nougat is light and fluffy, others are crackly, sticky toffee-like candy. This is the latter. The little bricks are hard and crack when you smack them on the corner of a table. You can easily bite off a third of it and after it gets warm in your mouth is has a nice give for chewing.

Think of the nougat chips that you have in a Toblerone bar ... these are like that only with a very strong butter flavor instead of honey and peanuts.

I like the consistency and fresh flavor. The Milk Nougats are also wrapped in that fantabulous edible rice cellophane. However, after chewing them down to the last little bit, a very strong and artificial butter flavor erupts. Like the that artificially flavored butter you get in bad movie theater popcorn. It doesn’t go well with the delicate vanilla of the nougat or the hearty peanuts.

I’m a huge nougat fan, I love the stuff from Italy (torrones) and the French nougats (both soft and hard) and was a bit disappointed with the unpleasant butter taste to these. Alas, that’s affected my rating. I’ll give other Chinese nougats a try if I run across the, as everything else, including the packaging and tiny bite size of these is excellent. Also, the price can’t be beat. European nougats are often over $5 a pound.

Rating: 5 out of 10.

POSTED BY Cybele AT 11:21 am     CandyReviewChewsNougatPeanuts5-PleasantChina

Thursday, May 19, 2005

Peanut Butter Ginger Chews

Name: Peanut Butter Ginger Chews
Place Purchased: Chinatown
Price: $1.49
Size: 7 oz
Calories per ounce:
Type: Taffy

I happen to love ginger. I love the stuff the Ginger People put out. I think I’ve seen this product offered by them as well.

Imagine a peanut butter taffy chew (with real nuts in it) and add some spicy ginger and you’ll have Peanut Butter Ginger Chews.

They’re soft, but not sticky. Chewy but not hard. Crunchy and smooth.

I was kind of dubious when I took it out of the package, because it looks like a powdery turd. But they’re rather addictive. And unlike the regular ginger chews, these aren’t as sticky and the peanut butter keeps them from giving you a hard sugar rush.

Rating: 8 out of 10.

POSTED BY Cybele AT 1:55 pm     CandyReviewChewsGingerPeanuts8-TastyIndonesia

Page 31 of 32 pages ‹ First  < 29 30 31 32 > 

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