REVIEW: Chips Ahoy Chewy Ice Cream Sandwich Inspired Cookies

/ / Reviews / 5 Comments

Chips Ahoy! has brought us a special summer edition of its Chewy line, and it is Ice Cream Sandwich-inspired. The cookies are regular Chewy Chips Ahoy! with a vanilla creme filling (which is about as basic as you can possibly get). These are exclusive to Walmart.

At room temperature, these cookies are really tasty. It’s hard to go wrong with chocolate chip cookies, but the vanilla creme doesn’t do much.

The packaging says to “Chill for a Treat!” So I tried them frozen. And in that case, they were more reminiscent of ice cream sandwiches, though the texture of the cookies was a little less enjoyable. The frozen filling’s flavor seems a little more noticeable when it’s cold.

And, of course, I had to know if these ice cream sandwich cookies work for ice cream sandwiches. They do, but just because they’re cookies. The filling just gets lost with all the textures when I add ice cream. To be honest, any old cookie would do.

Speaking of filling, I’ve noticed that the distribution is uneven. Some bites have a good quantity of vanilla creme, while others have only little.

I enjoy Chips Ahoy Chewy Ice Cream Sandwich Inspired Cookies, but there’s nothing special about them. I don’t know why the folks at Mondelez bothered to pay the graphic designer to brand them as “summer edition” with a surfboard and summer iconography. If they want to convince me these are a summer treat, they’ll have to come up with something more creative.

Purchased Price: $4.78
Size: 9.9 oz package
Purchased at: Walmart (Exclusive)
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (2 cookies) 140 calories, 7 grams of fat, 3 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 120 milligrams of sodium, 21 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of dietary fiber, 12 grams of sugar including 11 grams of added sugar, and 1 gram of protein.

REVIEW: Gatorade Mashups

/ / Reviews / 2 Comments

Children have been mixing drink flavors for as long as drink flavors have existed (or so I assume). And now, Gatorade has decided to get into the game by mixing “2 iconic flavors in 1” for their new Mashups.

Mashups come in two varieties: Cool Blue + Fruit Punch and Lemon Lime + Orange.

Let’s start with Cool Blue + Fruit Punch. Cool Blue is actually one of my least favorite Gatorade flavors, and it’s not nearly as good as the other blue one, Glacier Freeze. I just find it overly artificial and a little bitter.

But I like it much better mixed with Fruit Punch! Cool Blue is the dominant flavor, but it is less bitter. I don’t really detect much of the Fruit Punch, but I’m glad it serves a purpose by mellowing the Cool Blue.

Now for Lemon Lime + Orange, which is arguably three flavors. To no one’s surprise, three citrus flavors work well together! I think Lemon Lime is a little more noticeable than orange, but orange is still there. This one is really pleasant and refreshing.

I usually drink Gatorade from a powder. (It’s always nice to have on hand after a long run on a hot day, and powder seems more economical and less wasteful.) The readily available powders come in three of these four flavors. (The fourth powder flavor is Glacier Freeze rather than Cool Blue.)

I think I will stick to the powders rather than buying more of these Mashups bottles. But they have inspired me to try mixing the powdered flavors!

Purchased Price: $1.69 each
Size: 28 fl oz bottles
Purchased at: Lee’s MarketPlace
Rating: 7 out of 10 (Cool Blue + Fruit Punch), 8 out of 10 (Lemon Lime + Orange)
Nutrition Facts: (12 fl oz) 80 calories, 0 grams of fat, 160 milligrams of sodium, 21 grams of carbohydrates, 21 grams of sugar (including 21 grams of added sugar), and 0 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Strawberries & Creme M&M’s

/ / Reviews / 2 Comments

Frequently for Valentine’s Day, M&M’s likes to bring us some new flavor involving strawberry or cherry because, of course, February is when those summer fruits are in season.

We have had Cherry Milk Chocolate, Strawberry Milk Chocolate, Black Forest Cake, and White Chocolate Strawberry Shake. And I swear there was a Valentine’s raspberry version in there somewhere, but I can’t find it.

For 2025, the flavor is White Chocolate Strawberries & Crème. And you might be thinking, “That sounds an awful lot like White Chocolate Strawberry Shake.” And you would be right.

I don’t have any of the Strawberry Shake variety with me, but the new Strawberries & Crème version tastes just like I remember the 2023 flavor. The main difference is that Mars removed green from the color scheme and replaced it with an extra shade of pink. (Though green was explainable, I still thought it was an odd choice. I fully support the new pink and red colors.)

So, even though it’s the same, how is it? It reminds me of strawberry milk: creamy, fruity, and artificial. I happen to like strawberry milk in all its fake-flavor glory, so I approve! Aside from the flavor, it’s the same white chocolate you find in other limited edition M&M’s. If you don’t like white chocolate, stay away, but I like it. (It might get cloying if you eat too many, but built-in moderation isn’t a bad thing!)

If Mars wants to rerelease an enjoyable candy with a new name and an improved color scheme, I certainly won’t complain. Especially since Valentine’s candy is probably the best thing about January and February.

Purchased Price: $4.99
Size: 7.44 oz bag
Purchased at: Dick’s Market
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (16 pieces) 140 calories, 7 grams of fat, 4 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, less than 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 25 milligrams of sodium, 19 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of dietary fiber, 19 grams of sugar including 17 grams of added sugar, and 1 gram of protein.

REVIEW: Reese’s Spring Sprinkles Peanut Butter Cups

/ / Reviews / 1 Comment

I meet many people who absolutely adore Reese’s Eggs, claiming they are the best shape for the chocolate and peanut butter classic. If you have ever eaten a Reese’s Egg on Easter morning and thought, “This is nice, but I wish it were crunchy,” well, Reese’s Spring Sprinkles Peanut Butter Cups are for you!

Reese’s with spring-kles is available as a Big Cup or as Miniatures. I tried both. Since Miniatures have been around as long as I can remember, and the Big Cups have been around a few years, I don’t need to go into the particulars about those Reese’s sizes because you’re here for the sprinkles.

And these things are crunchy. Really crunchy. And not a simple, crisp crunch like a pretzel or crisp rice. These are a sugary crunch, like when someone puts candy cane pieces or Red Hots on a sugar cookie.

I shared the Miniatures with my family while everyone was together for the Christmas holidays (!), and the reaction was mixed. My brother disliked the crunch, while my mom liked it. My dad didn’t feel comfortable biting on the sprinkles, but he appreciated that it forced him to slow down.

For me, I’m glad these aren’t the default flavor of Reese’s. But as a limited-time offering, they’re unique enough. I worried the sprinkles would be soft and undetectable. But nope, they are impossible to miss.

Like sprinkles in literally every setting, these spring sprinkles are there for two reasons: color and texture. You will get pops of color when you bite in the Big Cup, but you will miss it if you eat the Miniature in one bite. (You will also miss the color if you eat the Big Cup in one bite, but you will win my respect!)

Sprinkles are not generally known for their flavor, and that’s the case here. The peanut butter cups taste the same as they usually do. I let one of the Miniatures dissolve in my mouth until it was just sprinkles, and they were just sugar, no flavor I could discern.

One more thing: Easter in 2025 is on April 20, and I bought these candies on the winter solstice. That’s the equivalent of Valentine’s candy on October 15, Halloween candy on July 1, and Christmas candy on August 26.

These won’t go down as my favorite Reese’s candy, but I appreciate that they are different enough from the standard version. With all the various shapes and sizes, it’s hard to feel like Reese’s is actually branching out, but in this case, there is no way you would mistake Spring Sprinkles for the original.

Purchased Price: $4.99 (bag of Miniatures), $1.25 (Big Cup)
Size: Cup is 1.3 oz, bag of Miniatures is 9.3 oz
Purchased at: Dick’s Market
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: Big Cup – 180 calories, 10 grams of fat, 3.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, less than 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 115 milligrams of sodium, 22 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 19 grams of sugar including 18 grams of added sugar, and 4 grams of protein.

Miniatures (3 pieces) – 130 calories, 7 grams of fat, 3 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, less than 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 55 milligrams of sodium, 17 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, 15 grams of sugar including 14 grams of added sugar, and 2 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Reese’s Red Velvet Peanut Butter Cups

/ / Reviews / Leave a Comment

Reese’s, one of the most beloved candies ever, has been expanding its seasonal offerings in recent years. Not content with the special shapes of hearts, eggs, pumpkins, and trees, it has been tweaking flavors, either by changing the coating or putting things in the peanut butter. And I fully support this trend.

Well, at least in theory.

For the Valentine’s season, Reese’s has gifted us with Red Velvet Peanut Butter Cups, each with a red velvet-flavored creme on top. I bought a bag of Miniatures to sample (I bought them before Christmas, and that’s all they had on the shelf in the seasonal aisle, but there are standard cups as well).

Red velvet cake is a vanilla cake with a little bit of cocoa and buttermilk. That’s a very nuanced flavor profile to convert into a creme coating, especially when paired with peanut’s strong, distinctive flavor.

I’ve nibbled on the tops of these cups, and while the flavor is unique, I just can’t tell you that I taste red velvet. I certainly don’t taste cream cheese frosting. When I eat the cup as a complete whole (i.e., the way they’re meant to be eaten), the unique flavor is mostly overwhelmed by the peanut butter. And I feel like texture is one of the best parts of red velvet cake, but the texture of the cups is nothing like cake, not that I expected it to be. (The back of the bag says, “Reese’s takes the cake,” so I feel justified in comparing it to cake.)

I reviewed last fall’s Reese’s Werewolf Tracks, and I am going to quote from my own review because I feel the same way about these:

“Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups are a top-tier confection, and if this were a brand-new treat, I would give it 10/10 based on taste alone. But this is simply a variation on a classic, and it’s just not that interesting or special.”

The difference here, though, is that red velvet is a more seasonally appropriate flavor than vanilla, and the pinkish topping is lovely. I do like that. So, I will give the Red Velvet version one more point than I gave the Werewolf version.

If Reese’s opted for another Valentine’s flavor, like strawberry, cherry, cinnamon, or rose, it would be easier to detect. But with red velvet, it feels like no one will notice if they mess up. It’s safe for Reese’s, but just a little boring for the consumer.

Purchased Price: $4.99
Size: 9.3 oz bag (Miniatures)
Purchased at: Dick’s Market
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (3 pieces) 130 calories, 8 grams of fat, 3 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 75 milligrams of sodium, 15 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of dietary fiber, 13 grams of sugar including 12 grams of sugar, and 3 grams of protein.

Scroll to Top