REVIEW: Little Debbie Chocolate Christmas Tree Cakes Ice Cream

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Back in 2021, I reviewed Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cakes Ice Cream. Two years later, Deborah hasn’t aged a day, but she has brought us an additional frozen flavor inspired by one of her yuletide treats: Chocolate Christmas Tree Cakes! (I’m tempted to spell “treat” as “treet” for this review, but I will forbear. You’re welcome.)

Besides the obvious flavor difference, there are some subtle differences between regular CTCs and chocolate CTCs. The regular ones feature a red icing drizzle with green sugar crystals, while the chocolate ones have a white icing drizzle with red and green sprinkles. Hudsonville, the maker of the ice cream, did not overlook these small details.

The regular CTC ice cream features vanilla ice cream with white cake bits and a red swirl with green crystal sprinkles. The chocolate version has a chocolate base with chocolate cake bits and red, green, and white sprinkles. White swirls were swapped out for the white sprinkles.

The chocolate base is wonderful. It’s not that exciting, but it’s a classic ice cream flavor for a reason. And I also really enjoy the cake bits. They almost have the consistency of brownie bits you find in ice cream, so they’re a textural delight.

And speaking of texture: I am so glad the chocolate variety uses sprinkles instead of sugar crystals! The crystals were my biggest complaint about the regular CTC ice cream. They had a gritty, sand-like texture that seemed out of place in the creamy treat.

The sprinkles in the chocolate version, however, have a slight crunch from the cold, but I don’t feel like I’m munching on quartz granules. They are a sensory pleasure. And, of course, we can’t overlook the festive appearance they give this dessert.

My other biggest complaint with the original CTC ice cream was that, although it was good, it was just kind of boring. And, I must admit, this one is also kind of boring. The color of the sprinkles is the only thing festive or seasonal. Chocolate ice cream and chocolate cake are nothing new.

But, you know what? I’m going to overlook the boringness because it’s still a delightful dessert that I will be more than happy to finish.

Purchased Price: $2.74
Size: One pint
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (2/3 cup/97 grams) 230 calories, 10 grams of fat, 7 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 30 milligrams of cholesterol, 80 milligrams of sodium, 31 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of dietary fiber, 21 grams of sugar including 17 grams of added sugar, and 4 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Little Debbie Cherry Cordials Ice Cream

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For better or worse, I have had every Little Debbie ice cream flavor since its partnership with Hudsonville took flight a couple of years ago. The most interesting part of the whole thing isn’t the novelty of turning America’s most beloved snack cakes into ice cream, though — at least not for me. It is that there is seemingly no correlation between my personal enjoyment of a snack cake flavor and its corresponding ice cream.

To wit, Fudge Rounds, my favorite Little Debbie, is one my least favorite of the ice creams. Ditto Oatmeal Creme Pie. Star Crunch, which I find okay but would never intentionally purchase a box of, has been my unparalleled ice cream favorite.

Another wrinkle to add to this already-too-complex equation: I have also tended to really enjoy ice creams stemming from snack cake varieties I’ve never eaten. This happened recently with the Apple Pie and Chocolate Chip Creme Pie offerings. The ice creams were stellar; the snack cakes from whence they sprung, however, remain unconsumed by me.

So, if I tell you that I’ve never had a Cherry Cordials snack cake, well, maybe you can guess where this is going.

Hudsonville’s website says the new Cherry Cordials Ice Cream is “Cherry flavored ice cream with cookie pieces, chocolatey flakes and a cherry variegate.” I had to look up “variegate,” by the way. To save you the same effort, should we be shipmates, here you go: “In the food industry, variegates (also referred t’o as ribbons, ribbonettes, swirls, spirals, revels, etc.), are textured flavor dimensions primarily used in ice cream and frozen desserts.” Okay, this is a cherry ice cream with cookie pieces, chocolatey flakes, and a cherry ribbon.

The ice cream base has a mild cherry flavor, like kissing your aunt who just had a Wild Cherry Halls cough drop. The “chocolatey” chips are your standard issue chocolate chips you’d get with any other kind of ice cream. There are many of them; they are of varying sizes and taste semi-sweet. The cookie pieces don’t have much of a standalone taste, but the crunchy texture provided a nice respite. And the textured flavor dimension, see, that’s where the magic happens. If you like hardcore artificial cherry flavor, you’ll be in heaven. My only complaint, as it is whenever there is an enjoyable component with these Little Debbie ice creams, is that I could have done with quite a bit more of the cherry variegate. I guess you could say it was varie-good?

I’ll show myself out.

Purchased Price: $2.74
Size: One Pint
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (97g) 230 calories, 11 grams of fat, 8 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 35 mg of cholesterol, 70 milligrams of sodium, 30 grams of total carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 23 grams of sugar, and 4 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Taco Bell Grilled Cheese Nacho Fries

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Taco Bell’s new Grilled Cheese Nachos Fries applies the same technique used with the chain’s popular Grilled Cheese Burrito — put cheese on the exterior, wrap the whole thing in parchment paper, and smoosh it with a grill press for a few moments to turn the white and orange cheese into brown grilled-ness.

But does this fast food kung fu make these loaded Nacho Fries better than regular loaded Nacho Fries? I think it slightly improves it in some ways, but it’s not enough to make me declare on the internet that they all must be grilled henceforth.

The menu item comes with seasoned fries topped with seasoned beef, chipotle sauce, nacho cheese sauce, and a blend of mozzarella, Monterey pepper jack, and cheddar that gets the brunt of the grill press. If you wish for something with a little more heat, there’s a spicy version that includes jalapeño peppers, and if you want something less ground beefy, there’s also a steak variety on the menu. I went with the cheapest and mildest option.

The grilling makes the fries that have cheese seared onto them sturdy enough to withstand the chipotle and nacho sauce’s attempts to make everything soggy. But I wouldn’t say the grilled cheese makes them crispier. The grilling also turned what would’ve been a bunch of individual fries into a slab of spuds that looks like a burnt cheese aircraft carrier. Of course, your results may vary.

While the seasoned beef, chipotle sauce, and nacho sauce have a difficult time compromising the toasted layer’s integrity, they overwhelm the grilled cheese’s flavor. But I’m not going to complain too much about that because those three ingredients, plus the fries’ potato flavor, create a tasty combo. When I got a bite of the fries with just the toasted cheese and very few other ingredients, I noticed some of the same mild cheesiness that I’d tasted with the Grilled Cheese Burrito. The creamy chipotle sauce stood out the most for me flavor-wise, and it added a very slight kick. Its smoky, peppery taste negated the need for one of Taco Bell’s sauce packets.

While Taco Bell’s Grilled Cheese Nacho Fries are a limited time offering, I imagine they’ll be back eventually because it’s a clever variation of its loaded fries offerings. While I enjoyed it, I wished the toasted layer added a bit more crispiness and flavor.

Purchased Price: $4.99*
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 530 calories, 35 grams of fat, 9 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 50 milligrams of cholesterol, 1250 milligrams of sodium, 38 grams of carbohydrates, 6 grams of fiber, 1 gram of sugar, and 16 grams of protein.

*Because I live on a rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, things are a bit pricier here. You’ll probably pay less than I did.

REVIEW: KFC Mac & Cheese Wrap

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In retrospect, the amount of KFC mac and cheese I consumed in my childhood was not advisable, but it did prime me perfectly to review the chain’s new Mac & Cheese Wrap, which includes three of my favorite things —- fried chicken, mac and cheese, and wacky combos. The new KFC Wrap variety accompanies the returning Spicy Chicken Wrap and Classic Chicken Wrap. But that’s all I have to say about those cheeseless bores, though!

Before ordering, I didn’t realize the combo comes with two wraps, so I went ahead and got the meal, which also includes a medium drink and a side of fries. The two wraps don’t have to be the same flavor, but you can bet your $8.49 that I wasn’t going to pass up the chance to choose double the mac.

When my order was called, I instantly realized why two is the magic number: these wraps are fun-sized, to put it politely. My go-to tortilla-based fast food is a Chipotle burrito, but portion-wise, a better comparison here is a Taco Bell burrito. Inside each teeny, toasted tortilla is one chicken tender, a sprinkling of mac and cheese, and, for good measure, some shredded three-cheese blend as well.

These wraps didn’t escape my pet peeve of all the fillings being packed towards the open end, leaving the other end sadly flat and dry, but I can’t even judge them too harshly because, boy, were they tasty. I’m more accustomed to seeing chopped chicken in wraps, but the length and width of a single tender made for a surprisingly good fit. I’ve previously sworn my allegiance to KFC in the fast food chicken wars, and these tenders only affirmed my loyalty, plump and juicy with an addictive crispy coating. And while this chain might not be as known for its noodles (it’s not called Kentucky Mac and Cheese, after all), I find them insanely craveable. The sauce is creamy, the macaroni is so soft and tender that it practically melts in your mouth, and the overall effect is so mild and comforting that I could eat a vat of it without even noticing. Luckily for my stomach, the wrap doesn’t contain a vat’s worth — more like a couple spoonfuls. The portion of shredded cheese is similar, though it tastes sharper, and is (or was in my order, anyway) notably unmelted. But the majority of the flavor definitely comes from the chicken and mac.

I could gripe that this wrap could use even more mac and cheese, but I’ve struggled so many times to cleanly fold an over-stuffed tortilla that I’m willing to give some grace. Plus, I’m in a charitable mood after such a delicious dinner! If you’re a fellow mac and cheesehead, I highly suggest you get yourself wrapped up in this new offering too.

Purchased Price: $8.47 for the combo (just the two wraps is $5)
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 400 calories. Other numbers are not available on KFC’s website.

REVIEW: Dunkin’ Spiced Cookie Coffee

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If you’re ready to trade in your pumpkin spice for less squash-themed offerings, Dunkin’s holiday menu is here, and perhaps the least flashy item on it is the new Spiced Cookie Coffee. Available hot or iced, it’s made with a short list of coffee, brown sugar cookie syrup, vanilla syrup, and oat milk. After my recent run-in with the Ice Spice Munchkin Drink, I was ready to scale back and have a coffee that wasn’t buried in whipped cream, caramel, and donuts. Dunkin’ says this one “captures the essence of freshly baked oatmeal cookies in a cup,” which sounds pretty straightforward and cozy. Sometimes you don’t need all the sleigh bells and whistles, you just want your coffee with a hint of holiday cheer.

I went the hot route for my first take on the Spiced Cookie Coffee, thinking it would be best suited to drawing out the flavors of what I assumed would be warming spices. It smelled pleasantly sweet, with brown sugar and buttery notes dominating. After a couple sips, I could definitely taste how this mimics a cookie, mostly due to the brown sugar, vanilla, and buttery flavors. But I think there might be some confusion about what exactly this is supposed to taste like. Around the holidays, “spiced” tends to evoke thoughts of things like cinnamon, ginger, cloves, etc.. When I think of oatmeal cookies, the only spice I usually associate them with is cinnamon, which I’m not convinced is even present here. Maybe Oatmeal Cookie Coffee sounded like too boring of a name?

I liked the flavor and found the level of sweetness enjoyable, not over-the-top. As someone who doesn’t typically drink oat milk, I had no issues with it here. It brought some creamy and nutty qualities to the mix. The coffee itself gets a bit lost, but my only real complaint is that I was expecting more spice. Without it, this drink lacks the holiday vibe I was anticipating.

Being an equal opportunist, I gave this a second go with the iced version. If I thought the holiday spirit was slightly missing from the first one, it’s totally undetectable here. The coffee is more prominent, but gone are the brown sugar, vanilla, and butter notes that put this in the cookie category. The oat milk seems to be a detriment; instead of being creamy, this just tastes watered down. If I didn’t know this was supposed to be flavored like something, I would guess it was just mediocre regular iced coffee.

If you can overlook the missing spice identity crisis this beverage has, the hot version is a nice treat that might remind you of a simple but tasty oatmeal cookie. If you go iced, though, know that what you’re getting won’t be reminiscent of a snack you’d leave for Santa – unless you’re the kind of jerk that leaves him a bowl of unflavored oatmeal.

Purchased Price: (hot) $3.74, (iced) $3.65
Size: Medium
Rating: 7 out of 10 (Hot), 5 out of 10 (Iced)
Nutrition Facts: Hot – 130 calories, 0.5 grams of total fat, 0 grams of saturated fat, 0 gram of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 45 milligrams of sodium, 30 grams of total carbs, 1 gram of dietary fiber, 25 grams of sugar, and 1 gram of protein. Iced – 130 calories, 0.5 grams of total fat, 0 grams of saturated fat, 0 gram of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 50 milligrams of sodium, 30 grams of total carbs, 1 gram of dietary fiber, 25 grams of sugar, and 1 gram of protein.

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