REVIEW: Dunkin’ Butter Pecan Donut

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To celebrate the return of Dunkin’s ice cream-inspired Butter Pecan Swirl (a pump of flavoring that can be added to customize your drink), it has released an entire Butter Pecan-themed lineup, including the original Butter Pecan iced coffee and the new signature latte and frozen coffee… which I’m going to ignore because the star of this review is the sole non-beverage addition, the Butter Pecan Donut. As someone whose college degree involved a research project that required standing outside a nut shop for four hours surveying tourists on how they pronounced “pecan,” I consider myself pretty much an expert on this subject!

Right off the bat, this donut smelled uniquely delicious. The scent was bready, of course, but also oddly… earthy? There was a sort of bitter, almost coffee-like aroma that didn’t quite match up with the super-sweetness I usually expect from Dunkin’s donuts, which made me even more eager to give it a taste.

This is a round donut with no hole in the middle, foreshadowing the buttercreme stuffed inside. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves because before you can get to that, you’ll need to chomp into the donut itself, which is nothing too special — yeasty, flaky, airy, and yummy. Similarly, the tasty-but-plain vanilla icing on top seems to be the same as you would find on what might be the simplest item Dunkin’ offers: its vanilla frosted donut. What sets this apart is its topping and filling.

Dunkin’ describes the thorough coating of little golden flecks as “butternut topping.” But I’ve got to be honest — I’ve never seen that word used to describe anything other than squash, so, while accurate (the topping is indeed buttery and nutty), the label left me with more questions than it answered. To shed some more light on this vague, vegetal moniker, I did some digging into Dunkin’s “Allergen and Ingredient Guide” and triumphantly discovered the topping goes by another name, “Buttercrunch Topping,” which is comprised of “Sugar, Coconut, Yellow Corn Flour, Caramel Color.” To my relief, there is no squash involved! Regardless of what you call it, this topping is toasty with a pleasing crunch, calling to mind a combination of crushed graham crackers and toasted coconut flakes. But it’s ultimately more of a nice garnish than a central focus.

There was also confusion involved in my encounter with the buttercreme filling; rather than the traditional glob in the center, in my first bite, mine appeared in a thin layer towards the very bottom of the donut (though fortunately, the next bites were better saturated). The buttercreme was sweet and silky, rich and milky, and apparently it’s butter pecan flavored as well, though I definitely got much more “butter” than “pecan” flavoring. It was more nuanced than I expected; my first comparison was Dunkaroos frosting, which I guess doesn’t actually sound very nuanced at all, but it’s seriously delicious and was my favorite part of the donut by far, elevating the unremarkable cremeless bites significantly.

Oh yeah, I should also mention that there aren’t any pecans inside or on top of this donut, which is probably for the best since that sounds like a choking hazard!

If you’re keen to teach an old ice cream flavor some new tricks, I think you’ll like this one; you might not exactly go nuts for it, but you’d be nuts if you didn’t at least check it out.

Purchased Price: $2.28
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 360 calories, 16 grams of fat, 0 grams of saturated fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 300 milligrams of sodium, 50 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 29 grams of sugar, and 5 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Kellogg’s Eggo Chocolatey Chip Banana Waffles

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What are they?

In a riff on its classic frozen toaster waffle, Kellogg’s brings banana flavor and mini chocolate chips to the breakfast table.

How are they?

Let me address this question with the help of a fun banana fact: a bunch of bananas is called a “hand,” and one banana from that bunch is referred to as a “finger.” Knowing this, I’d liken the amount of banana flavor in each Chocolatey Chip Banana Waffle to a “hangnail.” That is to say, it is very small.

Upon opening the package, the frozen waffles have a wonderful, natural banana smell. (Per the list of ingredients, banana powder is used to achieve the product’s flavor.) Somehow, toasting the product loses this essence. The prepared waffle has the buttery quality of the Homestyle flavor, with satisfyingly crispy ridges and a softer center. However, the banana taste is very mild, appearing once every few chews, and seems to be the most concentrated around the perimeter. This reminded me a little of eating the crust of over-baked banana bread: you know there is banana hidden in the crispiness, but it is a shadow of what it once was.

The package recommends adding maple syrup or chocolate sauce for an extra treat. I added a touch of the former, resisting the primal urge to fill each square neatly and evenly with syrup. Alas, even a small amount of syrup drowned out the already-minimal banana flavor.

The chocolate chips scattered throughout the waffle are small but effective in adding flavor without overwhelming sweetness. Still, the product tastes bland overall, given its promise. I wonder if the banana flavor would have been better executed as part of Eggo’s Thick and Fluffy variety.

Anything else you need to know?

At first, I thought “Chocolatey Chip” was a typo for “Chocolate Chip.” Chocolatey is a fun word to say, but it feels awkward in print. I wondered if the word choice implied the use of a substance that cannot be classified as chocolate and sounded more appealing than chocolate-esque, chocolate-ish, or chocolate-like. The ingredients list includes simply “chocolate,” so consider my rhetoric-driven suspicions unfounded.

Conclusion:

Although the convenience, price, and nostalgia factor of the Eggo line can’t be beat, Chocolatey Chip Banana Waffles lack promised flavor, making them easy to l’eggo.

Purchased Price: $3.49
Size: 12.3 oz package – 10 waffles
Purchased at: Giant Eagle
Rating: 5 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (per 2 waffles) 200 calories, 7 grams of fat, 2.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 320 milligrams of sodium, 32 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 8 grams of sugar, and 3 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Pizza Hut Cheesesteak Pizza

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When eating a cheesesteak, you’re guaranteed to get some steak in EVERY bite because it’s loaded with meat. But that isn’t the case with Pizza Hut’s new Cheesesteak Pizza.

The limited time offering comes with Alfredo sauce, green bell peppers, onions, parmesan oregano seasoning, mozzarella cheese, and Pizza Hut’s new grilled sirloin steak strips on your choice of crust.

The sirloin steak strips are easy to chew, somewhat meaty-tasting, and lightly seasoned with something that reminds me of what’s in the chain’s Italian sausage, but their flavor doesn’t excite my taste buds as much as pepperoni or Italian sausage. Plus, as I mentioned in the opening, there’s not enough of them on the pizza to get the cheesesteak-inspired flavors in every bite. Even after some minor rearranging of toppings to spread the meat a bit more evenly across my pizza’s face, there were still many bites that were sans steak.

Maybe the person who made my pizza was being a little stingy or having a bad day, or perhaps that’s how many there are supposed to be because I imagine adding more steak would increase the price to a higher aMOOunt. (Sorry, horrible steak joke.) Unfortunately, if you think you can fix this by getting more meat, there doesn’t seem to be an option to add extra steak when ordering online.

The meatless bites were okay because the garlicky Alfredo sauce, mozzarella cheese, and parmesan oregano seasoning are flavorful enough that it’s not like eating a pizza’s end crust. But overall, the green bell peppers, onions, and seasoned steak make my taste buds think I’m eating a less flavorful supreme pizza.

Pizza Hut’s Cheesesteak Pizza is a nice change of pace-kind of pizza, but its flavor didn’t wow me. But it did make me yearn for a supreme pizza. Because when eating one, there’s a better chance I’d get some meat with almost every bite, much like an actual cheesesteak.

Purchased Price: $15.99*
Size: Medium
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 slice – hand tossed crust) 220 calories, 9 grams of fat, 5 grams of saturated fat, 20 milligrams of cholesterol, 410 milligrams of sodium, 25 grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of fiber, less than 1 gram of sugar, and 11 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: Kellogg’s ICEE Cereal

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As someone who spent a large portion of my formative years at the Jersey Shore, ICEEs were more than just a treat. They were a symbol of summer, a form of salvation from the heat, and now, thanks to Kellogg’s, it can add “Mixed Berry Breakfast Cereal” to its resume too.

It is UNCANNY how much this smells like ICEEs. I’m not sure if “cereal odor engineer” is an actual job title, but if it is, bravo to this cereal odor engineer! Interestingly, though, the taste was not quite so evocative. I had to shovel down a few bites before I could even figure out what flavor my mouth was experiencing. My eloquent first thought was… “cereal.” I know, but seriously between the small ball shape, colors that certainly cannot be found in nature, crunchy-on-the-outside-but-airy-on-the-inside texture, and flavor that combines sweetness, maltiness, and a hint of bitter artificiality, they check every box that sugary breakfast cereals are infamous for (if only they came with a prize too!).

Do the red puffs and the blue puffs taste any different? My expert verdict is: a little. I got a faint whiff of cherriness from the red and blue-raspberry-ness from the blue, but honestly, I think the colors did a lot of work in helping to convince my brain that they were distinct. The website I bought this from explicitly lists purple as one of the piece colors too (neat to note that those few pieces weren’t just brightly hued screwups after all), but I can’t say they had any unique flavor of their own. And just like combining red and blue gives you purple, combining red ICEE pieces and blue ICEE pieces in the same mouthful gives you something new, too… a total mess.

The cereal tasted much better when I was eating only reds or only blues; the minute I mixed up a big spoonful, all I could taste was a funky artificiality that bizarrely reminded me of banana. It wasn’t exactly BAD, but I can’t say it totally hit the mark either.

Of course, I also have to mention this cereal’s rad gimmick, a cooling sensation like what was used in last year’s Coca-Cola Starlight. At first, I just chalked my chilly mouth up to cold milk, but when I ate a few dry pieces, lo and behold, the cooling effect was just as strong, leaving not just the roof of my mouth but even my throat feeling frosty and tingly. Perhaps this wasn’t strictly necessary, but it was a pretty cool touch (pun not intended, actually, but welcome nonetheless). And hot tip (or, ahem, cool tip): if you enjoy this effect, definitely slurp up all the milk at the bottom of your bowl, too.

So, am I glad I tried these? Sure! Did I ultimately need the ginormous two-pack I bought? Probably not! Will I reach for these again when the craving for a frozen fruity beverage strikes? Doubtful! But will I gladly snarf them down for a quick, quirky, and not necessarily quality breakfast? ICEE-lutely!

Purchased Price: $7.98
Size: 2 13.2 oz bags
Purchased at: SamsClub.com
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 1/3 cup serving with no milk) 130 calories, 1 gram of fat, 0 grams of saturated fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 190 milligrams of sodium, 33 grams of carbohydrates, 4 grams of fiber, 14 grams of sugar, and 2 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Wendy’s Grilled Chicken Cobb Salad

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Years ago, I used to order Wendy’s salads fairly often. That was in the dark time before I became aware of the wonderful, fiber-rich elixir that is Wendy’s Chili. Sometimes in the years since, I would look at Wendy’s menu to see what new salads it had come out with, strawberry-this and arugula-that, would say, “hmm, interesting,” and go back to devouring my piping hot concoction of beany bliss.

But it just came out with a Grilled Chicken Cobb Salad, and I’ve always had a positive impression of Cobb salad; it’s the kind of salad I think I would like to order in a diner if I could ever resist ordering pancakes in a diner. I’ve always felt that hard-boiled eggs don’t get nearly enough recognition for how nutritious and tasty they are, and this is a good usage of them. I had this salad twice: once with bacon and once without. I would tell you why this happened, but it’s more fun to leave it a mystery — let’s just say mistakes were made.

This salad, which Wendy’s PR claims to have spent copious time and energy developing, includes grilled chicken, applewood smoked bacon, chopped tomatoes, crispy fried onions, diced egg, ranch dressing, and Wendy’s signature lettuce blend. It also has cheese shreds, which the press release does not name, but they’re in there. The only thing that’s a little surprising here is the crispy fried onions, which are not a typical Cobb salad ingredient, but they do add a welcome bit of crunch.

Normally I’m pretty stingy with dressing on my salads to keep the calorie count down, but here, I was pretty liberal with the ranch because I know that’s part of the experience. See what I endure in the name of science? The result was about as indulgent as you can get while still technically eating salad.

The tomatoes tasted nice and fresh, which was an excellent start. The applewood smoked bacon is absolutely delicious and good in all the ways that bacon should be, but you don’t get that much of it, so it makes less of a difference to the end product than I thought it would. What does matter, and it matters a lot, is the chicken. It’s moist without being slimy and pleasantly salty without being over-seasoned. And Wendy’s gives you A LOT of chicken; I kept finding pieces hiding among the lettuce long after I thought I had finished all of it. Now, is this the same grilled chicken Wendy’s currently uses for all its salads? Probably, but if so, it’s a lot better than I remember from when I ate the salads a lot.

The only ingredient that doesn’t really work here is the cheese. The ranch and the eggs steal the show as the “fatty” components, leaving the bland cheese with nothing to do.

I probably won’t order it again soon, but that’s because, after this one little dalliance, I remain in a committed relationship with Wendy’s Chili; otherwise, I probably would. It’s nothing exciting, but it’s a reliable classic done right.

Purchased Price: $7.99
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (Salad w/ranch dressing) 680 calories, 50 grams of fat, 12.5 grams of saturated fat, 270 milligrams of cholesterol, 1340 milligrams of sodium, 19 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of fiber, 5 grams of sugar, and 37 grams of protein.

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