REVIEW: Reese’s Peanut Brittle Peanut Butter Cups

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Reese s Peanut Brittle Peanut Butter Cups Bag

Maybe it’s my short attention span or the fact that I can barely watch Hocus Pocus without having nightmares, but I enjoy seeing autumn wind down as anticipation for winter holidays grows. Swapping snowmen for skeletons and poinsettias for pumpkins has become a familiar, comforting routine in transitioning from one holiday to the next.

As the shelves of my local stores trade fall staples for time-honored winter favorites like peppermint and hot cocoa, Reese’s caught my attention with something unique. The brand’s newest offering features a peanut brittle-flavored crème cup stuffed with a mixture of peanuts and peanut butter filling.

While peanut brittle wouldn’t have been my number-one answer in a holiday food-themed episode of Family Feud, it makes sense. You find that delicious hard candy nestled in gift tins, offered at holiday potlucks, and as the object of longing gazes from your elderly relatives who just might risk their dentures for a taste.

Reese’s Peanut Brittle Peanut Butter Cups will be available in miniatures, King Sized, and Big Cup varieties across retailers, and I snagged a bag of miniatures. Honestly, I was half-expecting the “peanut brittle-flavored crème” to be the same peanut butter-flavored crème you find in Ultimate Peanut Butter Lovers Cups, with the “brittle” label tacked on as a bit of holiday razzle dazzle to get you humming “White Christmas” in October.

But upon opening the bag, the candy’s aroma indicated I was in for something a little different. It smells a lot like kettle corn–like caramelized sugar with butter and peanuts–and has me begging for a Reese’s/Yankee Candle collaboration.

Reese s Peanut Brittle Peanut Butter Cups Unwrapped

The cups not only live up to their intoxicating scent, but also really deliver on the peanut brittle flavor. The creamy shell tastes like a combination of white chocolate, peanut butter, and caramelized sugar. It reminds me of the short-lived Hershey’s Gold bar, which had a caramelized crème base that tasted nutty. The peanut brittle crème here tastes very similar, but a touch sweeter, creamier, and with fewer toasty notes.

Reese s Peanut Brittle Peanut Butter Cups Split

The filling pairs creamy peanut butter with crunchy peanut pieces. The filling is pretty salty, which balances the crème cup’s sweetness. My cups only had a few peanut pieces resting near the bottom of the cup. Candied peanuts may have added an additional brittle-like crunch–as well as potentially dangerous sugar shards. (Considering that the process of making peanut brittle involves boiling sugar goo to dangerously hot temperatures, fans of the stuff live on the edge already.) When eaten in one bite, however, the cup’s flavors compensate for the generally soft texture. The flavor combination reminds me of finding a salted peanut studded in a piece of sweet brittle.

Reese s Peanut Brittle Peanut Butter Cups Lonely

Reese’s products have always been one of my favorites, whether they adorn a holiday cookie or fill my trick-or-treat bag. Although some of their recent products have underwhelmed (see: Reese’s Mallow Cups, Reese’s Snack Cakes), Reese’s Peanut Brittle Peanut Butter Cups nail the peanut brittle flavor and serve as an unexpected homage to a traditional treat. Whether you are bored by brittle or have your grandmother’s recipe committed to memory, any Reese’s fan will be pleased with this sweet-and-salty holiday treat.

Purchased Price: $4.49
Size: 7.4 oz (209 g) bag
Purchased at: CVS
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (per 3 cups) 140 calories, 8 grams of fat, 3.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 65 milligrams of sodium, 14 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, 11 grams of sugar, and 3 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Twix Shakers Seasoning Blend

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Twix Shakers Bottle

Twix Shakers Seasoning Blend attempts to bring together the flavors of the popular candy bar – chocolate, caramel, and cookies – but does it in a powder form that was, unfortunately, not made using a proprietary Twix Shredder that granulates Left and Right Twix bars left and right.

Twix Shakers Macro

After taking a sniff, but not a deep one for fear of sneezing and blowing the seasoning all over my kitchen, I could smell the caramel and chocolate, but not the cookie. If you’re able to notice it, you have a better nose than mine or you’re a dog. And if you’re a dog and can read this, that’s a good doggie. Who’s a good doggie who can read? You are. Do you want belly welly rub rubs? Yes, you do.

Twix Shakers on Twix

Since brown sugar is the second item in the ingredients list, it’s not surprising that Twix Shakers looks like brown sugar’s cousin. Much like its aroma, its flavor lacks a cookie presence, but the chocolate and caramel are there. However, they don’t taste like Twix’s chocolate and caramel. To test this further, I ate a mini Twix with enough of the sweet seasoning to partially bury it, and the candy bar ended up not tasting like a Twix.

Twix Shakers on Popcorn

While its Twix-ness is questionable and it tastes a bit odd on its own, the sweet powder does a tasty job enhancing other foods. Well, not an actual Twix, but I did find that it pairs well with a number of foods, many of which are recommended on the bottle. Here’s a short list of things it worked well with — iced coffee, hot oatmeal, overnight oats, ice cream, Cheerios, popcorn, and a banana smoothie. However, in order to get the seasoning’s flavor in most of those, I had to triple the serving size (1 teaspoon).

Twix Shakers Water

Because there’s almost a pound of this stuff in the bottle, I decided to go off the beaten path with my what I put this on. I tried it on foods like French fries, green grapes, eggs, and in plain water. All were bad choices.

Like most refrigerated coffee creamers from International Delight and Coffee mate, Twix Shakers doesn’t taste very good when it’s consumed on its own. Its chocolate and caramel flavor is definitely a downgrade from the actual candy bar. But when it’s added to the right foods, it does make them taste better. It’s worth giving it a fair shake.

DISCLOSURE: I received a free product sample from B&G Foods. Doing so did not influence my review.

Purchased Price: FREE
Size: 13.5 oz bottle
Purchased at: Received from B&G Foods (currently a Sam’s Club exclusive)
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 tsp) 15 calories, 0 grams of fat, 0 milligrams of sodium, 4 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of sugar (including 3 grams of added sugar), and 0 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Starburst Airs Gummies

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Starburst Airs Gummies Bag

What are Starburst Airs Gummies?

Here it is, folks, the collaboration between Starburst and Nike that we’ve all been waiting for!

Nah, it’s actually just a new weird spin on Starburst flavored gummies.

How are they?

I guess I should just jump right into it – I think I hated these.

“Hate” is a strong word I try to avoid using, but these things stink.

The entire “air” concept sold me on the spot. I anticipated a unique texture that landed somewhere between those gourmet confectionary marshmallows and gummy bears. I got that, but they were few and far between.

They LOOK pillowy soft, but most of them had the bite of an expired peach ring. Not sure if this makes sense, but the texture was begging for a crystallized sugar coating. That’s the only way that texture succeeds for me.

Starburst Airs Gummies Squishy

For every piece I thought delivered on the name, there were five that were a chore to chew. Some were like Gummy Savers, and some had a dryness to them like the chewy Sea Turtles from Trader Joe’s, which aren’t great, but at least correctly have sugar. It’s like they couldn’t decide which texture to go with, so they just ran the gummy gamut.

The “best” pieces were similar to Haribo Watermelons, which are infinitely better.

Anything else you need to know?

It wasn’t just the texture that threw me off.

The gummies smell exactly like Starburst, but something about the over-chewing reduced the flavor by about 30-40 percent. These just don’t have the Starburst pop I’ve grown to love.

Starburst Airs Gummies Flavors

I know it’s blasphemous to most, but I think Cherry is the worst main Starburst flavor by far, and it was awful here. Strawberry never fails, and I happen to really like the two citrus flavors. Lemon was probably the best, and it seemed to be the softest overall. No idea why, but finally, some justice for Lemon.

Even the pieces I kinda liked that leaned closer to marshmallow were still weak in flavor and left a film on my teeth.

Conclusion:

Starburst Airs Gummies Poured out

I can’t remember the last time I couldn’t put a snack down simply because I wanted to like it. I was trying to will it, but they just never got there.

Starburst has tried many different texture varieties (these, regular gummies, jelly beans, those straw things, etc.) and has never matched the originals. With that said, I think Airs are easily the worst Starburst candy product to date. Don’t even bother.

Purchased Price: $2.18
Size: 4.3 oz
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 3 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (6 pieces) 100 calories, 0 grams of fat, 55 milligrams of sodium, 24 grams of total carbohydrates, 20 grams of total sugars, and 1 gram of protein.

REVIEW: Frankford Fruity Pebbles Birthday Cake Candy Bar

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Frankford Fruity Pebbles Birthday Cake Candy Bar Wrapper

What is the Fruity Pebbles Birthday Cake Candy Bar?

It’s a candy bar that features Fruity Pebbles cereal pieces in a classic vanilla birthday cake and frosting-flavored white confection. It celebrates the 50th birthday of Pebbles cereal and maybe the 50,000,000th birthday of some actual pebbles.

The candy bar is available in a single 2.75-ounce size and an 18-count multi-pack at Walmart stores nationwide and online at FrankfordCandy.com.

How is it?

Frankford Fruity Pebbles Birthday Cake Candy Bar Front

As you can see in the photo above, it looks almost EXACTLY like the regular Fruity Pebbles Candy Bar that’s been available for a while. They look so alike that maybe I put the original Fruity Pebbles bar in the Fruity Pebbles Birthday Cake wrapper and vice versa in the photos above and below. Or maybe not? You’ll never know, and I’ll take that secret with me to my grave.

Frankford Fruity Pebbles Birthday Cake Candy Bar Back

While they look similar, they definitely don’t taste the same. Well, more specifically, the white cremes that both have don’t taste alike. At first, I thought the very sweet white base dominated the bar’s flavor, with the cereal taking a distant third-row backseat. It was like a cake with TOO MUCH frosting. But then, after eating a few more pieces, the sweetness mellowed out a bit, and I could taste a better balance between the cereal and white confection. Although the creamy base noticeably stands out more.

This bar tastes different from the original Fruity Pebbles Candy Bar, but it’s not as toothsome as the original. It’s an okay treat, but I wish the cereal was a bit more prominent because, after all, we are celebrating it.

Anything else you need to know?

It’s hard to believe Pebbles cereal is 50 years old. It makes me feel old, like having the rookie cards of baseball players who are now major league managers.

Frankford Fruity Pebbles Birthday Cake Candy Bar Fossil

Also, the cereal fossilized in the white creme still has some crispiness.

Conclusion:

The original Fruity Pebbles Candy Bar is delightful, especially if you’re a fan of the cereal. And if you’re that into Fruity Pebbles, you might find this birthday cake version to be a little disappointing.

DISCLOSURE: I received free product samples. (Thanks, Frankford!) Doing so did not influence my review.

Purchased Price: FREE
Size: 2.75 oz bar
Purchased at: Received from Frankford Candy
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1/3 bar) 140 calories, 7 grams of fat, 6 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 30 milligrams of sodium, 18 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 17 grams of sugar (including 15 grams added sugar), and 1 gram of protein.

REVIEW: Salted Caramel Twix

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Salted Caramel Twix Wrapper

When whispers of a new Twix flavor circulated on social media a few weeks ago, junk food fans reveled in the anticipation. Would this new flavor be a crowd-pleasing birthday cake, a seasonal pumpkin spice, or something completely unexpected, like purple ube with a mango twist? (Let the record show that was my idea first, Twix!) Would the long sought-after Sugar Cookie Twix finally hit shelves? Would we chocolate fiends soon be granted a Middle Twix?

Enter Salted Caramel Twix for the big reveal. Sea salt joins the beloved combination of caramel, shortbread, and milk chocolate in this new bar, packaged in a shiny teal wrapper.

With this news, the part of me that loves odd and novel flavors experienced the emotional equivalent of a sad trumpet sound effect, but the part of me that remains slightly obsessed with salted caramel was thrilled. I would rather enjoy a familiar flavor executed perfectly than novelty for novelty’s sake.

Salted Caramel Twix Coating

Although Salted Caramel Twix is also available in King Size, I opted for the standard size. The petite twin sticks look like the original Twix — although a little smaller — inside and out. I was expecting a visual hint of salt, either embedded in the caramel or sprinkled on top of the chocolate coating, but there was nary a grain in sight. Note that if you are vehemently anti-salted caramel, someone could use this Twix to play a trick on you.

With each bite of the Salted Caramel Twix, I experienced the same trajectory of flavor. For the first several chews, the bar tastes largely like an original Twix: creamy milk chocolate, sweet chewy caramel, and crunchy cookie. Then, a punchy salt flavor comes through and lasts for three or four seconds before the taste mellows back into original territory. The saltiness isn’t intense enough to produce a strong mingling of sweet and salty, but it was intense enough to make me incredibly thirsty after eating one stick.

Salted Caramel Twix Split

Tasting one element at a time, I believe the salt is baked into the shortbread cookie, not the caramel. The separation of salt from caramel might contribute to the fleeting saltiness of the bar as a whole. When located in the least sweet element, the salt needs some help being introduced to the sweet.

The thought of salt being separated from caramel until reunited by someone’s mandibles is somewhat tragic. If the salt is not inside the caramel, is it truly salted caramel? Begin the philosophical discussion in the comments below.

Rating the Salted Caramel Twix is tough, because we all know that caramel, shortbread, and chocolate combine to make magic. Yet, the bar’s muted salty/sweet contrast underwhelms. It neither capitalizes on the power of a simple flavor nor deviates strongly enough from the original Twix to feel exciting. Salted caramel fans may enjoy this twist on the original, but it won’t make them forget about the countless other like-flavored products available to satisfy their sweet (and salty) tooth.

Purchased Price: 88 cents
Size: 1.41 oz bar (40 g)
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 200 calories, 9 grams of fat, 5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, less than 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 180 milligrams of sodium, 27 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 20 grams of sugar, and 2 grams of protein.

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