REVIEW: Little G’s Fluffer Cookie

June 2, 2017June 1, 2017 / seansskillet / 2 Comments

A fluffernutter sandwich combines two of the world’s best lip-smacking creamy stick-to-the-roof-of-your-mouth ingredients that you can dig up in your grandma’s pantry – peanut butter and marshmallow fluff. While I was always more of a traditional peanut butter and jelly kind of kid growing up and am now very much in the peanut butter and banana camp, I will never shy away from peanut butter plus anything, and I mean that quite literally. My girlfriend recently challenged me to try peanut butter with mustard, and I did it, and guess what? I liked it! For the limited spring fling run of pints Little G put their own spin on the fluffernutter universe, but luckily for us all, did not include mustard. Fluffer Cookie combines peanut butter ice cream with a marshmallow swirl and chocolate sandwich cookies.

I’m going to guess that the peanut butter ice cream itself is up to the usual Little G standards, but as is the case with some of their flavors, this one is so mix-in dense I can’t even really tell. The peanut butter definitely takes a backseat, not only in texture but in flavor, to the insane amount of Oreo cookies smashed into the base. What is really beautiful though, is the way the cookies have softened and taken on a dunked-in-milk kind of texture, that while it’s different than your usual melty creamy ice cream, it’s still insanely delicious and fun to eat. Make no mistake, these aren’t just wafer cookies, these are entire Oreo’s, and the ample amount of creme filling is also present, fusing with the base and the softened wafers to create a decadent, almost cake-like experience that is delicious and downright intense.

The slightest hint of peanut flavor peeks its head through the onslaught of aggressive sweetness and cocoa creme, but most people probably wouldn’t be able to pinpoint the PB versus vanilla or sweet cream. Composition-wise this pint is very similar to the core lineups’ Chocolate Milk & Cookies, with a bigger emphasis on the creme flavor than the chocolate because of the base switch up.

The marshmallow swirl is thick and also very intense, with a dense yet fluffy texture that is pretty much as good as it gets when it comes to an authentic and delicious marshmallow presence. Once again Little G is up there with Salt & Straw for taking the swirl game to another level, and this one, while it tastes predominantly sweet, does have a touch of roasted flavor to it that gives it an added layer of complexity and aids in bringing out a hint more roasted peanut flavor as well.

Through and through this pint tastes like eating an ice cream-ified version of an Oreo. The fusion of the marshmallow swirl with the cookies’ creme emulates the iconic filling, and the plethora of cocoa wafers in every bite makes the Oreo vibes absolutely inescapable. For my personal tastes, and to be true to the tradition of the fluffernutter tag, I want a bit more peanut butter, more salty contrast, and some relief from the intensity of the sugar, but this is one of those flavors that will leave you thinking about it when your bowl is empty, and becomes dangerously addictive.

Rating: 9/10
Found at: http://www.goldbely.com (use code seanpancake0 for $25 off of your first order!)

REVIEW: Quest Hero Bars (all three flavors)

May 31, 2017May 30, 2017 / seansskillet / 1 Comment

Quest Hero bars are the protein bar giant’s macro friendly take on a candy bar, and as a person who’s actual knight in shining armor during the course of a bad day has been a real deal bar of chocolate, I can get behind this. The bars once again utilize the new and confusing artificial sweetener allulose, which is one of the cleanest tasting sweeteners out there, but not without some downsides. The jury is still out on exactly what kind of impact this ingredient has on the body, and as of now still has to be counted as sugar on the nutritional label, giving these Quest bars a significantly less macro-friendly look than their older tried and true siblings. Still significantly “less bad” than an actual candy bar, the Hero bars take the grainy “cereal” base from the Beyond Cereal bars, add an additional layer of gooey texture, and dip them into a creamy coating. The initial launch comes with three flavors – Blueberry Cobbler, Chocolate Caramel Pecan, and Vanilla Caramel.

Blueberry Cobbler:

Off the jump the texture on this bar is phenomenal – super soft and chewy with multiple layers and a lovely creamy coating. The dominant flavor is a very sweet and real tasting blueberry with a hint of acidity and no lingering artificial sugar taste. The second big flavor that creeps into the equation is graham cracker, and reminds of the Quest cereal waffle bar without the prominent syrup flavor and just a hint of cinnamon spice, which is no surprise since these bars use that same chewy granola-esque base.

One of my biggest gripes with Quest is the aggressive use of sucralose, and much like with the Beyond Cereal bars, the swap for allulose has really alleviated that problem almost entirely. The sugar flavor is very clean and true and has a more natural berry flavor than any bar I can recall having. This is my favorite blueberry bar that I’ve had and a very strong addition to the Quest catalog.

Rating: 8.5/10

Chocolate Caramel Pecan:

Slightly bitter cocoa-forward chocolate base with a decently thick layer of caramel on top. The flavor reminds me of a cheap brownie, not too strong of a nutty element but tastes almost nothing like what you would expect from a whey-dominant, “low sugar” protein bar, although the general profile is pretty predictable for a protein product. The caramel has a good chew, tastes decently authentic and has a slight saltiness that keeps the bar from being too sweet.

While this one is fine, it does have a slight artificial aftertaste, and with the worst macros of the three – highest calories and fat with the least amount of protein, I don’t think I would buy this one again.

Rating: 6.5/10

Vanilla Caramel:

This one again reminds me of the waffle cereal bar without the maple and instead a strong golden graham cracker sheen. It is very sweet with a nice smooth vanilla flavor and surprising salty pop on the finish. The salt cuts through in a way that gives a bit more of a salted caramel presence, which is nice considering the overall sweetness of the bar. There’s a little bit of a fake sugar sucarlose aftertaste on this one, not as strong as the chocolate but a bit more present than the Blueberry Cobbler, but still much less than your typical Quest bar.

Although there are almonds on the package and in the ingredients, I don’t get much almond flavor and there are just a couple random pieces in the top layer and a nuttiness is not prominent in the actual texture. This is one of the best tasting vanilla bars I have had and another one I would definitely buy again and could legitimately take the place of a white chocolate-y or caramel craving when watching calories.

Rating: 8/10

Overall this is a pretty impressive launch from Quest, and while the macros aren’t as good as the standard Quest bar the flavor is significantly better and will be pretty enjoyable for a lot of people, even those who don’t usually get down with protein bars.

REVIEW: Pepperidge Farm Key Lime Chocolate Milano

May 25, 2017May 24, 2017 / seansskillet / Leave a comment

While Nabisco are busy cranking out endless amounts of low key shock value flavored Oreo like Peeps and Waffles & Syrup, Pepperidge Farm are quietly releasing refined, slightly altered versions of their classic Mialno cookie, the latest of which is a re-release of last years Key Lime Chocolate.

Staying true to their adult-leaning brand, this cookie takes the Milano’s firm layer of dark chocolate in between two oblong cookies and adds a limey punch to the equation. Much like their other citrus-twisted releases Orange and Lemon, this spring time treat really works. The cookies are soft yet crunchy with a crumbly texture that isn’t overly sweet or buttery. The chocolate on the inside is dark and creamy with a slight sweetness that cuts through the more bland cookie exterior.

The lime flavor is just right. Not too aggressively tart or acidic it has just enough presence to add a citrusy flair and heighten the sweetness of the bitter-leaning chocolate. One of the complaints about Milano’s is that they can be kind of dry, and even though the lime layer isn’t particularly creamy, it makes the cookie feel more moist and attractive to my general sugar-focused palate when I’m crunching into a cookie.

I’m a big fan of chocolate and citrus together and think it is greatly underutilized in the realm of sweet treats. While chocolate oranges can be easily found during the holidays, and as part of Pepperidge Farm’s regular lineup, using lemon or lime without the presence of white chocolate or graham is kind of rare. It’s tricky to pull off key lime and dark chocolate together, and yet both flavors come through strong without wiping each other out, and Pepperidge Farm managed to soothe my sweet tooth and my citrus tooth in one small bite.

Rating: 8/10
Found at: Target ($2.99)

REVIEW: Little G X MdoughW White Chocolate Macadamia Nut

May 24, 2017May 23, 2017 / seansskillet / 2 Comments

One of my all time favorite creamy sweet treats growing up was a frozen yogurt from TCBY called White Chocolate Mousse. It was succulent and smooth in a way that vanilla could never be, and sadly, I haven’t had that perfectly swirled soft serve in years, but have always looked for a worthy replacement. Additionally, one of my favorite cookies has always been white chocolate macadamia nut, and my love for the cookie and ice cream have very rarely come together. Once again, Little G has come to my rescue. Combining forces with MdoughW, the two have released a pint that combines white chocolate ice cream with roasted macadamia nuts, and MdoughW’s sugar cookie doughies.

The white chocolate base is fantastic. Insanely smooth and creamy, it is decently sweet with a distinct white chocolate finish that’s really hard to describe. There are no vanilla notes, especially compared to Little G’s vanilla bean, and it is less sweet than a typical sweet cream, with less of a pronounced dairy flavor. White chocolate is such a difficult taste to pinpoint, but it can generally be distinguished and attributed to the use of cocoa butter, which gives an added layer of richness that just simply works in ice cream and makes it even creamier than your typical super premium base.

The MdoughW sugar cookie doughies are delicious and taste almost exactly like a more authentic less grainy version of when I eat Pillsbury’s sugar cookie dough before baking them (shhh don’t tell anyone). They are soft and buttery with a lovely saltiness and don’t really taste like they’ve been cooked at all – and I love it. The salty flavor really shines through against the perfectly sweetened and creamy base and if this were a sugar cookie dough ice cream this is all that I would need to be immensely satisfied.

Where this pint suffers is in the execution of the buttery and always unique tasting macadamia nuts. While they’ve been roasted, they haven’t been salted or seasoned in any way and fall kind of flat, even when submerged in the sugary abyss of white chocolate. They are also too big. I appreciate the idea that they should be large enough to give a bold flavor, and they do add a legit crunch, but including whole nuts makes them incredibly hard and almost astringent, at times sucking the life out of my spoon. Had the macadamia nuts been smaller and/or candied, or even just dusted with some decent salt they could have really helped elevate the flavor to its true cookie ice cream potential.

I love the base and the sugar cookies in this one a LOT, but the treatment of the nuts and the amount of them really pull away from how awesome this pint could have been. I would love to see Grace use the white chocolate again in a flavor that doesn’t get weighed down by a hard, mouth-drying component like the macadamia’s, or maybe even just try this one again using half the amount of nuts and throwing in a couple white chips for good measure, because through and through I still really enjoyed eating this.

Rating: 8.5/10
Found at: http://www.goldbely.com (use code seanpancake0 for $25 off of your first order!)

REVIEW: Salt & Straw’s Pirates of the Chocolaty Caribbean

May 22, 2017October 25, 2020 / seansskillet / Leave a comment

As a somewhat low key Disney fanboy and not so low key Salt & Straw fanboy I was completely puffed with joy when I read that the two would be collaborating for the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie. Very rarely does a smaller craft brand like S&S get the chance to work with one of the entertainment industry’s titans and I was genuinely excited not only for this release, but for what the relationship could mean in the future. I was so excited that I read the press release at least five times, and in fact, I think it’s so well written that I’m going to stop my intro here and just post the official description from a couple weeks ago:

“Pirates of the Chocolaty Caribbean captures the sweetness and spice of rum and toasted sugar flavor of the island spirit by infusing a caramel ice cream with cinnamon, allspice, orange peel, cloves, cardamom, nutmeg, and star anise. The real magic of this caramel spiced rum ice cream is the one-of-a-kind chocolate inside—single-origin chocolate from Trinidad, sourced locally from Bar Au Chocolat, studded with pop rocks that go off like pirate cannons between your teeth. Dig into the true flavor of the Caribbean in every scoop!”

Of course, this was a super limited time offering, only available at ONE shop in Los Angeles, but somehow, through the goodwill and kindness of Kim and Tyler at Salt & Straw, I was able to acquire a pint and give it a taste for the skillet.

By Salt & Straw standards this base is incredibly subdued, and for my personal tastes, a bit too mellow. When I read the description of all the spices going into the ice cream my heart lit up, but they’re much harder to detect than I had anticipated. Usually with S&S when they say something is in the flavor it is IN it and always executed with intense finesse but here I had to really search for any prominent spicy notes.

The ice cream is incredibly smooth and rich with a soft caramel essence that isn’t too sweet and finishes with a lovely buttery flavor that accentuates the high quality dairy like a well balanced sweet cream. There is the slightest touch of cinnamon and nutmeg at the end but even that is very subtle, with no star anise, cloves or cardamon to be found. There also isn’t any boozy rum flavor going on, which given the description of “caramel spiced rum ice cream” would have been really nice to taste; although I get the feeling the spices were supposed to emulate rum rather than alcohol being a prominent flavor.

What works wonderfully in this flavor is the pop rock studded dark chocolate, which delivers on everything it promised to be. It’s incredibly dark and bitter with tons of small pop rocks that immediately start sizzling the second I chomp into them; and it really does feel like cannons going off in my mouth. The chocolate is integrated in broken thin sheets and dispersed throughout the pint with perfection – some small shards of chocolate and some big chunks that keep each bite slightly different in bitterness and crunch. It’s a funny juxtaposition to put such a novelty candy into high quality single origin chocolate but it works beautifully, adding excitement to every bite.

While I wish this ice cream had a true spiced rum base to compliment the very well executed chocolate, I can’t deny that it is still an incredibly well made and delicious product. All of the more interesting ingredients fall to the background and simply temper the sweetness of the caramel for a more grown-up spin on flavors that are very familiar to ice cream aficionados. In all honesty this is just a very high quality and slightly elevated chocolate chip ice cream, and a damn good one at that.

Rating: 7.5/10
Found at: Salt & Straw Los Angeles

REVIEW: Little G X MdoughW Red Velvet

May 19, 2017May 20, 2017 / seansskillet / 2 Comments

Red velvet cake is pretty straight forward, yet somehow easy to not do proper justice. A red colored chocolate cake adorned with cream cheese frosting. Two crucial elements that need to balance each other out to create a symphony of sweet, chocolatey, tangy, and rich. For their limited batch collaboration, Little G and MdoughW chose to take on the classic cake and smash it into a pretty pint consisting of cream cheese ice cream with red velvet white chocolate chip MdoughW pieces.

No surprise here – the cream cheese base is executed wonderfully. Incredibly smooth and velvety, it has the signature cream cheese tang that has been tempered with the perfect amount of sweetness to keep it from going savory. It channels the frosting it is emulating in ice cream form beautifully with a brilliant balance of sweet and tart that leaves a lingering cheesy flavor in my mouth. The cream cheese aids in the already decadent texture of Little G’s ice cream and makes for a very delicious and complex bite.

The red velvet pieces from MdoughW pack a serious cocoa-heavy chocolate punch that hinder on bitter with a lovely deep red velvet color. The addition of white chocolate chips give a small crunch that is welcome with MdoughW’s notoriously soft texture. The cookie pieces occupy a space somewhere between your traditional fully baked cookie and cookie dough, and are an incredibly organic fit for putting into ice cream. When the two components come together on my spoon it is spot on like taking a bite of super moist red velvet cake in melty frozen form.

This ice cream overall is much less mix in heavy than the usual offering from Little G and showcases her ability to churn out extremely high quality bases. Something that I very rarely think when getting pints from Little G is wanting more mix ins, and that might actually be the case here. While the doughie pieces are fantastic, there was only around 6 or 7 in the container, and as good as the base is, the cake pieces are essential to making the red velvet experience sing. Still, this is one of the better red velvet ice creams I have had, and the attention to detail and balance in the flavors is remarkable when they’re both actually there.

Rating: 7/10

Found at: http://www.goldbely.com (use promo code seanpancake0 for $25 off of your first order!)

REVIEW: Little G X MdoughW Cinnamon Caramel Churro

May 19, 2017May 19, 2017 / seansskillet / Leave a comment

Collaborations are one of the greatest elements of hip hop, but they can be pretty damn cool in the food world too. Usually reserved for big brands like Taco Bell teaming up with Doritos, Baskin Robbins with Oreo, and recently, Pop Tarts with Jolly Rancher, it’s much less common that smaller independent companies collide to release a joint product – but today that narrative is straight shook. Gourmet ice cream goddess Little G and cookie cup titans MdoughW have joined forces to release a limited edition run of cookie and brownie (“doughie”) loaded pints of indulgence decadence. Utilizing MdoughW’s signature doughies, aka wildly soft cookie cups stuffed with delicious fillings, and Little G’s super premium ice cream bases and swirls, the two combined to churn out six epic flavors, and today we take a first dive into Cinnamon Caramel Churro, which is cinnamon ice cream with MdoughW churro pieces and a salted caramel swirl.

The cinnamon ice cream is absolutely spot on. It has a giant, robust, and spicy cinnamon flavor that has the cinna-slut in me satisfied in ways not many ice creams have done before. There is a genuine spice-heavy, almost floral zing that tastes like freshly ground cinnamon was dumped generously onto a sweet cream base and it is absolutely magical. Visually the base is studded with brown flecks that translate the cinnamon flawlessly. It should go without saying that the ice cream itself is incredibly rich and creamy with a succulent melty mouthfeel that is divine.

The churro pieces are incredibly soft with a nice salty pop that register much more like dough than they do the crispy fried stick I associate them with. The pieces are of generous size and have upheld their dense chew well in the sea of cream, but without any sort of crispy crunch they could easily be cinnamon bun pieces or snickerdoodle cookies and I’m not sure I would be able to tell the difference. Imagining the way the dairy would soak into the fried exterior of a churro to create a crispy squish has me wishing there was more, but the cinnamon-heavy, almost grainy base helps emulate that experience to a degree.

The biggest element that’s a bit of a miss for me in this pint is the salted caramel swirl. I know what Little G is capable of when it comes to swirls (the best in the game up there with Salt & Straw), and with this flavor the swirl is more subtly incorporated into the base than standing out on its own in big gooey puddles of deliciousness. Every so often I’ll get a bite that has a sweeter, smoother punch to it, and that is where the caramel comes into play, but I miss having thick succulent ribbons that deliver a deeply sweet, salty, and caramelized flavor.

This is a great flavor of ice cream for cinnamon lovers, but it doesn’t really hit the mark completely when it comes to what I know and love to be a churro. Although it has one of the best cinnamon bases I have ever had, some crunch is really needed to drive the desired flavor into full effect, and I really wish I had some serious caramel to send it to the heights I know Little G can ascend to.

Rating: 9/10
Found at: http://www.goldbely.com (use code seanpancake0 for $25 off your first order!)

REVIEW: Hostess Golden Cupcakes

May 18, 2017May 17, 2017 / seansskillet / 3 Comments

Childhood nostalgia is a helluva drug. The sights, sounds, and flavors of our youthful formative years trigger powerful associations of the best and worst of times, and when it comes to junky snack food those still-developing tastebuds can hold onto memories of food that was mind-blowing at the time and may or may not hold up to the standard of a full grown and seasoned palate. Among the best examples of such memories are my experiences with snack cakes, which, before I understood the magic that could happen inside of a real oven at 350 degrees, were some of the best things in the world. One of my favorite snack cakes was the Hostess Golden Cupcake, which since the bankruptcy scare in 2013 I hadn’t seen back on shelves, until now. Amidst the slew of mint and berry flavored treats that pop up during the spring are these once semi-standard now semi-rare iteration of the cellophane cupcake that combine frosted yellow cake with a creamy filling and the signature Hostess squiggle.

The cakes look and feel just as I remember – soft and spongy with a greasy sheen that only a true chubby child can appreciate and look at with adoration. The top chocolate layer is hard and much more resembles a shell than frosting, but if it was slick and gooey that would be far too natural and probably make me ill. The smell is sweet and very reminiscent of the Chocodile, or more simply put, chocolate covered Twinkie. Going in for a bite I’m afraid the nostalgia got the best of me as this really does just taste like a chocolate covered Twinkie in hamburger shape instead of hot dog.

The cake itself is moister than what you get with most Twinkies, but it doesn’t have any special yellow cake flavor, and the golden element here is really just bland, sweet cake that does nothing to excite my tastebuds at all. My favorite part of yellow cake is the distinct eggy-ness you taste from the use of tons of egg yolks, and while I knew I wouldn’t get that much of an authentic flavor, I got absolutely none of it and my favorite rare childhood Hostess release is letting me down like when the young aspiring athlete finally meets Tom Brady and he shrugs him off to step into his limousine.

The chocolate layer on the top is also boring, with just a hint of cocoa flavor and a predominantly sweet and grainy texture that adds nothing to the overall experience. The creme filling on the inside is exactly what you would expect it to be, but with the rest of the cake being so bland and sugary single-noted, it loses all of its impact and simply blends into a sea of bleh.

The only other limited cupcake I’ve had since Hostess relaunched is the Pumpkin Spice one, which I thought was really awesome, so I’m not sure if my hopes were too high or nostalgia too strong, but these cakes were an absolute miss for me and another forgettable part of what I thought was great in my childhood.

Rating: 5.5/10
Found at: Target ($2.99)

REVIEW: Limited Edition Firework Oreo

May 16, 2017May 16, 2017 / seansskillet / Leave a comment

I’m no stranger to the junk food industry and our consumer-based society in general launching my tastebuds and wallet well into the future when it comes to holidays. I’ve grown accustomed to seeing Valentine’s candy and cards pop up the day after Christmas, pumpkin-on-my-everything starting in August, and Christmas beginning on November 1st, but the latest Oreo release had me asking myself, “is it summer already?”. The packaging, adorned with explosions and patriotic colors, stirred up memories of poorly lit bottle rockets, cheap beer, and the sweet scent of charcoal, aka, the Fourth of July. Since we’ve only had six weeks of spring, the middle of summer seemed like a stretch, but then I realized, I’m a dummy, and for once, the cookie-peddlers have gotten their timing right – Memorial Day is May 29! Just in time to pay our respects to the men and women serving our country, Nabisco have released Limited Edition Firework Oreo, which add explosive popping candy to the iconic chocolate creme sandwich.

Opening the package reveals the slightly bittersweet and creamy smell you know and love from Oreo, with cookies that fit the smell-bill and look identical to the original except for little red and blue dots in the creme. Biting in is exactly what you would expect – crunch, squish, and chocolate, but then right as the creme hits my tongue the party begins – POP. The popping candy starts to sizzle via saliva activation, and I’ve gotta be honest it’s pretty damn fun. The more you chew the more they dance, with continual bacon-in-a-skillet sound effects even after I swallow.

The popping candy doesn’t change the flavor at all. There is no strawberry or blueberry flavor added to the rocks, and the effect here is purely an experience rather than a taste. It’s kind of impressive that they were able to present a product that looks and feels different but has the exact same flavor profile as the cookie that has been leading the pack for over 100 years. While an additional candy flavor would have been fun, I suspect it might have come off as cloying, although I wouldn’t mind if they added a crazy flavor like grape to really funk the experience up.

I’m kind of stumped how to rate this cookie. The firework-spin doesn’t take away from the original Oreo at all, and in some ways even enhances it – just not with taste. It also doesn’t really add anything particularly ground breaking that makes me feel like people HAVE to try this, but it’s got a serious fun factor that I can’t deny. Since Oreo are my favorite grocery cookie of all time and they nailed the execution, I’ve gotta give them the benefit of a doubt with a solid thumbs up. While I think I would still take the Double Stuf over these for general munching, I wouldn’t mind seeing them pop up every Memorial Day for a fun-filled snack attack.

Rating: 8.5/10
Found at: Safeway ($2.99)

REVIEW: The Peanut Principle’s “Going Green” Pistachio Butter

May 15, 2017May 14, 2017 / seansskillet / 3 Comments

I’m a nut butter nut, and when it comes to creamy, fatty, crave able jars of spreadable protein I’m always down to try something new. I’ve had many types of pulverized nuts in my days, including Trader Joes’ great Mixed Nut version, but never have I had or seen a pistachio butter…and the times, they are a changin’. The Peanut Principle are a gourmet nut butter company from New York, making buttery goodness out of nearly every kind of nut from plain and flavored peanut to hazelnut, walnut, macadamia, pumpkin seed, and lots more. I ordered a huge sampling of peanut butters last year and was overall very impressed, so when they announced pistachio I had to jump on the opportunity. Going Green is a creamy pistachio butter that’s as basic as it gets, with the lone ingredient being organic dry roasted pistachios – no salt, no sugar, no BS.

The taste of this butter is everything the look of the jar promised – pure, rich, thick, intense pistachio. It’s a very unique-to-the-green-nut-flavor that is deep and roasty, slightly sweet, and cleanly fatty. The texture is insanely thick but less lip-smackingly mouth-drying than peanut butter tends to be, which I think might be due to the lack of salt. Despite the absence of saltiness there’s no lack of pop, as the nuts themselves pack a big wallop of flavor that needs little help to be incredibly robust and huge.

On toast the flavor becomes a bit more subdued and blends in with the bread well. Some of the richness mellows but the sweet flavor of the pistachio stays intact. As good as that flavor is, I didn’t think the butter offered as much as a traditional peanut butter or salted butter so I tried it with cinnamon and sugar, which still was just okay, and then strawberries, which also were just alright. I could see this being tasty spread on some pancakes, dolloped onto some vanilla ice cream, or used in conjunction with some pistachio pieces to make a killer stuffed french toast.

Make no mistake, this is a premium product, and at $11.99 for an eight ounce jar it’s four times the cost of a regular peanut butter, even from a gourmet company like Peanut Principle, whose sixteen ounce jar of regular PB goes for $5.99. It may be expensive, but it absolutely delivers on what it set out to do, and packs the punch of what feels like hundreds of pistachio’s into a small glass jar. Pistachio’s aren’t one of my favorite nuts, but if you’re a fiend for the little green guys, this stuff will send your morning bread into hyperdrive, or be a perfect pick-me-up straight from the jar, without the hassle of shells.

Rating: 8/10
Found at: http://www.peanutprinciple.com ($11.99)

Quick Nutrition: 2 Tbsp. – 160 cals – 13g fat – 3mg sodium – 8g carbs – 2g fiber – 2g sugar – 6g protein

Sean's Skillet

ice cream, snack reviews, and bay area eats

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