Nagaraya Hot & Spicy Flavor Cracker Nuts

Thank god there's no transfat, otherwise
this might have been the speedball of snacks

The Attraction:
I think I was strolling in the snack aisle awhile back when I saw this brightly colored package screaming at me. Hot and spicy? What are cracker nuts? I've never even heard of the brand Nagaraya before. Reason enough to try a bag.

The Review
After getting these home, I Googled around and discovered that Nagaraya is a Filipino food company that also sells corn starch and water systems? Maybe life is just a whole lot simpler in the Philippines, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. I've actually had this bag lying around at home for a while. Somehow other snacks would keep leapfrogging this offering. Well, one day I just brought them to work so I can sample them along side with some of my co-coworkers. The reaction was mixed in the office, although after putting a few in my mouth, I was pretty definite about my thoughts on this item.

These "cracker nuts" were coated with a powder of some sort when I poured them out. I put one or two of "deez nuts" in my mouth and immediately the salt on them triggered a sodium alert in my brain. I've eaten and been fond of many a salty snack in my day (pretzels, various forms of jerky, preserved seafood products, etc.), but this damn thing was super, over-the-top salty! I bit in and there was a nice crunch to the cracker nut. Once the saltiness flavor subsided, the rush of heat came on like the 2nd punch of a "1-2 boxing combination". These were pretty dang spicy as well.

This may be the first time I felt nuts kick back

The Sweet:
Texturely speaking, the cracker nut is fun to eat. There seems to be a crunchy shell surrounding a nut inside. It's fun to chomp down and crunch on. The spicy finish brings some serious heat. Frankly,more than I was expecting, but that was a good thing.

The Bitter:
Salty! Super doggone salty! Way saltier than any snack really should be. That was enough to kill any thoughts of having more than a handful at one time...unless you want to trigger a heart condition of some sort.

Conclusion:
Although there are some nice characteristics from this snack, the over-generous application of salt on this snack is enough to squash any hopes of a return engagement with these cracker nuts. Perhaps the other flavors will bring a lighter hand with the seasoning application, but I'm not particularly hopeful.

Although some co-workers said they liked the cracker nuts, at the end of the day, the bag remained about 3/4 full. I think that speaks for itself.

Video of the Week
We are wrapping up Thanksgiving this week in America, but in order to make sure we weren't totally glutinous from all of the holiday feasting, we thought it was a wise idea to put the treadmill to work. It's only the right thing to do for our bodies.

Meanwhile, at my house

Kit Kat Chunky Peanut Butter

Red, White, Blue and Peanut Butter?

The Attraction:
While taking a tour at the grocery market last week, there were several boxes that had hand handwritten words written on them; "Imported from England". This Kit Kat bar was in one of the boxes. Need I say more.

The Review
My fondness for peanut butter has been well documented ( Peanut Butter Moon Pie, Peanut Butter and Strawberry Biscuits, Reese's Nutrageous) so it was a natural fit to jump on the opportunity to try a peanut butter flavored version of a Kit Kat. Although it's at the larger "Chunky" size, it was still worthwhile for me to pick up one of these. I've tried variations of Kit Kats before ( White Chocolate Kit Kat) which I enjoyed and other peanut butter variations of classics (Snickers Peanut Butter) with mixed results. Where will this fall on the scale?

At the unwrapping, I noticed that the bar is cleverly shaped as a giant version of a singular stick of a Kit Kat, Cool! I dig in without wasting another moment. Same crunch as a Kit Kat bar, just, umm...larger? Well, anyway, slowly the peanut butter flavor comes through. The peanut butter itself isn't as sweet as what you might find in a Reese's offering. It comes off as slightly salty actually. Interesting, I keep digging in still with an uncertainty as to what I think about it. I'll need to ponder on this a but more.

Now that's a Chunky Kit Kat bar!

The Sweet:
The familiar Kit Kat formula works even at the "Chunky" size. The peanut butter adds a slightly salty twist on an old favorite.

I feel like I put a Kit Kat bar in a copier at blew it up 10x the size

The Bitter:
I think this product would have worked better at the conventional Kit Kat size. Although I did enjoy this chocolate bar, I think the smaller bars would have provided more of an opportunity to savor the flavor of the peanut butter in the bar. Speaking of peanut butter, the flavor could have been a bit more pronounced as well.

Conclusion:
Though hardly an item that I would go rush out and get another one of, it does a decent job of putting a peanut butter spin on a classic chocolate bar. It wasn't bad, but it barely made enough of an impression to move the needle. For me, the Kit Kat Chunky Peanut Butter bar is like being in Times Square for New Year's Eve; once you've done in once in your lifetime, there really isn't a need to do it again. I can't but help to have a "been there, done that" attitude towards this item should I come across it again on the market shelves.

Video of the Week
Alright, I got nothing this week. I will share this video of the Chrvrches new single off the Hunger Games Soundtrack. Wasn't sure at first, now I'm digging it big time.

"Chvrches - Dead Air" 

Orion's Custard Soft Cup Cake

Orion's Custard Soft Cup Cake

I'm drooling just looking at this picture

The Attraction:
To simply put it, they were on sale at the Asian grocer and I always wanted to try them, but was reluctant to shell out $5 a box for them. For a discounted $2.50 a box, I was "inspired" to finally give these a shot. Oc I'm imagining something like a Twinkie, but with a custard-flavored filling. Oooh, can't wait to try one!

The Review
Orion, perhaps best known for their Choco Pie (which is very much like an American Moon Pie) product, also offers up these baked cakes. I think they are the US equivalent to Hostess or Drake's. I practically grew up eating things like Yodels and Donettes, so I was ready to try these custard filled cup cakes. I have a weakness for baked goods. Granted the fresher, the better, but these certainly qualify as a baked good. Like some of the recent snacks I've been reviewing, each cup cake comes individually wrapped. I'm all for maintaining freshness as much as possible. When I open the packaging, I see that the outside of the cup cake has a nice yellowish tint like the famed Twinkie I had imagined it could taste like. I take a first nibble at it; it's a bit drier than I imagined. Instead of a moist Twinkie, it's a bit more reminiscent of a drier cornbread, but not quite as course. It's not terribly sweet, which is a good thing, cause it'll probably be kicked up a notch when I hit the custard. Several more nibbles in and I still don't taste any custard. Hmm, Maybe it's on the other side. I look at the cup cake and realize I've actually already bit into some of the custard, but just didn't notice it. Unless you look at the cup cake, you can't tell! That's not a good sign. The amount of custard in the cup cake itself doesn't look remotely like what is advertised on the packaging. OK, in fairness, not many products look exactly as they do on the packaging, but come on...I couldn't even taste the bloody thing. Actually, I did taste something.....RUM! WTF?! Yes, Rum. It wasn't til I looked at the packaging later that I realized that it says that it contains alcohol. Is this stuff geared towards kids? I'm all kinds of confused by this product.

One step closer to the party soon to be in my mouth

The Sweet:
The baked confection itself tastes like a drier piece of cornbread. I do like cornbread, so that's a plus and maybe the only thing really going for it.

There's a custard explosion waiting for me inside, I just know it!

The Bitter:
Custard! Where the eff is it? Based on the photo below, you can barely see the custard that is injected into each cup cake. Worse yet, you can't taste it. Even consistency-wise, you can't tell it's in there. That's either how little custard they put in or how dry the product is that it soaks up all the custard out of the filling.

Person#1: "Knock, knock"
Person#2: "Who there?"
Person#1: "Custard"
Person#2: "Custard who?"
Person#1: "I don't know either, cause it ain't in this damn cup cake!"

Oh, and rum in a product that seems to be aimed for a general audience. It's not a huge amount where you are going to get a buzz, but can you imagine the backlash if Hostess or Drake's released a product like this? There would be heck to pay!

"Where's the beef?"

Conclusion:
This custard cup cake fails to deliver anything that resembles custard, in both flavor and consistency. So much so that I'm debating on whether I should contact some consumer affair group about false advertising or reaching out to the FBI to file a missing custard report.

You'd be better off getting a piece of cornbread somewhere. Save your money and you'll be much more pleased with Orion's offering of Choco Pies.

Video of the Week

This week, our friends over at Vice have posted an interesting piece on a women who enjoys cooking with roadkill. She does a pretty good job of making it as appealing as possible, but in the end, I still kept saying to myself that it's a squirrel and roadkill. (Ask me again if I would eat it if I've gone 2 days without food and I'm certain my response would be very different). Warning: There are some graphic images that some viewers may find offensive.

"Oh, poor delicious little squirrel"

Arnott's Tim Tam Vanilla

Tim Tam, but will I thank you, Ma'am?

The Attraction:
Almost 2 years ago, I reviewed Arnott's Caramel version of Tim Tam's cookies, so with my love of flavor variations of familiar products, it was a natural attraction when I saw the vanilla version of these treats. Even better was that I didn't have to commit to a full size package (and price) to sample these cookies. In the bag it goes...

The Review
One could say that Arnott's is the Australian equivalent to the United State's Nabisco or Keebler, a company known for putting out tasty savory and sweet treats for over a century like their US counterparts. One of Arnott's flagship products, if not their flagship product, is Tim Tam. They come in various flavors, but this will be the first time I will be sampling their vanilla offering. Like the caramel version I tried earlier, even the smaller package comes carefully packed with spacers in the tray to prevent sticking and crushing of the chocolate covered cookies. (Although frankly, I may have preferred to have an extra cookie or four squeezed in there to forego the thoughtful packaging). First bite; same crunch and rush of chocolate flavor as the caramel version, but this time with a white cream in the middle. The results of the "new twist" on an old favorite? Blah. Perhaps my expectations were misguided; I was hoping for actually vanilla flavor, not just a white cream. Either way, the cream seems rather inconsequential. It didn't bring anything to the flavor party, well actually, if anything, it took the place of caramel or the original chocolate filling, which was much more satisfying and added something to the finished product rather than was just inserted and seems rather neutral to the item, like the vanilla cream.

"Hello, Sexy!"

The Sweet:
At the core, it's still a Tim Tam, but really, when you take away the customary chocolate cream, it's a whole lot less tastier than the original. There's really not to much to like about this item.

"It's not you, it's me....OK, it's really you"

The Bitter:
If I never had a Tim Tam previous to trying this vanilla version, I wouldn't try another Tim Tam again. That's how unimpressive I was with this product. It's not that it was bad, per se, it was just indistinguishable from any other "so-so" chocolate covered cookie. (I may be nice in saying this item is considered "so-so").

Conclusion:
Take a regular Tim Tam, take away the chocolaty cream filling and substitute with a white flavored cream that you can't taste and this is what you get. I assume the "vanilla" in this product refers to the color of the cream, because it certainly didn't taste of anything.

This flavor detour falls flat and is a boring deviation that detracts from the lore of the legendary Tim Tam line. Save your money and stick with either the original or the "Twix" like caramel variation.

Video of the Week
If you are cheap like me, you like to find different ways to save money and make things on your own. That's what this kid and his Dad had in mind when they tried to make sparkling wine from regular red wine. Can't imagine what could possibly go wrong.

"I'm such a genius for figuring out how to save time and money!"

White Chocolate Pringles / Cinnamon and Sugar Pringles

What's all the fuss about?

The Attraction:
I had a coworker recently storm into my work area and excitedly say that she just picked up a can each of White Chocolate Pringles and Cinnamon and Sugar Pringles. She offered me some to sample with her and of course I took her up as it's my obligation to report on new and interesting snacks...that and I just wanted to try the dang things.

The Review
I'll apologize in advance for the lack of photos for the review as it was all rather spur of the moment. (Even the photo above I had to steal from an Ebay auction). First when you crack open the can, you can smell the advertised flavors for both items. I was intrigued; a sweet twist on a savory item. Could this possibly work? I tried to think of any items in recent memory that was able to successfully make that transition. Maybe Snyder's Honey Wheat Braided Twist, but they also removed the salt off the "pretzel", which was a good call. Chocolate covered pretzels might be a better example. God knows I love those. I digress. The first special flavor I tried was the White chocolate flavored chip. First thought; subtle....very subtle, maybe too subtle. After the hint of white chocolate washes through your palate, the rest is familiar to Pringles eaters. The finish is maybe a tad less salty than the original flavored Pringles, but essentially the same. Hmm...that was uneventful. Next up, Cinnamon and Sugar flavored Pringles! Pick up a chip, pop a chip in....identical type of experience as the white chocolate flavored chip; a hint of the flavored advertised, then the familiarity of a original Pringle. This was like Seinfeld's last episode; a bunch of hype about it and then, for me at least, then it just went away. It was anti-climatic to say the least.

Could this Pringles offering catch on like these?

The Sweet:
I applaud Pringles for thinking outside of the box. Not the most obvious flavor combinations, but there seems to be a recent rash of oddball pairing of flavors recently like Lay's Cappuccino Flavored chips and Watermelon Flavored Oreos. I have yet to try those items, but frankly, the appeal just isn't there for me for those combinations. Umm...that's about all I can think of in terms of sweet.

The Bitter:
The flavors are too subtle. You get a hint of sweetness of the flavor, but it fades so quickly that you barely can taste it. Even if it turned out that upping the sweetness factor of each flavor would overwhelm the saltiness of the chip, you would at least feel satisfied that you got a hit of the flavor that grabbed your attention enough to purchase the item. The best way to describe my snacking experience of these products is for you to imagine if you were eating white chocolate or a cinnamon and sugar cookie and then picked up a Pringles Original Flavored chip and ate it. You clearly would taste a Pringle, but then you also taste a remnant of the flavor of what was in your hand previously....and that's usually pretty weak, which both of these items were.

Conclusion:
Is this just a money grab by Pringles to "sweeten" their profits by targeting snack foodies that are curious about new and unusual flavor combinations? Perhaps, but although these particular items do not come close to hitting a home run on the enjoyability scale, who knows what these experiments will yield in the future. Maybe they are just a release or two away from that game changer. We'll just have to wait until then.

Video of the Week
As frequent as I have been writing up snack reviews, health and fitness is still a concern of mine. These folks have thought of an easier way to tackle the appearance aspects of this. I'm so silly! With 2 minutes of Photoshop work, I can have my snack and eat it too. No one will ever be able to tell that those abs aren't mine, right? Apparently neither did these guys below.

Maybe I can just Photoshop my face on this picture