Belvita Banana Bread

 Just looking at this makes me want to go (to the bathroom)

The Attraction

One of the perks at work are company provided snacks! Along with having them free of charge, it has opened up a new world of snacks for me to try. Can't feel guilty about buying a snack that doesn't taste good if you didn't have to pay for the snack. It all works out!

The Review:
I was a bit curious about these snacks when I first saw them put out in the pantry, but I didn't gravitate towards them initially because for some reason I thought these were snacks for "older" people that had problems "going", if you know what I mean. Still, I was intrigued as there aren't many snacks that advertise banana flavor and I have a thing for banana flavored baked goods. Why wait any longer?

I unwrap the banana bread and am quickly treated to the scent of bananas. This is a pretty great start.

I slowly inch the "bread" out of the wrapper and take a good look at what was inside. It peeks out of the wrapper and like the photo on the packaging would suggest, the bread resembles a cookie more than a conventional bread. A hash brown like cookie, to be specific.

Now I want a McDonald's Hash Brown

OK, so I have a great banana scent and a delicious looking cookie outside, but lets see if it can complete the sacred food trinity and bring some terrific flavor as well.

I take a bite and it's very much like a soft banana flavored cookie. The texture isn't as soft as a conventional bread, but it yields nicely to my bite. I was afraid it may be a dry, crumbly mess, but surprisingly, it was a soft banana-flavored bite. I could get use to eating this in the mornings...

It's sorta like having a cookie for breakfast

...but then about half-way through the bread, a bite struck me odd. I detected a strange aftertaste. It was for a split second, but it was there. It was a flavor that changed the whole experience. It came across as artificial tasting and it planted that flavor and taste in my head so I was unable to enjoy that banana flavor any more in this snack without thinking about the "unnatural" process that may have taken place to create that banana flavor.

The Sweet:
If you like cookies and banana flavor, you are in luck

The Bitter:
About half-way through, the banana flavor left an odd aftertaste

Conclusion:
It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I really thought it would very dry and...well, for older people that couldn't use the bathroom. Come to find out that wasn't really what these were marketed for. These are supposed to be a breakfast snack. Oh well, almost the same.

I guess when you are looking for a breakfast snack that is a little healthier than a Pop-Tart, but something tastier than oatmeal, I could see this being a nice middle ground. Still that slight artificial aftertaste brought me back down to earth and will quickly remind you how unnatural of a breakfast snack this really is.

Video of the Week

A small leak

I fancy myself a relatively handy guy around the house. Some painting here, some patching there. Once in awhile I have to roll up my plumber's sleeve to do some work in the kitchen or in the bathroom.This video is my worst nightmare; it was supposed to be an attempt to fix a small leak and install a new faucet. As you can see, it didn't quite work out well. What is more surprising is that the video is 14 minutes long....and I watched every second of it. What's up with that?

Persimmon (Fuyu)

Don't call me a tomato!

The Attraction

I've resisted this fruit for many, many years, but after a bagful landed on my desk, I couldn't avoid it any longer.

The Review:
It's a new year and I thought what a wonderful way to ring it in on Sneakasnack by reviewing something healthy, like a fruit. The bigger question is if this is a tasty fruit or a
"healthy" fruit that taste as such. (if you know what I mean).

My Mom loves persimmons, but I never really thought about trying it. I think subconsciously it looks like a tomato to me and back in the day I was not a big tomato fan. Therefore, it must taste bad if it looks like a tomato, right?

Fast forward 30 something years and I had a former coworker offer me a bunch that she received from her parents in DC. She told me her parents would send her a box-load because they have a persimmon tree and it would grow too many for them. I casually said, "Sure, of course", not really thinking she would follow up and give some to me. 2 days later there was a bag of about 20 persimmons on my desk. Her generosity put me in a jam. Now what? I can give them to my Mom! Problem is, many were already ripe and I wouldn't see her until 5 days later. Some of the persimmons wouldn't make it.

Damn this "hate-to-waste-food" mentality. I was backed into a corner. I should at least taste one before tossing out the over-ripened ones, don't you think? I owe my co-worker and the persimmons at least that much, no? Enter my snack review...

Persimmon varieties

At first, I had no idea how to eat it. Can you eat the skin? Is there a pit? How can you tell if it's ripe? After having to Google all these things like some sort of fruit barbarian, I had my answers. Yes, you can eat the skin, but I elected to peel it anyway. There's no pit in the Fuyu type persimmon I had, but some do have them. Lastly, you can eat Fuyu persimmon's while they are firm, but some choose to eat them when they are a bit softer. Good thing was I didn't need to wait for the softer part. These babies were ready to go.

Personally prepared by Chef Paul

I pick one up and try not to destroy it as I attempted to remove the outside skin with a peeler. With moderate success, due to it's ripeness, I was ready to go in. I wasn't too excited as the mushiness of the one I had as it further reminded me of a tomato.

As I bring a piece to my mouth, I can smell the sweetness of it. Not strong, nor familiar, but a sweetness. I take it in and surprisingly to me, there's not much tomato likeness at all.

It's sweet and at first and it reminded me of a really sweet mango, but that still wasn't quite accurate. After having a few more bites, perhaps a juicy sweet potato, minus the graininess might be more on target. Texture-wise, the outside is like a papaya, but the interior has these chewy gel sacks in them. I know that may not sound super appetizing, but the contrast works really well. Having several more bites, I not only found myself enjoying that chewiness, but looking forward to it.

This really isn't like a tomato at all!

The Sweet:
Great "sweet potato" like flavor with a chewy gel surprise!

The Bitter:
Only available certain times of the year (mostly Fall) and it took some time for me to prep. (Remove the top greenery, peel, then cut into pieces)

Conclusion:
I was ready to not like this fruit at all. Maybe "not like" is putting it lightly. I was looking at this fruit through "tomato-tinted" glasses and avoided it for many years.

Boy, what I have been missing out on.

Since discovering persimmons, there is hardly a time that I've seen them and not bought any or think to myself if I had any left at home. I couldn't think of a stronger endorsement.

For those of you who are tired of having the "typical" fruits, give persimmons a shot. You might find that eating healthy has never tasted so good.

Video of the Week

What is that vase made out of?

I don't like to see people fail, unless it's something with bad intentions behind it. In this case, perhaps some planning or testing may have been a good idea before you try to put on a show for your superiors. Loss of faith in the Iranian Army, however new found belief in the quality of their vases.