Girl Scout Cookie Crumble: Part 1

It was only in recent years that I learned there are two different bakers that make Girl Scout cookies every year. The U.S. is divided up in two territories, and where you live determines which baker makes the cookies you can buy. The bakers don't use the same recipes; there might be similarly-named cookies in each, like Thin Mints and S'mores, but they are made differently and have a different taste to them. (The L.A. Times has a pretty good explanation of the different territories and the cookies available in each.) 

I've been curious about the different flavors, but I live in Little Brownie Baker territory, and there aren't really any ABC Baker sellers nearby. (I'm not about to drive more than a few hours for cookies unless Oreos are involved.) However, the daughter of a friend who lives in ABC Baker territory was selling these, and through the wonders of shipping by mail, I was able to order the complete set. Meanwhile, during Girl Scout cookie season, I can find LBB cookies everywhere: outside of grocery stores, drug stores, the library, even getting off the train at night after work. This would be my year to try both. 

Which is better: ABC Bakers or Little Brownie Bakers? Which cookies are the best? I bring you: the Girl Scout Cookie Crumble.

(Note: regardless of what I say in these reviews, please still continue to support and buy cookies from your local sellers. It's a great cause and deserves support.) 

Cookie Crumble, Round 1: Caramel deLites vs. Samoas

Samoas are a favorite cookie of mine. Thin Mints get the main focus, but Samoas are good in their own right. I like the chocolate and caramel combination, and it's nice that the cookies are bite-sized. However, the name Caramel deLite is not unfamiliar to me; I wonder if I was in that territory in the past.

Putting the cookies side by side, the Caramel deLite looks more appealing. But when I tried it, I felt like it was a dry cookie overall. Like it was missing something. The caramel flavor was there, the chocolate was there, but most of the flavor was in the cookie they were bonded to. 

Meanwhile, the Samoa hits exactly right. It's a bit richer. You feel like you're eating a cookie, and the caramel and chocolate flavors are stronger. Looking at the ingredients, the Samoa has vegetable oil as its second ingredient, while the Caramel deLite has enriched flour as its second ingredient, which I think makes the difference. Samoas have 10 more calories per two-cookie serving than Caramel deLites, but I think it makes all the difference.

Round 1 Winner: Samoas (LBB) 

Cookie Crumble, Round 2: The Battle of the S'mores

S'mores are a recent addition to the Girl Scout cookie lineup. (Or maybe it feels that way - I'm getting old.) When you look at each baker's version of the cookie, you can see that they are drastically different.

The LBB S'mores cookie is a sandwich cookie. It's more like a traditional s'more in this way. The cookies are graham cracker-flavored, and the filling is chocolate creme with a slight bit of vanilla creme. I didn't get on board with these cookies when they were first introduced, but over time I've come to appreciate them. These are cookies that I recommend you take small bites of and really savor them, letting the different flavors show up as they come.

The ABC Smore's cookie is a wholly different approach. In this version, the graham cracker is on the inside with some vanilla/marshmallow creme, all surrounded by a chocolate coating. This is actually really good. The chocolate adds a rich flavor and tastes more like real chocolate than chocolate-flavored creme ever could. But the graham cracker is still there. I wouldn't say the vanilla/marshmallow is strong in either case. (In fact, it seems like anything s'mores flavored features a regular vanilla/marshmallow flavor when it should really be a burnt marshmallow flavor.) But the ABC cookie is really good. If I place future orders from the ABC territory, I'll include a box or two of these.

So, which is better? I like both. I'll buy both again. But I have to give the slight edge to ABC in this case. I've grown to like the LBB version, but the ABC version gets closer to what a s'more is, and is the more satisfying cookie overall. If they were both for sale and I could only buy one, I'd go with the ABC version. It has 40 more calories per 2-cookie serving than the LBB version, but it seems to make a difference.

Round 2 Winner: S'mores (ABC) 

Score:

ABC: 1

LBB: 1

Twizzlers: Strawberry Smoothie, Watermelon, Orange Cream Pop

I grew up liking Twizzlers. They were a frequent road trip and movie theater food. It wasn't until I was older that I had my first Red Vines, and now whichever one I buy will depend on the mood I'm in. (I like the initial taste of Twizzlers better, but sometimes there's an aftertaste that Red Vines doesn't have.) In the past few years, I've tried some good Australian licorice, too. 

Like any food company looking to spike some interest in its long-standing brand, Twizzlers releases seasonal flavors every now and then. I was at a convenience store one day recently and came across a flavor I've never tried: Strawberry Smoothie. I was curious enough about it to give it a try. They also had returning flavors Watermelon and Orange Cream Pop, which I've seen before but thought I would try again for this blog.

The Strawberry Smoothie is good overall. I like the flavor of the licorice itself. My first thought was that regular Twizzlers are already strawberry-flavored, so I didn't know how this would be different. But the Strawberry Smoothie flavor is a bit lighter and sweeter than regular Twizzlers. It reminds me of the fun-sized licorice bars that are released for Halloween. It's pleasant.

I'm not so much on board with the filling inside the licorice, though. My guess is that this is where the "smoothie" part comes in, but I would like these better without it. I think I have it ingrained that my licorice experience should only include one texture, so to have an Oreo creme-type filling in the licorice throws me off a little.

Next up is Watermelon Pull 'n' Peel. I like this flavor okay. Pull 'n' Peel is good to have when you're feeling anxious or restless and need something to do with your hands. To its credit, the watermelon flavor doesn't taste like watermelon bubble gum and make me feel uncertain about swallowing it. However, I don't love it enough where I could see buying it regularly. 

The final flavor I have for today is Orange Cream Pop. I like this at first, but again, the filling gets me every time. I will admit that the filling is what really makes this taste like an orange cream bar, instead of just orange licorice. Hmm... maybe this flavor will get me to come around on the filling. 

Overall, I didn't outright love any of these flavors, though my favorite of the three is Orange Cream Pop. I liked the licorice part of Strawberry Smoothie, but not the filling; and Watermelon was okay, but not something I'd be likely to want over and over. 

Key Info:

Flavor: Strawberry Smoothie Filled Twizzlers
Date Found: July 2020, CVS

Description: Strawberry Smoothie Filled Twizzlers

Package size: 16 Twizzlers

Serving size: 2 Twizzlers, 140 calories, 1.5 grams fat, 20 grams sugar

Flavor: Watermelon Pull 'N' Peel Twizzlers
Date Found: July 2020, CVS

Description: Watermelon Pull 'N' Peel Twizzlers

Package size: 12 Twizzlers

Serving size: 1 Twizzler, 110 calories, 0.5 grams fat, 15 grams sugar

Flavor: Orange Cream Pop Filled Twizzlers
Date Found: July 2020, CVS

Description: Orange Cream Pop Filled Twizzlers

Package size: 16 Twizzlers

Serving size: 2 Twizzlers, 140 calories, 1.5 grams fat, 20 grams sugar

Peeps-apalooza 2020

I don't love Peeps... but I don't hate them, either. Peeps made appearances in my Easter baskets throughout my childhood, to the point that I'll buy at least one package for old time's sake every year. (For the record, I like the chick shape more than the bunny shape.) In recent years, Peeps have branched out to target different holidays, with pumpkin-shaped Peeps for Halloween and tree-shaped Peeps for Christmas. 

Still, Easter is the big event. It's no wonder that the fine folks at Peeps would put most of their eggs into the Easter basket. When I was out this year a few weeks before Easter, I counted no less than 8 different flavors of Peeps available. I've never really tried the different flavors, but with a blog I want to be great comes great responsibility. 

So I took a deep dive.

I thought Party Cake Peeps were okay. They taste just like a regular Peep at first. Eventually, there's a subtle cake batter flavor, but it wasn't strong enough to be distinctive. I like the idea of these, but the final product was so close to an original Peep that I didn't think there was enough that set it apart. 

On the other hand, I thought Hot Tamales Peeps were really good. It's been awhile since I've had any of that candy, so I couldn't remember how hot the cinnamon flavor was. But it was pitched just right, with the heat from the cinnamon nicely balanced by the sweet sugar of the marshmallow. I would buy these again, no question. 

Cotton Candy was another inspired choice. It is sweeter than a regular Peep, with a cotton candy flavor. It's hard to describe how that could be so, except that it tastes more sugary somehow (unless the power of suggestion helped that out). However, this was another one that wasn't too far from a regular Peep. 

And then there was Sour Watermelon. The only artificially watermelon-flavored food or drink I've liked has been the watermelon slushie drink that Taco Bell had in the past few years. I wasn't a fan of watermelon Oreos when they came out, and I'm not a fan of Sour Watermelon Peeps. They remind me too much of the Watermelon Bubblicious gum. I tend to like that flavor as a gum, but as a food, I get this feeling that I shouldn't swallow it. This had a strong flavor, too. It might have been a bit better if it wasn't as sour. 

Aside from flavored Peeps, I also came across Peeps that were dipped in chocolate and/or filled. I've previously balked at these, since one package of 3-4 of these Peeps might cost the same as an entire package of 10-15 regular Peeps. Still, in the interest of science, I decided to try these out. 

Coconut dipped in dark chocolate is actually pretty good. The coconut flavor is subtle at first, and could be stronger, but it's enough to satisfy. It's still fundamentally a Peep, just with a hint of coconut. The chocolate makes it a winner. I know it's not necessarily the healthiest thing to dip a Peep in chocolate, but we don't eat these every day, either.

The regular Peep dipped in milk chocolate was also good. You likely know what a regular Peep tastes like. Add some milk chocolate and it's a sweet treat. The chocolate adds a good flavor. (Maybe everything should be dipped in chocolate?)

Chocolate Caramel Swirl took me by surprise. The packaging describes it as "chocolate marshmallow filled with creamy caramel dipped in rich chocolate." I thought this one was very good. There is only a small amount of filling, so you'll likely need to eat the whole thing or at least half to taste it. But it's an interesting flavor combination, and interesting to have a filling. The filling itself was more caramel-flavored than caramel, in my opinion. It wasn't smooth or creamy like caramel in a candy bar, but was more like a caramel custard.

Finally, there was Raspberry in creme-flavored fudge. I wanted to like this, but the raspberry flavor seemed off for me. I wanted to it to be stronger and slightly more tart. Instead, this had the sweetness of artificial raspberry without any tartness. The white creme was okay; I wouldn't say it was great nor bad. I likely wouldn't buy this again.

Thank you for joining me on my Peeps odyssey. I'm glad I tried these out and saw how I liked them. For me, some were winners, while others had flavors that were either too strong or too weak, instead of being "just right." I'll know in the future if I ever see these again to add Hot Tamale, Coconut, and Chocolate Caramel Swirl Peeps to my cart. 

Key Info - Flavored Peeps:

Flavor: Party Cake Peeps
Date Announced/Found: March 2020, Walgreens

Description: Party cake flavored marshmallow

Package size: 10 Chicks

Serving size: 4 chicks, 110 calories, 0 grams fat, 24 grams sugar

Flavor: Hot Tamales Peeps
Date Announced/Found: March 2020, Mariano's (Kroger)

Description: Hot Tamales Fierce Cinnamon

Package size: 10 Chicks

Serving size: 4 chicks, 110 calories, 0 grams fat, 24 grams sugar

Flavor: Cotton Candy Peeps
Date Announced/Found: March 2020, Walgreens

Description: Cotton candy flavored marshmallow

Package size: 15 Chicks

Serving size: 4 chicks, 110 calories, 0 grams fat, 24 grams sugar

Flavor: Sour Watermelon Peeps
Date Announced/Found: March 2020, Walgreens

Description: Sour watermelon flavored marshmallow

Package size: 15 Chicks

Serving size: 4 chicks, 100 calories, 0 grams fat, 22 grams sugar

Key Info - Dipped/Filled Peeps:

Flavor: Coconut Peeps in Dark Chocolate
Date Announced/Found: March 2020, Target

Description: Coconut flavored marshmallow dipped in decadent dark chocolate

Package size: 3 Chicks

Serving size: 3 Chicks, 150 calories, 3.5 grams fat, 29 grams sugar

Flavor: Marshmallow Peeps in Milk Chocolate
Date Found: March 2020, Target

Description: Marshmallow dipped in decadent milk chocolate

Package size: 3 Chicks

Serving size: 3 Chicks, 160 calories, 3.5 grams fat, 29 grams sugar

Flavor: Chocolate Caramel Swirl
Date Found: March 2020, Target

Description: Chocolate marshmallow filled with creamy caramel dipped in rich chocolate

Package size: 4 Chicks

Serving size: 2 Chicks, 120 calories, 3 grams fat, 20 grams sugar

Flavor: Raspberry Peeps in Creme Fudge
Date Found: March 2020, Target

Description: Raspberry flavored marshmallow dipped in decadent creme flavored fudge

Package size: 4 Chicks

Serving size: 4 Chicks, 210 calories, 4 grams fat, 39 grams sugar

Kit Kat: Cranberry and Almond, Lemon Drizzle, Orange, Dark Mint

As any food aficionado knows, Japanese Kit Kats are a thing, and they tend to be good (at least the ones I've been able to try). I unexpectedly stumbled upon these Cranberry and Almond Kit Kats and thought I'd try them out. (Okay, they were in my basket almost immediately.) 

I thought this was an interesting idea and presentation. The top of each Kit Kat has a mix of cranberry and almond pieces. The packaging has a picture of a chef on it. It seems that this is aiming to be high end. There is a sticker label on the back which gives the nutritional information in English, and it translates the name as "Everyday luxury cranberry." Each piece is individually wrapped. 

I thought these were really good. The chocolate is pitched exactly right. It's slightly darker than I'm used to, without being bitter or off-putting. It's sweet but not milk chocolate-sweet. The cranberry and almond pieces counterbalance the flavor, not in an overwhelming way, but just enough to give tart and nutty accents. The wafers also had a good crunch. I'm a fan. Not to give cultural criticism, but I think sometimes with American foods, the focus is more on quantity, while this product was made with more of a focus on quality. I would buy these again if I saw them.

At the same store, I also came across Kit Kats made in the UK. Did I buy them? Of course I did!

I was concerned after I bought these that they would be 9 unwrapped bars. That's a lot to have open all at once. Fortunately, I was wrong. There were 9 twin bars, each in its own packaging. 

I liked the Lemon Drizzle flavor. It's still a chocolate candy, but there's a lemon flavor that shows up and takes over. I presume the lemon is in the wafers, as it isn't readily apparent at first but is stronger as the chocolate melts, especially if you chew it. The chocolate is slightly dark, which is good. 

The Orange flavor is pretty good, too. Again, it's chocolate, though more of a milk chocolate here. You can smell the orange before you take a bite. It reminds me of a Terry's Chocolate Orange, except for the wafers, and you give this a break instead of whacking and unwrapping. It hits the right notes. 

I liked the Dark Mint flavor, too. The chocolate tastes like mint dark chocolate through and through, with the wafers bringing a slight sweetness. It could be the novelty, but I like this better than an Andes Mint or a York Peppermint Patty. 

For all three--Lemon Drizzle, Orange, and Dark Mint--I enjoyed them. I didn't love them to the point that I would go right out and buy them immediately, but I could see sampling them every once in a while. They're a good alternative to the usual. 

Key Info: 

Flavor: Cranberry and Almond Kit Kat
Date Found: February 2020, Cost Plus World Market

Description: Everyday luxury cranberry

Package size: 15 Individual Bars

Serving size: 1 Bar, 39 calories, 2.2 grams fat, 4.1 grams sugar

Flavor: Lemon Drizzle Kit Kat
Date Found: February 2020, Cost Plus World Market

Description: Lemon Drizzle Kit Kat

Package size: 9 Double Bars

Serving size: 1 Double Bar, 105 calories, 5.1 grams fat, 10.5 grams sugar

Flavor: Orange Kit Kat
Date Found: February 2020, Cost Plus World Market

Description: Orange Kit Kat

Package size: 9 Double Bars

Serving size: 1 Double Bar

Flavor: Dark Mint Kit Kat
Date Found: February 2020, Cost Plus World Market

Description: Dark Mint Kit Kat

Package size: 9 Double Bars

Serving size: 1 Double Bar, 105 calories, 5.3 grams fat, 9.6 grams sugar