Tuesday, September 23, 2008

A celebration of all things REESE'S!













Who knew 2 little chocolate peanut butter cups born in the 1920's would become so popular they would have endless spinoffs- now there's Reese's cereal, ice cream, cookies, and dozens of Limited Edition flavor variations. Millions of Americans (myself included) have grown up on the addictive flavor of Reese's, making them the most popular Hershey product by far. But supposedly they are not so popular in Europe or other countries where people are raised on Nutella and don't usually like peanut butter at all -they prefer a choco-hazelnutty flavor instead. But Reese's is still hugely recognized and eaten worldwide and will forever be expanding it's line here in the US. I know we simply could not imagine life without those peanut butter cups in the familiar bright orange packaging- still going strong after 85 years!
PS- Regarding the latest uproar about Hershey substituting vegetable oils in place of REAL cocoa butter to cut costs, they wisely have chosen NOT to do that to their Reese's, Milk choc bar, Almond Joy, or Kisses. They know better than to mess with the formula or taste of their best sellers...

Thursday, September 4, 2008

M&Ms World Orlando!! Love, love, love it!


















Yay- I finally made it to the third & final M&M World in the U.S.-Orlando, FL (you know, home of Disneyworld, Seaworld etc..)! The other 2 are in Las Vegas & NYC of course....big flashy cities with heavy tourism. Orlando is the newest store, inside Florida Mall, and is as fabulous as the others- it's huge, colorful, fun, and really a Mecca for any/all M&M lovers & collectors with everything imagineable for kids & adults. Also that day we went to Universal Studios park where they had M&M vending machines, which I havn't seen anywhere else (Mars is THE candy supplier to Universal) Take a look!

NEW- Breyers & Klondike Triple Choc ice cream!



Both Breyers & Klondike have come out with Triple Chocolate flavors, so of course I had to try them and do a little comparison. There's white, milk, and dark choc flavors represented in both, but the big difference is that Breyers is 100% all natural and in my opinion has always been the best ice cream available mass-market. But Klondike is an ice-cream bar and has the fun advantage of that crispy choc coating shell- definitly appreciated by kids but with no stick to hold it up these treats get very messy very quickly! My vote goes to Breyers on taste and texture, but Klondike puts up a good fight....

NEW- Dark Mayan Chocolate coffee drink mix!


So General Mills has finally joined the Dark Choc party and added a pinch of cinnamon! They call it Dark Mayan Chocolate Coffee drink mix, which refers to the ancient historical roots of chocolate when the Mayan/Aztecs drank it as a beverage of gound up cacao beans, water, and spices. Mexicans of Mayan descent today still add cinnamon to chocolate in bars & drinks. This mix only has a hint of actual coffee flavor (which is great for some, sad for others) but mostly it smells amazing and tastes fabulous too mixed with hot water or better, hot milk. I was struck by the beautiful tin container which I cannot throw away- its a proud new member of my choco-tins & boxes collection. Enjoy!