Update

oh geez, so much for the next review... since I already reviewed it. I thought I had already tried kemp's cookie dough froyo and well, I had. I was going to trash it but now it's all for not. I was so unamused that I was adding whip cream in varying ratios to try and make it edible. Ever determined and overly spoiled, I'm going to try one more time as I have picked up their strawberry frozen yogurt. I was gonna go with Edy's, but the container was dangerously soft. Oh well, guess it's an excuse to go to sleep!

Whole Foods has been doing some research apparently

So Whole Foods has come out with two new flavors this season and they just happen to match are ongoing poll results right now, how cool is that? What have they picked? Well...

It's Pumpkin and Peppermint ofcourse! Now, unfortunately these 365 everyday value flavors were damaged in shipping (you can see the busted pumpkin top if you look closely), but I did give them the old sniff taste and they smelled fantastic. Now check this out:

That looks like chocolate covered peppermint to me! oh yeah!! Part of me was so tempted to dig into the ice creams anyway, but I had to remind myself it's only ice cream, I will live if I don't have any.

Now I sent some pictures to Whole Foods so they could tweak their shipping methods, and if another shipment ever shows up, I'll be sure to let you know how it goes.

Happy Thanksgiving Everybody!

May your day be filled with family, friends, and perfectly cooked turkey!

My very favorite part? Pumpkin Pie!

Update: Well, I actually didn't have any pumpkin pie, instead, my mom-in-law took a swipe at making a sweet potato and pecan pie with a maple syrup sauce. It was good stuff and the only problem I really had with it was that I couldn't decide if I liked the hot maple syrup sauce on top of the nicely chilled pie. Oh, and technically I had a little bit of pumpkin cheesecake after the pie... and then I had a little carrot cake when we got home. Hey, it's Thanksgiving, enjoy it!

College Mondays (late yet again) Aggies Blue Mint Ice Cream

Adam got this review to me yesterday, but I messed up and am posting it now. Big thanks to Adam for writing these posts and also big thanks to Aggie Ice Cream for hooking him up with 6 free pints of ice cream to review!

Adam Nettina is the cowriter of GrubGrade.com and a senior history major at Utah State University. While he's not savoring famous Aggie Ice Cream or making paninis, he serves as sports editor for the campus newspaper, the Utah Statesman.

So, have I sold the better part of your child's education fund on Utah State University yet? If my previous reviews of Aggie Ice Cream haven't sold you, maybe the idea of getting a virtually unlimited supply of this premium ice cream at the school's dining hall will. Students at Utah State who have access to the meal plan on campus have an opportunity to end (or begin!) each trip to the dining hall with their choice of one of three or four rotating ice cream flavors. And, unlike the pint containers I have in my fridge, these batches are stored at optimal temperature and scooped to your liking with a full toppings bar, making each trip to the dining hall like a trip to your favorite neighborhood ice cream parlor.

What better way to end our series than with USU's signature ice cream flavor - the ubiquitous Aggie Blue Mint. It's not often that you find blue ice cream, and it's even rarer that you find mint flavored blue ice cream brimming with cookies and cream pieces and white chocolate chunks. Typically speaking, I tend to gravitate more towards simplicity when it comes to flavors, but the uniqueness of this flavor alone warrants a try from anyone visiting Utah State.

Like all Aggie ice cream flavors, it starts with a dense and creamy base. I like the balance which the half-pint containers strike. There is enough overrun to give the ice cream good body without being rock hard, but not too much that the ice cream doesn't become creamy and richly satisfying after letting it thaw for a minute or two. The mint flavor doesn't strike me as exceptional, but it's balanced and sweet, and about all you could ask for.

What separates this flavor is the filling. If mint chocolate chip is classic, than mint and cookies and cream and white chocolate is decadent. The filling in my half-pint doesn't skip on the cookie and cream pieces. They're moist and abundant, and melt in my mouth with the ice cream. The white chocolate chunks - abundant as well - add a great textural contrast and a buttery, albeit artificial taste. Real white chocolate is tough to come by, and judging by the ice creams ingredient list, these pieces are made up of coconut oil, but in this application they work well. Above all, this flavor is ridiculously addictive, and almost makes me feel guilty after eating it (notice how I said, almost). It's ingredient list isn't the cleanest (partially hydrogenated oil makes an appearance) but oh well, a little can't hurt, right?

Well, that does it for our reviews of Aggie Ice Cream. Keep in mind I've only covered five of the nearly 30 flavors sold by the company, with all coming in as incredibly fresh and rich. Granted, I may not have eaten at creameries at other universities, but for my money the ice cream in Logan, Utah is second to none.

Turkey Hill Double Dunker Ice Cream Review

Hey, I just had a thought, why don't they make coffee flavored Oreos? I cant be the only one who thinks the gritty Oreos would meld well with the earthy nature of coffee... Oh wait, they came out with Double Delight Oreos which had two flavors in each Oreo. One of them was Coffee & Cream! Weird! Ok, anyway.

circa 2010 limited edition packaging

So here is Turkey Hill Double Dunker ice cream and it was a tough sell because the base is mocha ice cream (and you know how I feel about coffee and mocha). However, it's got that awesome Turkey Hill Cookie Swirl I love, plus it's got cookie dough bits, so I felt obligated to try it. Unfortunately, the first taste test went as expected. I didn't like it and these pictures are in fact from... a month and a half ago. Let me put a side note here because a flavor like this can gum up the works. You figure you won't like it but you buy it anyway, then you don't like it, but then you don't want to waste it, so it just sits there clogging the review pipe. Well, no more!

Ben & Jerry's Pumpkin Cheesecake Ice Cream

Update 2015:  Just a quick update to say that this flavor has made the transition to Non-GMO status. After scooping a bit, I do think the spices are slightly off balance, but overall I can't say anything has really changed from my original review (which you can find below). I think the real difference now is that there is a lot more competition in the pumpkin spice space nowadays with the Talenti version doing it's best to lead the pack.

Ben & Jerry's Pumpkin Cheesecake Ice Cream

with a graham cracker swirl

Snyder's Pretzel Dips Hershey's Milk & Special Dark + York Peppermint

behold, 3 reasons, one of them brand-y new, to eat less ice cream and more pretzels

mmmmm, I love pretzels. And I love chocolate. I really might have no greater weakness than my love of chocolate covered pretzels, especially GOOD chocolate covered pretzels. You know the best part? Unlike those posers Rold Gold, these bad boys are twice as healthy as the competition (note, see second scoop). HEHEHEHE, I'm just teasing RG, but I'm definitely a Snyder's fan. In fact, I'm pretty sure I was born with a pretzel in my mouth. (just how good is Snyders? Check the fact that Snyder's is the largest producer of pretzels on the entire planet!)

Anyway, Market Basket had these bags at 2 for $5 about 6-7 weeks ago and I have been badly hooked every since (probably because they are still on sale!). I'm a sucker for dark chocolate and I've gone through at least a half dozen bags of the ones dipped in hershey's special dark chocolate. Mmmmmmm, man these are so good!

Oh, sorry, losing my point. Last time I was at the store, I found the NEW York Peppermint Pretzel Sandwich Dips. I specifically bought them for my york lovin' wife, but I did manage to snag one which was enough to tell me that while they did remind me of a peppermint patty on a pretzel I still prefer my special dark. (we actually haven't cracked open the regular milk chocolate ones yet)

Take it from a man who has eaten way too many pretzels, the dark chocolate ones are fantastic.

Snyders (dark chocolate) vs Rold Gold (dark chocolate)
fat: 4.5 vs 6
sat fat: 2.5 vs 5
fiber: 2 vs 2
sugar: 8 v 10
protein: 2 vs 2

On Second Scoop Bite: Well, first I should say that I wasn't comparing Snyders nutrition to Rold Gold's nutrition 1:1, I didn't expect the big difference between dark and milk chocolate. I have corrected this error. Anyway, I needed a chocolate fix this morning so I broke open the bag of Hershey's milk chocolate dips and i don't like them nearly as much as the others. They taste just like a Hershey's kiss and unfortunately long ago I learned to hate Hershey's kisses. There's just something unpleasant about that chocolate and these taste just like it. I will honestly admit that once I shoved in a half dozen I did start to lose the urge to stop, but to me there is no comparison. special dark all the way!!

Snyders (milk chocolate) vs Rold Gold (milk chocolate)
fat: 6 vs 7
sat fat: 3.5 vs 5
fiber: lt1 vs 1
sugar: 11 v 12
protein: 2 vs 1

New! Nestle Mini Toppers Semi-Sweet Morsels

Ok, Nestle mini morsels are nothing new here. What is different is the NEW convenient packaging. Sure, it's just a gimmick, but in it's defense, it's a mighty fine gimmick in my book.

There are at least three flavors of morsels. I went with the semi-sweet morsels figuring they would work with either cookies or ice cream (whether it be in the ice cream or on top). There are also red & green mixed "white flavored" mini morsels and there are premier white "vanilla flavored" morsels. Now think about the nonsense I just said. The red & green are white flavored and the white ones are vanilla flavored. Yes, I know it's just semantics, but it's amusing none the less.

I think they make a great looking topping, don't you agree? The size is just right to spice up a sundae. Just pop the shaker side of the lid and sprinkle some on to spice things up. It's doesn't take many of them to coat the whole sundae (think that was the last of the lovin' scoopful cookies n' cream under there)

Anyone who has made cookies already knows how these taste. I actually made the mistake of taste testing a few before writing this... several handfuls later I realized they taste just like they always have. Granted, these itty bitty bites don't have the same... uggg, can't think of the word. If you grabbed a handful of full size chips, your mouth would be in a very chocolaty place. Grab a small handful of these, and your chocolate visit will be much more brief. Ok, apparently I'm out of words.

College Monday: More Aggies Ice Cream!

Ok, everybody, Adam is back with more flavors from Aggies Ice Cream. Big thanks to Adam for writing these posts and also big thanks to Aggie Ice Cream for hooking him up with 6 free pints of ice cream to review! (I've also got several suggestions on other campuses that make ice cream, so I need to get rolling to see if they would like to be on the blog too)

Adam Nettina is the cowriter of GrubGrade.com and a senior history major at Utah State University. While he's not savoring famous Aggie Ice Cream or making paninis, he serves as sports editor for the campus newspaper, the Utah Statesman.

Basketball and ice cream. That's what we like here at Utah State University, and now that late autumn has arrived, you can find Aggie fans cheering on our preseason WAC favorite basketball team with plenty of 1/2 pint Aggie Ice Cream containers in hand. This week we're taking a look at two more of the some 26 flavors offered by the Logan, Utah creamery: Caramel Cashew and Cookies and Cream.

Caramel Cashew : Caramel flavored ice cream with roasted cashews

One thing I like about Aggie Ice Cream is the variety of nut-based flavors they offer. While Caramel Cashew is the only one sold in the 1/2 pint container, our creamery also makes some other solid flavors, including the famous Maple Nut and Chocolate Almond. As for Caramel Cashew, this ice cream has a great initial sweetness with notes of buttercream and caramel. Thick, earthy and salty pieces of cashew accent the richness of the ice cream, and counterbalance the otherwise overly sweet caramel taste. They say salt goes a long way in bringing out the sweetness of flavors, and in that account I can't disagree. The ingredient list is pretty simplistic, and the flavors are pronounced and brought out in the creamy ice cream. There aren't many cashews in here, but I actually like that. Instead of dominating the ice cream and making for gritty chewing, the scattered and modest sized pieces play in harmony with the caramel element.

Cookies 'n' Cream : Vanilla ice cream with chocolate cookie pieces

Up next is Cookies 'n' Cream. This is actually the first time I've tried this flavor of Aggie Ice Cream, and instantly I'm loving the sweet and classic taste of cream-filled sandwich cookies within the rich vanilla base. There are lots of little cookies pieces which are moist and have a smooth mouth feel, and they aren't gritty in the least. Unfortunately, I can't help but think some of the pleasant mouth feel is created by the presence of partially hydrogenated oil on the ingredient list, but hey, I'm a super-healthy eater for the most part, so I subvert the thought for the time being. I encounter several larger cookie pieces, which dissolve on my tongue in a creamy blend of vanilla and cream.

I like these two flavors, but I have to admit that it's kind of a bummer to see partially hydrogenated oils on the ingredient list for the Cookies and Cream flavor. I'm a big oreo fan, and as much as I like Aggie Ice Cream's rendition of the classic, I think I'll just stick to breaking my own oreo cookies over vanilla ice cream. Trans Fat or not, I won't let that stop me from next week's flavor of the week - USU's signature ice cream, the famous Aggie Blue Mint.

Nutrional Note: Both flavors are 320 calories per serving, 160 calories from fat (18g total fat)

Starbucks Ice Cream Limited Edition Peppermint Mocha

[New for 2010, entire product line discontinued] The fine folks at Starbucks marketing group were kind enough to send me a few coupons to try their new limited edition flavor. I returned this favor by shopping at every store that didn't have the new flavor, and when I finally did find it (at a Walmart), I forgot my coupon. Ok, can't give up. I headed back to the store with coupon in hand (well, pocket). I picked up my pint, headed for the checkout, and then promptly forgot to use my coupon. Therefore, this review is sponsored by, well, me.

For the Fall and Winter we now have Starbucks Coffee Limited Edition Peppermint Mocha ice cream. This holiday inspired carton is full of  " swirled peppermint and mocha ice cream with dark chocolaty chunks ". I'm not a fan of mocha, but it's better (more mild) than coffee flavor, so maybe this will work for me.

New Feature: College Mondays! (wait, it's Tuesday!) "Famous" Aggie Ice Cream is up first!

Ok, everybody, time for another guest blogger! Big thanks to Adam for writing the upcoming series of posts and also big thanks to Aggie Ice Cream for hooking him up with 6 free pints of ice cream to review!

Adam Nettina is the cowriter of GrubGrade.com and a senior history major at Utah State University. While he's not savoring famous Aggie Ice Cream or making paninis, he serves as sports editor for the campus newspaper, the Utah Statesman.

When you think of great ice cream in the United States, the state of Utah probably isn't the first place to come to your mind. Shakes? Pastrami Burgers? Fry Sauce? Sure, we do those quite fine, but tucked into cozy Cache Valley (not far from the Idaho border) is one of America's best kept Ice Cream secrets: The Utah State University creamery, and the deliciously indulgent treat known simply as "Aggie Ice Cream." Make that "Famous Aggie Ice Cream," as they say up here.

As a senior at Utah State University, I've developed a love of this delicious product over my academic career at the Logan, Utah university, and have encountered no other ice cream (or frozen dessert, for that matter) to match it. It wasn't always this way, however. In the interest of full disclosure, I come from a long line of suburban "light ice cream" eaters, and grew up mostly eating reduced fat and fat free ice creams that were staples of my family's weekly shopping list. And while I still enjoy a good bowl of Edy's Slow Churned or Breyer's Smooth and Creamy line, my introduction to the world of fresh made, 12% butterfat ice cream from the Utah State creamery has been something of a tasting nirvana.

Like most colleges with their own dairies, Utah State has a reputation as a premier agriculture university. The ice cream first got its start back in 1922, but really took off in the 1960s, when the dairy fused with the College of Family Life to pioneer a food and nutrition program here at the university. Today, ice cream is made in a modern facility on campus, and is available bot only n a retail store operated by Utah State, but also in the college's main dining hall and in Utah based grocery stores throughout northern Utah.

But enough of the history lesson, lets get to some tasting! Aggie Ice Cream comes in 26 flavors, although seasonal flavors sometimes pop on and off the menu. While all flavors are available at the retail store on campus, six base flavors are sold in 1/2 pint containers. Depending on where you buy them, they usually retail around $1.50. Over the next few weeks, I'll be sharing my thoughts on each of these flavors, starting today with Strawberry Cheesecake and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough.

I'm not going to lie – I start with these two flavors because they're two of my favorites. When I get ice cream in our on-campus dining hall it comes out via a large bucket and is incredibly creamy. However, if you buy the 1/2 pint you'll have to let it thaw a little. It's a densely filled container that's hard packed, and it's apparent from the texture that very little air has been pumped into the mix. After giving both flavors some 5 minutes or so on my counter, I notice that the hard nature of the ice cream begins to breakdown, and my spoon slides nicely into the creamy base.

Ok, first up is Strawberry Cheesecake. The name is a little bit of a misnomer, because there are no actual "cheesecake" pieces in mix, but rather a cheesecake flavor. Nevertheless, it's still very strong and sweet, and compliments the frozen pieces of strawberries in the ice cream. I'm impressed by the cleanness of the flavor and the richness of the ice cream, which has a pleasant mouth feel that lingers on the palate. Being a child of the 1990s, I'm usual an additive fiend, but I've grown to love the simplicity of the ingredients used, and thanks to Aggie ice cream I have begun to notice the superiority of ice cream that starts with the familiar milk, cream, and sugar ingredients. That's what I love most about this flavor - it's simple strawberry ice cream as it should be; fresh tasting, creamy and sweet. There's no ice crystals forming around the strawberry pieces and no overly sweet strawberry-type glaze, just real, honest to goodness ice cream.

Cookie Dough is next, and I've been waiting for digging into my personal my half pint all week. Because they rotate flavors in our dining halls, I can't always get my hands on my favorite flavor, so I always wait to indulge until they have it. But today I've got my own half pint, and I'm going to savor it. Unlike most major brands, Aggie ice cream's cookie dough doesn't utilize "fake" cookie pieces - that is to say, the kinds of pieces that have been so jacked up with partially hydrogenated oils that they taste overly oily. The pieces in my half-pint aren't huge, but they're nice and chewy and have a strong molasses and butter flavor. There's even an element of nougat taste in them that really comes out with a great hint of salt, and most impressively, the flavor has transferred over to the vanilla ice cream base. The chocolate chips are small and semisweet, but they provide a nice and not to overpowering compliment to the cookie dough flavor, which is the star here. What I love most about this ice cream is that it isn't just vanilla ice cream with cookie dough pieces, but a chocolate chip flavored ice cream (and think your grandma's best chocolate chip cookie) with chocolate chip cookies in it. Once more, it's incredibly creamy and fresh. 

You can order Aggie Ice Cream from their website, and of course, you can stop by the dairy on campus and pick up an over-sized cone of your own. And while you're at it, why not check out the Western Athletic Conference's best basketball team, and enjoy the many outdoor activities that Logan has to offer!

Up next week: Caramel Cashew and Cookie Fudge.

Friendly's Peanut Butter Cup Friend-Z

As a man who has eaten his fair share of Reeses Peanut Butter Cups blizzards, I can say this with much conviction: Friendly's take on this classic is simply fantastic. Friendly's has long been the stronghold of a good sundae ever since I came to New England. No, I don't go once a week, but I know that whatever dessert item I pick, it's gonna be good. Well, they've taken your standard soft serve and peanut butter cups mix and brought their sundae specialty skills to the table. Rather then blend a ton of pb cups up to give a nice uniform pb cup taste, they've taken a few cups and then poured in some good fudge sauce and their most excellent pb sauce.

I was hooked from the first bite. I think there is a trade off because you need to blend the treat enough to spread out the pb cups, but then if you blend too much, the pb sauce gets obliterated. So, with Friendly's you wind up with excellent pb flavor, but don't expect a ton of small chunks.

Still, with that said, man this was good and totally hit the spot today.

FYI: I finally realized what those giant boxy spoons are for! I feel dumb for never noticing that the spoon is also the stirrer on the machine. Helps keep mess down. Very smart.

Klondike's Mrs. Field's Ice Cream Cookie Sandwich

Hey, I'm not going to waste a ton of time on this because these treats haven't really changed from their previous version. First, here's the box.

Klondike Mrs. Fields Ice Cream Cookie Sandwiches
vanilla flavored light ice cream between two mrs. fields chocolate chip cookies

Weight Watchers Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Sundae

I wasn't super excited by the following treat, though that may have had something to do with the fact that it suffered some fairly serious freezer burn (of the two treats in the box, one had a lot of icing on it)

The new Peanut Butter Cup Sundae (review) was decent enough to make me try the older Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Sundae.Let's see what 3 weight watchers points buys me.

New! Ben & Jerry's Exclusive Flavor Walmart's Carrot Cake Ice Cream

[New for 2010] On tonight's menu is the new Walmart Exclusive flavor Carrot Cake. Just like flourless chocolate cake, you'll have to force yourself to find a Walmart to get it.

Here it is, Caramel Ice Cream with Carrot Cake Pieces & a Cream Cheese Frosting Swirl. Now I had no idea this was coming, but once I saw Rodzilla review it, I knew I would have to try it (I know, it took 2 weeks to do so, sorry).