REVIEW: Reese’s Spring Sprinkles Peanut Butter Cups

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I meet many people who absolutely adore Reese’s Eggs, claiming they are the best shape for the chocolate and peanut butter classic. If you have ever eaten a Reese’s Egg on Easter morning and thought, “This is nice, but I wish it were crunchy,” well, Reese’s Spring Sprinkles Peanut Butter Cups are for you!

Reese’s with spring-kles is available as a Big Cup or as Miniatures. I tried both. Since Miniatures have been around as long as I can remember, and the Big Cups have been around a few years, I don’t need to go into the particulars about those Reese’s sizes because you’re here for the sprinkles.

And these things are crunchy. Really crunchy. And not a simple, crisp crunch like a pretzel or crisp rice. These are a sugary crunch, like when someone puts candy cane pieces or Red Hots on a sugar cookie.

I shared the Miniatures with my family while everyone was together for the Christmas holidays (!), and the reaction was mixed. My brother disliked the crunch, while my mom liked it. My dad didn’t feel comfortable biting on the sprinkles, but he appreciated that it forced him to slow down.

For me, I’m glad these aren’t the default flavor of Reese’s. But as a limited-time offering, they’re unique enough. I worried the sprinkles would be soft and undetectable. But nope, they are impossible to miss.

Like sprinkles in literally every setting, these spring sprinkles are there for two reasons: color and texture. You will get pops of color when you bite in the Big Cup, but you will miss it if you eat the Miniature in one bite. (You will also miss the color if you eat the Big Cup in one bite, but you will win my respect!)

Sprinkles are not generally known for their flavor, and that’s the case here. The peanut butter cups taste the same as they usually do. I let one of the Miniatures dissolve in my mouth until it was just sprinkles, and they were just sugar, no flavor I could discern.

One more thing: Easter in 2025 is on April 20, and I bought these candies on the winter solstice. That’s the equivalent of Valentine’s candy on October 15, Halloween candy on July 1, and Christmas candy on August 26.

These won’t go down as my favorite Reese’s candy, but I appreciate that they are different enough from the standard version. With all the various shapes and sizes, it’s hard to feel like Reese’s is actually branching out, but in this case, there is no way you would mistake Spring Sprinkles for the original.

Purchased Price: $4.99 (bag of Miniatures), $1.25 (Big Cup)
Size: Cup is 1.3 oz, bag of Miniatures is 9.3 oz
Purchased at: Dick’s Market
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: Big Cup – 180 calories, 10 grams of fat, 3.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, less than 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 115 milligrams of sodium, 22 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 19 grams of sugar including 18 grams of added sugar, and 4 grams of protein.

Miniatures (3 pieces) – 130 calories, 7 grams of fat, 3 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, less than 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 55 milligrams of sodium, 17 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, 15 grams of sugar including 14 grams of added sugar, and 2 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Reese’s Red Velvet Peanut Butter Cups

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Reese’s, one of the most beloved candies ever, has been expanding its seasonal offerings in recent years. Not content with the special shapes of hearts, eggs, pumpkins, and trees, it has been tweaking flavors, either by changing the coating or putting things in the peanut butter. And I fully support this trend.

Well, at least in theory.

For the Valentine’s season, Reese’s has gifted us with Red Velvet Peanut Butter Cups, each with a red velvet-flavored creme on top. I bought a bag of Miniatures to sample (I bought them before Christmas, and that’s all they had on the shelf in the seasonal aisle, but there are standard cups as well).

Red velvet cake is a vanilla cake with a little bit of cocoa and buttermilk. That’s a very nuanced flavor profile to convert into a creme coating, especially when paired with peanut’s strong, distinctive flavor.

I’ve nibbled on the tops of these cups, and while the flavor is unique, I just can’t tell you that I taste red velvet. I certainly don’t taste cream cheese frosting. When I eat the cup as a complete whole (i.e., the way they’re meant to be eaten), the unique flavor is mostly overwhelmed by the peanut butter. And I feel like texture is one of the best parts of red velvet cake, but the texture of the cups is nothing like cake, not that I expected it to be. (The back of the bag says, “Reese’s takes the cake,” so I feel justified in comparing it to cake.)

I reviewed last fall’s Reese’s Werewolf Tracks, and I am going to quote from my own review because I feel the same way about these:

“Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups are a top-tier confection, and if this were a brand-new treat, I would give it 10/10 based on taste alone. But this is simply a variation on a classic, and it’s just not that interesting or special.”

The difference here, though, is that red velvet is a more seasonally appropriate flavor than vanilla, and the pinkish topping is lovely. I do like that. So, I will give the Red Velvet version one more point than I gave the Werewolf version.

If Reese’s opted for another Valentine’s flavor, like strawberry, cherry, cinnamon, or rose, it would be easier to detect. But with red velvet, it feels like no one will notice if they mess up. It’s safe for Reese’s, but just a little boring for the consumer.

Purchased Price: $4.99
Size: 9.3 oz bag (Miniatures)
Purchased at: Dick’s Market
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (3 pieces) 130 calories, 8 grams of fat, 3 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 75 milligrams of sodium, 15 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of dietary fiber, 13 grams of sugar including 12 grams of sugar, and 3 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Sour Skittles Pop’d Freeze Dried Candy

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Freeze-dried candy seems to have been gaining popularity in the past few years. What was once only seen at craft fairs, TJ Maxx checkout aisles, and farmer’s markets have now gained proliferation in gas stations and grocery stores. The most popular seem to be variations of freeze-dried Skittles. I don’t fully understand the legality of an independent candy company buying branded candy, sucking the water out of it, and then re-selling the confection under a new name and brand, but hey, that’s capitalism for ya! So, when I saw Skittles was launching its own freeze-dried candy, my immediate thoughts ranged from “Of course!” to “DUH.”

Skittles Pop’d has launched in both Original and Sour varieties. I opted for the latter for a bit more intrigue and interest. The flavor variety differs from the original Sour Skittles mix. The Sour Skittles Pop’d comes in Strawberry, Lemonade, Blue Raspberry, Cherry, and Watermelon. The combination lands closer to the Mixed Berry mix, which some people will adore! Sour Mixed Berry? Yes, please!

Watermelon is the least perceivably sour and much closer to the true watermelon candy flavor. The blue raspberry and strawberry are similar to their original Skittles flavors, but the concentrated flavor from the freeze-dried process makes them way more intense. Lemonade is BY FAR the most sour, and Cherry just sort of tastes like generic sour/sweetness, with the cherry flavor getting lost in the overwhelming hit of sugar.

The freeze-drying process removes all moisture from the food or candy and inherently changes the texture and flavor delivery. Moisture and how it is chemically bound to other molecules in a food play a large role in how our taste buds perceive flavors. So, it wasn’t necessarily surprising that these Sour Skittles Pop’d were INTENSELY sweet the second they started to dissolve on the tongue. What was a little less expected was which part of the candy was sour. I’m used to Original Sour Skittles being sour on the outside, where the citric acid and sugar coating is applied. If you let that coating dissolve, the inside of an original Sour Skittle is sweet, just like Original Skittles. These are sour on the inside, making the entire eating experience sour from start to finish, something I really enjoyed.

The texture of Skittles Pop’d is the largest difference from the original. The freeze-drying process made these extremely crunchy and not at all chewy. Like most freeze-dried foods, they sort of take on that chalky, crunchy, pull-all-the-moisture-out-of-your-mouth type of experience I’d otherwise only associate with science museum gift shop astronaut ice cream (also freeze-dried). The texture is fun but not something I can tolerate as long as the original chewy candy.

Overall, I think there’s a reason the original Skittles has stood the test of time. Whether Original, Sour, or one of the many flavor varieties, the sweet, chewy Skittle delivers an enjoyable and expected candy experience. But I think it’s strategic for the brand to carve out its own space in the growing freeze-dried candy market. I mean, hell, if competitors are going to re-sell Skittles anyway, it might as well get in on that branded action.

Purchased Price: $5.99
Size: 5.5 oz Resealable bag (individual smaller bags also sold)
Purchased at: Target
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (30 pieces) 120 Calories, 1 gram of fat, 5 milligrams of sodium, 28 grams of carbohydrates, 21 grams of sugar (21 grams of added sugar), 0 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Toasty Holiday Peanut M&M’s

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As we approach the holiday season once more, Mars has created a new Peanut M&M’s flavor to get everyone into the holiday spirit: Toasty Holiday Peanut M&M’s. The brand describes the new flavor as a winter treat made with roasted peanuts infused with cinnamon, vanilla, spiced sugar, and caramel.

While M&M’s has kept a fairly steady stream of new flavors and textures coming in their other varieties, it’s been a minute since the Peanut M&M has seen some innovative love! The holiday-focused flavor comes in just red, green, and yellow colors. There isn’t much else distinctive about these in appearance; they look just like standard Peanut M&M’s.

I wasn’t sure what to expect from cinnamon, vanilla, spiced sugar, and caramel (that’s a lot of flavors), but the first impression I had of these Toasty Holiday Peanut M&M’s was that they didn’t overdo it with the flavor. It’s definitely present, but it’s not too heavy. I also wasn’t really able to discern any one of their specifically listed flavors. They all sort of melded together and tasted like brown butter, or maybe toffee, or even maple? For something so difficult to nail down, one thing I was sure of is that they’re delicious!

I decided to taste them against regular Peanut M&M’s to see if the flavor would stand out more. The Toasty Holiday Peanut M&M’s maintain a really pleasant warm spiced note compared to their OG counterparts. I will also say that my coworker tried these and said they tasted like a TJMaxx candle, so I guess to each their own.

Overall, I’m trusting my gut here and saying these are great. The flavor isn’t over the top and is just ambiguous enough to fit the broad description of “toasty holiday.” I enjoyed them more than original Peanut M&M’s and sincerely hope Mars keeps innovating with them!

Purchased Price: $2.28
Size: 3.27 oz bag
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1oz/12 pieces) 140 Calories, 8 grams fat, 3 grams saturated fat, 15 milligrams sodium, 17 grams carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 15 grams sugar, and 3 grams protein.

REVIEW: Peanut Butter & Jelly M&M’s

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In my never-ending quest to be cool, I’m a “Full-sized-Candy-Bar-at-Halloween-Guy.” The thing about it is that I get approximately ten trick-or-treaters on an average Halloween. (15 in a real bustling year.) My neighborhood is mostly filled with extremely old people whose grandchildren are beyond trick-or-treating age. This means I end up with a whole bunch of full-sized candy bars. And while that sounds amazing, it really just means that I head into the Holiday Fattening Season carrying more weight than I wanted.

All this to say, I really didn’t want to like new Peanut Butter & Jelly M&M’s. I didn’t need to like them. Oh sure, I enjoy Peanut Butter M&M’s, but I was holding out hope that the inclusion of jelly would somehow render these inedible and disappointing.

I was wrong.

Peanut Butter & Jelly M&M’s aren’t far off from the Peanut Butter M&M’s you already know, but the addition of jelly is a welcome touch. (Though, I cannot, for the life of me, tell what KIND of jelly it is, so don’t ask.) Each M has the customary peanut butter/chocolate vibe, but then there’s just a pinch of fruity sweetness. The food scientists at Mars did a fine job of making sure the jelly wasn’t too light or too overwhelming, either one of which could’ve totally ruined the new variety.

It’s worth noting that M&M’s has been here before. In 2009, it introduced Strawberried Peanut Butter M&M’s, which is, frankly, a terrible name. But I believe these are probably about the same from a conceptual standpoint. (I didn’t have them in ’09, though, so I can’t vouch for their similarity/difference. But I mean, even if I had tried them 15 years ago, it’s extremely unlikely I would remember how they taste.)

One thing that is a little different about these M&M’s is that there are only red, dark brown, and light brown (Or gold? Off-yellow?) candies. So if you’re someone who’s really into the green or the blue M&M’s, my deepest condolences; you’re out of luck. But if you like the regular Peanut Butter M&M’s and don’t mind a drab color pallet when it comes to your bite-size chocolate candy choices, you’ll wanna check these out before they leave shelves. Or just wait for 2039 when they come back with another name.

Purchased Price: $4.78
Size: 8.6 oz. bag
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 oz.) 150 calories, 8 grams of fat, 5 grams of saturated fat, 0 gram of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 60 milligrams of sodium, 16 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 14 grams of sugar, including 13 grams of added sugar, and 3 grams of protein.