The Impulsive Buy

Tag: Hershey’s

  • REVIEW: Hershey’s Cinnamon Toast Crunch Kisses

    Cinnamon Toast Crunch has been having a bit of a moment with a host of new-ish to hot-off-the-presses products and flavors (including Strawberry and, if you were lucky/crazy enough to win a recent sweepstakes, a collaboration with TOTINO’S freaking PIZZA).

    Hershey’s Kisses is also an iconic snack brand that has recently been flirting with souped-up special editions (Butterbeer, anyone?) So, it might not be surprising to learn that these two powerhouses have gone ahead and teamed up for Cinnamon Toast Crunch Hershey’s Kisses—and if you’re like me, an aficionado of both overly sweet cereal and white crème candy, this is a total dream come true.

    I had a good feeling the moment I found these on proud display at Target. The indulgently enormous Share Pack size promises luxurious abundance, and the appealing design of the bag—a crisp white with friendly swirls of star-studded bright green, purple, orange, and blue to mirror the cereal’s box—is a harbinger of the high quality and attention to detail ahead. Even the wrappers, another riff on that psychedelic color palette, are delightful, suggesting much more whimsy than the classic staid silver of the OG Kiss.

    I might be establishing a high bar for the candies to live up to, but when I unwrapped my first one, I wasn’t disappointed at all. They’re beautiful little morsels of white crème run through with rich butterscotch-colored stripes, reminiscent of a lighter-colored Hershey’s Hug. Oh yeah, and they smell fantastic! The cinnamon aroma is strong; more specifically, it really does seem like a Cinnamon Toast Crunch aroma, as there’s a slightly-cloying-but-not-quite-overwhelming, powdered sugar-esque sweet undertone that specifically evokes cereal rather than any old cinnamon-y baked good. Clearly, I was extremely pleased with everything I saw and sniffed, so I barely made it two steps past the self-checkout before sneaking a snacking.

    They say don’t meet your heroes, but you know what? This flavor actually lived up to all of my expectations, tasting exactly as delicious as it looks and smells. Food science really is magical—if you asked a wizard to conjure up the perfect blend of Cinnamon Toast Crunch and Hershey’s Kisses, this is exactly what I imagine they’d poof into existence. (Does Hershey’s have actual wizards working for them? Come to think of it, that would explain the Butterbeer Kisses…)

    One more neat touch, which the product image on the packaging exaggerates but which you can’t quite see on an actual Kiss until biting into it, is the crunchy bits on the inside. According to the Hershey’s website, they’re graham-flavored, and while I didn’t immediately identify that (they seemed to me more like a fun textural enhancement with the added bonus of slightly cutting the sweetness), it made sense, doubling as both a satisfying explanation for their more subdued taste and an additional nod to the cereal inspiration.

    If you’re the type of Cinnamon Toast Crunch fanatic who’ll have a bowl for breakfast, a Creamy Cinnamon Spread sandwich for lunch, and a Cinnadust-seasoned entrée for dinner, Cinnamon Toast Crunch Hershey Kisses would make the perfect dessert… and even if you like CTC just a normal amount, I promise you’ll still love these. (If you somehow don’t, don’t worry; I’d be happy to take them off your hands.)

    Purchased Price: $6.52
    Size: 9 oz bag (Share Pack)
    Purchased at: Target
    Rating: 10 out of 10
    Nutrition Facts: (7 pieces) 170 calories, 9 grams of fat, 6 grams of saturated fat, 0 gram of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 40 milligrams of sodium, 21 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 17 grams of sugar, and 2 grams of protein.

  • REVIEW: Reese’s Peanut Butter Pie Miniature Cups

    If you Google “peanut butter pie,” you’ll see slices of pure luxuriousness—mounds of whipped cream, swirls of creamy peanut butter filling, and, often, a chocolate drizzle or chopped up Reese’s cups for garnish.

    It’s hard to imagine recreating the excitement of this no-bake classic in a miniature (!) Reese’s cup, but Reese’s has a trick up its chocolate-stained sleeve, which is peanut butter-flavored chocolate. While the brand has utilized flavored crème confection, including marshmallow, vanilla, red velvet, and, yes, peanut butter, Reese’s Peanut Butter Pie Miniatures are the first to imbue milk chocolate with flavor.

    The chocolate shell’s flavor profile is equal parts chocolate and peanut butter, which amounts to Reese’s Cup-flavored chocolate. The chocolate tastes like when you have chewed your Reese’s several times and the peanut butter and chocolate flavors have melded together. When eaten whole, the cup has a slightly more peanut butter-forward taste than your average Reese’s.

    While enjoyable, the flavored chocolate is hard to assess. If this were a new candy, I would be thrilled with the result. But the flavored chocolate here felt a little redundant. I didn’t feel like I was tasting something new, so much as I was beginning my familiar Reese’s eating experience at the five-second mark. Given that its namesake pie contains whipped cream or cream cheese, a flavored crème might have made more sense for this product.

    It took me a while to work through my dilemma, and once I did, I remembered that Reese’s Peanut Butter Pie Miniatures utilize crunchy graham cookie pieces to represent a graham cracker crust. The crunch of these pieces is hearty (think Teddy Grahams, not graham crackers), but there is no real added flavor. It would have been cool to include a graham cracker layer at the base of the cup, and I plan on testing this hypothesis next time I buy a box of Honey Maid.

    The back of the package suggests using Reese’s Peanut Butter Pie Miniatures within a peanut butter pie recipe, just in case there is not enough peanut butter pie in your peanut butter pie. It’s a suggestion I support. The extra crunch in these cups would complement a creamy pie while giving the chef the opportunity to make lame jokes about peanut butter pie inception. While a taste of these Miniatures will quell the craving for chocolate and peanut butter, the buyer’s creativity may yield a more exciting result.

    Purchased Price: $5.99
    Purchased at: Giant Eagle
    Size: 9.6 oz (272 g) bag
    Rating: 7 out of 10
    Nutrition Facts: (per 3 pieces)130 calories, 7 grams of fat, 3 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, less than 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 60 milligrams of sodium, 16 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, 14 grams of sugar, and 2 grams of protein.

  • REVIEW: Hershey’s Harry Potter Butterbeer Kisses

    While generations of children were distraught that they never received an invitation to Hogwarts, my rejection from wizarding school was for the best. I would not have been able to concentrate on classes—or fighting villains—when the wizarding world had so many magical snacks to offer. While Harry Potter endured a high-stakes hero’s journey of good versus evil, you’d find me at Hogsmeade for the duration of all seven books, collecting Chocolate Frog trading cards and popping risky flavors of Bernie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans like shots at a frat party.

    Luckily, Hershey’s newest limited-edition product offers a taste of the wizarding world without the threat of expulsion or bankruptcy. Inspired by the famed Hogsmeade beverage, Hershey’s Harry Potter Butterbeer Kisses are gold-colored crème Kisses filled with Butterbeer-flavored crème.

    The Harry Potter books describe Butterbeer as a beverage that can be served hot or cold and tastes “a little bit like less-sickly butterscotch.” As someone who loves butterscotch enough to drink it, I would have devoted my time in Potions class trying to crack the code for the perfect Butterbeer, but I think these Hershey’s Kisses come pretty close.

    The gold crème shell is sweet and smooth, with a white chocolate-like flavor similar to what you’d find at the base of a Cookies ‘n’ Crème bar. The shell does not seem as sweet as some cremes and carries a light buttery flavor. The creamy, fluffy filling is pure butterscotch: a perfect, very sweet combination of butter and brown sugar flavors. The frosting-like texture of the filling (versus a sticky caramel or similar) recalls the foamy topping of the Butterbeer in Harry Potter lore.

    These Kisses are sweet, but not overly sweet. It’s not hard to keep eating them. They smell and taste like a butterscotch sundae, and I think the creaminess of the shell and center offset the sugariness. Fans of the Snickers Butterscotch Scoop bar will also enjoy these Kisses.

    While Hershey’s has released milk chocolate Kisses in Harry Potter-themed packaging, Butterbeer Kisses is the first Hershey’s product to incorporate flavors from the franchise. It is worth noting that the Butterbeer variety also utilizes cute packaging, featuring foil wrappers printed with details from the Harry Potter series and a paper plume that reads CHEERS.

    In the spirit of things, I lift my proverbial pint glass to Hershey’s Harry Potter Butterbeer Kisses for a flawless execution of the theme. I will never know the thrill of boarding the Hogwarts Express, but grabbing another bag of these Hershey Kisses while they are still available is good enough for me.

    Purchased Price: $6.29
    Size: 9 oz (255 g) bag
    Purchased at: CVS
    Rating: 10 out of 10
    Nutrition Facts: (per 7 pieces)170 calories, 10 grams of fat, 6 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 45 milligrams of sodium, 20 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 19 grams of sugar, and 2 grams of protein.

  • REVIEW: Reese’s Spring Sprinkles Peanut Butter Cups

    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 Sugar Cookie Big Cup

    As I sat down to begin this review, my mind drifted off to dream of holiday cookies. (This will happen more and more as winter draws near, during increasingly inconvenient moments.) There is something magical about the holiday cookie genre and the imagery it evokes. Those sacred recipe cards that emerge from your cupboard once a year. Enticing details like glistening sanding sugar or colored sprinkles. Tupperware containers are stuffed to capacity and then quickly reduced to crumbs, thanks to your ravenous Uncle Phil.

    Reese’s knows this to be true, and this year it honors a holiday staple: the humble sugar cookie. Whether coated in decorative icing or mixed with candy pieces, the buttery, sweet cookie is the perfect base for a holiday treat. Now available in both Big Cup and Miniature varieties, Reese’s Sugar Cookie cups add sugar cookie bits to the classic Reese’s filling.

    I found a Sugar Cookie Big Cup at Giant Eagle and decided to treat myself to some early holiday cheer. When I cut the cup in two, I wondered if I had received a cheerless factory dud. The filling looked so thick with peanut butter that I questioned the cookie bits’ presence. Did Uncle Phil strike again?

    Luckily, the bits merely camouflage themselves against the peanut butter, and the generous filling enrobes the cookies completely. The sugar cookie bits are not quite pea-sized, so about 6-7 pieces fit in the cup. Much like myself slipping cookies into my purse at a boring holiday party, Reese’s managed to cram a surprising number of cookies in a small space.

    The cookie bits do not add any flavor to the Big Cup; as is the case with several Big Cup mix-ins, the peanut butter taste overshadows their flavor. However, they do add a perfect, satisfying crunch. I expected added texture, but given that the perfect cookie texture is always up for debate, I wondered whether this Big Cup would deliver soft, crispy, or crunchy. The verdict: super crunchy. Imagine if the cookie bits in a Hershey’s Cookies’ n’ Creme bar had something to prove.

    While Reese’s Big Cups are delicious—a larger version of what I consider to be the perfect candy—their novelty varieties are almost always more interesting for their textures than flavors. The Sugar Cookie Big Cup is no different, but its crunchy cookie bits will please anyone who prefers a sweet crunch (or desperately misses the Crunchy Cookie Big Cup). If I encountered them at a holiday party, I’d slip a few in my purse for later.

    Purchased Price: $1.39
    Purchased at: Giant Eagle
    Size: 1.3 oz (36 g)
    Rating: 7 out of 10
    Nutrition Facts: 180 calories, 10 grams of fat, 3.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, less than 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 120 milligrams of sodium, 22 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 19 grams of sugar, and 4 grams of protein.