Tag: Ice Cream

For some people, when reggae plays, they skank.

When I hear reggae, I sleep.

Now don’t get me wrong, I don’t dislike reggae. But its mellow beat is musical melatonin to me. At first, I’ll bob my head to it, but then that bobbing turns into nodding off.

The genre is big here on this rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. I heard a lot of Bob Marley throughout high school, which might explain why I had a hard time staying awake during my teen years.

Ben & Jerry’s has a flavor that honors the great sandman (to me) Bob Marley — One Love. It made its debut in the U.K. last year and it’s now popping up in the U.S. for a limited time at retailers and Scoop Shops. The flavor features banana ice cream, caramel and graham cracker swirls, and fudge peace signs.

Because I like to scrape away the top layer with my spoon after first opening a pint, I got only the ice cream and swirls for my first few spoonfuls. Just those three ingredients created a combination that made me sing, “We’re jammin’, we’re jammin’, And I hope you like jammin’ too.”

Being a fan of banana-flavored anything, I love the ice cream base. Its flavor is mild and it works well with the buttery caramel and graham cracker swirls. Actually, the gooey caramel, gritty graham cracker swirl, and creamy banana ice cream brought back memories of Magnolia Bakery’s Banana Pudding. Although One Love is less natural tasting than the popular dessert.

As I mowed through the top layer, I kept thinking this could be the best Ben & Jerry’s flavor I’ve had and could replace Americone Dream as my new favorite flavor.

But then I hit a very small speed bump.

Or “peace bump” might be more appropriate.

I finally dug out a fudge peace sign and thought if just the ice cream and swirls are that awesome, then the addition of fudge pieces would take it to the next level. Except I didn’t expect that next level to be one down.

Now let me say that it’s really good with the fudge peace signs, but I think it tastes better without them. I just want to be alone with the ice cream and swirls and not have fudge popping up on us every so often to make sure we aren’t getting into trouble. I mean, the fudge pieces are fine. They’re similar in flavor with the fudge flakes they use in seemingly EVERY SINGLE FLAVOR. But I’ve been digging around them instead digging them up like I usually do.

With that said, Ben & Jerry’s Limited Batch Bob Marley’s One Love Ice Cream is definitely near the top of my list of favorite Ben & Jerry’s flavors. It’s a flavor that makes me want to skank.

DISCLOSURE: I received this pint for free from Ben & Jerry’s. I was not asked to review it, but I do think they expect me to post a photo on Instagram. Receiving a free sample did not influence my review in any way, although it probably reads like it did. But I assure you it did not.

(Nutrition Facts – 1/2 cup – 290 calories, 140 calories from fat, 15 grams of fat, 8 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 60 milligrams of cholesterol, 115 milligrams of sodium, 36 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, 29 grams of carbohydrates, and 4 grams of protein.)

Purchased Price: FREE
Size: One Pint
Purchased at: Received from Ben & Jerry’s
Rating: 9 out of 10
Pros: Really good with the fudge peace signs. Wonderful without the fudge peace signs. Makes me want to skank.
Cons: Slightly not as good with the fudge peace signs. Limited edition. Reggae makes me sleepy. Banana ice cream might not appeal to some.

If you think about it, cereal and ice cream are like kindred spirits. They’re both eaten in bowls with spoons, they’re satisfying while watching cartoons or high, they aren’t as good if they sit in a bowl for too long, and they both have the letter C, two E’s, an A, and an R.

Ben & Jerry’s Cereal Splashback Ice Cream pays tribute to childhood cereal favorites. Of course, not MY childhood cereal favorites, like Banana Frosted Flakes, Waffelos, C-3PO’s, and Rainbow Brite Cereal. They’re currently Scoop Shop exclusives and the idea is to recreate cereal and milk with ice cream and Ben & Jerry’s magic.

The three Cereal Splashback flavors are:

Froot Loot — cereal milk ice cream with a crisp fruity cereal swirl.

Frozen Flakes — cereal milk ice cream with a crisp cereal swirl.

Cocoa Loco — chocolate cereal milk ice cream with a crisp chocolate cereal swirl.

The only one that really tastes like its cereal counterpart is Froot Loot. Every time I eat it, its aftertaste reminds me of Froot Loops. But it’s a bit odd that it doesn’t happen once I put it in my mouth.

As for the other two, the Frozen Flakes swirl has a sweetened corn flakes vibe to it, but it doesn’t make me think of Frosted Flakes. And while Cocoa Loco has a nice malt flavor that goes well with the chocolate ice cream, it doesn’t taste like Cocoa Puffs, Cocoa Krispies, or Cocoa Pebbles. This disappoints me because chocolate cereals are my favorite.

With that said, these flavors do please my palate. Well, to be more exact, the swirls bring me joy. The cereal milk-flavored ice cream tastes like a sweeter, richer vanilla ice cream and the chocolate cereal milk one is like a slightly toned down chocolate ice cream. They’re good, but not great. But also, let’s be real, they’re there to complement the swirl.

The cereal swirls are gritty like a cookie butter swirl. There aren’t any whole cereal pieces, but when you scoop out a portion of the swirl and chew on it, it crunches like a cereal piece. And depending on the spoonful, you’ll get one of two textures, either slightly soggy cereal or crispy cereal. That is some crazy Ben & Jerry’s voodoo.

If I had to rank the three Ben & Jerry’s Cereal Splashback flavors, I’d put Froot Loot number one, Frozen Flakes would come next, and Cocoa Loco would be last.

While two out of the three didn’t truly taste like the cereals they’re trying to emulate, because they’re all really sweet, all three did something else for me as I ate them.

They took me back to what I like to call The Golden Age of Breakfast Cereals. A time when cereals were super sweet and they probably had as much sugar as a candy bar. A time when cereals with movie tie-ins weren’t all oat pieces with marshmallows. A time when cereals came in shapes like Gremlins, Batman signs, Nerds candy, ice cream cones, and something Mr. T would wear around his neck. A time when a dog and cat kibble maker also made human kibble, but called it cereal. A time when cereals were, as Tony the Tiger says, gr-r-reat.

Disclosure: I received samples of all three Cereal Splashback flavors from Ben & Jerry’s. It was not required by Ben & Jerry’s to write a review and receiving free samples did not influence my review in any way.

(Nutrition Facts – 1 scoop – Cocoa Loco – 230 calories, 120 calories from fat, 13 grams of fat, 6 grams of saturated fat, 50 milligrams of cholesterol, 75 milligrams of sodium, 25 grams of carbohydrates, 21 grams of sugar, and 3 grams of protein. Frozen Flakes – 230 calories, 120 calories from fat, 13 grams of fat, 6 grams of saturated fat, 50 milligrams of cholesterol, 90 milligrams of sodium, 25 grams of carbohydrates, 21 grams of sugar, and 3 grams of protein. Froot Loot – 240 calories, 140 calories from fat, 15 grams of fat, 6 grams of saturated fat, 55 milligrams of cholesterol, 70 milligrams of sodium, 24 grams of carbohydrates, 20 grams of sugar, and 4 grams of protein.)

Purchased Price: FREE
Size: N/A
Rating: 8 out of 10 (Froot Loot)
Rating: 7 out of 10 (Frozen Flakes)
Rating: 6 ouf of 10 (Cocoa Loco)
Pros: Froot Loot’s aftertaste taste like Froot Loops. Frozen Flakes comes close to tasting like Frosted Flakes. The different textures of the swirl. Ben & Jerry’s magic. Banana Frosted Flakes. Reminds me of The Golden Age of Breakfast Cereals.
Cons: Cocoa Loco not tasting like any chocolatey cereal. Disappointing for those who like a lot of mix-ins. Available only at Scoop Shops. Banana Frosted Flakes being discontinued.