Tag: Ice Cream

REVIEW: Blue Bell Dr Pepper Float Ice Cream

Denis 10 Comments

I do not mean to cause any consternation for or to affect the mental well-being of the new Blue Bell Dr Pepper Float ice cream (assuming, of course, that a dairy product can have feelings), but does this product really need to exist? I mean, I am completely inept in the kitchen—making Kraft Mac & Cheese is expert-level stuff for me—but even I can pour a glass of Dr Pepper and drop two scoops of vanilla ice cream in it. I can report, though, that this does indeed need to exist because it is rather glorious.

Part of the wonderfulness is the simplicity. It’s just vanilla ice cream with Dr Pepper-flavored sherbet. An ice cream float is a classic combination because it needs not to be messed with or improved. So this is delicious because it delivers exactly what it advertises—creamy ice cream and soda flavor.

The sherbet portion tastes exactly like the famous soda. I don’t believe there’s any actual Dr Pepper soda in here, as it appears the only non-ice cream ingredients listed are “natural and artificial flavors,” so I have no idea how Blue Bell replicated the taste.

When the vanilla ice cream starts to soften, the creaminess is a bit more noticeable, creating the perfect complement to the distinctive Dr Pepper taste. So take your time enjoying this, at least as much as you can, considering there is a fine line between soft ice cream and liquid ice cream.

If you are concerned that the mixture of ice cream and sherbet will be strange, it’s not. If the label did not tell me this contains sherbet, I wouldn’t have guessed it. The texture of the sherbet is perhaps a little firmer with a touch more grittiness, but it’s only a minor difference.

The only thing missing from this, compared to a “real” float, is the carbonation of the soda. Luckily for you, I’m here to answer the question you are probably asking right now. How would a Dr Pepper Float float taste?

It’s quite good, which is not surprising, but I preferred it sans the Dr Pepper liquid. When mixed with Dr Pepper, I found that the creaminess of the ice cream got overpowered a bit, so what I ended up with was a slight Dr Pepper overload. It was still tasty, and I’d probably make it again, but it did not deliver the amazing taste sensation I had imagined.

Neither Dr Pepper nor Blue Bell are my go-to choices in their respective categories, but together they form a powerful team, and this is now one of my favorites. Plus, it saves me at least a minute or two on the laborious task of combining two ingredients to make a Dr Pepper float.

Purchased Price: $7.98
Size: Half Gallon
Purchased at: H-E-B
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (2/3 cup) 170 calories, 6 grams of fat, 3 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 15 milligrams of cholesterol, 55 milligrams of sodium, 29 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of dietary fiber, 22 grams of sugar, and 3 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Van Leeuwen Spring 2023 Flavors at Walmart That Aren’t Hidden Valley Ranch

Marvo 4 Comments

Here are reviews of Van Leeuwen’s Spring 2023 Flavors at Walmart That Aren’t Hidden Valley Ranch in a non-alphabetical order.

Limoncello Cake

Lemon ice cream and brown sugar cake.

After opening this pint and sniffing, the first thing that popped into my mind was a lemon creme sandwich cookie. Every spoonful showcased the lemon ice cream base heavily. But maybe too much. The brown sugar cake pieces are visually noticeable in the container but not so much in terms of taste when eaten with the citrus-flavored base. I had to go into full Zen mindfulness eating mode to detect their brown sugar flavor.

In the description on the side of the container, there’s no mention of the third component in this — regular cake pieces. The darker chunks in the photo above are the brown sugar cake pieces, and the lighter ones that blend in with the pastel yellow ice cream are the other cake pieces. I’m not sure if they have a lemon flavor because every attempt to taste them on their own involves scooping up a little bit of the lemon ice cream, but I do know that they’re dry, and I kind of wish they weren’t there. So between the two types of cake, there’s nothing that cuts through the lemon, making this taste like a one-note Lemonpalooza.

Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (2/3 cup) 270 calories, 16 grams of fat, 9 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 90 milligrams of cholesterol, 140 milligrams of sodium, 28 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 24 grams of sugar (including 19 grams of added sugar), and 4 grams of protein.

Sweet Maple Cornbread

Maple ice cream and honey cornbread pieces.

Cornbread has a unique texture and flavor. Unfortunately, I don’t notice either in this ice cream. But I do detect the maple. It’s hard to miss it. It smells like every “maple” or “pancake” product I’ve ever had, and the maple taste overwhelms every bite. So much so that whatever flavor the cake pieces have, it’s not noticeable.

If I gave someone a scoop of this and told them it was a maple syrup ice cream with pancake pieces, I’m pretty sure they would be convinced after one spoonful. Because, again, the cake pieces here don’t have that unique cornbread texture. Instead, they have the texture of regular cake that’s a bit dry from sitting in the freezer, which can easily be confused with pancakes that have been sitting in the freezer.

Now with all of that said, there is nothing wrong with this sweet maple cornbread ice cream tasting and feeling like maple syrup and pancake ice cream. I’d eat this again if offered.

Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (2/3 cup) 280 calories, 18 grams of fat, 10 grams of saturated fat, 0.5 grams of trans fat, 100 milligrams of cholesterol, 200 milligrams of sodium, 25 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 22 grams of sugar (including 16 grams of added sugar), and 5 grams of protein.

Carrot Cake

Cheesecake ice cream and carrot cake pieces.

Yes, this Carrot Cake flavor has carrots listed in the ingredients in the form of a powder. Do I taste carrots? I think I do. But what I absolutely know is that this is the best tasting flavor of the Spring 2023 Walmart lineup, and I had a hard time putting it down. It’s hide-in-the-back-of-the-freezer-on-the-lowest-shelves-so-no-one-else-sees-it-great.

The cheesecake ice cream base has a little tang, but not as much as an actual cheesecake, and it could be mistaken for Van Leeuwen’s sweet cream ice cream that’s in other flavors I’ve covered in this review. But that tang gets amped up a bit when eaten with the cake pieces for some reason.

Those carrot cake chunks are what elevate this pint. With other cake varieties in this lineup, I’ve mentioned that the pieces were dry and crumbly and didn’t add much flavor, but that’s not the case here. Their texture is what I wish the pieces in the other pints were like. They’re dense, a little moist, and a little chewy. It was as if they were made to survive being in ice cream. Their flavor was equally impressive, with a mild cinnamon flavor and brown sugar notes, and even pecans in the mix. But not only do they taste pleasant, there were a lot of them.

Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (2/3 cup) 280 calories, 18 grams of fat, 11 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 100 milligrams of cholesterol, 170 milligrams of sodium, 27 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 23 grams of sugar (including 18 grams of added sugar), and 5 grams of protein.

Strawberry Shortcake

Vanilla ice cream, jam from Oregon-grown strawberries, and shortcake pieces.

I know I listed vanilla ice cream as a component, but to be honest, I’m not sure if the base is vanilla or strawberry. The pint says, “The goodness in this flavor includes cold-ground vanilla, jam from Oregon-grown strawberries, and pieces of shortcake.” The wording makes me assume it’s vanilla, but when I tried to taste just the base, it tasted like strawberries. So either the base is berry-flavored, or there’s a lot of strawberry jam jammed into every pint, so it’s nearly impossible to isolate the vanilla.

The swirl from Oregon-grown strawberries was delightful and sort of had a farmer’s market feel because I noticed strawberry seeds every so often. As for the cake pieces, much like the ones in the Carrot Cake variety, they are dense, moist, and chewy with a mild brown sugar flavor. Also, I could’ve sworn I tasted on occasion something that reminded me of whipped cream when eating spoonfuls with the shortcake pieces. I wonder if Van Leeuwen would go that far to create every facet of a strawberry shortcake. But then again, the company went that far to recreate a Hidden Valley Ranch ice cream, so maybe it’s not my imagination.

Overall, great flavor, but not as good as Carrot Cake.

Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (2/3 cup) 280 calories, 15 grams of fat, 9 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 80 milligrams of cholesterol, 130 milligrams of sodium, 31 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 28 grams of sugar (including 23 grams of added sugar), and 4 grams of protein.

Blood Orange Chocolate Chip

Sweet cream ice cream, blood orange swirls, and dark chocolate chips.

This stood out to me because it’s something I’ve never tasted before. Well, actually, it’s two things I’ve tasted before separately but never combined. As you can probably guess, the base and dark chocolate chip combo tastes like chocolate chip ice cream, and the fruity swirls and sweet cream ice cream remind me of an orange creamsicle. But when combined, it’s something familiar, yet different.

The blood orange swirls are the stars of the pint. Have you ever had a blood orange? They’re sweeter and less acidic than standard oranges, and that’s how the swirls taste in this. But you must get a thick enough swirl to really get the blood orange flavor. If you don’t, the spoonful will taste like plain old chocolate chip. That’s better than the paper container this comes in, but it’s much better with the orange goo, so dig for them. The chocolate chips’ bitterness cuts through the sweet swirl and base, and their snap adds texture to the pint. But I must admit that sometimes I like that they’re there, but other times I don’t because I’m enjoying the blood orange swirl and sweet cream combo a bit too much.

Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (2/3 cup) 280 calories, 17 grams of fat, 10 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 85 milligrams of cholesterol, 95 milligrams of sodium, 28 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 27 grams of sugar (including 22 grams of added sugar), and 4 grams of protein.

Honey Graham Cracker

Brown sugar ice cream, graham cracker pie crust pieces, and swirls of honey.

Some folks might find this flavor boring because it seems too simple, but it stood out to me. Its brown sugar aroma beckons me. Much like other flavors here, I thought the ice cream base might be the dominant flavor in this pint, but that’s not the case. The graham cracker pie crust pieces have a decent amount of cinnamon. So don’t think of them as tasting like s’mores graham crackers.

Finally, there are the honey swirls, which are the surprise of the pint. Sometimes I see them, but sometimes I don’t, and a lot of the times when I don’t, I still taste the honey. Brown sugar + graham crackers + cinnamon + honey = a great flavor combination.

The pie crust pieces had a nice texture. They’re not what I’d consider crunchy but are a bit denser and, thankfully, not as crumbly and dry as the cake pieces in the Limoncello Cake and Sweet Maple Cornbread flavors.

Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (2/3 cup) 280 calories, 16 grams of fat, 10 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 85 milligrams of cholesterol, 160 milligrams of sodium, 30 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 24 grams of sugar (including 19 grams of added sugar), and 5 grams of protein.

I wrote “pint” several times in this review, but these have 14 fl oz.

DISCLOSURE: I received complimentary product samples from Van Leeuwen. Doing so did not influence my review.

REVIEW: McDonald’s Strawberry Shortcake McFlurry

Marvo 15 Comments

Nowadays, many of us learn about someone famous passing away when their name trends on social media. So when did the McDonald’s Strawberry Sundae trend? Because I didn’t know it was gone until I picked up the new McDonald’s Strawberry Shortcake McFlurry.

The lack of dark red gloops or glops in this limited time only dessert had me wondering why McDonald’s didn’t use the syrupy topping. And after a visit to its website, I learned the sundae no longer existed. I guess I should’ve looked at this McFlurry’s promo photos closer and read its description because what’s in this are vanilla soft serve with strawberry flavored clusters and shortbread cookies.

I assumed the syrupy topping would be included because it was around for so long. But instead, McDonald’s has said so long to it. Geez, I could’ve sworn I had the sundae about a year ago.

McDonald’s Strawberry Shortcake McFlurry is sort of like an Oreo McFlurry, but all the crunchy pieces are strawberry-flavored instead of chocolate. That actually sounds good, and this tastes good, but it’s a little disappointing because McDonald’s had a lovely red topping that would’ve been great with this. The artificial strawberry-tasting clusters were plentiful, good, and crispy, but not strawberry topping satisfying.

Although not as depressing as finding out one of your favorite McDonald’s treats no longer exists, the shortbread cookies were a bit of a letdown. Having cake pieces in pints of Ben & Jerry’s and other ice cream brands spoiled me, so expecting actual cake seems reasonable. But then again, I guess cake pieces wouldn’t survive whirls around the McFlurry mixing machine. The idea of using shortbread cookies is fine since they seem to be in strawberry shortcake recipes, but the small chunks in this blended treat get lost among the flavor AND crunch of the berry-flavored clusters when everything is eaten together. McDonald’s describes them as “buttery,” but my taste buds didn’t notice anything like that.

McDonald’s Strawberry Shortcake McFlurry is a fine dessert; I don’t regret eating it. But it’s not tasty enough to make me forget about the strawberry sundae. RIP.

It’s so hard to say goodbye to strawberry sundae.

(I imagine the internet is going to internet, and someone in the comments will tell me that the Strawberry Sundae still exists at their McDonald’s.)

Purchased Price: $3.59
Size: Snack Size
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 370 calories, 12 grams of fat, 8 grams of saturated fat, 170 milligrams of sodium, 52 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 41 grams of sugar, and 8 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Dairy Queen Peanut Butter Puppy Chow Blizzard

Denis 28 Comments

It is with some trepidation and a bit of embarrassment that I ask you, the fine readers of The Impulsive Buy, am I the only one? Did you all know that puppy chow is a tasty mix of cereal, chocolate, peanut butter, and powdered sugar, and not, as the name implies, food for young dogs?

Ok, so puppy chow is actually both of the above, but I had no idea it could be something tasty for humans to eat. My wife seems to think that I’m the only one so clueless, and I’m hoping to find at least one kindred spirit on here who is similarly ignorant. After some reflection though, I do recall having puppy chow in the past and enjoying it, but I guess I never thought to ask what it was called.

Why all the talk about puppy chow? Well, the Peanut Butter Puppy Chow Blizzard is one of the new additions to the Dairy Queen menu for April (and not an April Fool’s gag as I originally thought). According to my extensive research on Wikipedia, puppy chow is primarily popular in the Midwest and generally contains a mixture of cereal (like Chex or Crispix), melted chocolate, peanut butter, and powdered sugar. There are also a bunch of other names for it, like reindeer chow, doggy bag, or muddy buddies. Apparently, the canine-inspired name comes from the fact that it looks like dog food, so why wouldn’t it be a great Blizzard flavor?

Well, it’s good but not great. The DQ website says its version includes crispy puppy chow pieces, peanut butter topping, and choco chunks. As promising as those ingredients sound, I didn’t think they really worked together in harmony. I could definitely taste the Chex-like cereal, but it had a slightly stale flavor and not much crunch. This also had a very salty taste, and indeed it does have more sodium than the average Blizzard. As for the powdered sugar, it is listed in the ingredients, but it was not noticeable, either by taste or looks as it blends in with the vanilla soft serve. This really didn’t taste much different than a peanut butter cup Blizzard except that it adds an odd-tasting cereal. Did I finish this Blizzard? Of course I did. It’s still a sugar-packed ice cream treat, but this one didn’t have me barking for more.

If you really love puppy chow (of the human food variety), then perhaps you will probably find this Blizzard enjoyable, but I was a bit underwhelmed. In honor of the start of baseball season, this one is a nice single to the gap that might get stretched to a double, but it’s not a home run.

Purchased Price: $4.99
Size: Small
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 720 calories, 32 grams of fat, 18 grams of saturated fat, 0.5 grams of trans fat, 50 milligrams of cholesterol, 320 milligrams of sodium, 97 grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of fiber, 77 grams of sugar, and 16 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Dairy Queen Oreo Brookie Blizzard

Denis 3 Comments

If you mosey on over to the search feature on this site and type in “Oreo Blizzard,” you’ll be greeted with a long list of reviews for Blizzard variations with words like zero gravity, firework, cookie jar, and dirt pie. It would seem that Dairy Queen has tried just about every flavor combination possible using the popular chocolate cookie and creme sandwich.

But now it has introduced yet another new one, the Oreo Brookie Blizzard, which of course, features Oreo cookies and brookies (brownies and cookies baked together). It sounds like a humdrum flavor considering DQ has already paired Oreo with fudge brownies and chocolate chip cookies, among many other ingredients.

Except that it’s not!

This one caught me by surprise. It’s rather simple, but it’s also rather delicious. One of the things that enhances the Blizzard experience is having a variety of textures, and this one really delivers in that department. Oreo cookies, as we all know, are crunchy and chocolatey, and when they are pulverized and mixed with vanilla soft serve, they can make for a tasty Blizzard all by themselves. But the addition of the brookies is a game-changer here. They bring in a pleasant soft chewiness to offset the Oreo crunch and provide a subtle chip cookie flavor combined with some brownie fudginess. To my surprise, I really could pick out the Oreo, cookie, and brownie flavors, and they all played together perfectly in my mouth. A great mix of flavors and textures all adds up to a brilliant Blizzard combination.

Dairy Queen sometimes goes a little overboard in trying to pack too many components into a Blizzard so they can call it outrageous or splendiferous or something like that. This one, however, proves again that sometimes less is more.

Purchased Price: $4.99
Size: Small
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 860 calories, 39 grams of fat, 16 grams of saturated fat, 1 gram of trans fat, 55 milligrams of cholesterol, 520 milligrams of sodium, 116 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 77 grams of sugar, and 13 grams of protein.