Snack Review: Chocolate Chip Cookie Showdown

The recent issue of Consumer Reports rates chocolate chip cookies. I was - intrigued? offended? dubious? - to find that two brands outranked my favorite Chips Ahoy.

I mean, “favorite” isn’t even the word. In my mind they are the standard, the traditional, THE American cookie. What’s more, they are outranked in these ratings by Keebler.

Here’s the truth, people: As far as I know I’ve NEVER eaten a Keebler cookie. I’ve certainly never chosen to buy them myself. I don’t want cookies baked by creepy little elves in a dirty forest. And yet, Keebler were ranked “very good” and Chips Ahoy only “good.”

Well, this was a challenge. And - what if they were actually better? So of course I had to try them.
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Snack Event News: Batter Blaster Pancake World Record

Image from CrunchGear
Hurry! Hurry! Step right up! Be a part of the world’s largest eight-hour pancake breakfast!

If you’re in the Atlanta metro area tomorrow (Saturday, May 9) come to Centennial Olympic Park and be a part of the circus atmosphere as the geniuses behind Batter Blaster attempt to break the Guinness World Record for most pancakes served in eight hours, roughly 70,000. And yes, the pancakes are FREE! Well, somebody’s gotta eat ‘em.

If Aunt Jemima and Cheez Whiz had a baby, Batter Blaster would be its name. On the market since 2007, this is the pancake/waffle batter in a spray can that’s been featured on “Live with Regis and Kelly,” as well as the “John Tesh Radio Show” website. (I didn’t even know John Tesh had a radio show, much less featured it on the internet! Huh-WHA?)

The “unofficial” current record of 66,549 5-inch cooked pancakes is held by a Lion’s Club in Lubbock, Texas. Good luck, Batter Blaster - there are tons of homeless people in Atlanta eager to gobble up some free food.

Hey Fabio, pass the spray butter and spray syrup!

Tim Tams Do Good

We all know that Tim Tams taste good, but in this case, they’re also doing good. You see, the US run of Tim Tams is all over (*cry*), but there’s one case left out there, and you can be the lucky person to win it! To sweeten the deal, Aussie actor Hugh Jackman has autographed the box, making it doubly tasty.

The auction over at eBay benefits Feeding America, a leading hunger relief charity. You get 24 packages of Chocolate Creme Tim Tams in the box. So go bid already!

• Tim Tams at eBay
• I Love Tim Tam Cookies Website
• Feeding America Website

Snack Review: Kettle Brand Chips

The enlightened snack purveyors at Snackaisle.com sent us a huge box of assorted treats. It was a wonderful thing they did, but it transformed the Snackerrific Review Lab into a feeding frenzy of snack sharks. Chip dust everywhere, dry-roasted edamame husks on the desks, Lara Bar wrappers strewn all about - oh, it was ugly.

Based in New Hampshire, Snackaisle is an online source for tons of all-natural, low-fat, low-sodium, gluten-free snacks, too many to mention now. We’ll be reviewing many of them here over the next few weeks.

Kettle Brand Baked Salt & Fresh Ground Pepper Chips
It was only a 4 oz. bag, but the contents disappeared (during the aforementioned feeding frenzy) in about 10 seconds. I snagged enough chips for myself to know that they’re simply the tastiest potato chips I’ve eaten in years. It was all I could do to keep from licking the inside of the bag.

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Snack Review: Stretch Island Fruit Co. Raspberry Fruit Leather

We reviewed Stretch Island Fruit Leather a while back on these pages, but I thought it might be worth a second look.

Oh, and I have a confession: I was a fruit leather virgin before last night.

Sure, I’d messed around with fruit rolls before, but the closest I’d ever gotten to fruit leather were the myths and legends about the stuff from a friend who grew up with hippie parents. Truth is, I’d never actually indulged. Boy was I missing out.

It’s so simple: take fresh fruit, remove the seeds and stems (this review is sounding more and more suspect by the minute), puree it, pour it out onto a tray, let it dry naturally or run it through a dehydrator, cut it into cellphone-sized slabs, and wrap it up for future enjoyment!

Fruit leather has been rolling out of Stretch Island Fruit Co. since 1976 when Ron and Mary Sagerson moved to Stretch Island, WA, and began making the fruity treats in their laundry room. (Thankfully, for everyone involved, they’ve long since moved the operation to much larger digs.)
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