Chips Ahoy - Ice Cream Creations

I pride myself on creating unique graphic designs and banners for each of my posts, so ignore that disaster you see above and let it slide because of time constraints.  One, I have somewhere to be in a few hours and, two, these brand new cookies just can't wait to make their Holidaze debut.  Spending any more minutes designing a banner that pales in comparison to these products is just a waste of time and aint nobody got time for dat!

Today, on my lunch break, a few co-workers and I took a drive over to Target.  I couldn't tell you what they were looking for, but I knew what I was secretly going to search the aisles for.  Whenever I'm at a department store, I'm always scouring up and down in an attempt to find something new and post-worthy.  Sometimes I fall short, but this time I saw something different.  I wasn't expecting to have three cookie posts in a row, but this is worth the repetition.  I walked by the cookie aisle, saw these babies sitting there, and kept on walking.  Yeah, I ignored them as if they didn't even exist because I couldn't let these "manly men" think that I'm about that life.  These guys talk about cars and tools all day while I politely nod and pretend that I have an interest.  Meanwhile, I stared at the clock and counted down the hours before I could go back to Target and leave with new Chips Ahoy! Ice Cream Creations!

There are four different Ice Cream Creations flavors, but I only picked up two because the others didn't necessarily intrigue me.  I can tell you, now that I've tasted two, I may very well have to go back and pick up the others because, I'm not going to stall with this one... These are amazing!!

First, let's talk about Mint Chocolate Chip.  I don't know about you, but this is one of my favorite ice cream flavors so whenever I see a product released, whether it's candy, jelly beans, or potato chips, I'm going to pick it up and give it a try.  Usually, the taste is always on point because, let's face it, Mint Chocolate Chip is pretty hard to mess up.  Throw in mint and chocolate and, boom, you have yourself a hit.  With that said, I never go into it with high expectations because I wouldn't want to let myself down.  Chips Ahoy has disappointed me in the past, particularly with the Chips Ahoy Brownie Cookies, so I didn't want to go all in, especially with the Oreo editions still fresh on my mind.

Open the bag and.. wow.. the aroma is perfect enough to be released as a Yankee Candle.  I'd light it around Christmas to savor the scent, but these cookies should never be kept wrapped up to merely enjoy once or so a year.  No, as soon as you look at these cookies and let your senses start talking to each other, you'll find yourself in a whirlwind that can only be brought to an end with one single bite.  I'm not over exaggerating here, these smell delicious.  Immediately, Thin Mints come to mind and that can only mean good things for our taste buds.  In my opinion, Thin Mints are the perfect cookie when it comes to mint and chocolate.  Well, almost.  See, for me, I've always thought that they'd be better if they weren't so crunchy and more chewy.  Good news for those who agree with me -- Chips Ahoy Mint Chocolate Chip cookies are just that!

They're beautiful! Chewy chocolate chip cookies filled with green and brown mint chocolate chips.  I love how they're put together because they could have simply taken a regular chewy cookie and changed the chocolate chip flavor from chocolate to mint and called it a day.  But they didn't do that -- they went all out and made this look like it could be found in ice cream parlor.  If you walked into an ice cream shop and wanted to leave with a Mint Chocolate Chip cone, you'd most likely have something similar to what you see above.  That's going the extra mile, especially with the green chips, and I'm very happy to see that.  Because of that, I'm going to call it right now and call this St. Patrick's Day's official cookie.  Between the green chips and minty flavor, I'm sure it would go perfect with McDonald's Shamrock Shake.  I've never tried one (but will this year,) but am going out on a limb and making it official.  The Holidaze can do that.. right?

Now, the taste test and it's easy -- this is a 10/10.  No doubt, these are the best Mint Chocolate Chip cookies I've ever had.  In an attempt to describe these to you, I want you to think of what it would be like to bite into Entenman's Little Brownie Bites, but having them taste like Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream.  It's the perfect mix of flavors and texture that creates a junk food hit!  Chips Ahoy has a winner on their hands, here!

When I saw these, I tried not to dance in the middle of Target, but all I could hear in my head was Pitbull singing "Ohhh baby baby! Ohhh baby baby!"  Should Root Beer Float cookies make me feel that way?  Probably not, but you won't find any shame here, brother!  I will always go out of my way to find and try soda flavored food, even if I know they won't taste good.  Dr. Pepper gum?  Yup.  Orange Crush jelly beans?  You know it!  Mountain Dew cupcakes?  If I could find them.  Pepsi Cheetos?  Believe me, they're real, and I'll eventually find them.  So, in reality, Root Beer Float cookies aren't that out of the ordinary, but they're new to me and I might have freaked out more than I should have.  Luckily, it was all internal and my co-workers still have no idea how awesome I really am!

Now, I've heard of Root Beer flavored cookies before, but they're usually found in a bakery or made at home by creative bakers.  However, I've never seen them released on such a large scale by a company as big as Nabisco.  For that reason, I wasn't really sure what to expect.  Were they just cashing in on the idea of others without perfecting the recipe or did they hammer it down and knock it outta the park?  I was excited to find out and opening the bag only added to that excitement because it topped that of the Mint Chocolate Chip bag.  With very low expectations but extremely high hopes, I progressed further while still managing to tease myself.  This is why the rest of the world calls America fat... It's also why we are ;)

Just like the first scoop of cookies, (see what I did there?)  these also look like their respective flavor and I truly appreciate that.  The cookie is lighter and has multiple colored chips to match that of the float.  We have the brown and white representing the soda and foamy top.  It's awesome, not is only the beginning because, like I said, these taste a hell of a lot better than they look and smell and, believe me, that's saying a lot!

I love them -- absolutely love them.  Now remember, I love Root Beer floats and anything soda flavored so I'm very biased, but if you share my love for this flavor, then you're in for a real treat.  Chips Ahoy blew me away with this one because I honestly didn't think they could pull it off.  I never thought the Root Beer flavor could translate so well as a cookie, but I am happily mistaken and it's to all our benefit.  Obviously Root Beer Floats are liquidy and cold so there's going to be a difference in texture.  That goes without saying, but the flavor is spot on and you'll have your taste buds so confused they won't know what season it is.  That's what's so great about these Ice Cream Creations cookies.  They're for anytime of the year and even if they were meant for Spring, they're just as good on a rainy night in February.  These are two of my favorite products to be reviewed on The Holidaze!

Like I said, I didn't pick up the other two flavors - Dulce de Leche and Mocha Chunk - but because the first two were so awesome, I think it's only right that I support the misfits as well.  I didn't think they'd taste much different than caramel and coffee, but hey, even that may be worth the $2.50.  One thing I know for sure is that the two I did buy are a hell of a lot better than the last two Oreo editions I picked up.  I'm not saying they were horrible, but Nabisco did a much better job with Chips Ahoy than they did with Oreo.  But at the end of the day, all of our money is going to the same place as they laugh all the way to the bank.  Meanwhile, I'm sitting here with 4 bags of cookies and an overly full belly.  If you ask me, sounds like a win-win!

Buy them!!  If you see them, pick them up and thank yourself for it later.  These are that good and, if you have the extra money, pick up the other two as well.  Knowing what I know now, I'm willing to bet they're worth the price and I'll be getting them myself within the next few days.  In the meantime, I'll sit back and enjoy these as I hope for a Neapolitan flavor to debut in series two.  I have no doubt there will be more in what should become a very popular line of Chips Ahoy!

WWE Ice Cream Bars

I'm taking a quick break from the Halloween Countdown because my friend James (give him a follow!) gave me a cool idea and I couldn't wait to get cracking.  If you've read The Holidaze, you know how big of a wrestling fan I am.  Growing up, it was always my dream to design for the company and work for the greatest entertainment organization in the world.  After all, it was the WWE that inspired me to start designing in the first place.  So, after seeing my Hi-C juice boxes, my friend said I should make modern versions of the classic "WWF" Ice Cream bars.  Remember those?  The cookie, vanilla, and chocolate ice cream bar was always my first choice whenever Mr. Softee stopped by the block.  They were awesome and even C.M. Punk has been waiting for them to make a comeback.  They may not be returning any time soon, but just like those juice boxes, we can all take a look at what they would look like if they were a reality.

Using an old ad from WWF Magazine as base, here are some current WWE Superstars in retro form!

Of course, the original "WWF" logo and mentions have all been edited for today's use.

 

I think they're pretty cool and look like the ones you'd actually find when you ripped one open, rather than the drawing on the box.

If you're not a wrestling fan, don't care about these, or think they're garbage -- no worries.  It's back to Halloween!!

Astronaut Ice Cream

Unless you've never heard of Astronaut Ice Cream before, today's post is probably nothing new to you.  But ever since I was a kid, I've been fascinated by the concept of freeze-dried ice cream and the fact that it maintains it's flavor.  There's a science center in Jersey City, Liberty Science Center, where I first found these packs of ice cream.  The science center is great and was home to many school field trips, but the highlight was always the conclusion.  By the end of any trip, we visited the Liberty Science Center Store and while some kids were looking at rubber bugs and star photos, I was spending everything I brought with me on Astronaut Ice Cream.  Sure, I could have purchased real ice cream, but where's the fun in that?  This is a freeze-dried science experiment!

Over the years, Astronaut Ice Cream has become more and more popular and is now available in multiple stores.  Personally, I've found them at Hot Topic and Toys R Us.  In this case, I found them and Michael's Craft Store.  Here's a bit of a tip, though.  Some retail outlets are jacking up the price.  Toys R Us in Times Square was charging over $6 a pack.  Hot Topic charges $5 and Michael's, the most reasonable, was only $3.99.  But if you want to try Astronaut Ice Cream and don't mind waiting a bit, just go to Astronauticecreamshop.com and find it for less than $3.00!!

Here's the freeze-dried Astronaut Ice Cream Sandwich.  I'll admit, it doesn't look all that great, but it's amazing.  When I was a kid, these sandwiches were mostly intact, long and rectangular.  For whatever reason, they changed these to be circular ice cream sandwiches.  But it doesn't matter, it's all about flavor and this is a childhood favorite.  Personally, the cookie part is better than the ice cream because it's so different.  It's unlike any chocolate cookie or wafer you'll find anywhere else.  It has the flavor of a real ice cream sandwich, but the texture of an Oreo cookie.  That's what's so cool about these freeze-dried packets.

The first pack pictured is similar to the ones I remember from the 90s, but this Alien Ice Cream is brand spankin' new!  This immediately caught my eye because of the cool imagery, graphics, and that tiny neapolitan illustration.  Plus, this is the first time I've ever seen freeze-dried Astronaut Ice Cream be called something else.  Alien Ice Cream sounds so much cooler.  Yeah, Astronauts are awesome.  I'd love to travel through space.  But an Alien lives in space and has all sorts of super powers.  If this is what they're eating, I want to be abducted asap.

I've had the Astronaut Neapolitan Ice Cream a good 20-25 times in my life, so I was hoping that Alien Neapolitan Ice Cream would be different, but it's the same thing.  In fact, after further review of the package, this ice cream is produced by the same, and only company, that releases Astronaut Ice Cream.  I guess they agree with the theory that kids, and adults with a kids' mentality, will be more attracted to a cartoon alien than a hovering astronaut.  They were right!  But I can't say that they truly got me because I was going to buy two packs, anyway.  There's no way I can walk away with only one flavor, even when the prices are too high.

Because these packs are so delicious, it's hard for me to pick a favorite.  I can tell you that, with the neapolitan variety, my favorite of the three parts is chocolate.  I always try to save that for last.  I'd put strawberry in second with vanilla a close third.  They're all soo good and, surprisingly, very different from the ice cream found in the sandwich.  It has a different texture and density.  I remember how hard the sandwiches were to eat as a kid.  When intact, they're a bit dangerous on the teeth.  But when they're all broken up like this, the ice cream practically dissolves in your mouth.  I love it.

While these packs are great, you're probably not all that interested if you've ever tried them before.  Fair enough.  So, to create a glimmer of excitement, I created a freeze-dried neapolitan ice cream sandwich.  Whattya think about that?  It's a beauty.  Chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry ice cream stacked between two ice cream sandwich cookies.  It makes for a great picture, but the flavor is nothing that you wouldn't expect.  I just wanted to do something I never did with Astronaut Ice Cream, before.  Behold, the Neapoliwhich!

By the way, if you haven't had Astronaut (or Alien) Ice Cream before, then be aware that they can be messy.  Maybe "dusty" is a better word.  As soon as you open the wrapper, the stray crumbs seem to scatter like powdery ice cream dust balls.  If that description makes any sense.

One thing I regret about this review is that there was supposed to be three flavors included.  For the first time ever, I found a Mint Chip Astronaut Ice Cream flavor at Michael's, but I ate it before I ever found time to take pictures.  Without that, there's no reason to bother reviewing something you can't see.  I blame myself for being a glutton, but I couldn't wait to try a brand new flavor.  If you're interested, you can find them here along with a never-before tried flavor, Chocolate Chocolate Chip.  When I find and try that one, maybe I'll update The Holidaze with a review of both.  You will probably care for that about as much as you did for this post, but there's only so much I can talk about before we hit the Halloween season :)