Peppermint M&M's

It just seems like they're constantly releasing new M&M flavors!  I'm sure you've seen these before, because I know I have, but The Holidaze is behind on the Christmas times so I want to cover as much as I can in the short amount of time we have left.  If we're going to celebrate the season, we need to talk about everything - big and little - even if they've been released in the past.  Because next year, if these are discontinued, we can say we mentioned them.  For example, did you know there were Sugar Cookie Twix, last year?  I sure as hell didn't and now I regret missing out on the now extinct greatness!

When I first heard about these white chocolate peppermint M&M's, I was searching the Internet for various Christmas products.  This stood out to me because I couldn't find them and, on Ebay, they were selling for $15 a bag.  Really?  Were they that rare?  Was I gonna have to splurge on a bag of candy that I may not even like?  The answer is... no.  They're easy to find and readily available, somebody was just trying to cash in.  I'm sure somebody, somewhere, was suckered into the trap.  If they're reading The Holidaze, I hope they know I found stacks and stacks of Peppermint M&M's at Target.  Sorry, bud.. I was almost you.

I like how much they're using the snarky, sarcastic, red M&M to sell their products.  Out of all their characters, he's the closest thing to a used car salesman.  He gives you a smirk, points out the beauty of his candy, throws on a Santa hat to welcome your friendship, then charges you $15 for a bag you could have had for $3.  Isn't that how it goes?  He's good, and I like him, but I'll say it again - he needs a name.  I'm tired of calling him "The Red M&M."  I don't even like "Red," I just want him to have a traditional name like Joe or Bob.  It's funnier.. What would you name Red?

These were obviously going to be red and white colored and anything different would have been a disappointment and epic fail.  We knew that wouldn't happen, and that's a good thing because these are perfect for the season.  Everything from the bag design to the candy coating is red and white and emits a true feeling of winter.  You'd think blue would do a better job than red, but not when it's paired with white.  Peppermint is probably the number one Christmas flavor and nothing does it better than the Candy Cane.  Hence, red and white M&M's.  How come this stuff was never mentioned in College?  I could write pages and pages on the color of candy but couldn't write a paragraph about "The Great Gatsby."  Grown up, baby!

Usually, whenever I try these white chocolate + random flavor concoctions, I don't taste anything out of the ordinary.  Use the Candy Corn M&M's as the perfect example.  However, this time, they really hit the nail on the head and did a great job!  These are, without a doubt, my favorite Holiday M&M's and it's with good reason - the truly taste like Peppermint!  Yeah, there's the subtle hint of white chocolate, and that's to be expected, but it's not overwhelming and walks the line perfectly.  

So if you're only going to buy one of the 472 M&M flavors this season, I'd make this the winner.  They look and taste like Christmas and that's enough to make up for those damn Pumpkin Spice M&M's last October.

Junior Mints Peppermint Crunch

Wow, can you believe Thanksgiving has come and gone as quickly as it did?  The holidays are truly sneaking up on us and leaving in a hurry.  For as much as I'd like the work weeks to speed up, I want Christmas to take it's sweet time getting to me.  The 25 days of Christmas are upon us and though that may seem like a lot of time to shop, write, party, drink, laugh, and wrap, it's going to move much faster than we realize.  So, because we've reached the last day of November and I'm still recovering from the Thanksgiving overload, I have a quick post for you about a box of $1.00 candy.

When walking down the holiday aisles and scouring through the Christmas section for seasonal items, I see a lot that I overlook and don't consider worthy of my time and effort.  There are some things I buy for me and The Holidaze, and then there are others that I buy for The Holidaze alone.  If it doesn't fit either of those categories, then on the shelf it sits.  Normally, Junior Mints would be one of those products, but not this year.  Because The Holidaze has neglected Christmas in the past, this box of candy may or may not be new, but either way, between the Christmas box and classic Rankin/Bass font, I certainly wasn't passing up on Junior Mints Peppermint Crunch!

Now, if you've never tried these, you may be asking yourself -- what separates these from everything else I've ignored and left sitting on the Island of Misfit Products?  Well, with me, it doesn't take much and the fact that they added "real candy crunch" to the outer shell of these traditional Junior Mints made all the difference.  I just had to see what they looked like and how much of a change these crunchies made to the texture.  And no, Google and other reviews simply wouldn't suffice this time around.

Obviously, the Junior Mints look much more round, smooth, and chocolatey brown on the box art, but that's what I expected.  Junior Mints always come out looking like little black mushroom heads.  However, they're usually much smoother in their traditional pack and I attribute the bumpiness to the candy crunch.  Already, we've found one difference that they've made and, honestly, I don't know if I like it.  The little indentations and change in appearance make the Junior Mints much less appealing, but I was willing to overlook that because of the seasonal effort they put into the recipe.  There had to be a good reason for these distorted Junior Mints to be on sale.

I can't remember the last time I actually bought a box of Junior Mints, but I'm willing to bet it was at a movie theater.  Even then, it was probably because they were sold out of Raisinets, Gummy Bears, and Sour Patch Kids.  What I'm saying is, Junior Mints are never my first choice when buying candy, but they've definitely climbed through the ranks with their Peppermint Crunch.  These are so much better with the candy pieces that I think they should keep them in the mix from here on out.

The traditional Junior Mint flavor hasn't changed, but the texture has and it's enough to make this feel like an entirely new product.  Forget about their shape and appearance, because this is more than that.  Instead of biting down into a gooey Junior Mint that lasts one or two bites before it's gone, now you have a little crunch.  Now you find yourself looking for the little candy pieces to chew.  Who woulda thought a Junior Mint could give us so much to do in the span of 7 seconds?  Now, whenever I go to the movies between today and Christmas, this is the candy I'll be sneaking in with me.  In fact, I may just bring these with me to see "Frozen," tomorrow.  Sounds chilly...

Holiday Pretzel Crisps

Amazingly, tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day and there's no better bridge to Christmas than Turkey Day and time spent with family.  By now, you've probably purchased everything you need for your festive feast, but did you pick up the Pretzel Crisps?  What, you've never heard of them?  They're amazing!  In a time where everybody is flipping out over a chocolate covered Lays potato chip, these are completely flying under the radar.  Having never seen them before, I first tried "Buffalo Wing" Pretzel Crisps at a family party and got hooked.  They were so great that we went out and bought more when we got home.  Sure, they're a bit expensive compared to your traditional bag of chips, but you truly get what you pay for.  Whether it's Original, Chipotle Cheddar, or Cinnamon Toast, you're really in for a treat.

Now, with the holidays upon us, Snack Factory has released seasonal Pretzel Crisps that are perfect for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and this time of year!

Mint Chocolate Crunch!

The tagline is "Rethink Your Pretzel" and I think that's fitting.  For a second, think about this - you're getting a tiny, crunchy, salted pretzel, coated in mint chocolate and covered in chocolate chips.  How in the world are you going to go wrong with that?  Between the green bag, snow graphics, and images of deliciousness, this is the type of product that pulls you in and takes your money.

Okay, not gonna lie - the bag is definitely misleading and borders on false advertisement.  If you look at the Pretzel Crisps displayed on the bag, they're evenly and overly coated in an abundance of mint chocolate.  The actual Pretzel Crisps?  Not so much.  Fortunately, these pretzels are covered enough for my liking and, at the end of the day, flavor is all that matters.  Because these taste so good, there's no way I can be mad at the lying bag.  This is what you expect from a chocolate covered pretzel.  You need that perfect contrast between sweet and salty.  Combine that with mint, which I didn't even think would work, and you've got a great snack for the holidays.  Sure, it may not look as pretty as depicted, but once they hit your taste buds, you won't even care.

To go along with Mint Chocolate Crunch, we have White Chocolate & Peppermint flavored Pretzel Crisps.  Look, between now and Christmas, just about everything is going to be dedicated to peppermint and gingerbread flavored products.  Just about everything I've purchased already tastes like one of those two things, but that's okay during this time of year.  It should be expected and welcomed as flavors of the season.  For me, personally, it sparks the spirit and that's why this bag, even if the flavor was close to the other, had to be picked up.  Besides, the Candy Cane theme is more Christmassy than the Chocolate Mint Crunch.  I'm easy, what can I say?

Unlike the first batch of Pretzel Crisps, this White Chocolate & Peppermint variety does a better job living up to it's promised coating and, for the most part, matches the photograph printed on the bag.  I wasn't expecting much from these, but wow, they're so much better than the Mint Chocolate Crunch!  Believe me, that's saying a lot because they're both outstanding products.  The broken Candy Cane pieces add so much to the flavor but aren't so crunchy that they'll break your teeth.  It's like salted candy!  Everything about these Pretzel Crisps work so well together and I'm happily surprised by their punch.  This is the type of knockout game you want to play!

I'm not exactly sure where you can buy Pretzel Crisps, but we found them at Target.  They're the type of chips that I don't go looking for, but love when I have them.  In that way, they're similar to Pringles, but I think they're a hell of a lot better.  Obviously I wouldn't eat these two varieties outside of the holiday season, but Pretzel Crisps offer much more than even I was aware of and, now, I'm hungry and want to go buy more.  If you're out and still have time and money to pick up a last minute snack for Thanksgiving, make these your choice.  They'll get everybody excited for Christmas and thankful that they came to your house for the big day!