Sobe LifeWater Mango Mandarin with Coconut Water

I have long liked Sobe products.  I used to mainly enjoy the Sobe Energy, but I also have enjoyed the LifeWater products, especially the pomegranate flavors. Thus while I hated the one time I tried coconut water before, I still thought it was worth trying Sobe's version.

I found the Sobe LifeWater Mango Mandarin with Coconut Water at least palatable, which is really saying a lot because I could not stand the tiny sip of the other brand I tried a few months ago.  I did not really love it, though, and probably would not buy it.  However, the reason I did not like it was because it was too sweet, which is not surprising with the first ingredient after water being sugar.  If they came out with a 0 version, I would certainly give it another try, though.

Disclosure: I received a free sample from BzzAgent.

Limited Edition The American Creme Oreo

I very rarely buy Oreos, but the Limited Edition The American Creme ones looked cool.  I did not really expect them to be different other than they obviously are not the typical chocolate Oreo.  However, it has either been just a long time and I do not properly remember having a Golden Oreo or the creme in these ones are way different.

First off, the American Creme Oreo filling kind of resembles play dough.  Maybe, it is just the colors, but it totally does look like play dough.  It does not taste as bad as play dough, but it is rather flavorless.  Thus, I found these Oreos not very good the way I typically twist them apart and eat the creme first.  However, if I eat them as they are they are not bad, but then you do not get to see the colors as much.

Pepsi Next - The Next New Coke?

I am definitely a Diet Coke person, but I am overall not opposed to drinking Pepsi when it is the brand served at a particular place or is only brand on sale when I want to buy more soda.  Usually I really do not mind Diet Pepsi other than it seems to get flat fast and I actually prefer the Diet Pepsi Wild Cherry to the Diet Coke with Cherry.  Thus I thought why not give Pepsi Next a shot.

Since I mostly like soda with artificial sweeteners because they tend to be less sweet, I knew maybe I would not like Pepsi Next with it having some sugar.  However, it actually does not seem too sweet, but from the first sip I did not like it.

The main issue I have with Pepsi Next is that it seems rather flat.  I thought at first it was because the can I got was mailed to me, but then I got a 2-liter bottle from the store and it was just as bad.  If you prefer less carbonation than Pepsi definitely is better than Coke, but the main thing I like about soda is carbonation so seeming flat right from the start is not good.

Beyond just the lack of carbonation, I also did not like the taste.  Not that the taste was bad, but it just seemed very bland.  I thought maybe it is because I am used to drinking Diet soda, so I had my brother try it without giving him my opinion first.  He said it was boring and while he usually drinks Coke he actually does like Pepsi the same or more.  At the same time he also dislikes some artificial sweeteners, so I would have expected him to say something more like this tastes bad rather than this tastes like nothing.

So not surprising that a Diet Coke fan like me is not into this new product, but I really expected my brother a fan of full calorie colas to at least think it was at least okay.  As it is, to me Pepsi Next is a failure like New Coke was.

Disclosure: I received a free sample from BzzAgent.

Lean Pockets Pretzel Breads Spinach & Three Cheese Sandwiches

My local Fry's tends to have a really limited selection of Lean Pockets to the point they did not even carry the only vegetarian option of Four Cheese for awhile.  Thus, I was pretty darn excited that when I went to stock up on some Lean Pockets there was a new meat free option to try.  I was extra excited that the new option is a Pretzel Bread one, as I love pretzels and have been hoping for a meat free version.

The Lean Pockets Pretzel Breads Spinach & Three Cheese did not disappoint for the most part.  I like that it is more than just cheese inside.  It kind of reminds me of how I like the broccoli and cheese ones better than the four cheese pizza back when I could find the broccoli ones.  The pretzel bread part is pretty tasty, too, although I would have preferred it to taste more saltier.

This new variety of Lean Pockets has definitely become my first choice one to get.  Hopefully, it sticks around and my local store continues to carry it, as it would be hard to go back to having just the boring Four Cheese Pizza again.  Although, they do still have the Limited Edition Four Cheese Garlic Pasta Bake ones, which do not feel so limited with them being around for at least 7 months already.

Private Selection Margherita Napolitana Pizza, Spanakopita, and Belgian Chocolate Lava Cakes

The Private Selection Margherita Napolitana pizza is okay.  I like the choice of toppings including grape tomatoes and mozzarella.  It is rather small, though, and does not really have 3 servings like it says.  Also, not really into the whole thin crust thing.

The Spanakopita from Private Selection was quite good.  It ended up being a big frozen mass that I could not break apart, so I baked it as one piece and broke it apart after baking.  This ended up being not that good of an idea, as they cooked extremely unevenly.  However, they still tasted great.  I would get again, but I gotta figure out how to break them apart to bake.

The Belgian Chocolate Lava Cakes were a total disappointment.  I expected to like them like I love the ones from Dominos.  However, these are extremely cakey and I do not usually like cake.  Also, thought it had way too liquidy chocolate filling.

Disclosure: I received these items free from BzzAgent.

Cinnamon M&M's

I felt pretty disciplined not buying any Lindt's or Andes special holiday chocolates in the holiday section of Target last week.  However, I could not pass up on purchasing the Cinnamon M&M's since I had never heard of them before.

The M&M's are bigger sized than regular M&Ms.  The Cinnamon M&M's are more like the size of peanut butter M&Ms.  The flavor, though, is not much different than regular milk chocolate M&Ms.  At first I seemed to be able to tell that there was a hint of cinnamon, but after a couple they pretty much just taste like regular M&Ms and I do not really like plain milk chocolate M&Ms.

Kroger The Truly Awesome Homestyle Chocolate Chip Cookies

I do not often buy cookies at the grocery store because I prefer soft cookies as in sort of undercooked.  Pretty much the only ones I like are the Pepperidge Farm soft baked cookies, but I have now discovered that the Kroger Truly Awesome Homestyle Chocolate Chip Cookies are actually pretty good.

Straight out of the box they do not seem all that different than some other packaged cookies, but they do seem to taste more like homemade cookies (probably because they have no added preservatives or artifical flavors).  Just out of the box hey are too hard for my liking and actually quite a crumbly mess.  However, they are quite awesome when microwaved for about 30 seconds.  This makes them soft and really does seem sort of like they just came out of the oven.

I certainly will be looking closer at the cookie aisle for when these are on sale.  Now if only they had peanut butter chips or a version of peanut butter cookies than they really would be truly awesome in my book, but if you love just plain chocolate chip cookies this is one awesome store brand to try out.

Disclaimer: I received the cookies for free through BzzAgent.