salty Archives - Page 2 of 2

December 6, 2020January 10, 2021 Michael

Reese’s Big Cup with Pretzels – Where Have the Pretzels Been All My Life?

Candy Bars

Kudos to Hershey for coming up with the idea to fill a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup with pretzels, but also, why did it take so long? It’s one of those ideas that’s so obvious, you have to wonder how Reese managed to be around for almost a hundred years before they came up with it.

Pretzels and peanut butter is a boffo combination. Anyone who’s had those pretzel bites that are filled with peanut butter knows that’s true. So seriously: what was the hold-up? Why have I been forced to go my whole life eating peanut butter cups without pretzels in them? Like an animal?

My only complaint is that I wish this were a regular Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup rather than a Big Cup, because I feel like the former has a slightly better ratio of peanut butter to chocolate. But that’s really not a big deal.

Otherwise, this is exactly what you’re hoping it’ll be. The pretzels are fairly abundant, and do a great job of adding their distinctive flavour and salty pop to the Reese formula. That’s not to mention the delightful amount of crunchiness they bring, which contrasts quite nicely with the creamy peanut butter and chocolate.

Suffice it to say, if you’re intrigued by the idea of a peanut butter cup with pretzels in it, you’re going to like this. It’s exactly what you want it to be.

Manufactured by: Hershey
Nutritional info (1 cup, 36 grams): 180 calories, 10 grams of fat (3.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat), <5 mg of cholesterol, 140 mg of sodium, 22 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fibre, 18 grams of sugar, 4 grams of protein.
Ingredients: Milk chocolate (sugar, cocoa butter, chocolate, skim milk, milk fat, lactose, lecithin (soy), PGPR) peanuts, sugar, dextrose, brown rice flour, potato starch, contains 2% or less of: modified cornstarch, soluble corn fiber, canola oil, salt, sea salt, baking powder, cellulose gum, sunflower lecithin, TBHQ and citric acid to maintain freshness.

November 11, 2020January 10, 2021 Michael

Chocolatey PayDay – A Downgrade from the Original

Candy Bars

I like PayDay. Consisting entirely of a dense caramel centre covered in salted peanuts, it’s delightfully peanutty and chewy, with a really satisfying combination of sweetness and saltiness that sets it apart from the competition. It’s also the rare candy bar that’s chocolate-free, which adds to its distinctive charm.

Enter: Chocolatey PayDay, which takes the classic bar and adds a “chocolatey” exterior. In case the word “chocolatey” wasn’t a dead giveaway, the bar features mockolate rather than the real deal. Oddly, chocolate is present towards the end of the ingredients list — but not enough to avoid the dreaded “chocolatey” designation, or to avoid the telltale waxy texture and lack of personality that you get from the fake stuff.

It’s fine. I’m not sure if they’ve just covered a standard PayDay in a chocolatey coating or if other modifications were made, but it tastes like the latter to me. I’m pretty sure there are less peanuts, and while the original hits you in the face with the sweet/salty combo, the level of salt is much more restrained here. It’s definitely there, but it’s in the background.

This makes a bigger difference than you’d think; the bar tastes noticeably sweeter, and the nutty flavour is much more muted. It doesn’t help that the mockolate coating basically adds nothing, and only detracts from the bar (unlike a lot of candy bars covered in mockolate, there’s a thick enough layer here that the waxy texture is quite noticeable).

The whole thing is inoffensive enough, but it takes something distinctive and makes it generic; it basically tastes like an inferior version of an Oh Henry.

Manufactured by: Hershey
Nutritional info (1 bar, 52 grams): 260 calories, 14 grams of fat (5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat), 0 mg cholesterol, 100 mg sodium, 29 grams of carbohydrates, 27 grams of sugar, 2 grams of fibre, 5 grams of protein.
Ingredients: Sugar, peanuts, vegetable oil (palm oil, shea oil, sunflower oil, palm kernel oil, and/or safflower oil, corn syrup, chocolate, skim milk. Contains 2% or less of: whey (milk), salt, lecithin (soy), carrageenan, mono- and diglycerides, vanillin, artificial flavor.

August 6, 2020January 10, 2021 Michael

Snickers Creamy Almond Butter – Sweet and Salty Overload

Candy Bars

The first thing you’ll notice about the almond butter variety of Snickers is how comically small it is. Consisting of two tiny little squares that can’t even fill up the small wrapper, it’s definitely one of the smaller candy bars you can buy. I’m assuming the candy companies have done a bunch of research showing that 200 calories is the magic number, and because this is so dense, it had to be tiny. But it’s still weirdly small.

The illustration on the wrapper seems to indicate that it’s just smooth caramel and creamy almond butter enrobed in chocolate, but the caramel is actually dotted with tiny little almond shards. This is a good idea in theory — crunchy nuts would be a nice contrast to the bar’s chewiness, and of course, the peanuts in a regular Snickers are one of its defining characteristics. But the minuscule almond bits are way, way too small to bring a satisfying crunch.

Other than that, it’s fine, I guess. It’s generally decent enough, with a satisfying chewiness that never feels overbearing. But boy is it ever sweet; it’s a throat-burner, that’s for sure. Of course, a standard Snickers bar is also quite sweet, so I guess that’s par for the course.

There’s also a decent amount of saltiness, which helps to counteract the sweetness and gives the bar that satisfying sweet/salty combo. But the intense sweet and salty punch kinda kills all the other flavours of the bar; you can barely even taste the almond butter or the chocolate. It’s basically just there for texture. A more apt name for Snickers Almond Butter would be “Sugar and Salt: the Bar.”

Manufactured by: Mars
Nutritional info (2 squares, 38 grams): 190 calories, 11 grams of fat (4 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat), 0 mg of cholesterol, 140 mg of sodium, 22 grams of carbohydrates, 1 grams of fibre, 17 grams of sugar, 3 grams of protein.
Ingredients: Almonds, sugar, invert sugar, milk ingredients, lactose, corn syrup, cocoa butter, corn syrup solids, cocoa mass, modified palm oil, dextrose, hydrogenated palm kernel oil, vegetable glycerine, hydrogenated cottonseed oil, salt, calcium carbonate, soy lecithin, TBHQ, flavour.

November 20, 2008January 10, 2021 Michael

PayDay – Sweet and Salty Peanuts and Caramel

Candy Bars

I don’t think there’s any other bar out there quite like PayDay. It’s not particularly sweet, nor is it coated in chocolate like the usual candy bar. But it’s been around for almost eighty years, making it one of the oldest candy bars on the market – so it must be doing something right.

Payday is super simple: it’s a piece of chewy, somewhat crumbly caramel coated in whole, salted peanuts. The first thing you notice when you open the wrapper is the strong, peanutty aroma. If you like peanuts, then this is the bar for you, as it is surely the peanuttiest candy bar that you’ll find. Taking a bite, the first thing that hits you is the saltiness of the peanuts, followed by a mild sweetness from the chewy, grainy caramel.

It’s really quite good, though people who aren’t fond of the sweet/salty combo may be put off by the saltiness of the peanuts. However it does manage to strike a good balance between the two elements, with the caramel complimenting the nuts quite well. This is definitely one of the less sweet candy bars you’ll find – which would make it fairly ineffectual as a dessert. But as a satisfying mid-day snack, it definitely fits the bill.

Manufactured by: Hershey
Calories (52 g bar): 250