Candy

Vertigo Pops!

Sun, 08/05/2007 - 01:22 — hungry waif

Have you every seen the movie Vertigo?

i know i promised to do more Hibachi reviews, and i was going to have some for dinner tonight but my dad's girlfriend is trying to get my dad to loose some weight so she suggest that i save the frozen entrees for my self (although i guess it didn't click that these were healthier entrees but whatevs). But my pal, Al bought my a new item to try which i've been eyeing for some time now. Larabar came out with a Jocalat line with different Chocolate-y flavors. I tried the Chocolate Coffee flavor and before i dish about the taste, i'll break down the nutrtionals for ya. each bar (48g) is 190 calories, 11 g of fat (2 sat), 5 g fiber, 4 g protein and it boasts all these Omega 3 's and 6's. Ok, i guess its not bad for a bar, decent amount of fiber and modest amount protein. But let me tell you, its pretty small but yet a little heavy in weight. It might fill you up, but it totally didn't do it for me. I would have liked a bigger product. Um to be honest, i wanted to like it cause my friend bought it for me and i didn't want her to spend her money on crap, but this was not that good. Not quite crap, hands down a step above crap, but the chocolate flavor was strange, like those fat free brownies that lack moistness. The nuts saved this from being crap cause i liked the hint of the nuttiness, but the texture was like gooey and clay like and i dont know, it just didnt make sense. I know larabar does other nice bars so i think i'll try those and steer clear of the Jocalat line for now.

Gelatin Candy Desserts!

Sat, 06/23/2007 - 02:00 — hungry waif

Yet another recipe (not to worry, i've got a couple of products to review coming up soon), i cant take credit for it but i found this recipe a little while back from the Kimkins diet (i dont know much about this diet and theres no way i actually follow it because its apparently some verison of Atkins). Anyhow, although i am not a fan of the diet, they did have a wonderful guilt free candy idea that i tried a couple times and loved it. give it a try and you can get really creative with different flavors (like try kool aid or flavored syrups that sound enticing)

packet of Knox gelatin
12 oz "strong" Crystal Light or flat diet soda
.5 cup boiling water

Mix the gelatin and boiling water in a heat-proof bowl. Stir for 30 seconds until gelatin is melted (check the spoon, there should be no granules). Let bowl sit on the counter for 20-30 minutes until lukewarm, then add Crystal Light or diet soda. Stir to mix, pour into candy molds, and put in the fridge until set.

This method gives a much better flavor than heating all of the liquids to boiling which destabilizes the aspartame (which gives off a funky "wang" taste you DON'T want!). If you like a more traditional "Jello" consistency, then simply add more water to the recipe. Enjoy!

Sencha Green Tea Mints!

Sat, 06/02/2007 - 07:21 — hungry waif

Green tea is uber trendy right now. Monks from Tibet like it, its in all these engergy drinks, nutritionists all around boast its healhful benefits, its in GUM form even! And even in .....MINTS! now, to be honest, i would like to love green tea, but its a little harsh without sweetner, so getting my daily green tea quota is a bit difficult for me. Sencha Green Tea Mints claim that a mere 3 mints equal 1 cup of green tea! ok, so i gave these mints a try. I tried the delicate pear flavor and it was nice and well....delicate. Its sugar free so its ok on your teeth, and there was no nutrtion facts on the tin, so i am asuming they aren't heavily caloric either. The taste is just right, not "minty" but hints of green tea flavor with a pear-ish undertone and a slight sweetness. Its refreshing, but not like an altoid or your conventional mint. They also look really chic so you can offer it to someone you want to impress. Yay, i no longer have to down tea i dont care much for!

Sencha
Candy

Reeses Sugar Free!

Wed, 05/16/2007 - 11:24 — hungry waif

I am not a fan of sugar free candy cause nonetheless, its still candy and probably not healthy anyhow. but my weight concious roomate (who, sadly, thinks dieting means ONLY buying diet products and crystal light....) stocked our cupboards with this stuff so i thought i might review it. 5 cups have 170 calories, 12 grams of fat (5 of which saturated!), and actually 5 grams of fiber. But nutritionally, these arent much better than the orignals. maybe less calories but not much better with the fat and all. the taste? well not god awful but pretty off. maybe its the whopping 18 grams of sugar alcohols. And oddly enough, it tasted greasy! the peanut butter was the only pleasant part of it, but this isnt healthy, tastes like a sweet grease cup, and if its reeses your craving, just have 1 small cup of the real thing and forgo this nasty alternative.

Trident White Cool Colada!

Wed, 04/25/2007 - 13:01 — hungry waif

I have been an avid trident tropical twist for ages now. its my go to gum, the one i'll be chewing when you catch me chewing gum. I admit, since i started college, my teeth brushing has really been bad, late nights munching way after brushing.... I believe its me rebelling against my anal brushing obsession i had in high school where i had braces and couldn't take having my lunch still stuck in my metal at dinner. So i think all my sugarless gum chewing has prevented me from having cavities. Anyhow, trident white (apart from being teeth friendly and sugarless) boasts giving your teeth a pearly white hue, all that and a "cool colada" flavor. Ok so as far as the taste, i love it! i am not big on coconutty flavors usually, but this is sweet and tropical and really refreshing. Heres the bad news, my teeth aint any whiter. I tried to even inspect my teeth in different lighting but no, my teeth are still icky yellow. And the taste lasts 24 min (yes, i checked). the tropical twist still retains the flavor an hour later! nice try trident, good flavor, false promies, but thanks for keeping my dentist bill low.

Sugar-Free Chocolate Nips!

Sat, 04/07/2007 - 06:08 — hungry waif

Its amazing how calories can sneak up on you from those little innocent bowls filled with tiny hard candies often irnoically found in the docotor's office (talk about health..eh?), banks, or in my case, my grandmother's living room (although those hard candies were probably purchased in 1976). They can actually be around 50 calories each! and thats not even food, it barely an oral fixation, i mean, come on, gum lasts way longer! Anyhow, nips made a new sugar free flavor, chocolate. A chocolate snob, i am sad to say this did not taste like chocolate. It was closer to the original coffee flavored nips if anything. It didn't taste artificial, or very sweet for that matter, which i dont mind but a bit of sweetness could have amped it up a little bit. I guess its alright tasting but what gets me is the nutritionals. each is 30 calories which isn't terrible but still, these are fairly small and they last about 5 min, so you're prone to back for another and another and 4 of those suckers are 120 calories (as is 3 bags of Shiritaki noodles and a smart dog with a wonder light bun). they dont cure a chocolate craving like cocoa via so i dont think i'll be purchasing them again, but hey, offer them in a cute bowl if once you reach grandma status.

Sugar-Free Peeps!

Tue, 03/20/2007 - 11:30 — hungry waif

After much anticipation and comments from some loyal visitors, i am happy to say that the peeps have finally arrived in my mailbox! Each peep is 12 calories each and sweetened with splenda instead of the traditional sugar. Honestly, ive never tried a real peep before. i imagine they taste a lot like a marshmellow but i have never been an expert with Easter candy since i am Jewish (however, i am know Matzas all the way). They tasted alright, but i am not big on eating marshmellows. the flavor was good, not too artificially, but kinda weird as a candy. I didn't finish the box, even though they are so low calorie it couldn't have hurt me, I guess i just dont like eating plain marshmellows. On a side and rather sad note, these are NOT vegetarian friendly since they contain gellatin. But if you are vegetarian, i do suggest you get out of the Easter aisle and head on over to the kosher for passover aisle because NOTHING with gellatin in kosher so you should find somehting suitable for you there. anyways, these peeps are a bust i think despite the few favorable reviews i've heard. but hey, to each his own...

Peeps
Candy

Sugar-Free Mentos!

Sat, 02/17/2007 - 10:51 — hungry waif

Ah...mentos....the freshmaker! well at least thats what their adds have been touting for, god knows, ages! and the funny thing is, their adds still run and its the same adds i saw when i was ten! All the actors don those eighties shoulder pads and their hair is still teased as if it were still 1989. Anyhow, mentos hasn't changed much either, except....they realized they should try a healthier alternative to their sugar laden but o so addicting treats. Enter Sugar-free Mentos, in a berry flavor! only 5 calories a piece with no yucky aftertaste as its sweetened with splenda. Its berry-ful, chewy (like other mentos), but i am not a big fan of mentos sto begin with cause they can be addicting and they dont last as long as a mint. So if i end up chewing a bunch of these guys one after another, i am bound to get some sort of digestive discomfort due to the sugar alcohols. Give is a shot if you can have one and close the box, but if your like me, stick to something that'll last a little longer (like the fruity ice breaker mints perhaps?).

Mentos
Candy

CocoaVia!

Mon, 01/08/2007 - 12:22 — hungry waif

Ahh chocolate. I dont think of myself as a food snob but I AM a chocolate snob. Its innate, i am part Belgian, i am usually a good judge of good chocolate when my buds taste it. Most "diet" chocolate SUCK, and even most conventional chocolate SUCK (yes, some people love hersheys, i cant stand it!). So i had low expectations for CocoaVia, the "heart healthy" chocolate, and thought it would taste like any old reduced calorie chocolate (btw, their chocolates range from 90-100 calories per bar, depending on the kind). BUT, i was pleasantly suprised! they DONT taste like other sugar free or low carb "chocolates" (they usually suck so bad, i dont even think they should be considered chocolate!), but i defiently is not like good quality chocolate like Lindtt, Scharffen Berger, or Ghirardelli. Its not as sweet and doesn't have the melty, creamy aftertaste you usually get when eating a piece of good chocolate. I probably wont eat it cause i have other ways that cure my chocolate fix that i prefer, but i can cure it, nonetheless, and its so low calories for a "semi-chocolate" (i'll give it that much) that, why not? but again, if its chocolate you want, i say go for a little of the very best.