Deerfield Trading Co. Gourmet Soda, pt. 2

Since trying the Deerfield soda at Walgreens I keep finding excuses to go to Walgreens so I can grab a soda. I forgot my lunch one day at work so I went across the street to find something to munch on and, of course, got a soda.

This time I got the Orange Cream. I wish I could tell you that it tasted like a creamsicle, because that's what I thought and was hoping it would taste like. Alas, I can't tell you that that's what it tasted like. The cream is subtle, which I liked, but the flavors came in waves. First you get orange, then you get cream. So, I guess it's like a creamsicle if you took a bite of the outside orange then took a bite of the inside cream.

Overall it was good, just wasn't exactly what I was expecting. Also probably not my favorite flavor. Strawberry cream and vanilla cream are tied in my book. Just depends on what I'm craving.

Deerfield Trading Co. Gourmet Soda

Per the suggestion of a friend of mine, I recently tried Deerfield Trading Co. Gourmet Soda.

This "gourmet soda" (whatever that means) is a Walgreens exclusive. Walgreens is headquartered in Deerfield, IL (thank you Wikipedia) so I guess it makes sense that they carry a brand from their hometown. My friend found at the Walgreens in Culpepper, VA and I found it in Columbia, SC so I think it's safe to say that it's everywhere - in the central Atlantic region, anyways.

Here's our Facebook conversation about it:

As you can tell, he really likes it. And I have to say - I pretty much agree with everything he said. I bought the vanilla cream (not sure if he got the same one, his might have been regular cream soda), strawberry cream, and black cherry. There was also grape & root beer but I don't really like either of those two flavors so I passed on them. All of the sodas are made with cane sugar, and are decaffeinated - for those of you who are into knowing that kind of stuff.

The vanilla cream - awesome. It tasted exactly how I wanted a cream soda to taste. I don't know if that's because it was vanilla cream instead of just cream, but whatever the reason it was fantastic. Way better than any other cream soda I've ever had. I'm not usually partial to cream soda, but I highly recommend this.

I was expecting the strawberry cream to be super sweet, but it wasn't! It was perfect. I can't really describe it. Sort of like cherry soda, but not. I wouldn't say that it tasted like strawberries... more like strawberry flavor, if you know what I mean. Either way, it was still good.

The black cherry was kind of eh to me. I usually like cherry soda, but this one didn't impress me much. I don't know if that's because I was so blown away by the other two or because it really was sub-par. Either way, I would definitely pick up s Deerfield Trading Co. cream soda of some kind the next time you're in/near a Walgreens.

Post-Master Cleanse

Well internet, I asked you all to vote for what my first meal should be post-Master Cleanse. You left me some comments and voted on my Facebook. You have spoken, and thus it was done. Today, for my first post-master cleanse meal, I had:

BBQ! Specifically, a chicken barbeque sandwich from Maurice's. Before any of you South Carolinians judge, it was the only place we could find that was open on Sunday. I also had some leftover roasted potatoes from last night and fruit salad. Yummy!

This was my first attempt at eating meat and so far so good. I'm a little tired, but don't feel as woozy as yesterday and I still don't want to barf. Great success!

Well folks, I guess that concludes my journey through the Master Cleanse. Thanks for reading, and for your comments and posts on my Facebook. Couldn't have done it without you all!

Master Cleanse Ease Out - Day 3

Started the day off with half of a banana. I wanted to dip my toe into the solid food ocean before I jumped in. Didn't barf or feel nauseous, so I was hopeful for the rest of the day.

The boyfriend and I hung out with his family, since his sister graduated. We went to Carolina Wings for a late lunch. I had the soup & salad bar. It was easier than ordering a salad and asking them to take everything off. It was the first time in a long time that I ate a salad without salad dressing. And you know what? I didn't care. I was so happy to eat solid food, and was so busy appreciating all of the different tastes, I didn't even notice that I didn't have salad dressing. I ate a cup of soup and about two bites of salad before I started to get full. I muscled most of the way through my salad throughout the rest of lunch because I knew I was going to be starving by the end of graduation 5 hours later.

Felt fine while I was eating. Once we got home and sat for a little while I started to feel a little woozy and really tired. I've attributed this to the blood rushing to my stomach. I wasn't nauseous by any means; I didn't want to hurl. I just felt... weird, and different.

Later that night for din din I made a tomato, lettuce, and onion sandwich. I basically wanted to eat a BLT and convince myself that the onion was bacon, haha. Felt much better after eating this. I wasn't woozy or anything. We also roasted some potatoes (I ate about 1/2 of a potato) and put seasoning on them - delicious!

At the end of the day, I didn't puke so I consider solid food a success.

Master Cleanse Ease Out - Day 2

About a quarter of the way through the juicing process.

Today was juicing day. We had a storm last night and lost power. I was freaking out, thinking 'What if the power isn't back on tomorrow? What if I can't use the juice? What am I going to eat!?' I could see the blog post: 'Due to unforeseen circumstances, I have skipped day 2 of the Ease Out and gone right to live foods.' Luckily, the power came back early in the morning and I was able to juice my fruits and veggies.

I pulled a few recipes off of carrotjuice.com and added them together. These were my ingredients:

8 Large Fresh Cleaned Carrots
4 Large Fresh Cleaned Celery Stalks
4 Large Peeled Bananas
2 Large Fresh Granny Smith Green Apples
2 Large Fresh Skinless Cucumbers
2 Cups Of Plump Ripe Strawberries
2 Large Fresh Peeled Oranges

This was supposed to make about 6 servings (not sure what a 'serving' is but I assume it's a cup/glass, so around 8oz).

Rainbow of pulp.

Looks at those colors!

The boyfriend thought it smelled bad, but I thought it smelled fine. Either way, it tasted amazing. You could taste each individual ingredient, but they came together to make a terrific blend of fruit and vegetable.

Juicing: success.

Master Cleanse Ease Out - Day 1

Today was the first day in 10 days that I have consumed something other than lemonade. The orange juice was definitely too much so I added some water this morning. Fresh orange juice tastes different from store bought. Not necessarily different bad, just different. It kind of took some getting used to. I've drank almost a half a gallon so far. mmm, mmm, good

Tomorrow I'll be consuming a veggie & fruit juice medley. I'm gonna throw some carrots, celery, cucumbers, apples, bananas, strawberries and oranges together. Then, after I try some, I'll add more of whatever I think will make it taste better. I'm going to try to keep a 60:40 veggie to fruit ratio. We'll see how well that works out. That ratio may end up swapped.

And now, the moment you have all been waiting for. While on the cleanse I have lost a total of 9.8 lbs. That's almost a pound a day. I know people who have lost more, but I didn't exercise or anything during the cleanse. I wanted to see how much I could lose from the cleanse alone. I was hoping to lose at least 10 lbs. I was close! My weight loss really lessened toward the end of the cleanse. My waistband is different, but I my weight is back to what it was before I came to college so yay for that. Hopefully I'll be motivated to get my fitness on and lose ever more weight now.

Don't forget to leave me a comment voting for what you think my first meal should be after the ease out!

Master Cleanse - Day 10

Well folks, I did it. Ten days of nothing but lemonade. And today is my last day. I wish I could say I'm sad, but I'm not.

Went to the grocery store with the boyfriend and bought a ton of produce for the next couple of days: oranges for tomorrow; carrots, celery, cucumbers, apples and strawberries for Friday. My hands and pruning, and smell like orange rind. I have half of a gallon of orange juice to drink tomorrow. The website doesn't say that I'm supposed to add water, but it looks very... thick. We'll see how it tastes. I might end up adding water anyways.

Now I need your help, internet. Help me decide what my first meal should be when I'm done with the Ease Out and off of the diet completely! Leave me a comment telling me what you think my first meal should be. I'll take a picture of me eating said meal on Sunday.

Don't forget to check in tomorrow to see how much weight I lost on the cleanse!

Master Cleanse - Day 9

TOMORROW IS MY LAST DAY! I can't wait! I am so tired of this lemonade. In fact, regular lemon + water + sugar lemonade would be a welcome change from master cleanse lemonade. I could have some herbal, naturally decaffeinated tea. But without sugar or honey or milk in it, I really have no desire to drink tea. So, lemonade and water it is. FOR ONLY ONE DAY LONGER!

On Thursday I'll post my total weight lost from the cleanse, so be on the look out for that.

Foods I can't wait to consume:
-double stuffed Oreo blast from Sonic
-pizza
-coke
-chips
-toast
-cereal
-cheeseburgers
-hot dogs
-coffee from Artsy Fartsy cafe (newly opened)
-coffee in general
-sushi
-sandwich from Jason's Deli (newly opened)
-beb-bim-bop
-drunken noodles
-pho
-shrimp
-steak
-barbeque
-chicken wings
-crab cakes
-hummus
-gyro
-pancakes
-Wendy's
-Popeye's

What delicious foods do you love that aren't on my list? Let me know in the comments!

Master Cleanse - Day 8

Today I went to a friend's house for Memorial Day. Was a little worried I was going to get interrogated by his parents about the diet. Not because they're awful, interrogative people, but because they're parents. I can totally understand, and would even expect, parents not approving of a diet where you don't eat for 10 days. Luckily, they were supportive. They even offered helpful post-diet tips. They're big fans of South Beach. Don't know if I'll do it, but they were talking about how summer is the best time to do South Beach because there are tons of markets with fresh fruits and veggies. I usually eat frozen veggies and things like fruit cups. But after this diet I definitely think I'm going to start eating more fresh produce.

Speaking of eating fresh produce, I am almost done with the diet! I mentioned in my last post that I'll be starting the Ease Out on Thursday, which means I'll be putting the juicer to good use soon. We so excited!

Master Cleanse - Day 7

This morning I woke up with no energy. Absolutely none. Getting out of bed was difficult. Even stirring in my chair was hard. I think this happened because I didn't drink enough lemonade yesterday. Note to self: DRINK MORE LEMONADE. I wasn't very active yesterday but my caloric intake was definitely too low. So downed a half of a bottle of lemonade this morning and felt a little better shortly.

I can't wait to consume something other than lemonade. On Thursday I start the ease out. This is what it consists of:

Ease out day 1: orange juice (fresh orange juice & maple syrup)
Ease out day 2: fruit & veggie juice (60/40 veggie to fruit ratio preferred) - or broth
Ease out day 3: living foods, which means no processed foods, meat or dairy

I've already looked up some juice recipes and have a grocery list planned. I found a great website with carrot juice recipes, instructions, and more info: CarrotJuice.com So excited to make veggie/fruit juice!

Master Cleanse - Day 6

One thing I hate about this diet: you can't eat food. You can't have anything other than lemonade. I know that's the whole point, but I can't even have coffee! I can't go to a cafe and hang out because I'm not going to buy anything. I can't go to the new restaurant in town. I can't eat frozen yogurt with my boyfriend before we see a movie. I love food so much, and a lot of my life revolves around food or drink in some way. If this were weight watchers or something I could just make up the points somewhere else, but this isn't, and I can't.

So, ya know, other than being bored because I can't eat anything, diet's still going well. Still losing some weight. My weight loss has tapered a little bit. I might try the saltwater flush to kick things up a notch. Haven't decided yet. A friend of mine who just finished the cleanse said it was AWFUL the first time, but that the second time wasn't as bad. He said that he'd heard that it gets easier the farther into the cleanse you are because they're less to flush out and you don't spend as much time glued to your toilet. Like I said, I might try it, but haven't committed to the idea yet. I'll let you all know if I change my mind.

Master Cleanse - Day 5

Well friends, we are at the half way point. I haven't felt like giving up at any point during the diet but now I CAN'T give up. I'm at the half way point! I'm almost done! If I give up now that would be such a waste.

Let's talk about the herbal stimulants, aka laxatives. I won't get too detailed, but the easily grossed out should probably stop reading now. Every night I have to take an herbal stimulant. Every morning I am surprised that there is anything to stimulate. I mean, I haven't eaten in days. How the heck is there anything in there!? But I guess this is a cleanse and my body is finding things to clean out. Including my bowels. The herbal stimulants have been... odd.

Night 1 - This was the night before day 1, because that's when you start taking the stimulants. I didn't immediately go upon waking up. I thought that maybe I should up my dosage, but since it was only the first night I decided to give it another try.

Night 2 - I woke up, had some minor cramps, relieved myself, felt better and went to back to sleep. I was expecting cramps, so this was a good night.

Night 3 - I woke up, had cramps, was unable to relieve myself, went back to bed, the pain increased and I felt even worse, I finally got that certain grumble in my stomach and was able to relieve myself and go back to bed.

Night 4 & 5 - Just like night 2.

So, in general, the stimulants have been working out okay. They've just been kind of inconsistent. I could try switching to an herbal tea or a different brand but I've already got these so I'll just stick with it.

Master Cleanse - Day 4

There's something I forgot to post yesterday. My boyfriend bought me flowers! He said they were because I've been hungry and cranky at night so he bought these to make me happy and feel better. I told you all, being home at night is the worst time! The flowers are beautiful. :) I guess this makes up for him ordering pizza on Monday.


No other real news to report. Diet's going well. I'm still losing some weight. I haven't cheated. There's cayenne in my lemonade. Things have been going pretty smoothly!

I do feel like I have a lot more control over the urge to eat. I don't feel the need to eat nearly as much. Wondering if this will turn out to be a bad thing in the long run. Hope I don't end up forgetting to eat and skipping meals. I find that kind of unlikely, though. I love food and eating way too much.

Apparently I didn't have unregistered/anonymous commenting enabled but now I do so comment away!

Master Cleanse - Day 3

I added the cayenne back to my lemonade. I checked the website to see what the smallest recommended amount was, and that's 1/8 tsp per day. Over 6 bottles that's really not too bad. You can barely taste it, so I was able to deal with it all day.

Other than that, it was a pretty uneventful day. The hunger cravings are getting better. Being home at night is still the worst part. Did have a craving for a steak today. Tender, juicy, succulent steak. Thankfully, that quickly passed.

I won't be updating you all on my weight loss today. You'll have to read my final post to see what my total weight loss is! But let me assure you - I am losing weight every day and it's great! Really helps to keep me motivated.

Master Cleanse - Day 2

I hate watching people eat food. You want food so much more when you can't have it. Yesterday my boyfriend Brian got pizza for dinner. PIZZA!?!?! First of all, that's my second favorite food. Second, could he have gotten anything that smells or looks better? No. I don't think so.

Day 2 was a little better than day 1. Every day gets a little easier. :) Also, I kind of cheated and didn't put cayenne in my lemonade. Made it MUCH more enjoyable. I'm bad, I know. But at least I haven't eaten food real! I plan on adding some more in tomorrow, and trying to find an ideal balance of 'what I'm supposed to have' and taste.

This diet is off to a promising start. In fact, I've lost 1.6 lbs! Already! I weighted myself yesterday morning, and today (just to see if anything had changed) and I'd lost 1.6 lbs! Yay! I mean, that could be all I lose. We'll see. But it definitely encourages me to keep going.

UPDATE: I can't do math, I actually lost 2.6lbs! What's up, instant results?!

Have any questions/comments/words of encouragement? Leave a comment!

Master Cleanse - Day 1

Not gonna lie, I am hungry. I really want some food. Went to the grocery store with the boyfriend to get spring water and everything. looked. awesome. Hoping that chugging some lemonade will make me feel better.

Speaking of lemonade, the cayenne is a real kick in the pants. You drink the lemonade, then it's just HOT. You don't taste cayenne, you taste HOT. I was worried about not drinking coffee at work but the cayenne kept me up. No joke. I think you're allowed to kind of tailor it to your taste, but I think I'll just leave it the way it is. Maybe just a smidge less.

Honestly, day 1 hasn't been too difficult. I figured that being home after work would be the worst part - and it is. I have all kinds of wonderful food, and it's dinner time for my boyfriend, so of course I want to eat. In the morning I'm busy getting ready for work, so it's not a big deal. At work I'm so busy that sometimes I don't eat anyways, so that's not a big deal. But being home after work... definitely hard.

Master Cleanse

It's been almost a month since my last post. Seems like a good time for a new one, right?

Well, I've decided to do the Master Cleanse. I'm not going to go into all the details, but you basically drink 'lemonade' for 10 days as a form of cleanse. You then reintroduce solids over a 3 day period. For more info, visit the Master Cleanse website. Am I hoping to lose some weight? Heck yeah! Am I expecting to be life changingly skinny? No. I'm doing this to kick start a healthier lifestyle.

I'll be documenting my journey here. At the end I'll post any weight I've lost, self discoveries I've made (yeah right), etc.

I'm starting the cleanse tomorrow, so today I bought all of my materials: organic lemons, grade B organic maple syrup, organic cayenne pepper, spring water, and a juicer. I actually bought a Black & Decker 'juice extractor' which blends the heck out of the fruit (or veggie or whatever you're juicing) and strains the juice. I read some reviews of machine juicers and a lot of them said you get more juice with a hand juicer. So, I figured a blender/juicer would get me the most juice with the least effort. I made some concentrate tonight (lemon juice + maple syrup) and the juicer worked great. Also, the concentrate tastes pretty good. Since you don't put much cayenne pepper in a glass (1/10 tsp) I don't think a watered down version will taste bad at all.

Tonight I will actually take the first step of the cleanse by taking an herbal stimulant. Yes, that means exactly what you think it does. I have to do this every night. I will NOT be doing the salt water flush (read about it here). It's optional, and sounds absolutely terrible, so I'm skipping it.

Leave me a comment and wish me luck/chastise me for my stupidity in doing this!

Denny’s Baconalia

I don’t know how many of you have seen this commercial, but if you haven’t, watch it now:



When I first heard of this, I said: ‘Bacon sundae? What? Ew… maybe.”

I’ll admit it, I was intrigued. I figured it would probably taste bad, though, for two reasons.

• At the South Carolina State Fair 2 years ago I tried chocolate covered bacon. It was nasty. I think it was mainly because it wasn’t fresh, crispy bacon though. It was cold, rubbery bacon – which is nasty in and of itself. So, there was hope for the idea. Perhaps it just wasn’t executed very well.
• There seemed to be a maple syrup topping. Forget the bacon – if you put maple syrup on vanilla ice cream I probably wouldn’t like it.
  

In the end, my curiosity won. Despite my doubts, my bf and I went to Denny’s. We read the description. We got a sample. And guess what? IT WAS AMAZING! Sooo good! I totally recommend this to everyone who eats meat and dairy!

Here’s a picture of our sample below. I didn’t get a picture of the whole dessert that we ordered. I was too busy eating it.


Why is this seemingly nasty dessert good? Let me break it down for you.

• Sweet & salty: Denny’s is not the first major chain to traverse this path. In fact, this is not the first time I’ve mentioned it on my blog. See my post here. Lots of chains and individuals are experiencing the joy of sweet and salty, so that’s +10 for Gryffindor.
  
• The maple syrup is more of a maple flavored sundae topping. More akin to caramel or butterscotch syrup than pancake syrup.
  
• Unlike my experiences at the state fair the bacon was fresh and crispy which acted sort of like meaty sprinkles.

Again, I recommend this to everyone. Go forth, and eat bacon. Let thy life be changed forever.

BevNerd Tribute

Welp, I think that's gonna do it for my BevNerd tribute. :) I didn't review the double cola but it's been so long since I've had it I don't have much too say about it. My bad. Hope you all enjoyed it! If you've watched the BevNerd videos I've posted and enjoyed them be sure to "like" BevNerd on Facebook!

New posts coming soon, be on the look out.

BevNerd Tribute - Haribo Happy-Cola Gummies

These gummies were a little disappointing. I didn’t expect them to super taste like cola, because Jason didn’t think they tasted too much like cola, but I still WANTED them to taste like cola. Oh well. In general, these were good gummies. If you like gummies these are definitely worth a shot. If you’re looking to satisfy a cola craving then pass.

Check out Jason from BevNerd’s comments in the video below:

BevNerd Tribute - Yorkie Bar

On today's BevNerd tribute post I'll be reviewing the Yorkie Bar from the UK - it's not for girls. I don’t know why this bar is “only for girls,” but I bought one anyways. Take that, Nestle UK! To see Jason from BevNerd's review of this bar check out the video at the end of this post. For more info on the Yorkie bar and to see what it looks like out of the package visit the Wikipedia page.

This is a 100% milk chocolate bar. It’s sort of like a Hersey’s bar but the sections are much larger. Honestly, one of the sections is kind of a lot of chocolate to eat in one bite. I bit mine in half. But maybe that’s just because I’m a girl and I can’t handle it, or something. The whole bar is a substantial amount of chocolate. I started eating it because I had a candy craving and let me tell you, this definitely satisfied my craving. The bar was pretty good. It doesn’t taste like Hersey’s. It tastes a little like the “chocolate flavored” candy you get at Christmas and Easter. If you like milk chocolate, and want a serious amount of chocolate, I recommend this. Just don’t expect it to be the best chocolate you’ve ever had.

BevNerd Tribute - Zapp's

Hello junkfoodies and fellow BevNerdians! Welcome to the first review of my BevNerd tribute week. For more info on the tribute, visit this post.

The first review I'm going to do is of Zapp's Spicy Cajun Crawtators. Jason from BevNerd reviewed these on January 28th Episode 33. You can watch his review below, at the end of my post. I've been assured by my former-Louisiana-inhabiting boyfriend that Zapp's Spicy Cajun Crawtators are a Louisiana brand. This means 2 things. 1) The closer you are to Louisiana the cheaper they'll probably be and 2) they taste pretty authentic. I bought mine from World Market so I knew they were going to be a little pricey. They definitely don't break the bank or anything though.

These chips are kettle cooked, which I love, so they’re nice and crunchy and satisfying. When I opened my bag I noticed that mine were a different color from Jason’s. Mine were darker and way more seasoned. I tasted much more of the spices than he did. They taste almost like a barbeque chip with some zing (or zap, if you will). I don’t know how many of you have tried Tony Chachere’s seasoning but this chip tastes like it was lightly seasoned with Tony’s. If you haven’t tried Tony’s, this chip does have a cajun taste and some spice. If you’re partial to kettle cooked chips and/or cajun spices I definitely recommend these. They are really good!

For Jason’s review, check out this video:

BevNerd Tribute

Hey there junk-foodies! If you watched the video below you know that I am going to be doing a BevNerd tribute. I've decided to do this NEXT WEEK. I was going to start last monday, then today, buuut... I'm going to be lazy, and start next Monday.

I got an amazing Moon Pie hat in the mail (pictured to the right) last week. Thanks to Jason from BevNerd for that! I thought that this would be the perfect time to end the blog's unintentional hiatus. I didn’t mean for this to happen, I just got wrapped up in my new job (yay job!) I wanted to come back with a bang and what better way to do that than with a BevNerd tribute!

What exactly does this tribute mean? Well, a while back I made a post about BevNerd, a video podcast that I subscribe to on iTunes. Check out his website/Facebook/Twitter/YouTube/iTunes podcasts. Since I posted about him we've been in touch and are great e-buddies. :) I've managed to find some of the products he's reviewed, so during my tribute I'll be reviewing products that he's previously reviewed. Yay tribute!

Be on the lookout for my first review MONDAY. It'll be there, I promise.

Zuberfizz Key Lime Cream Soda

Please excuse my dirty kitchen counter and wall(?). I usually try to clean up before I take a picture but since this was a spur or the moment drink I didn't get a chance to clean. I went to World Market with Brian so he and a friend could get some beer so I, of course, picked up a few sodas. The first thing I noticed about this drink is that it had a sweet, lime smell – exactly like key lime pie. The last thing I noticed was its color. It was the last thing I noticed because the bottle is very dark. When I had almost finished it I started to wonder what color it was. I held it to the light and could see a distinct green color. I poured a little in a glass and, to my surprise, it was bright green. Way brighter than key lime pie. I’m not usually partial to cream soda, but this key lime twist really hit the spot for me. It was smooth, sweet and had a hint of lime. The name of the company is Zuberfizz and the tag line is "feel the fizz." I didn't feel too much fizz, but it tasted exactly like what you would expect it to, which is delicious. If you like key lime pie and/or cream soda I definitely recommend this one. 4.5/5 stars

Jackfruit Jelly Pearl Smoothie

Some call this “bubble tea,” and you can get it shaken or blended. The restaurant I went to, Pho Viet, blended it and called it a jelly pearl smoothie. Either way, I love these. The little jelly ‘pearls’ (the round balls at the bottom) don’t have much of a flavor but add texture to the drink. Brian hates them, mainly because of their texture. He did, however, like the drink itself which was jackfruit flavored. I have no idea what a jackfruit is, so I Goggled a picture of one. For those who don’t know, a jackfruit is an Asian fruit. I don’t know what fresh ones taste like but this drink sort of tasted like dragonfruit and banana, and was sort of a light yellow color. It was okay, but not my favorite bubble tea flavor ever. My friend Cory is absolutely in love with it. Different strokes for different folks, I guess. I give it 3/5 stars.

Chick-fil-A Spicy Chicken Biscuit

First off, I want to apologize for not having a picture to go with this post. I ate my chicken biscuit in the car on the way to work so I didn't have a chance to take a picture. The first thing I noticed about my biscuit actually had nothing to do with the biscuit. My cashier at Chick-fil-A was peppy (which is hard at 9am), cheerful, and very agreeable and the service was speedy. Kudos, new 5pts Chick-fil-A! Now, the first thing I noticed about my food was that the chicken had a bit of a kick. I felt like it had more than the regular patty. It's different from the Bojangles spices I'm used to, obviously, but it's not bad. The patty wasn't very crispy, but I feel like that's kind of typical of Chick-fil-A. The biscuit was buttery and flaky, but it kind of tasted like a Jimmy Dean sausage biscuit. I think that's just because the sandwich wasn't fresh. I didn't love my spicy chicken biscuit, but I'll probably give it another try. The only reason why I say probably is because I don't usually eat fast food for breakfast. If you like spicy chicken and chicken biscuits, I recommend that you give this a go. I give this 4/5 stars.

Pop Rocks

I love pop rocks. I was a little scared of them as a kid, because I thought they were going to hurt me, but quickly learned better. I was in Hot Topic doing some Christmas shopping and found a candy display that looked like it would be great for stocking stuffers. I saw pop rocks and thought about getting some. When I saw the “vintage” wrapper I knew I had to get them. Do you all like the retro package?

Emerald Cocoa Roast Almonds, Dark Chocolate Flavor

Maybe it’s just me, but there seems to be a growing trend in sweet & salty stuff. Take Starbucks' Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate for example. I’m not really a big fan of this drink. It's okay but I don’t really have the desire to drink it again. The idea just seems a little weird to me. But, once I think about it a little more, I guess salty & sweet isn't that weird. We eat nuts in sweets all the time. This particular snack has sweets in, er, on nuts. I thought that the dark chocolate was going to be dusted on the nuts. Not the case. The nuts are encrusted in dark chocolate. Imagine a fine grit sandpaper made from dark chocolate. But tasty sandpaper. I liked these nuts a lot. I’m a big dark chocolate fan, but I think that even if I wasn’t I still would have liked this. Since there’s not a lot of chocolate on the nut it’s not an overwhelming taste. It just enhances the nuttiness. In fact, I think that the dark chocolate compliments the nut more than milk chocolate would have. I suggested to family members that they try these nuts so I give them 5/5 stars.