Gaga Rainbow Sherbet

As a child, I never was all that crazy for ice cream. I mean, sure I loved getting it at ice cream stands during the summer, and I enjoyed the over the top flavors of Ben and Jerry's (what kid didn't?!), but it never held a special place in my heart. Sherbet,  however, did. My cousins and I shared some nearly every weekend, usually watching some of those (now) nostalgic TV shows of the 1990's, like Flipper.

So, yes, sherbet is definitely a fond memory of mine. But the problem is just that, it's mostly just a memory now. I may not have minded the flavors of sherbet when I was a kid, but now I tend to prefer high quality foods, and sherbet brands don't exactly focus on such matters. So at a recent trip to Whole Foods, I was pleased to notice Gaga. I was a little confused, since it referred to itself as "Sherbetter," and seemed to imply it was some sort of cross between Sherbet and Ice Cream. But, since it was being sold at Whole Foods, I chose to consider that a good sign (it's not like Whole Foods would be selling the mass produced sherbet items from the local grocery store, which tend to taste like chemical enhancements and artificial flavors that resemble anything but fruit).

There was a few flavor options, but I opted for the Rainbow (Orange, Raspberry and Lemon). It was priced at $4.99, which is pretty standard for pint sized frozen treats at Whole Foods (on the lower end, actually). As soon as I opened the pint, I noticed the pale (natural) looking colors swirled together, which I found reassuring. The taste was obviously the more refined version of sherbet  and you could really taste the citrus zests in the citrus flavors, as well as the fresh raspberry puree.

But sadly, it definitely didn't remind me of sherbet. It was definitely milkier than sorbet, but the consistency was more akin to frozen sorbet than it was anything else. It definitely was not smooth and creamy like sherbet, or ice cream for that matter. I wouldn't buy this item again, although the taste was pleasant, I'd prefer fresh sorbet personally. But this would be worth a try for those that want some sort of healthified sherbet replacement in their diet, or for kids.

Jeni's Pink Grapefruit Frozen Yogurt

I've recently gotten into the habit of always checking the Whole Foods freezers for Jeni's Ice Cream, before heading towards the checkout line. There's always at least one new flavor there, that I simply *MUST* try.

During my latest Whole Foods trip, this turned out to be  one of their newest flavors (at least new to me, it may be a seasonal item that returns yearly), Pink Frozen Yogurt.

One of my favorite sorbetto flavors is pink grapefruit, and whenever my favorite gelato shops offers it, I always have to have a scoop. But I've never really gave much thought to grapefruit anything beyond sorbetto, although I have momentarily pondered what a pink grapefruit gelato would be like. However, I'd surely never even pondered the idea of a grapefruit frozen yogurt.

I was instantly intrigued, and confused as to how it would work out. I was a bit worried that the tartness of a high quality frozen yogurt may be problematic with the sour of the grapefruit, but I was quite pleased with how the flavors melded together. The pink grapefruit flavor was authentically tart, which actually worked perfectly to offset the creaminess and slight richness of the frozen yogurt. It's definitely not the sort of flavor that citrus haters would enjoy, but it's definitely the sort of flavor that those like myself would go crazy for. I definitely will be buying this again, although next time I'd prefer to eat it during warmer months.

Santa Cruz Organic Lemonade

I love lemonade, but am always disappointed by the varieties that come out of a bottle at the grocery store. While shopping at Whole Foods, I usually buy one of their fresh lemonades in the refrigerated section, but during my recent shopping trip they were out.

While heading towards the checkout, I glanced upon a large display of the Santa Cruz lemonades, which were on sale for $2 each (which seemed like an amazing deal, especially considering the large size and the fact that it's organic).

I was pleasantly surprised when I got around to sampling the lemonade. I tend to love lemon drinks where the entire lemon is used, and this lemonade had a very similar taste. It doesn't taste like just the lemon juice itself, but you can also taste the lemon zest and natural oils, and the settling at the bottom was oddly comforting and reassuring to me. The lemonade had a great flavor, and is definitely the best lemonade I've ever had that came out of a bottle. I will definitely be buying this again (as well as trying their other flavors) and will stock up on many bottles if I see it on sale again for such a great price.

Bolthouse Farms - Thousand Island Yogurt Dressing

I first fell in love with Bolthouse Farms about 5 years ago, when I discovered their line of high quality juice blends. My love only continued to grow throughout the years, as I fell in love with their newer juice selections. And then finally, my love hit its peak, when I discovered their new yogurt dressings. I love creamy dressings, but can rarely find any that I like. Standard shelf stable ones tend to have a strong aftertaste to me, and I hate the ones laden with mayonnaise or corn syrup, nevermind the bizarre chemical enhancements so frequently used.

I first sampled Bolthouse Farms Thousand Island dressing about three years ago, and quickly became obsessed. Not only did I love the dressing as it was (low in fat and calories), I didn't just consider it a healthy substitute, I considered it my ideal substitute. There wasn't a single Thousand Island dressing that I preferred, which one might find strange considering the obvious differences in a high fat dressing and a yogurt based dressing.

Eventually my local grocery stores began to run out of the Bolthouse Farms dressing regularly, and I hadn't seen them in nearly a year. So I was thrilled to see them being offered at my local Whole Foods. So thrilled, that I grabbed a few bottles to have on hand (knowing full well that a refrigerated dressing would only last a few months compared to a few years). What can I say? The panic of not seeing it for another year convinced me that I could find extra uses for it.

Sadly, something tragic happened. The Thousand Island dressing was not the same. It seems that Thousand Island dressing with only 70 calories per serving (compared to 200+) was not enough for Bolthouse Farms, and they decided to continue to "healthify" their yogurt dressing line to bring the calories down more. The taste was nothing like I remembered. A light, tangy version of Thousand Island, is now replaced with a thick gloppy dressing with a flavor that is hard (if not impossible) to love. Instead of the classic Thousand Island flavor I remember so well, the new dressing tastes like....Well, tomato soup. Cold, gelatinous, tomato soup.

How Bolthouse Farms manages to believe that Tomato Soup yogurt dressing will ever be able to replace their former, glorious Thousand Island dressing, is beyond me. And quite frankly, the fact that anyone thinks this replacement is acceptable for the sake of a lousy 30 calories per serving (the new version is 35 calories per serving) is utter rubbish. AVOID!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Vosges Haut Chocolate - Tarte Caramel

During my most recent trip to Whole Foods, my father kindly pointed out a small box of what he called "gourmet caramels." As everyone in my life knows, I'm a (bit more than a) tad obsessed with all things blood orange. In all honesty, I didn't even look at the package before throwing them into my cart (after all, my father already said those two magical words....Blood orange).

The small box of caramels is actually made by the well known Vosges Haut Chocolate brand, which is known for its innovative chocolate creations. The caramels are Blood Orange with Campari, and are enrobed in dark chocolate, then sprinkled with Hibiscus powder. I happen to love Hibiscus as well, and loved the fruity and floral combination of the blood orange and hibiscus, which was enhanced by the bitter dark chocolate contrast. The blood orange caramel was extremely high quality, as was the dark chocolate.

I was really pleased with the first caramel I ate, but lost interest after the second one, and gave them to someone else to finish off a few days later. Don't get me wrong, they were definitely interesting and tasty, but once I realized that the small box of four cost about $10, I couldn't get over the guilt I felt for eating them. I happily would have bought one to try at a Vosges store, but felt like they should have been improved a bit (or included more) for that price.

Jeni's Ice Cream - Orchid Vanilla Macaroon Sandwich

I've never really been a fan of ice cream sandwiches. But this is most likely due to an utter lack of quality ice cream sandwich products (at least around here). Thankfully, it seems that Jeni's Ice Cream has started to encourage this little niche to start expanding. At a recent trip to Whole Foods I noticed the Jeni's Ice Cream Macaroon Sandwiches, of which I've only ever heard good things.

The sandwich consists of two macaroons, which are actually more akin to French almond macarons (not the coconut macaroons you were most likely thinking of). The two macaroons are perfectly made, but since they're filled with a disc of ice cream (the best vanilla bean ice cream I've ever had, mind you), they literally melt in your mouth as you bite into them. Very similar to classic macarons, but no dry texture because of the ice cream. It also has a small amount of Blackcurrant Jam in the center, which I thought added a lovely, fruity taste. The blackcurrant jam only complemented the other flavors, and didn't overpower the vanilla flavor, as blackcurrant so often does.

This was (obviously) by far the best "ice cream sandwich" I've ever eaten. And that's probably why it cost around $7 (that and the fact that it has to be brought to the local stores all the way from Ohio). Although this is about twice as much as one might pay for two boxes of standard, grocery store ice cream sandwiches, I still think it's justified as a once in awhile treat. After all, it's around the same I would pay for two scoops of gelato at the local gelato shop, and the ice cream sandwich is quite large (could easily be halved for two servings). I will definitely be buying this again, and I can't wait to sample some of the other flavors from Jeni's macaroon sandwich line.

Red Jacket Orchard - Blackcurrant Apple Juice

After my first taste test of a Red Jacket Orchard juice (Joe's Summer Blend, which was delicious), I decided to try another juice product from the orchard at my latest shopping trip to Whole Foods. While browsing through the assortment, I quickly noticed a blackcurrant apple juice. I love blackcurrant, but it's hard to find blackcurrant anything in the United States, and I've always had a weakness for blackcurrant juice (Especially Ribena), so I was thrilled to see it.

I didn't even make it to the car before opening the bottle, and was immediately pleased with the selection I made. The blackcurrant flavor is far from weak in the drink, but really blends nicely with the apple juice to help cut down on the tartness, while preventing the drink from being too sweet (which I find to be a personal concern with many apple juice drinks). I think this is a great drink for anyone that likes blackcurrants, but also a great way to introduce people to blackcurrant, since the flavor doesn't come on too strong in this drink. I will definitely be buying this again.

Jeni's Ice Cream - Roasted Strawberry Buttermilk

I first discovered Jeni's Ice Cream about three years ago, a few months after reading a review of their ice cream shop online. Shortly after reading the review, I heard a few other references to Jeni's, and I decided to give in and order some of their ice creams online to try (Jeni's is located in Ohio, and I am regretfully located nowhere near there).

I've always loved ice cream, but standard flavors just don't do it for me anymore, and it's hard to find more unique offerings in the area that I live in. So, after falling in love with Jeni's unique twists on more basic flavors, I began to regularly place an order through their website once every year.

But, considering how often Jeni's offers seasonal and limited edition selections, once a year just did not seem to be enough. And as fantastic as their ice cream is, paying $12 to $14 for a pint adds up, especially when you have to buy several at once for delivery, and need to add shipping and handling charges on top of that.

So when I discovered that Whole Foods now carries some of Jeni's ice creams, I was beyond thrilled. Not only could I buy their standard flavors when a craving hit, I could buy their seasonal selections when I found something interesting, without having to buy several other pints just to have it delivered.

On a recent trip to Whole Foods, I noticed Jeni's new Roasted Strawberry Buttermilk flavor. It was clearly Jeni's way of adding a unique twist to the classic Strawberry ice cream, and I knew I had to try it. And boy was I glad that I did. Not only does the buttermilk add a lovely tang to the taste, it also adds a unique creaminess. And as for the strawberries, I now fully understand why people claim that roasting strawberries helps to bring out their flavor. I've never had strawberry ice cream with such an honest and intense strawberry flavor, which complements the buttermilk perfectly. I definitely suggest that anyone that loves strawberry ice cream gives this Jeni's flavor a try. (I also suggest that brownie lovers add a scoop to their next fresh from the oven brownie. You can thank me later!)