The Peeps floodgates have opened! We have a ton of "new" Peep flavors hitting the shelves. Why did I put "new" in quotes? Well...most of them aren't really new.
This season, we've got...
Kroger gets Pancakes & Syrup (One of last year's Mystery Flavors, unmasked & re-released)
All Grocery Stores are getting Sour Cherry (Another Mystery Flavor, unmasked & re-released)
Cotton Candy Peeps(re-release, I saw them at Target, unsure if they're exclusive)
Lemon and Orange Sherbet Peeps (Very similar to previous orange & lemon Delights)
Walmart has the NEW trio of Mystery Peep Flavors - Actually New
Target has filled Neapolitan and Triple Chocolate Delights - Also New
In that sea of marshmallow chick-shaped sweets, there's a lot of old ideas being rehashed. In all honesty, I've always liked original Peeps (Especiaolly when they start to get a little stale), but a of of the fancier flavors they've released over the years just don't appeal to me. Especially the Delights line. That "fudge" dripped bottom is a waxy coating of lies. In what way is that fudge?
Even though I am no fan of the "fudge dipped" delights, I couldn't pass up a filled peep, especially one with a Neapolitan flavor profile. All the new flavors we have seen over the years are great, but the combination of vanilla, chocolate and strawberry is timeless. If it's done right...
So, let's see if these are a real Delight, or a fake-fudge-failure.
Visually, this is pretty cute, but it's not all that appealing for me. We have a pink background, a giant fudge puddle, and scattered swirls with emoji-style ice cream sundaes. It's kinda cute, but I kind of wish they had gone for more of a cute retro vibe, like an old fashioned ice cream parlor or something more classic. This is okay, but it's a bit too smooth and 3-D rendered for my liking.
Inside is a clear plastic tray with 3 pink chicks, if you look closely their beak/nose area has a light brown streak, which is an after effect of the filled extruding process. I think the streak and slight marbling is actually quite cute, but my boyfriend immediately said they looked like improperly cleaned shrimp.
The initial aroma is a sweet milky strawberry, similar to Nesquik powder, or a fast food strawberry milkshake. It's sweet and nostalgic in that strawberry-milk kind of way. So far, so good.
I took a bite, and I'm actually impressed. They did not skimp on the filling. Every bite, from it's little Peep-face to it's tail has chocolate in it, which is a refreshing change of pace for more filled novelty sweets (and pastries. I'm looking at YOU Dunkin'). The white fudge bottom, which is normally my least favorite part, actually adds a lot to the overall Peep. It has a sweet, very milky, flavoring that balances the tangy artificial strawberry flavored marshmallow, and even though I feel like the Hershey's syrup-flavored filling overpowers the vanilla and strawberry just a little too much, this is still quite successful. It's not the best Peep flavor I've ever had, but it's pretty darn good! Definitely makes my top 10. (And I heave eaten a LOT of PEEPS.)
Even though my boyfriend was no fan of their appearance, he took a bite and said this was the best Peep he had ever eaten.
Whether you're a Peep-hater, or a fan, I definitely think this is a flavor worth checking out. Plus, if you're still on that healthy New Year bandwagon (which I have fallen off of several times) just one Peep is 60 calories and it's really satisfying!
the filled ones are really quite good. i haven't tried neapolitan yet but i'll be sure to give it a try the day after easter ;)
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