Cheese Fry Madness - Herr's Cheese Fry Chips

Cheese Fry Chips - Ollie's 

I love French fries, and one of the few ways they can be improved upon is by adding cheap, liquid orange-colored, cheese. Fun fact, cheese fries are the only food that turn my normally well behaved dog, Jack-Jack, into a horrible trash goblin. He is great, and never gets on the table or steals food, but an aluminum pan of cheese fries from our local pizza shop was just a step too far. It was a classic pet owner moment where you yell and run towards them, and they furiously start eating faster before you can stop them. Inhaling cheese fries, barely even chewing, he's definitely my dog-son.

 

So when I saw these at Ollie's I immediately tossed them into my cart. Impulse buying at it's best, but, when you think about it, this is probably really stupid, right? 

Blazin' Hot Cheez Balls

New Blazin' Hot Planters Cheez Balls - Gift

Long time no see...or should I say "type?"

Little life update, I'm sick and awaiting PCR results. My brain is kicking me, making me feel like I shouldn't be wasting all this valuable time at home. I should be writing blog posts, making art, or doing chores. It's like the infamous episode of the Twilight Zone, " there's time now...," but the twist is, I have absolutely no energy. 

I wake up, feed all five pets, let the dogs out, eat something, answer a few work emails,  and then afterwards I feel so tired that I go right back to bed. Rinse and repeat 3-4 times a day, and that's how the last 5 days have been. Sometimes my eyes burn so badly that I can't even watch a movie while I rest. (I did manage to watch Voyagers on HBO the other day, it's basically Lord of the Flies in space, I do not recommend it.)

Today, day 5 of my isolation, to combat my feelings of useless-ness, I actually made myself a cup of coffee (with leftover eggnog, since my Christmas gathering was canceled I have so much eggnog left) in an attempt to boost my energy levels enough to do something productive. So here we are with today's review! 

I got these as part of a gift a while back and never got around to trying them. If you recall, I found the normal Cheez Balls really disappointing, so I was in no rush to try these. Oh how wrong I was...

Black Cookie - Egg and Cheese Flavored Cookies?

Black Cookies - Hung Vuong Supermarket

We have metallic gold against the image of a black-brick wall, a picture of what looks like a black-colored macaron, BUT it is supposedly egg and cheese flavored. How could I NOT buy this?! 

I'm a sucker for weird flavors and a pretty package, but I've been down this road before. Will this actually deliver? We shall see. 

Garlic Bread, Without The Bread? - Parmesan Garlic Kettle Chips

NEW Kettle Brand Parmesan Garlic Chips - Walmart

If you're eating something Italian, and it's delicious, it's usually thanks to garlic and parmesan. This dynamic flavor duo is responsible for some of the most delicious things in the world, pasta, pizza, and best of all, garlic bread.  

So, when Cheesy Garlic Bread won Lay's Do Us a Flavor contest when it was first introduced, I wasn't surprised. What did surprise me, however, is how quickly that new "permanent" flavor of chips would disappear. A year or two and they were no where to be found. Then, a few years later, a dupe would start rotating as a special buy item at Aldi, and then at Lidl, and now here? Well these aren't officially marketing themselves as "garlic bread," so that might not be a fair assessment, but...isn't it close enough?   

Will these taste like kettle-style garlic bread? 

Planter's Cheez Balls - Typing "Balls" This Many Times Made Me Uncomfortable

 

 Planter's Original Cheez Balls - CVS

Historically I'm very picky when it comes to cheese-based snacks. I like crunchy-style Cheetos, but only the Cheeto's brand version. (Love you Aldi, but your "Cheetos" are sad.) I don't like Cheese Curls, or Cheddar Fries, or Nacho Cheese Doritos. (I'm a Cool-Ranch girl through-and-through with a side of Spicy Sweet Chili.) So I only really like Crunchy Cheetos and White Cheddar Smartfood Popcorn. And yet, I just couldn't ignore this tiny can of retro Cheez Balls at CVS. 

I remember eating cheese balls out of a similar container as a little kid, like single-digit-age-young, and I think it was this brand? I'm not entirely sure because it was so long ago, but something about the retro feel and the pseudo-nostalgia just won me over. (It didn't hurt they they were tiny, cute, and cheap either.) Into my cart they went!

WTF?! I Love it! - Aldi Sunday Special

Image © Aldi

This is one of the reasons why I love Aldi so much. Because they're batsh*t insane. 

They're releasing a line of 80's themed cheeses. Why? I have no idea, but I WILL be buying them ALL if they show up in my stores.  

According to their circular we have: 

• Pour Some GOUDAOn Me

• Total Eclipse of the HAVARTI

• Girls Just Wanna Have FONTINA

• Billie GOAT is My Lover

• Sweet CHEDDAR of Mine

• Wake Me Up Before You GOAT GOAT 

I just...I love this so much. It makes no sense and I am 100% here for it. Will you guys be picking these up? My NJ circular has these starting from Feb 3rd (today) to Feb 9th. 

  © Maria Smith http://poison-and-antidote.net

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Grilled Cheese & Tomato Soup Cheese Curls

Herr's Grilled Cheese & Tomato Soup Curls - Ollie's Bargain Outlet $1.89

Just like mom used to make. Well, not my mom, but maybe yours? We weren't a big tomato soup family, but that's something we'll get into later. 

Today's post is another foray into stuff that's supposed to taste like other stuff, brought to you by Herr's and Ollie's Bargain Outlet. Good Stuff Cheap! (#notsponsored) 

Of all the things I picked up at Ollie's (which included blue cotton candy flavored corn puffs), this was the product I was most skeptical of. I bought it anyway, because it was cheap, and there was an odd satisfaction in knowing I got the whole full set of wacky Herr's products. Well, all the ones sold at Ollie's anyway. They're are more flavors available than what you've seen on the blog, but those aren't on sale for a $1.89, so they'll have to wait.

As I put the Grilled Cheese bag into my cart, I cringed. It isn't the grilled cheese aspect of this flavor that's making me hesitant, it's the tomato soup part.

Deep Dish Pizza Cheese Curls - Ollie's Bargain Outlet $1.89

 Deep Dish Pizza Cheese Curls - Ollie's Bargain Outlet $1.89

Ollie's had a trio of novelty Herr's products in stock and the prices were so low I couldn't resist buying them all! Even the flavors I was skeptical of! There were these Deep Dish Pizza curls, giant bags of Jalapeno Popper curls, and (the one I was most skeptical of) Grilled Cheese & Tomato Soup curls. My pantry is overflowing with neon orange puffs, so lets see if these are worth hanging on to.

TGI Fridays Mac & Cheese Party Bites

TGI Fridays Mac & Cheese Party Bites - Ollie's Bargain Outlet - .99 cents 

Do you guys have an Ollie's in your area? If so, you really have to check it out!

Ollie's Bargain Outlet is a big closeout store filled with wacky illustrations of it's mascot and tons of, "Good Stuff Cheap!" Which is the store's slogan that plays over-and-over on it's loud speakers and appears on almost all signage. The "Good" part may be subjective, but trust me, it IS cheap and I'm all about it! 

Along with awesome beach towels, rugs, and curtains, Ollies scoops up and sells all the limited edition and seasonal food stuff that's no longer cool enough to take up space on grocery shelves. Tiny Toast? They've got it. Wacky seasonal cereal? Yup! All those limited edition Pop-Tarts? You bet'cha! 

Seasonal sweets, snacks, and baking supplies all end up at Ollie's for 50%+ less than they once were in big-name shops. It's pretty awesome. I've gotten boxes of Maple Bacon Pop-Tarts for .70 cents each, seasonal candy, and bags of limited edition chips and cheese curls for less than a dollar each! I joked on Instagram that it's where limited edition food goes to die, but it's really a bargain foodie's dream! 

I grabbed a bunch of stuff to review on the blog, some good, some bad, some..intriguing, but all affordable. Where will these TGIFridays snacks fall on the spectrum?

Extra Toasty Cheez It (Guest Review) - Target 2.99 cents

Extra Toasty Cheez It - Target 2.99 cents

My sister is an experienced extra-toasty-Cheez-It-hunter, and since I've been so busy with house related stuff, I asked her to help me out by writing this guest review. Will these toasty little squares meet her extra-toasty expectations?

I see that on this box of Cheez-Its, it's noted that this extra toasty variety is their #1 requested flavor. I am unsurprised. While I have never submitted any formal flavor requests, I've spent many years sifting through bags inside of boxes, all in the hopes of encountering the rare and elusive toastiest of Cheez-Its. I had even considered toasting them in a toaster oven myself. Perhaps those days are over. Maria – Santa Maria (gratia plena) of Sometimes Foodie – has blessed me with this box of special, extra toasty Cheez-Its.

I had heard about these special Cheez-Its, and I've been wanting to try them for a while. It's well known in my family that I covet the extra dark Cheez-Its, so Maria hooked me up knowing my expectations were high. Right before she opened the package to take photos, she asked me how I'd feel if I was disappointed by a product that had appealed to me so strongly. Nonsense! How could I be?

Dragon Ball Heroes Cheesy Snacks - Asian Food Market

Dragon Ball Heroes Cheesy Snacks - Asian Food Market

Last time on food-blogger-Z: Sometimes Foodie was overcome by the earthly flu-virus. Weak, and incapacitated, she retreated to her lair and lay dormant in a healing tank to regain her strength while the other food blogging warriors picked up the slack. Today, she reemerges from the rejuvenation chamber to reclaim her foodie-throne!

I hope you read that in the rough and scratchy voice of the English-dubbed DBZ narrator. If not, click the link to hear a little piece of my childhood. Also, being trapped in my bedroom for nearly a week has made me even more socially awkward, so bear with me.

When I was a little girl I would wake up at, what seemed like, the crack of dawn on Saturday mornings to watch Dragon Ball Z on some basic cable channel. I honestly can't remember which one, but I think they also had the rights to Sailor Moon at the time. I'd crawl out of bed, wake up my sister, and we'd go downstairs to gaze at the TV screen and sing the Americanized theme song which had, like, six words in it. "Dragon, Dragon, Rock the Dragon, Dragon Ball Z!"

DBZ and Sailormoon will always have a very special place in my anime-loving-trash heart, so when I saw these snacks at the Asian Food Market, it was an insta-buy.

Papa John's Wisconsin Cheese Stuffed Cheesesticks (Quickie Review)

Wisconsin Cheese Stuffed Cheesesticks - Papa John's $6.00

I have (somewhat) rejoined the land of the living! Time to celebrate with some cheesy bread sticks and pizza. (Because I had a 50% off coupon code. #frugalfoodie)

My family's go-to bread-stick option is the finger-like garlic Parmesan sticks. When I went to place my order I saw an ad on the main page for these "new" cheesysticks that were released at the very end of December, and the photos looked really appealing. I decided to throw caution to the wind and give these a try. (Against my family's wishes, so I ended up ordering both bread sticks along with a large pizza. So many carbs!) 

Transylvanian Cheeses from Aldi - (Novemberween)

Transylvanian Cheeses from Aldi - Novemberween 

And now for something completely different... Transylvanian cheese! 

This Monday was HALLOWEEN, and I celebrated with 8 NEW REVIEWS all posted in ONE DAY! (A new Sometimes Foodie record!)

I originally planned on doing one more that night...but the lack of sleep and massive sugar intake caught up to me. An unplanned nap-attack ended my night prematurely (how lame), but that won't stop me from finishing what I started! 

Now, I would like, if I may, to take you on a strange journey.

What I Had for Dinner Tonight

#meatlessmonday dinner, zucchini Parmesan sandwiches! ▪ ▪ ▪ #sometimesfoodie #vegetarian #veggie #vegetables #foodie #whatscooking #food #foodporn #dinner #parm

A photo posted by Sometimes Foodie (@sometimesfoodie) on Aug 1, 2016 at 4:46pm PDT

One of my aunts gave me a HUGE zucchini from her garden last week, and I finally used up the last of it to make giant Panko and Parmesan-crusted zucchini coins. Then I used those coins, and some brioche buns from Aldi, to make zucchini-Parm sandwiches.

Next time I'll marinate the zucchini overnight in some herb infused olive oil or something to give it a bit more flavor, but overall, this was pretty darn good and a nice change from my usual #meatlessmonday salad dinners.

Caribbean Jerk Macaroni and Cheese- Aldi (TBT post)

Caribbean Jerk Macaroni and Cheese- Aldi

Want to know how I've been this week? Here's a little taste, "AHHHHHHHHHHH." Yup, that pretty much sums it up. It's been insane! I always start the week off by eating healthy and making good food choices, like my meatless Mondays that I post on Instagram, but by Thursday I'm exhausted and this week has been even crazier than usual. I'm tired, barely sane, and I'm craving junk food. I was rummaging through my pantry for something quick and easy for dinner and I came across this box of jerked macaroni and cheese from...I don't even remember when. A few months ago?  (I hope.) I bought it at Aldi when they were promoting spicy foods and never got around to trying it, so let's see if this meal was worth the wait. 

Clancy's Cheesy Garlic Bread Potato Chips - Aldi

Clancy's Cheesy Garlic Bread Potato Chips - Aldi 

Cheesy Garlic Bread chips? Awesome, but you're a little late to the party, Aldi. Lay's debuted this flavor in their first Do Us A Flavor contest back in 2013, which it won, and it's been a permanent flavor ever since. (Which killed the chance for my beloved Sriracha chips ever returning.) I wasn't a huge fan of the Lay's version, but I thought I would still check this out. Is it a simple rebranding under a no-frills label? Or is this an entirely different product? Let's find out!

Spinach and Feta Thin Crust Pizza - Aldi: Cherry Hill, NJ

Spinach and Feta Thin Crust Pizza - Aldi: Cherry Hill, NJ

A giant pizza for $5.99? Yes please!

I love buying these Take & Bake pizzas from Aldi. They're affordable, delicious, and you have a decent array of flavors to choose from. For the last year or so, Aldi started releasing Special Buy versions of these pizzas with fancier flavors, but they're only available for a limited time and the pricing varies due to the cost of ingredients.

Not every special buy pizza is a winner, the last two were the Philly Cheesesteak and Chicken BBQ, which were both very disappointing, but this one...I've bought three times in a month.

Cheddar Sweet Corn Ice Cream?

Oh dear... I kind of want to try it, but it's a big tub and i hate wasting food. Has anyone had this before? #Sometimesfoodie #cheese #icecream #corn #asianfoodmarket

A photo posted by M. Smith (@poison_and_antidote) on Apr 10, 2015 at 4:50pm PDT

Elmer's Bar-B-Que CheeWees - (Gift) New Orleans, LA

Elmer's Bar-B-Que CheeWees - (Gift) New Orleans, LA

A few months ago my boyfriend went down to Louisiana, and when he returned, he had a bag full of goodies for me to review. I already made a post about the Beignet mix, but the rest of his foodie gifts got lost in my monstrous food stash. Now that I'm preparing for the pumpkin-pocalypse of 2014, I'm working my way through the foodie back-up, and now we'll finally get to see what these little cheese puffs taste like!

Doritos Loaded- 7-Eleven: Cherry Hill, NJ

Doritos Loaded- 7-Eleven: Cherry Hill, NJ

Unlike my normal reviews this one was photographed on the go. Say hello to the interior of my Toyota.

When this item was making it's rounds on all of the foodie blogs I was admittedly horrified, but still oddly curious. I mean they are fried triangles of processed cheese covered in breadcrumbs made from nacho flavored Doritos, none of that is in any way actual food, but when we stopped to get gas on our way home from work my boyfriend and I were staring at the advertisement for these cheesy abominations and we decided to give them a try.