Zesty Tomato Fit & Active Cracker Crisps - Aldi: Cherry Hill, NJ

Zesty Tomato Fit & Active Cracker Crisps - Aldi: Cherry Hill, NJ

Okay, I have been playing with Adobe Premiere all day trying to edit more food related Youtube videos, but I've been having a few audio-related hiccups. Hopefully I'll get that straightened out, in the meantime, I have another snack from Aldi to review.

Every January stores advertize their healthier products in order to make a quick buck off of those of us who make health and fitness related New Year's resolutions. Aldi's no different. Although their Fit & Active line is available year-round, it's rather limited in it's offerings and it's variety, but in January there are always tons of new snacking products added in. The items aren't on the shelves very long, but I managed to snag a few of the savory treats to try.

First up, these Zesty Tomato Cracker Crisps.

4 Flavors of Fit & Active Fruit Bars - Aldi

4 Flavors of Fit & Active Fruit Bars - Aldi (Clearance .99 cents each)

I love food. I love cooking food, finding new foods, photographing food, eating food. Food makes me irrationally happy, and it's why I started a food blog, but every day I scroll through my Instagram feed and I see tons of people eating meal replacement bars, protein puddings, pro-gurts (protein yogurt), and other things that just look like soylent-protein-power-monstrosities. If it makes other people happy I'm all for it. I'm not knocking their lifestyle (especially since they seem far healthier and more active than I am) but eating that stuff would be torture for me. It takes all the fun and texture out of food!

Along with my lifelong love of food, I'm also a frugal shopper. I love a good deal, so when I saw that these Fit & Active bars were on sale at Aldi for only .99 cents a box, I thought this could be my version of a meal replacement bar. I typically don't eat breakfast, and I don't eat lunch until 1-2PM, so eating one of these for breakfast is probably a good idea, right? Then again, will a "healthy" fruit bar that only cost me .20 cents each taste good?

Fit & Active Apple Turnover Yogurt - Aldi : Moorestown, NJ

Fit & Active Apple Turnover Yogurt - Aldi : Moorestown,  NJ 

Aldi released a few dessert themed Fit and Active yogurt flavors for Summer 2013. I reviewed the Boston cream pie version a little over a week ago, and while it was yummy, it definitely did not taste anything like it’s namesake. I am hoping that the apple turnover is more accurate.

I discussed the design of this semi-no-frills brand in my last review.

"The Fit & Active product line is kind of a no-frills brand, meaning the focus is on the product and keeping costs low, but they actually do seem to spend a decent amount of time and money of the brand identity and design. The color scheme for these products is a very consistent green and burnt sienna color, and every product has a nice image related to the flavor. Is this a design I would gasp over? No, but it gets the job done.”

Fit & Active Boston Cream Pie Yogurt - Aldi : Moorestown, NJ

Fit & Active Boston Cream Pie Yogurt - Aldi : Moorestown,  NJ 

I love Aldi. I can get all my basic groceries, quirky foreign food items, and even fancy kitchen appliances. It’s awesome!

During my last grocery trip I saw that they had a few new dessert flavored yogurts, so I grabbed one of each flavor to try. (If you’ve been following me for a while you might remember these pumpkin spiced yogurts from my month of pumpkin items.)

The Fit & Active product line is kind of a no-frills brand, meaning the focus is on the product and keeping costs low, but they actually do seem to spend a decent amount of time and money of the brand identity and design. The color scheme for these products is a very consistent green and burnt sienna color, and every product has a nice image related to the flavor. Is this a design I would gasp over? No, but it gets the job done.

After peeling back the foil I was a little surprised that the yogurt was an off-white, vanilla, color. I always associate chocolate with a Boston cream pie, because of the topping, but there is no hint of chocolate at all. (Or cake.)

Quickie Review: Red Velvet Cake Yogurt - Aldi : Moorestown, NJ

Red Velvet Cake Yogurt - Aldi : Moorestown, NJ

It's no secret that I love shopping at Aldi, and if you've been reading my posts for a while, this yogurt cup should look pretty familiar.

I picked up this flavor, which I had never seen before, during my last grocery run, and it was separate from all of the other yogurts, so I'm not sure if this is a permanent addition, a special buy, or a seasonal item. That's the problem with Aldi. Products always come and go never to be seen again. (I call these elusive items "unicorns.")

Enough babbling, let's get to the yogurt review.

Fit & Active Milk Chocolate Weight Loss Shake - Aldi

Fit & Active Milk Chocolate Weight Loss Shake - Aldi

Over a year ago I reviewed these shakes, and I really liked them. Why am I posting these again? Because the packaging has completely changed!
I usually drink these shakes instead of having breakfast because eating early in the morning tends to make me really nauseous, and these add a bit more protein to my diet. I can’t really speak to their weight loss effects, but I can vouch that they are filling and taste great.

The previous packaging was a sturdy metal can with a soda-tab top. While I did feel like the can slightly changed the flavor, I really liked the easy access and portability.

Rice Cakes: Food or Packing Material? - Two Seasonal Lidl Flavors

Did anyone else go through a rice cake phase in the late 90's to early 2000's? I remember eating chocolate flavored ones with mini chocolate chips all the time. I also remember eating them with little pods of apple cinnamon flavored peanut butter. After searching online for ages, I found it! It was Jif Smooth Sensations in Apple Cinnamon. Specifically the sample versions seen in this photo! My mom got a bunch of free samples but due to peanut allergies, she couldn't give them away to kids, so we were drowning in these things at home. (According to the 1999 commercial, I guess it was a fully realized product in jars?) 

Were rice cakes a universally popular snack in the late 90's? Or was this a personal quirk?

Anyway, Lidl released some seasonal rice cakes in their fall line up and I thought, why not?

Best of 2013

Before we say goodbye to 2013 I thought I should pick out some of my favorite foodie items from the last 12 months.

What makes these items the best? These were products that not only got a good review, but I repurchased them. I'm no fancy food blogger, I don't get this stuff for free, so if I go and re-buy a product that means I really liked it.

So let's get started. I'm going to try and pick one item for each month, so let's kick things off with January 2013!

  JANUARY 2013

Ling Ling Potstickers

I know that you can buy this brand at a lot of normal grocery stores, but I get it from a whole sale club (BJ's), so this bag is freaking HUGE and I still go through them fairly quickly. I have bought these not once, not twice, but 3 times since I originally reviewed them! These little frozen potstickers are super simple to cook up and they are well priced, so this is a great appetizer to serve at a party. I highly recommend these potstickers, and I have a 4th bag unopened in my freezer at this very moment.

Carrot Cake Cookies - Aldi: Marlton, NJ

Carrot Cake Cookies - Aldi: Marlton, NJ

Happy Easter to those of you who celebrate. It seems like carrot cake is becoming a popular flavor for Easter cookies and sweets, and while I like the trend, a lot of the items have been way too sweet for my personal preferences. I like the idea behind these cookies, but that layer of white chooclate has me a bit worried.

The Aldi Pumpkin-pocalypse is Upon Us!

Photo © Aldi, click this to see the full circular

Last year Aldi released a TON of pumpkin items, here is a little sampler of the items from their 9/28 circular.

Here is a list of the new items: 

• Pumpkin Spice Cake Roll
• Pumpkin Quick Bread
• Pumpkin Pie Bars
• Pumpkin Seeds
• Pumpkin Spice Creme Cake
• Pumpkin Spice Cookie Mix
• Pumpkin Praline Ice Cream
• Pumpkin Cream Cheese Cookie Dough

And here are links to the items I've already reviewed:

• Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream
• Pumpkin Pancake Mix
• Pumpkin Spice Coffee and Dry Coffee Creamer
• Pumpkin Spiced Pizzelles
• Pumpkin Squash Ravioli
• Pumpkin Supreme Pie
• Pumpkin Spice Waffles
• Pumpkin Spiced Ice Coffee

Which of the new items should I buy this year?
Also, the Pumpkin Fit & Active Yogurt and the Pumpkin Cider from last year returned as well!

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

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Aldi Pumpkin-pocalypse 2016! (Coming October 9th)

Prepare your pantries for Pumpkin-pocalypse 2016! All things pumpkin are popping up at Aldi next week! There are a LOT of returning products, so here's a list of SOME of Aldi items I've already reviewed:

• Pumpkin Spiced Pancake Mix
• Sparkling Pumpkin Cider (A personal favorite) 
• Pumpkin Spiced Bottled Iced Coffee
• Pumpkin Supreme Pie
• Pumpkin Spiced Pizzelles 
• Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream
• Pumpkin Spelt Risotto 
• Pumpkin Spiced Marshmallows
• Pumpkin Gnocchi 
• Pumpkin Chipotle Pasta Sauce
• Pumpkin Seed Tortillas
• Fit & Active Frozen Pumpin Squash Ravioli

Honorable Mention: Halloween Shaped Pasta (great for spooky pasta salad!!) 

Check out those reviews to see which items are worth adding to your pantry-patch!

How can something wet, be so dry? (I thought only alcohol could do that?)

Dry Sparkling Soda  - Aldi

I spotted these in the aisle at Aldi and my first thought was, "Ooh, pretty bottles!" Upon further inspection, these bottles aren't directly printed upon, they're covered in these shrink-plastic sleeves covered in delightful watercolor illustrations. Cute, and practical as far as production is concerned, but up-close they're pretty beat up. There are scuffs, nicks, and slashes all over them peeling back the wrapping and exposiing the glass bottle underneath. For something with such a lovely design, it's presentation gets lost in all the imperfections that come with shipping and displaying their item. Still, the concept of a potentially dry naturally flavored fruity soda is intriguing, so I picked the two prettiest bottles to review.   

Then, at the check-out, they rang up for almost five freaking dollars a bottle! A pretty steep price for a beverage, especially at Aldi, but I already committed to giving these a shot so I stuck with it. Now knowing the price, I'll be holding these up to a pretty high standard. Will these deliver?