Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Haagen-Dazs Caramel Cone Ice Cream


[2021 Update] Still delicious. Bought one for photos and then had to buy a second one because I ate the first one too fast. Original Review + Update after the break

Haagen-Dazs Caramel Cone Ice Cream
caramel ice cream, chocolaty-covered cone pieces and caramel swirl

[2015 Update] As part of my year end search for #TBT subjects, I ran in to the 2 for $5 sale at Stop & Shop. There's not a whole lot of H-D that we haven't covered, so I went with a classic flavor I haven't had in forever and it was excellent. I still think B&J's has a slight edge by going with a vanilla base that let's the chocolate on the waffle cone bits stand out a bit more. That said, there are just so many cone pieces here! #FunFactor

Haagen-Dazs Caramel Cone Ice Cream
caramel ice cream, chocolaty-covered cone pieces and caramel swirl


Still so busy!

[Original 2010 Review] Ok, this probably counts as housecleaning #6. You may not believe this, but the selection of ice cream in the house at the moment is downright unbearable. The only thing I have right now is high octane stuff and a rogue container of turkey hill (which i will try to get up in the next few days). I knew my daughter could use some ice cream to wrap up her day, but I didn't want to go too chocolaty,  so I went digging, and look what I found!

This is Haagen-Dazs Caramel Cone and it's best by 10/07/10... oops, that was last week, but it's only the "best by" date, not an expiration date. I didn't realize this pint had aged so much, but I hate to waste the good stuff. Well, I guess we are going for it anyway!

The flavor is billed as a "creamy blend of caramel ice cream with rich caramel swirls balances the sweet crunch of chocolate-covered cone pieces for a harmony of caramel, chocolate and crunch in every bite", but it's not really that impressive at first glance. Sure there are a couple of well coated cone pieces sticking out, but I'm not impres....

Holy moley look at all those cone pieces!! It is non-stop, wall to wall, can't get around 'em cone pieces. I think I may have just died and gone to ice cream heaven. Quick, someone throw a coolatta, I mean cold water on me!! There is a special place in my heart for waffle cone bits and this has just become the coolest looking cone bit based ice cream ever. Seriously, how do you top that? No point in trying, this review is over...

just kidding. You want to know how a past "best by" ice cream tastes don't you? Well, the waffle cone bits have lost some of their crunch, and I do get a sense that the ice cream has been sitting a long time, but even with those two factors bringing it down, this ice cream is still simply amazing. The way the caramel comes across versus the chocolate waffle cone bits in literally every bite is just fantastic. H-D makes such a great caramel base that's rich and real, not artificial or overpowering. Sometimes you actually get 2 or 3 cones bits in a scoop, it's crazy! Can you tell I really like this ice cream? I need more adjectives!

Such a wonderful treat, what could ever possibly go wrong? Oh wait, this is Haagen-Dazs and the whole family is about to pay for our dinner time dessert. A single half cup serving clocks in at 31% of your total fat, a whopping 65% of your saturated fat, and don't forget 28% of your cholesterol!!! Whoa, wait, apparently this flavor has been tweaked since I bought it back in (iunno, spring?). It's now 29% total fat and 51% saturated fat. Still crazy, but at least a little less crazy. It's a shame this flavor is so unhealthy because boy am I impressed right now. Definitely a family consensus that this flavor is top notch. Nice job H-D.

Here is the Competition:
New Favorite? H-D Caramel Cone
Top Notch: Americone Dream
Pleasant Surprise: Edy's Caramel Cone Crunch
Close Third: Breyers Waffle Cone OVERLOAD!
Respectable Stuff: Brigham's Just Jimmies
Nothing Special: Edy's Nestle Drumstick & Walgreens Waffle Cone

7 comments:

  1. I've never tried Haagen Dazs, so I have a question. Whenever I have Ben & Jerry's, which is quite often, I find I have to let it sit out (of the freezer) for a good ten to fifteen minutes in order to let it soften up a bit, otherwise it's ridiculously hard, to the point of not being able to really enjoy it. Is Haagen Dazs, as another high end ice cream company, like this as well?

    With Breyer's or Dreyer's/Edy's, after leaving it out for like three to five minutes, it's soft and ready to go.

    Your thoughts?

    ReplyDelete
  2. as a rule of thumb, the higher the fat content, the slower the melt. With that being said, for me it's one part brand, and one part "is my freezer defrosting right now?"

    Unfortunately, I lack neither the will power or the patience to wait 5 minutes, let alone 10-15 minutes, for my ice cream to melt.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks Dubba you sold me on Caramel Cone! Gonna try it ASAP.

    Keep on enjoying your ice cream experience!

    ReplyDelete
  4. The first time I had Caramel Cone I was very disappointed because it didn't live up to my expectations, but since I enjoyed the Sea Salt Caramel Gelato so much I decided to give Caramel Cone another try. This time around was much different because I actually was able to taste the caramel ice cream and the caramel swirl individually. Not only that but I thought they both actually tasted like caramel this time and much richer than I had remembered during my first time. Now I see why this is your favorite among Cone ice creams because it is one of the best ice creams I have ever had. I used to dislike Haagen-Dazs but now I am beginning to appreciate their products more and more as I retry their ice cream flavors. I finally see why so many people like Haagen-Dazs because now I am a fan of Haagen-Dazs.

    ReplyDelete
  5. lol you have to at least let it for 30-60minutes in the fridge

    ReplyDelete
  6. no offense, but who thinks that far ahead when it comes to a snack? no way I could do it!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Dink,
    I personally love my ice cream solid enough to eat it with a fork. The reason these ice creams stay hard and delicious is because they are "high end." They don't contain 400 stabilizers and 12 types of sugar to keep them shelf stable ... And your guess is as good as mine as to why they need to last so damned long. Aren't they kept in the freezer?
    Better ice cream is solid because it only contains real ingredients: Milk, cream, eggs, sugar.

    Anonymous Dink said...

    I've never tried Haagen Dazs, so I have a question. Whenever I have Ben & Jerry's, which is quite often, I find I have to let it sit out (of the freezer) for a good ten to fifteen minutes in order to let it soften up a bit, otherwise it's ridiculously hard, to the point of not being able to really enjoy it. Is Haagen Dazs, as another high end ice cream company, like this as well?

    With Breyer's or Dreyer's/Edy's, after leaving it out for like three to five minutes, it's soft and ready to go.

    Your thoughts?

    October 15, 2010 at 4:49 PM

    ReplyDelete

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