Barbara’s – Jalapeno Cheez Puffs

Barbara’s is a brand I don’t know too much about. All I really know is that they do a more healthy take on the classic cheese puffs and Crunchy Cheetos, but that’s all I know. I’ve yet to have a bad experience with them as well, and I imagine that goes for a lot of others because they’ve got enough staying power to still be around. I’ve mentioned before I don’t much care about how healthy or less damaging a snack is, and all I care is about how it tastes.

It should be clear then, that despite all that jazz, I enjoy these quite a bit. Or more accurately, I have purchased Barbara’s snacks on multiple occasions. If that’s not a clear endorsement, I don’t know what is. I tended to get one or two flavours, which were usually white cheddar but I figured it’s a good chance to try something new. Spicy is not my thing, but when it’s accompanied by cheese, maybe it won’t be so bad.

So these smell pungent. I suspect it’s due to the blue cheese that seems to be somewhere in the mix. I’m noticing Barbara’s likes to throw in blue cheese to flesh out their flavours, which is great. The one downside is the smell if you can’t stand pungent things.

These are very similar to Crunchy Cheetos in terms of visual aesthetic. They aren’t as crunchy as I recall Cheetos being, but they also don’t leave my mouth feeling as oily afterwards. The crunch isn’t as satisfying either, but it’s not significantly weaker or soft or limp in any way. It’s just that they don’t go as hard as Cheetos, but it’s still got a good crunch to it. Being that they are slightly softer and lighter, it’s really easy to pop handful after handful of these. I can personally attest to that fact, and as we all know, my verdict is supreme.

The flavour is a bit more mild and not as salty or cheesy as Cheetos, but that works in their favour. These taste more natural and less in your face. The jalapeno flavour is unfortunately not there; if you got these with an expectation for kick or heat, you will disappointed. It tastes like it tried to hit you with some spice, but it fell a bit short and just kind of tickles you. After a couple of handfuls I guess I can feel the heat starting, though I’m not sure if that’s just from the jalapeno or my body trying to kick into over gear to process all the corn I’m stuffing down my fat, disgusting gullet. Maybe both.

I will definitely get these again, and you know I’m going to enjoy the heck out of em. I have nothing more to add. Now excuse me as I finish the rest of this bag.