Kettle Sweet Potato Chips

After seeing Red Rock's attempt at raising the bar on gourmet, with their new Corn Chips, this is what gourmet really is.  And it is so left-field, I never even thought it possible... and don't expect it to be around for long.
Kettle Chips, the pioneer of slow cooked potato chips (which took Red Rock Deli a couple years to get the texture right when they started competing), have tested the water with Sweet Potato - something that has more of a pumpkin consistency than potato... and has recently been tested by McCain's in the Hot Chips market.
Sweet potato is a bit of an acquired taste and texture, while the colour itself puts off kids (and grown ups) that are adverse to vegetables... seeing (processed) potatoes as junk food, not a (healthy) vegetable.

And then there is the price.  These two small packs were $4 each, which is more than what most big/regular packs cost. So it isn't something people would consume as a regular snack... more for a dinner party, with slightly fancy dishes or finger food for the guests.

The texture is different to the slow cooked potato chips, like the difference in the actual vegetables themselves when cooked or roasted.  The sweet potato chips were a crunchier, less drier, texture, reminding me of cooked off-cuts of short-crust pastry.  The chips were lightly salted, but the salt doesn't stick to the chips well, as I only realised they had salt when I got to the bottom quarter of the packet and started tasting increasing levels of saltiness... culminating in some very salty fragments & crumbs at the bottom.

Now comes the interesting bit - the second pack that included with the sweet potato chips, beetroot chips and white sweet potato chips. This was a surprise to me, because I thought it might have just been beetroot flavouring or something else odd (I didn't take much notice of the details at the store, as I just grabbed both and went to the checkout).  I didn't realise until I opened the pack that it was a mix of three chips inside... making a nice colouring and flavour variation. (a bit like the CCs Flavour-Smash chips)
These had similar textures to the Orange Sweet Potato, due to the slow-cooking process, but the flavours are different (as expected).  The Beetroot has a bit of a bite, but not as much as you'd think, so are quite easy to eat normally.  The white Sweet Potato is almost flavourless.

Kinda looks like a bowl of potpourri that you might find on a coffee table in a fancy home.

The one drawback is how much more fragile these chips are compared to the regular potato slow-cooked chips, so crumble very easily.  You will end up having a lot of fragments and crumbs in the bottom of the bag (probably another reason why these are only in small packs), so be careful with the packs when you grab or transport them.

Both are recommended, to try out, but if $8 is too much, buy the multi-pack, for a sampling of all three at once.

April Transformers from the Target sale

After buying so few last year domestically (due to the over-inflated prices in Australia, despite our strong AU Dollar), I was expecting this year to have even less bought locally.
How wrong I was...

Despite the upcoming trip to America for the BotCon Transformers Convention (my once a year chance to buy the toys at half what it costs here), a recent Target sale made it too difficult to not buy some recently released TF Prime toys. Mostly because I may not get to any department/toy stores in America this year (the hotel is so out of the way of everything), and the secondary market prices at the Convention would have been equal or more... especially the 2-pack with Bumblebee & Starscream (because it wasn't being released in America anyway).

So when Target had 25% off toys in the week before Easter, I set off on Easter Saturday, expecting to have to travel around to several Targets to find the five items I had decided to buy.
Fortunately, the first Target I went to is a small, slow-moving store, so actually managed to still have all five items I wanted, on the last day of the sale.
The afore mentioned 2-pack (with Bumblebee, Starscream and 2 human figurines - Silas & MECH soldier), and Commander Class Wave 1 (Bulkhead, Starscream, Optimus, Megatron)... completing my set of all wave 1 TFPrime toys.

This is what I came home with (which included a set of RPMs I was missing, but only ended up having minor differences to their Speed Stars versions that I already had).

The RPMs are a red Ironhide and a white Mixmaster - both redecos of earlier single-pack vehicles. (this 2-pack was released by Hasbro in 2010, but was only just "dumped" cheaply in Australia a few months ago at Toyworld)
I tried looking for this particular 2-pack while in Melbourne last month, so was amazed and relieved to find them in the first Toyworld I went to on this partucular Saturday.
So instead of spending all day checking out several Targets and Toyworlds (as I had planned and expected), I found everything I wanted at the first of each store I went to... and was back home within about an hour.

Some pics...

The small TFPrime toys in vehicle mode, showing again just how sucky Megatron is in alt-mode (from side-on in that first photo, and from above in the next photo).

Optimus was the best of the four, followed by Bulkhead and Starscream, with Megatron a distant fourth.
As you can see in the photo above, Megatron doesn't have silver paint on the purple inner chest (the packaging picture shows the jet mode without the big purple section at the front). The robot mode is nice, and felt like a non-transforming rubbery figurine at first, so took a while to find parts that moved enough to make the jet mode.  Now that I've seen how bad it is, I don't think I'll have it in jet mode again... 

The RPMs, next to their Speed Stars "redecos".

On the left is the original Ironhide, then the Speed Stars red Ironhide and RPMs red Ironhide. And on the right are the Speed Stars Mixmaster and the RPMs version. Aside from the slight colour differences, there is actually remoulding done on each.  The RPMs of that series had painted names, while the Speed Stars versions had the names moulded into the base instead... not just mere redecos.
This RPMs 2-pack was a loose end for me (as they aren't easy to find online, due to being low-demand items), which leaves me with just 3 left from the 110 different ones released over the last 4 years.

(an interesting note - ALL of the Speed Stars vehicles that were "re-released" versions of RPMs vehicles, had 3 or 4 LESS paint apps due to cost-cutting... EXCEPT this 2-pack pair - their number of paint apps as Speed Stars is the same for some unknown reason)

So now that I have all the First Edition and Wave 1 TFPrime toys, here's a few group shots...
All the Bumblebees so far.

Optimus Prime

And Megatron (as the 3 main (marketed) TFs characters in recent years)

So from just these 3 characters, we already have 13 different TFPrime toys, out of the 29 so far released by Hasbro... that's almost half for just 3 characters.

...or, as a tight grouping...

...or, the Bumblebees set up by my friend Julian, done in a "boy-band" pose...

One last photo, of all the human figurines so far...

So now I have two shipments coming from America... sent within a day of each other - one from a shipping forwarder (from a Hasbro website order) via UPS, and one from BigBadToyStore via USPS.  Both should arrive by the end of this week... but which one will get here first I wonder.
Between the two, I will have all the BotShot toys so far released in America, plus a few other surprises I'll reveal when they arrive.
And only 8 days until I leave for BotCon, so it looks like April is going to be a big month of Transformers acquisitions for me.

Hungry Jacks Salad Stix

People might be wondering, what the?
Salad or Veges at Hungry Jacks?
That sounds too healthy to be true.

But it is true.
Following last year's menu shake-up at Hungry Jacks (that's Burger King for any American readers), which saw the reduction of salt and sugar from many of their items, a "healthier" range of burgers, and the removal of the Aussie Burger (a tragic loss of a national Icon)... an item was snuck onto the menu - Salad Stix.
A small serving of Vegetables, consisting of carrot sticks, celery sticks, broccoli and cherry tomatoes. For $2.50 with a value meal.

I remember reading about it when I was doing my review of HJ's Country Burgers, and found it on the menu at various outlets around the country, so put it on my list of things to review.
Last weekend, I had the chance. I went to the Coopers Plains outlet, ordered a couple Cheeseburgers meals (with onion on the burgers and Onion Rings instead of Fries... plus Coke Zero, to you know, watch my calories... :p ), and asked for a serving of Salad Stix.
Knowing that they wouldn't have too many people ordering them, if ever, I was amused to see if they even knew what I was asking for, or if they had any.  The lady at the counter yelled over to someone else out the back to ask if they had any in stock... and sure enough, they did.
I paid for my order and waited and watched as it was being prepared... paying particular attention to the Salad Stix.  I wasn't sure how "pre-prepared" it may be, so wasn't surprised when someone came out of their storage fridge with a small take-away food container of veges.
There didn't appear to be anything written on the container from where I was standing, so I'm not sure how long they keep them for... just in case someone actually orders a serving.
The disappointing thing though, they proceeded to empty out the contents of the plastic take-away container into a Sundae cup... wasting more plastic to landfill, instead of just giving me the Veges in their original container.

In the photo above is what I was given.  In the process of them relocating the Veges into a second plastic container, they had to jam in the sticks, which crushed one of the tomatoes.
So in the process of making more waste for the environment, they were needlessly damaging the food... neither of which would have happened if they just handed over the original container, or had them packed into Sundae cups in the first place. It's not like they'd take up much more room, as they aren't having a lot of turn-over to need many in stock.

Note in the photo above, the French Dressing sachet (which also doesn't have a use-by date on it).  Well, at first they forgot about the Hommus dip that the Salad Stix come with (they probably have never had anyone order the Salad Stix before to remember it). I pointed it out to the lady at the counter, who then spent the next couple minutes frantically searching for it.  In the end, no one knew if they had any, or where it was kept, so handed me the only salad-related sachet they could find.
So much FAIL already, and this is before actually trying the product.

When I got home and had the Salad Stix a little later (I didn't see the need to eat them while they were "fresh" as they were probably sitting in the HJs fridge a couple months already.
A week later when I finally felt hungry enough to eat them, this is what a single serving has in it (with the French Dressing squeezed over it).

Five sticks each of carrot and celery, 3 sprigs of broccoli, and 2 cherry tomatoes.
And even though it was sitting in my fridge for a week, everything was still fresh and crunchy. Since their website makes no mention of any preservatives on their allergy advice page, I would have to assume that this was a fresh batch. (then again, their website doesn't list the right vegetables - saying that it has red capsicum instead of cherry tomatoes, so might have left off any added chemicals as well).

I actually liked this Vege combo, and the French Dressing goes nice with it too (maybe they could offer a selection of salad dressings). If it wasn't so expensive, and if they promoted it's existence, or even included it as a bonus item to large value meals during certain hours or promo days, this would be a great component to the meal.  Something soft (burger), something salty (fries), something sweet (soft drink and/or sundae), and something crunchy (the vege sticks).
It not only has a small amount of nutrients and vitamins, but would count towards the daily recommended servings of Veges, without feeling guilty about the junkfood in the rest of the Value Meal.

To me, it makes no sense. HJs "secretly" reduced some of the salt and sugar content to various menu items to make them a little bit healthier (and adding to the prices to compensate), while also "secretly" adding a Vege side-dish without any promotion or incentive to buy it.
I know I keep saying that it is a waste of resources and investment to appease the demographics that will never patronise fast-food franchises, but here we have HJs trying to reduce their unhealthy image a little, costing them sales from the higher prices, and they don't even make the consumers aware of it.  Why do it, if you don't market it for at least a little reward?

Maybe it was a decision made at the same time as the removal of the Iconic Aussie Burger...

One of my favourite fast-food burgers. Probably second only to the Cheeseburger (with onion of course).

Next time you are at HJs, and order a Value Meal, get some Vege sticks on the side... you might be surprised at how well it compliments the meal.
Very Recommended.(and that's coming from a self-confessed junk-food junkie, so must be good)

The Showdown of the Australian Slow Cooked Chips

I promised this a few weeks back during my investigative review of Smiths Chips, but have been too busy...

The battle for the Ultimate Slow Cooked Potato Chips has begun.

In the black corner - Kettle Chips, who brought to Australia, Slow Cooked Chips.
In the blue corner - Red Rock Deli Chips by the American-owned Smiths Chips company, who followed Kettle Chips a couple years later, and then took a while to get the texture/crunchiness right.
And in the brown corner - the latest contender, ALSO by the American-owned Smiths Chips company, being released under the main Smiths Chips logo... as Extra Crunchy.

I chose the plain variety as a fair comparison, as there wasn't any flavour that was done by all three.  Since Smiths Extra Crunchy were copying Kettle's flavours, there was a Red Rock flavour (Chilli and Sea Salt) that would have been close enough to the Chilli flavour (because they all have salt in them), but figured that the results would be disputed if they weren't exact.

So, plain it is...

Which made it difficult to differentiate between Kettle and Red Rock.  Red Rock have managed to copy Kettle Chips so well, that I wouldn't be able to tell them apart, visually or by taste.
Smiths Extra Crunchy on the other hand - VERY SALTY.
It wasn't too obvious when I was just reviewing the range of Extra Crunchy Chips, but while eating the three competitors, these stood out as a lot saltier than the existing two brands.
I guess it'll take Smiths Chips a couple years again to get their "imitation Kettle Chips" right on this their second version.

In summary, if wanting Slow Cooked Chips, go for the original Kettle ones, or the bigger range of Red Rock Deli. Since Smiths Extra Crunchy only intend to copy Kettle Chips during its launch, and haven't done it very well, you might as well stick to the brand & flavours they tried to imitate.

Cookie Crunch Picnic

My favourite flavour is cookies & cream (icecream, chocolate, etc), so jumped on this when I saw it last month while in Melbourne.

 I wasn't too impressed, so bought another couple recently to give it another go... and nup, still wasn't blown away.  Probably because it isn't an actual "cookies & cream" flavour, it is just "cookies" with caramel and chocolate instead of white chocolate (the cream from cookies & cream).
It was nice, and with the added texture of cookie pieces, makes it worth buying.
3 1/2 out of 5
Maybe if they did an actual cookies & cream variety (swapping out the caramel with white chocolate), I'd be all over it.

Transformers Easter Items for 2012

While on the topic of Easter, and with this blog being mostly about Transformers, let's see what Australia had for licensed Transformers merchandise this year for Easter.

Some of it was recycled from previous years, from the same license-holder, but with new artwork (due to DotM being released since last Easter).
And only BigW and Target had Licensed Transformers Merchandise this year. Target had the Square Metal Tins and Giant Eggs, while BigW had everything else.

These are metal tin trucks with eggs inside. Same as last year, with new artwork.

Torches and Yoyos with eggs. Also same as last year, with new artwork.

Square Metal Tins with a sticker sheet and eggs inside. Same as last 2 years, but a Bumblebee version was available this year. (it might have been previously released, but I only have evidence of the Optimus one)

A closer look at both.

And the sides, of last years (Revenge of the Fallen) and this years (Dark of the Moon).

And inside.

The coffee cup with egg, & Money sorter with Eggs.

 
The coffee cup has been done for the last 3 years (with an egg at Easter, and with lollies at Christmas). The electronic money sorter is one of two new items this year for Transformers... and an unusual one at that.  When you think of Easter, a money sorter isn't something that comes to mind.
I put in a few batteries and tried it out, and it had a few problems counting all the coins accurately. It also doesn't have a cancel/deduction option if it makes a mistake - you have to turn it off and redo ALL your coins all over again.

 The coffee cup has new artwork, but each year the cup gets smaller.  It is labelled as a "mug", which is what it started out as 3 years ago, but each year with it getting smaller and smaller, it is now too small to be called a Mug. So I call this one a coffee cup instead.

The shrinking Transformers Mugs/Cups.
The first one is 1 3/4 Cups
The middle one is 1 1/2 Cups
This years, on the right, is only 1 1/4 Cups.
Any more shrinkage and we might as well have little Barbie-sized teacups.

The final item for this year is the second new item, and probably the best, behind the square metal tins.

It is a giant egg, wrapped in shiny foil, and inside it has two lollipops with Robot head covers.

And most importantly, the chocolate on this one actually tastes nice. The small red-wrapped eggs in all the other packs are quite disgusting.

The lollipops and their covers - I was hoping that there were more, with just two randomly placed in each Egg, but recently buying two more of these, they both had the same Bumblebee & Shockwave heads. I was a bit disappointed by that, as it would have been fun to have that "lucky dip" element to it.

And the foil flattened out to show the pattern on the outside.

UPDATE 9th April....
Checked some stores today (the post-Easter discount sales) to find some cheap TFs Easter Merchandise... to eat and to enter the competition with.
Looks like the TFs stuff sold well, as I had trouble finding unsold TFs Easter items. There was a fair bit of other licensed items by the same company still available, but the only TFs items I could find was the Yoyo pack and the Giant Egg.

I bought the last two Giant Eggs at Target Carindale. They were both destroyed (as expected from the giant eggs after weeks on the shelves), but since items were already 50% off, they wouldn't discount them any further. So they were each $6.50... compared with $5 for the broken one I bought at a different Target two days earlier. (they only had 2 left there, and one was broken - but since they seemed to have Easter stuff at 30% off that day, they discounted the broken one from its $9.10 price)
In other words, I paid less before Easter than after, when everything was on clearance.

Anyways, the point of all this rambling, is that I now had another 4 Giant Eggs to add to the one I bought in Melbourne last month (featured in the photos above), for the extra competition entries, but to see if there were other lollipop heads included.
Both of the ones bought on Saturday had Bumblebee & Shockwave, so had me thinking that they were a set pair in all.
And today opening up the first of two Giant Eggs, finding Bee and Shockers inside, I expected to find the same in the fifth Egg... but no. Imagine my surprise at seeing a different pair of heads - Optimus and Sentinel.
So now I'm wondering if there were any other pairs, and I was just unlucky to get 4 out of 5 with the same pair in it.

I also found out today that this Easter item was actually made in Greece... of all places. The rest of the things were made locally, but these Giant Eggs were made in Greece and then import them as is... to sell here. Weird.

Well, I hope you had a good Transformery Easter, and if you are in Australia, I hope you got one or more of these items (to support the licensee to keep doing more in the future). If you didn't get any before Easter, check the stores from Monday to see if anything is left on the clearance shelves.

Easter goodies

I found these last month while in Melbourne, but forgot to mention them, because they are highly recommended.
Cadbury Egg n Spoon.

They came in three varieties - white, chocolate and dark.
They are done up like little egg cartons, with four chocolate eggs and 2 spoons in each one.

Inside each egg is a fluffy, whipped, mouse filling, so you end up eating it like a boiled egg... except you eat the shell as well.

It was a pity that there were four to a pack, so I only tried the white and the chocolate ones. I didn't try the dark variety.  The white one was definitely the better one though, as it made the flavour more interesting. The regular (double) chocolate one was boring, being all chocolate.
I think they were about $10 each though, so not cheap.