Sargento shredded cheese blends disappointing

by Supermarket sampler

Sargento Bistro Blends. Mozzarella & Asiago With Roasted Garlic, Mozzarella With Sun-Dried Tomatoes & Basil, and Cheddar Salsa With Tomato & Jalapeno Peppers. $2.79 to $2.99 per 7-ounce resealable bag.

Bonnie: I love cheese. In fact, I enjoy calcium-rich cheese in some form each day, which is why I looked forward to testing these new Bistro Blends. Unfortunately, these were, for the most part, disappointing.

The Cheddar Salsa With Tomato & Jalapeno Peppers contains way too many additives, including artificial flavors and the flavor enhancers monosodium glutamate and yeast extract. Why didn't Sargento just add some stronger seasonings and hotter jalapeno peppers to improve the taste? It also contains at least a third more fat than the other two varieties. (Using a Monterey Jack cheese instead of the cheddar would have solved that.)

The Mozzarella With Sun-Dried Tomatoes & Basil doesn't have those additives, but it also doesn't have enough of the promised basil. In fact, I realized it was supposed to contain basil only when I typed the product's name. The sun-dried tomatoes overpower everything.

Garlic also dominates the Mozzarella & Asiago With Roasted Garlic, but in a more pleasing way, at least for garlic lovers. Use it in salad, on pasta, over a pizza crust or anywhere you'd like to add a bit of flavorful cheese.

Carolyn: Sargento has taken the idea of cuisine-coordinated shredded cheese blends one step further with the addition of seasonings. The problem with seasonings, of course, is that everyone has a different idea of what's enough, including Bonnie and me. That's why most herbs and spices come with shaker tops.

For instance, although the Italian-oriented Mozzarella & Asiago With Roasted Garlic is the most interesting Bistro Blend, I also thought the garlic in it was a bit much. But unlike Bonnie, I didn't think any one taste dominated the Mozzarella With Sun-Dried Tomatoes & Basil. It was just bland and confused.

The hotness level of the Cheddar Salsa With Tomato & Jalapeno Peppers is just right. It's just not very interesting (cheddar has long been associated with Mexican) or innovative (jalapeno-flavored block cheeses have been sold for years).

Dark Chocolate M&M's. Peanut and Plain. $2.69 per 14-ounce bag. Also available in king-size.

Bonnie: Some things just shouldn't be tampered with. I put M&M's in this category. I grew up knowing they'd melt in my mouth, not in my hand, as the old jingle said. The candies have that unique milk chocolate kind of melt, not the classy dark kind. Dark chocolate just seems too sophisticated for M&M's candy coating.

Don't get me wrong. When I splurge on chocolate, I mainly choose dark. I did so even before scientists began to tout the virtues of the antioxidant polyphenols called flavanols in dark chocolate. (Scientists say that flavanols have the potential to reduce the risk of heart disease and cancer, and that dark chocolate has more than double the flavanols of milk chocolate.)

But when it comes to M&M's, only milk chocolate seems right. Don't you agree, Carolyn?

Carolyn: Actually, I do. I, too, like dark chocolate, but it's not something I need or want from M&M's, which is probably why the company is going to be selling these for only a limited time.

Like Dark Chocolate Kit-Kat and extra-peanut buttery Peanut Butter Lover's Reese's, Dark Chocolate M&M's are designed to create a flurry of excitement and sales, and then to be dismissed for the inferior idea it is.

Dark M&M's graphics and name tie-in (they're called Darth Mix) with the new (and last) "Star Wars" movie, "Revenge of the Sith," will be even more interesting to "Star Wars" collectors, and for those who remember when M&M's maker Mars (now Masterfoods) turned down the chance to be in another otherworldly movie, and E.T. ended up a big fan of Reese's Pieces. Like Luke Skywalker, Masterfoods has learned from its trials.

Ocean Spray Craisins Trail Mix. Cranberry & Chocolate, and Cranberry, Fruit & Nut. 79 cents per 1.75-ounce or $2.19 per 6- ounce pouch.

Bonnie: This new Craisins Cranberry & Chocolate Trail Mix is my kind of snack -- fruit, nuts and a little chocolate combined in one pouch for easy nibbling. The fruit is dried cranberries; the nuts, a blend of peanuts, almonds and cashews; and the chocolate, semi- sweet. The Cranberry, Fruit & Nuts version is also good, but I prefer the chocolate to its mix of pineapple, papaya and coconut.

Dried cranberries, which Ocean Spray calls Craisins, are rich in antioxidants and have the urinary tract health benefits of cranberry juice; that is, they prevent bacteria associated with infections from sticking to the urinary tract wall. To get that benefit, you'd need to eat a third of a cup of Craisins, or a few servings of this new trail mix.

If you're interested in Craisins primarily for that benefit, I'd suggest drinking cranberry juice or adding Craisins to your cereal instead of overeating this trail mix.

Carolyn: Ocean Spray's latest way to offload its cranberries is in trail mixes where dried cranberries replace raisins. Eaten alone, dried cranberries are chewier and not as sweet as raisins. But in the Cranberry, Fruit & Nut variety, Ocean Spray has made up for any potential sweetness deficit with dried pineapple, papaya and coconut. They've even honey-coated the peanuts! Still, the primary impression isn't of sweetness so much as chewiness. A better name for this variety would be Fruit 'n Fiber.