Product Review: Chocolate Strawberry Oreos

The other day, a friend alerted me to the existence of a new Limited Edition Oreo flavor: Chocolate Covered Strawberry!

The idea sounded promising, and I couldn't wait to try them out.

Let's just say: I'm glad these are being offered on a "Limited" basis, because they were really disappointing. HELPFUL HINT #1: When you see the words "Artifically Flavored" appear not once, but TWICE on the front of the package, that's a red flag that ought to be heeded.

*sigh*  I had such high hopes for these.  Chocolate covered strawberries are a delicious dessert combination, but in hindsight, part of the reason for that is because the strawberries add a fresh, juicy tartness that cuts through the heaviness of the chocolate.

Unfortunately, you get no such relief from the strawberry flavoring in this cookie, and I'm sad to report that the best thing about this taste test was admiring at the pretty packaging. It was all downhill from there.

As soon as I opened the package, the cloying aroma of artificial strawberry wafted out (reminiscent of those discount store strawberry-scented lip balms that 5-year-olds are so fond of), even though you can't see any indication of strawberry at all when you first open the package--it looks like only chocolate creme between chocolate sandwich cookies. Not a good sign.

When I saw the illustration on the front of the package, I thought that the tiny dollop of strawberry in the center of all of that chocolate creme would translate into the chocolate overpowering the strawberry flavor, but no--there really is nothing subtle or understated about the artificial strawberry in this one.

Once you split the cookie apart, the bright pink creme in the center is revealed--and it's disturbingly similar in color to Pepto-Bismol.  HELPFUL HINT #2: When a cookie resembles an old childhood diarrhea medication, that's never a good sign.

Nevertheless, I pressed on and decided to give it a try, and I'm sorry to report that it tastes exactly like it smells. Fake, cloying, and way too artificially sweet.  The chocolate creme by itself is actually not bad, but the strawberry dollop--small as it is--overpowers the entire cookie.

I guess it would have been expensive for Nabisco to use real strawberry flavor in this cookie, but it probably would have been money well-spent.

Final verdict:  These were dreadful. Not inedible, exactly, but really not good.  And given the potential for greatness that these cookies had, the end result was extremely disappointing.   Sorry, folks, I wouldn't recommend buying these, even just to try them out.  You're far better off spending your money on some real strawberries and a jar of Nutella instead.