Friday, September 15, 2017

Ben & Jerry's vs Halo Top Ice Cream Taste Test – Mint Chocolate Cookie vs Mint Chip

Recently I was doing some grocery shopping and saw the Halo Top brand of ice cream which had some flavors that looked interesting. I did a little research on it and it seemed to be getting pretty good reviews. I also read that it had become the top selling pint ice cream brand in the US. This is pretty impressive considering it is a relatively new company, so I decided to try it out to see how it compares to another well known ice cream brand, Ben & Jerry's.

I don't eat as much ice cream as I used to, but my favorite flavor of all time is Ben & Jerry's Mint Chocolate Cookie. I saw it was on sale recently so I decided to pick up a pint of the Mint Chocolate Cookie as well as the Halo Top Mint Chip so see how they compare. The prices for the pint were pretty similar with Halo Top being a little more expensive.

Comparing the nutrition facts, Ben and Jerry's has a lot more calories and fat per ½ cup serving. It is also more dense, for example a serving of Ben and Jerry's is 106g while a serving of Halo Top is 64g. So in terms of calories, you are getting more for your money with Ben and Jerry's but if you are looking for something lower in calories and fat, Halo Top would be the way to go.

Upon scooping them out, the Halo Top has a more icy consistency compared to the Ben & Jerry's which has more of a smooth, squishy texture. In fact the first scoop of the Halo Top went flying out of the pint while the scoop of Ben & Jerry's sticks to the spoon. I found it interesting the Halo Top packaging has a light green color often associated with mint chip, but the ice cream inside is actually more of an off white color. The Ben & Jerry's has more of a pure white with the cookie speckles mixed in.

So how do they taste? The Halo Top tasted ok. The mint ice cream seemed to dissolve fast in mouth. The mint flavor was ok but not great. The chocolate chips tasted pretty standard compared to chocolate chips in other ice creams. After eating a few spoonfuls, I was a little unimpressed with the flavor. Maybe I went in with expectations too high. But considering how it is so low in calories, fat, and sugar, it is actually not too bad.
In comparison to the Halo Top, the Ben & Jerry's just has a much better taste as can be expected since it has more fat and sugar. It is more creamy, savory, and sweet and is something you want to eat more of where as with the Halo Top, after a few bites, I didn't really want to eat any more. For me, with this comparison, the Ben & Jerry's still comes out well ahead in terms of taste and flavor.

I can see the appeal of the Halo Top though. If you are someone who really likes ice cream, but you do not want the high calories, fat, and sugar, Halo Top is a good alternative. It gives an ok experience and you don't have to worry about the nutrition. For me, I don't mind the extra calories, in fact, I have been trying to eat more calories so the Ben & Jerry's takes the win in this case. It would be nice if it was lower in fat, but in small servings, it is ok to have as a treat once in a while.

What are your thoughts on these ice cream brands? Do you have another favorite brand besides Ben & Jerry's or Halo Top?

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