Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Nougat Crunch

Ben & Jerry's is on fire lately. I swear they must be reading my mind, because when it comes to this year's batch of new flavors, absolutely everything has sounded good to me.

Chocolate Nougat Crunch is a sweet cream based ice cream with fudge-covered wafer cookies and a chocolate nougat swirl. I am one of those people who loves nougat; be it the soft, fluffy style that you find in candy bars, or the harder Italian-style that has nuts and/or fruit in it. Admittedly, I like the softer style more (and once again, with my recent jaw surgery, soft is all I can have for a while). So I lucked out, because the soft kind is what is used in this ice cream.



Digging into this pint you'll notice that the sweet cream base is indeed both sweet and creamy (imagine that!), and I like the nice, mellow vanilla-ish flavor it leaves in your mouth. What I don't like about it is that once you have had a few spoonfuls, it gets lost in the stronger nougat flavor. I would have liked the base to have been stronger, but it is still tasty.

What I really loved about this pint was the swirl. The day Ben & Jerry's can't make a kickass swirl is the day I stop eating ice cream...but it looks like that ain't happening anytime soon! The swirl is almost like eating a fluid version of a Milky Way bar. It's chocolately, and not surprisingly, it has a nice sweet thing going on. I think On Second Scoop nailed it perfectly when they said it was sort of like chocolate marshmallow (read their review here). Best of all, out of the several pints I have had, all of them had generous pools of swirl!



As for the fudge covered wafers: First, if you are expecting, say, a 'Nilla wafer -- don't. The cute little fudge covered wafer squares reminded me more of sugar wafers, minus the creme filling. I actually think I prefer this type of wafer over something more cookie-like. The texture of the wafers seemed to vary from really crispy, to some that had softened a bit -- kind of like a cake-style ice cream cone does when you get down to the bottom. The wafers are slightly sweet, but don't really have much flavor of their own.

The fudge: if you've ever read one of my reviews where Ben & Jerry's fudge covered anything, then you know that I am not a fan. I regard it as a necessary evil. I know most people don't mind it, but it has yet to win me over. Apart from that, however, no worries -- this is a really good ice cream overall.

So far this really is a great year for Ben & Jerry. I am really loving the lineup! Be sure to also check out The Impulsive Buy's review here.



PURCHASED FROM: Albertsons Supermarket

PRICE: $3.49

CALORIES: 250 calories per 1/2 cup serving.

ADDITIONAL INFO: Allergy information: fudge covered wafer pieces have been manufactured on shared equipment that also processes peanuts and tree nuts.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE: benjerry.com