Welcome to our second edition of Delish or Not Delish. Last week I started a heated debate over sriracha popcorn, and this week I'm peeling down my coworkers' thoughts on Banana Twinkies.
I personally like Twinkies — even the banana kind. I wouldn't say I crave them when I'm thinking about the ideal dessert (that's because the ideal dessert is pretty much always a coconut popsicle), but they are appealing in the same way Gushers and Pizza Lunchables will always be: To me, Twinkies taste like nostalgia.
Earlier this week I was trolling the local Gristedes for products to torture test out on my colleagues when I hit the jackpot: Banana Twinkies. I didn't even know the fruity take on snack cakes existed (we did, however, know about cherry-flavored Chocodiles, go figure). But as soon as I saw them I knew what had to be done.
I should note that the numbers of this week's Delish or Not Delish are slightly skewed because some of my coworkers (at least ten potential tasters) flat out refused to try them. "I'll smell them," one person offered. Some even asked me if I had any sriracha popcorn left instead.
There were very mixed reviews about Banana Twinkies. Banana is a polarizing flavor on its own, especially the artificial kind. Some people were into it: "Delish! This tastes like banana bread with cream inside." "Oh yeah, I'll eat one of these," and "I'd better take on more just to be sure," were some sentiments from the Delish crowd.
The not Delish crowd had some pretty strong feelings of their own. "This is a distant cousin of a banana." "No. Vile. It tastes like a banana-flavored Runt in cake form. And I'm not hating on banana runts!" One tester describe the aftertaste as a, "nasty kick in the pants ."
Needless to say there was a serious love/hate relationship developing with Banana Twinkies yesterday. One important distinction is that people who like bananas (or more specifically other banana-flavored products) tended to fall into the Delish category, while classic Twinkie fans were less impressed and didn't think Hostess should, "mess with a good thing."
Banana Twinkies were a close call. Of the 32 people that tried them, 17 called them Not Delish, while 15 said they were Delish. Since the vote was so close, I'm going to say that if you like banana-flavored things, and aren't a diehard classic Twinkie purist, the nontraditional snack cakes might just be worth a try.
Stay tuned for our next taste-test where we take on the latest in dairy-free milk: quinoa milk and hazelnut milk...Delish or not Delish?
Will you try banana Twinkies? Tell us in the comments!
