Crumbl Cookies review #9 - Hazelnut Sea Salt and Snickerdoodle

Crumbl Cookies: Hazelnut Sea Salt and Snickerdoodle - March 1, 2022

After the nutella-stuffed churro cookie, I was a little leery of this cookie as I didn't want another overwhelmingly cinnamon cookie topped with Nutella instead of stuffed with it.

Fortunately, my concerns were unfounded as this didn't have a cinnamon base. Instead it was a nice brown sugar cookie topped with Nutella. While it's hard to go wrong with that combo and I enjoyed the cookie, this also fell into the category of "I can make it myself". And you know I prefer the Crumbl cookies that maddeningly defy copycats and are worth the $4.27 a cookie (plus tip).

Onward to the snickerdoodle. I love snickerdoodles and this one was also really good.

However, when warm, it was just a little too mushy and underbaked as you can tell from the picture below. Uh, yeah, that's the bite I took in the car before I left the parking. (What??)

However, once I let it cool to room temperature, the texture was much better. Still a trifle soft but that's okay.

I like this (room temperature) texture and the flavor was good. I also liked the thickness of the cookie and the chewy-cakeyness of it. I do have a high bar for snickerdoodles though, especially since I have several good recipes for them that I enjoy making. So I'm glad I tried the Crumbl snickerdoodle but I don't see this being a repeat purchase if there are other flavors on the menu that I want to try when this makes a reappearance.

BTW, I don't mean to sound negative or unenthusiastic about either of these or any of the others I've blogged and will blog about. I actually need some of these to not be repeats so I can try other flavors and not gain the Crumbl 20, lol.

Crumbl Cookies review #8 - Cornbread, Cookie Monster, German Chocolate

Crumbl Cookies: Cornbread, Cookie Monster and German Chocolate - February 21, 2022

L-R: Cornbread, German Chocolate, Reese's Pieces, Blue Cookie Monster

Whenever you see me post a 4-pack, no, I didn't decide to say the hell with my A1C levels and eat more than a day's worth of empty calories in the form of multiple Crumbl cookies. (Although I'm not judging anyone who has, just sayin'.) But it does mean I was going to see friends and bringing them some. Remember my French Laundry post? I was staying with my friend, Karen, and her significant other, Brad, in their guest house. Being Filipino, I couldn't show up empty-handed to avail myself of their hospitality. Normally I would bake something to take but a storm was brewing in the Sierras on my original travel day and I ended up leaving a day early which was supposed to be my baking day. So a hasty stop at Crumbl was in order to get a 4-pack instead.

While I did get the 4-pack pictured above, I also got a single cookie of the honey cornbread cookie because I wanted to try it and it would've been tacky to show up with a 4-pack box that had a cookie missing. So I got my own.

Cornbread

I wanted to try this cookie because I've had cornbread cookies before from Momofuku and liked them. I expected to like Crumbl's. And I did. The honey butter spread on top was a perfect contrast to the warm cookie. Ironically, the only part I didn't like was the honey drizzle on top. I don't care for the taste of honey straight out of the jar. Not a big fan of it mixed into other things as a flavor but I could deal with that better than the pure honey drizzle over the cookie 

And yes, as expected, the cornbread cookie has a slight "grit" from the cornmeal. If that's not your jam, you may not like this cookie. For me, I thought it worked well in (hello) a cornbread cookie.

We ended up trying pieces of the other cookies when I arrived at Karen and Brad's. I didn't get a picture of the Reese's pieces one as I didn't try it. That turned out to be Karen's favorite and she assured me it was good. Brad's favorite was the cornbread cookie. I'm glad I had bought my own as I would've felt like a terrible guest, partaking of one of my host's favorite cookies and making him share it, lol.

Cookie Monster

None of us cared for the Blue Cookie Monster Cookie. This seemed like just a semisweet chocolate cookie with an overly sweet frosting. I know a lot of people raved about this cookie and the raves were to the point where I wondered if I was eating the same cookie they were. I didn't care for it as I prefer milk chocolate and I thought the cookie was a little dry and the frosting was too sweet. I wouldn't get it again.

German Chocolate

I did enjoy the German Chocolate one though. The chocolate cookie was cakey and thick, perfectly able to hold up the traditional German chocolate topping of coconut and pecans. It was delicious. I only had a piece though as by then, I'd reached max Crumbl capacity. But this goes on the list to get again if there aren't any other flavors I "need" to try that week.

Crumbl Cookies review #7 - Chocolate Caramel and Birthday Valentine

Crumbl Cookies: Chocolate Caramel and Birthday Valentine - February 17, 2022

On paper, this chocolate caramel cookie has all the feels for me. I love a good chocolate and caramel combination and I don't mind the salt flakes sprinkled on top to offset some of the caramel sweetness and chocolate richness.

So I was a little surprised that I didn't love this cookie as much as I expected. It was good, don't get me wrong. But this tasted like the kind of cookie I could make on my own by using a good chocolate cookie recipe (and by using high quality chocolate), melting some Kraft caramels to pour on top and sprinkling with fleur de sel. What my picky taste buds have gotten spoiled by with Crumbl cookies are the ones I can't make as well as they can, namely the thick, chewy-cakey cookies with the good-but-not-overly-sweet frostings. This wasn't quite in that category. It belongs to the "good but I can make it myself" classification.

Now, the Birthday Cake Valentine is a whole 'nother story. I loved this cookie. Love as one (*I* in particular) can love an amalgamation of butter, sugar and flour. It's pretty similar to the Vanilla Sugar, hence why it has my love.

I was initially leery at first and had to make sure they didn't get too cute with those heart sprinkles though. I don't mind the scattering on top of the frosting but didn't want that in my cookie. Fortunately, the purist in me was satisfied they left the cookie well enough alone.

Perfect texture, even when warm, as it wasn't mushy, underbaked dough but cakey-cookie perfection. Definitely getting this one again when it comes around.

Crumbl cookie review #6 - Peanut Butter Buckeye

Crumbl Cookies: Peanut Butter Buckeye - February 11, 2022

I just got done saying in the last post that I try to limit myself to only 2 different cookies/flavors at Crumbl each week because there's only so much exercise I can do to offset these empty calories (but what a way to go) and I have to at least try to exercise some restraint.

But anyone with access to a calendar can see this is the third cookie I tried in the same week. Why a peanut butter one when I keep saying I'm indifferent to peanut butter? Well, it was mostly because I was with my niece and she loves peanut butter. I figured it was a good chance to try a piece of a cookie I wouldn't ordinarily get and she could enjoy the rest.

That turned out to be a good call. If you're a peanut butter lover, you'd probably like this cookie. If you're a peanut butter and chocolate lover, you would probably love this cookie. I fall into neither camp. The chocolate cookie part was fine, albeit a bit rich. But what killed this cookie for me is the peanut butter "patty" on top is literally one big thick disc of peanut butter. You can't even bite it without the rest of the piece sticking to your teeth and trying to leap into your mouth with the rest of the bite. Needless to say, that wasn't enjoyable. I think this cookie would've been much better had the peanut butter been less stiff and more creamy, like a frosting versus a slice of peanut butter cut right out of the jar. This goes into "no need to get again" category.

Crumbl Cookies review #5 - Hazelnut Churro and Vanilla Sugar

Crumbl Cookies: Hazelnut Churro and Vanilla Sugar - February 10, 2022

That "gash" you see in the hazelnut churro cookie above wasn't my doing. The store gave it to me that way.  I assume someone accidentally wielded a spatula at the wrong spot on the baking sheet. But no matter, I'm not one to make a fuss over such an inconsequential thing and it didn't affect the cookie other than appearance. This is the literal definition of "don't sweat the small stuff".

I expected to like this cookie a lot. I loved the churro, both a copycat version and the real thing at Crumbl and I love Nutella so I thought this was a shoe-in. Unfortunately, it wasn't. The cookie was a little too underbaked but I can get around that by letting it come to room temperature. The texture is usually fine after that and not too mushy. 

But, sadly (yes cookies can make me sad...or happy), the churro cookie had too strong of a cinnamon flavor that was jarring against the Nutella. I think if they had made it more subtle on the cinnamon, it would've paired better with the Nutella. Instead, the cinnamon fought with the Nutella and I'm not sure who won.

It wasn't bad and the piece I tried without any Nutella in it was just fine as a cinnamon cookie. But this pairing wasn't my favorite. Unless they cut back on the cinnamon flavor, I probably wouldn't get this one again. Not that it was horrible but presumably, I'd want to try other flavors instead of a repeat of this one.

The other cookie I got this week was the Vanilla Sugar. Remember my dissing their traditional Pink Sugar cookie because it had too strong of an almond extract flavor? I don't seem to be the only one who feels that way so Crumbl rolled out a non-almond extract flavor one simply called Vanilla Sugar.

Cue my salivating taste buds. I love this cookie. Amazingly delicate texture and I love the simplicity of the vanilla flavor. No artificial almond extract here. 

I've heard Crumbl plans to alternate the pink sugar and the vanilla sugar each week or couple of weeks and I'm glad to hear it. This way they can cater to both sets of fans. I usually only let myself get two different flavors each week and the vanilla sugar or the milk chocolate will be good fallbacks during weeks when the specialty flavors don't appeal.

Crumbl Cookies review #4 - Banana Cream Pie

Crumbl Cookies: Banana Cream Pie - February 3, 2022

This marks the first week and the first official opening day of my local Crumbl. Before this, I was chancing upon travels within hailing distance of a Crumbl and getting my cookie fix(es). But now, instead of the closest Crumbl being almost 100 miles away, it was now just over 9 miles away. 

I'd already blogged about one of the special flavors I got during opening week, which was the Chocolate featuring Oreo, the copycat recipe I made beforehand and trying out the real thing. But I neglected to mention the other cookie flavor I tried which was the banana cream pie. And there's an opening day story I hadn't mentioned in the other post that goes with it. 

I had placed my order the day before on the app and chose the Chocolate ft Oreo and banana cream pie. When I went to pick up my order at the appointed time, I was waiting for my name to be called and ended up chatting with the person ahead of me in the virtual line. She was picking up a cookie order to share at work. Like me, she'd had Crumbl cookies before. She loved banana cream pie but unfortunately, at the time she went to place her order, it was sold out so she'd had to order other flavors. I had ordered the banana cream pie just to try it out so I told her she could have a piece of mine to try. She politely declined at first but I insisted. I knew it was going to be too big for me to eat by myself and, more importantly, I know what it's like to want to try a cookie and have it be out of reach, lol. I appreciated her nice manners in refusing but I didn't mind sharing. She took a piece, loved it and thanked me. I hoped she would have another chance to order her own later on as she seemed to really enjoy it. 

I ate a piece when I got home and holy moly, it was amazing. To put into context how awesome this cookie was, I'm not a fan of cream or pudding desserts. Too many calories, I don't generally like the texture of whipping cream-based mixtures (I'd rather have ice cream) and, given a choice, I don't go for banana cream pie overall. But this cookie defied all my former biases. No, wait, it obliterated them. The shortbread crust was delicious, the filling had the perfect blend of banana pudding and pieces of real banana with the perfect state of ripeness and the overall cookie was feckin' drool-worthy. I didn't actually drool - that anyone will ever know of - but damn, it was close. I will absolutely be getting this again next time it's on the menu. 

I was still a relative Crumbl newbie at this point so I only made the one trip and got the one banana cream pie (plus the Oreo) but in hindsight, knowing what I know now, I understand people's enthusiasm for their favorite Crumbl cookie and their plans to buy multiples and store them in the freezer to eat at a later date. I haven't succumbed to that part of the craze (yet) but I'd probably think about it the next time the banana cream pie cookie comes around. Yes, it was that good.

Crumbl Cookies review #3: Gingerbread

Crumbl Cookies: Gingerbread - December 11, 2021 

I clearly remember getting this cookie as I was making a 4-hour drive to an in-person work offsite and there just happened to be a Crumbl at the very convenient halfway point 2 hours into the drive. Gotta take a Crumbl, I mean bathroom break, right? 

It was December so one of the specialty flavors was, appropriately enough, the gingerbread cookie. If memory serves, this was topped with a cream cheese frosting. It was freaking delicious, frosting and all. I'm not normally a big gingerbread or ginger molasses cookie fan as I find the molasses flavor too strong. But this was flavored just right, not too overpowering and not bland. It was also baked to perfection so that, when warm, it wasn't too mushy or underbaked. This one definitely goes into the "get again when it's on the menu" category.

Crumbl cookie review #2 - Apple Pie and Carrot Cake

Crumbl Cookies: Apple Pie and Carrot Cake cookies - November 17, 2021

I had to make a random trip somewhere in California when I got these two cookies from the local Crumbl store. Despite the circumstances of the trip (family emergency that ended up with me driving over 600 miles in less than 2 days but that's another story), the silver lining was I got to try these two flavors that I ordinarily wouldn't have been able to.

If you like apple pie (and I do), this is a great rendition of it in cookie form. It had a crumb crust as opposed to a "real" pie crust; instead it was more like a graham cracker-oatmeal crust. It's served warm which is a hallmark of a great Crumbl cookie for me (I don't like chilled cookies) although it is a messy cookie to eat like a cookie as opposed to eating with a fork. I'd get it again if the rest of that week's lineup didn't have other flavors I want to try.

The carrot cake, on the other hand, I would get again, whenever it makes an appearance, competing flavors be damned. I mean, why, yes, I liked it.

I sometimes get leery about carrot cakes and carrot cake cookies because some of them contain raisins and I despise raisins. Thankfully, as you can see from the picture, this is the purist carrot cake version, which I prefer. I loved this cookie. It had just the right flavor and a perfect texture. Crumbl sometimes get (rightly) criticized for underbaking their cookies too much and sometimes you have to let them cool to room temperature to get the right texture. But this one was baked perfectly and, even warm, had the perfect cakey-cookie texture that earmarks it as a would-get-again favorite, frosting and all. And I didn't even get salty about the garnish of nuts over the frosting since they were just that: a garnish and not in the actual cookie itself.

Crumbl Cookies review #1 - Peanut Butter Reese's and Pink Sugar

Crumbl Peanut Butter Reese's and Pink Sugar - October 21, 2021

I'm going to do something a little different for the next few posts. I'm still not trying out new recipes and am mostly baking tried and true ones I've already blogged about, which is what I send out in military care packages for deployed troops. But I don't want my blog to go completely silent until I feel like trying out new recipes so for the next little while, the focus will be on Crumbl cookies (what else?) and my own personal review of the flavors I've tried. I emphasize personal because these are based on my taste buds only, not anyone else's. Lots of people will disagree with me on what I think of the cookies. That's cool. They have their own taste buds and what they like, I have mine.

My obsession for Crumbl has abated (maybe? nah, probably not) but I'm starting from the very first days when there wasn't a local one near me and I had to rely on getting them when I was going somewhere else and there was one nearby or on the way. In the case of these two, they were from my niece and her husband who were visiting and brought me a few. The ones I hadn't tried before were the Reese's and the chilled pink sugar. 

I really wish I was a peanut butter fan. If I was, I think I would be in raptures over this cookie as so many Crumbl fans seem to be. It's a peanut butter cookie, topped with peanut butter and garnished generously with peanut butter cups. Peanut butter heaven if you're a peanut butter lover. Me: it's good, it's fine. Which goes to show what we all already know. Everyone's tastes are different and what one person might love, another might be indifferent over. I was slightly warmer than indifferent, colored by the fact that I appreciated my niece and her husband bringing the cookies in the first place since they know how much I like Crumbl and that I couldn't get it that often back then. This one was awhile ago and I didn't make any notes so I'm only going off memory. IIRC, the peanut butter cookie wasn't cakey but was a more typical peanut butter cookie of being not quite a shortbread but not quite a snickerdoodle texture either. So somewhere in between of a crisp/dry texture, moistened by the peanut butter topping.

I remember the pink sugar cookie more clearly. It's one of Crumbl's signature cookies and up until a month or so ago, a weekly staple along with the milk chocolate chip cookie. The milk chocolate is one of my faves. The pink sugar is not.

I wanted to like it as I do like thick sugar cookies. I don't care for chilled cookies in general so I ate this at room temperature to improve its chances. But, alas, the almond extract flavoring killed this cookie for me. Killed it dead.

I love almonds but I despise the artificial flavor of almond extract. And this cookie had it in spades. I know other Crumbl fans love this cookie and that's fine. I'm not one of them and that's also fine. I always find it a little funny when people get a little, er, heated with their opinions about the various cookies. C'mon, they're cookies. I liked the texture of the cookie but I couldn't get past the strong artificial almond extract flavor So I'm back to defaulting that I enjoyed the thoughtfulness of my niece and nephew-in-law in bringing me the cookies more than the actual cookies themselves. Fortunately, they also brought me the milk chocolate chip cookie and that was always amazing.