The Rhetorist

Leave it to Ben & Jerry to give us Greek yogurt in a frozen state. I picked up a couple pints of these earlier in the summer and thought well enough of them to do it again. Admittedly, my favorite Ben & Jerry’s product is Cherry Garcia FroYo Frozen Yogurt. So, the Greek trend they seem to be riding seemed to please the first time around. I believe I had a blueberry one and something else, either raspberry or strawberry, with chocolate bits.

Which brings me to today’s mini-revu of a flavor I could not resist: BANANA PEANUT BUTTER!!! Once I got the item home, I hid it in the freezer till after dinner.

The local Super GIANT has had these and other premium ice creams on sale all summer including Haagen Daz, the excellent Talenti line (coconut is terrific as is sea salt and caramel) and the gorgeous Ciao Bella ones (blood orange, my favorite). So these little B&J puppies cost me $7 total for two pints. I am only reviewing the Banana Peanut Butter flavor here.

First off, the texture was problematic. I live near the store and did nothing I can conceive of to promote the texture issue, bringing the ice cream directly home. But the ice crystals indicated a re-freeze. Now, if these were not on sale all summer, perhaps it would be a supermarket issue. Then again, I hid them in the bottom part of the freezer door for three hours, so that may not be the best location.

That texture issue aside, let’s presume the general creaminess found in B&J products is consistent and not evaluate according to that criterion here and now. Overall, there is a content thickness that seems to fall in line with Greek-style yogurts, so be it.

So, what to expect from this banana peanut butter frozen yogurt?

In the half pint I put in a dish, the first bite was banana flavor that kicked your buds with a nice authenticity. Throughout, peanut butter ribbons were mild, smooth, and not profuse. The most plentiful product taste I sensed would be the yogurt itself with the banana kick, then the subtle peanut butter coming along for the ride. Sweet, no?

Uh, yeah, and that’s the problem. This was one of the sweetest frozen confections I can recall in a long time: ‘drop-dead’ sickening sweet. Okay, so I ate half a pint. That gave me two full ounces of sugar. I was literally forcing the last few spoonsful down my throat. It wasn’t quite gag material, but the sense of relief when it was all over was sufficient for me to conclude I would not be doing this again.

It also meant I would not be comfortable recommending it or awarding it anything even considered normal; hence, two stars. Look, if you like real banana, it’s in there. If you like peanut butter, it’s in there. If you like frozen yogurt, it’s in there. If you like your frozen yogurt Greek style, it claims to be that. But if you like sweets like I do yet prefer your sugar in small, respectable quantities, you will want to avoid this exact brand and flavor.

This is the first time I have ever had a problem with a Ben & Jerry’s product. These are generally delicious items I go out of the way to buy because of their high-quality Non-GMO Sourcing and strong consumer activism, among other important sensitivities. While I expect to try additional flavors in the Greek frozen yogurt product line in the future (I want to like these), for some reason I have no interest in the prior flavors I have tried; they did not hook me, and I definitely would not buy this flavor in the future ever again.

I’m sitting here typing this, thinking back to a couple of hours ago and how sickening sweet that frozen yogurt was, sparing you, dear reader, that experience. With no know diabetics in the household, I put the remainder of the container of Banana Peanut Butter Ben & Jerry’s Greek Frozen Yogurt in the freezer in full glorious view of anyone who wishes to partake. Not sure that was a very nice thing to do, but, hey, I’m a giver.