News: McDonald's Testing 1/4 lb Angus Burgers

Looks like McDonald's is testing out 1/4 lb versions of their Angus Burgers out in select locations out in Ohio (Napoleon, OH and Swanton, OH confirmed). Thanks for Brand Eating reader Chipster22 for the picture and the tip.

The quarter pound version seem to be a slightly more health conscious option offering the same toppings and condiments but with the whole grain bakery-style bun that is now used on McDonald's Premium Chicken Sandwiches.

News: Subway Offers Sun Chips 6-Grain Medley in Parmesan & Herb

New Sun Chips Parmesan & Herb 6-Grain Medley chips are now being offered in snack-sized bags as a side to go with your sub at Subway.

Selling points of the new chips are a blend of six grains (in order of most abundant to least): corn, wheat, oats, brown rice, buckwheat, and quinoa, and 18 grams of whole grains per serving. They're flavored with parmesan and Italian herbs.

If Subway isn't your thing, they're also available at your local grocers (you can check which ones with Frito Lay's Snack Locator)

News: Papa John's - New Buffalo Chicken Pizza for $10

Papa John's has a new pizza out just in time for March Madness. The new, limited-time Buffalo Chicken pizza is topped with Ranch sauce, white-meat sliced chicken strips, bacon, fresh-sliced onions and mozzarella cheese, finished with a swirl of tangy, spicy buffalo sauce.

It's only available through the end of April (Editor's note 6/29 - apparently it's still available) and will cost you $10 for a large.

Review: KFC - Chunky Chicken Pot Pie

KFC's Chunky Chicken Pot Pie is one of those items I've always wanted to try but always got sidetracked by other menu items and promotion.

Thankfully, KFC currently has a promotion where the pie is $3.99 and that's as good an excuse as any to finally get me one.

News: Starbucks - Spring 2012 Line Up - New Petites Pies and Tarts

Starbucks is expanding their line of Petites mini-desserts with new Petites pies and tarts.

They're are two new pies and two new tarts and they're available for $1.50 each, two for $2.50, or six for $7.50.

News: Arby's - Buy One, Get One Free Reuben Sandwich

Arby's is offering a "buy one, get one free" coupon for their Reuben sandwich on their Facebook page here. The coupon is only good this upcoming St. Patrick's Day weekend from Friday, March 16 through Sunday, March 18.

Arby's Reuben comes with fresh, carved corned beef, melted Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and Thousand Island dressing on toasted marble rye bread and carries a suggested retail price of $4.99.

News: Burger King - Free Fries on March 17 and 18

This St. Patrick's Day weekend (March 17 to 18), Burger King is giving you a little green (they're calling it "Heinz St. Paddy's sauce" but I think it's ketchup) as well as a free value-size order of their new fries.

There's no purchase necessary and you don't have to wear green or anything like that (although you can... it is St. Patrick's Day after all). As usual, it's limit one order per customer and while supplies last.

Review: Nabisco - Belvita Blueberry Breakfast Biscuits

Nabisco's Belvita Breakfast Biscuits come with the tagline "Nutritious Sustained Energy" and are supposed to help keep you energized through the morning. They really make it sound like health food.

Each 1.76-ounce (50g) pack comes with four crunchy biscuits which provide 18g of whole grain. I picked up a box of the Blueberry flavor which contains five packs and was on sale for $2.99 at my local supermarket.

News: Krispy Kreme - HOP-inspired Donuts

While rival donut chain, Dunkin' Donuts is going all St. Patrick's Day this Spring, Krispy Kreme is going Easter with new, limited-time, egg-shaped, HOP-inspired Donuts

Celebrating Easter and the DVD release of the Easter-themed family comedy, HOP, the two new donuts are the Sprinkled Chocolate Iced Egg with Kreme Filling and the Drizzled Iced Egg with Chocolate Kreme Filling.

News: Dunkin' Donuts - New St. Patty's Day Donuts

Dunkin' Donuts has your green this St. Patrick's Day time with two new St. Patrick's Day-themed donuts: the Lucky Mint Donut and the Green Shamrock Donut.

The Lucky Mint Donut is a glazed chocolate cake donut with chocolate icing and topped with mint chocolate bark.

The Green Shamrock Donut (pictured) features a yeast donut with green icing and shamrock-shaped sprinkles.

News: McDonald's Testing Fresh Bakery Goods in New England

According to the Boston Globe, McDonald's is testing freshly-baked... um... baked goods (yeah, I really strained my brain for that one) out in the New England area.

The new items are: Cheese Danish (McDonald's actually used to serve Cheese Danishes back in the '80s), Blueberry Muffin, Multi-grain Berry Muffin, Banana Bread, and (frosted) Mini Vanilla Scones  and are made with ingredients like butter, fruit, and whole grain oats.

News: Hostess- New, Limited-time Spring Twinkies and SnoBalls

Hostess is celebrating the Spring with two new, limited-edition Twinkies and SnoBalls.

New Lemon Creme Twinkies are the result of a contest a while back where fans voted on what would be the next Twinkie Flavor. Lemon Creme beat out other flavors like Raspberry Tart, Cookies 'n Creme, and Blueberry Pie.

As for Springtime SnoBalls, instead of pink, the creme-filled chocolate cakes coated in marshmallow and coconut will be lavender for the a limited time.

Review: Carl's Jr. - Strawberry Biscuit

The Carl's Jr. Strawberry Biscuit is one of the recent menu additions brought about by introduction of sister chain Hardee's Made from Scratch Biscuits which has rolled out in the southern California market.

The biscuit is a sizable biscuit (it actually weighs more than a Sausage Biscuit at McDonald's) topped with warm strawberry jam and a squiggle of sugary glaze for 99 cents.

News: El Pollo Loco - Two New Chicken Burritos

El Pollo Loco is expanding their line of grilled chicken burritos with two additions: the Roja Wet and Chicken Avocado burritos.

The Roja Wet Burrito is available for a limited time only and features El Pollo Loco’s flame-grilled chicken joined by pinto beans, pico de gallo salsa, fresh cilantro, diced onions, and melted Jack cheese wrapped in a flour tortilla. It is then covered in Colorado sauce (a red chili pepper sauce) and topped with more fresh cilantro and Cotija cheese. On the side, there's fresh, hand-made guacamole and sour cream.

Photo Gallery: Taco Bell Headquarters Tour

I got to tour Taco Bell headquarters in Irvine, CA recently as they were preparing for the launch of the Doritos Locos Taco. I thought I'd share some of the highlights of the tour and something I whipped up in their test kitchen (it might take a while to load, there are quite a few pictures).

Review: Krispy Kreme - Chocolate-Enrobed Krispy Juniors

Krispy Kreme Chocolate-Enrobed Krispy Juniors are mini cake donuts dipped in dark chocolate. Similar to Hostess Donettes, they come in a portable pack of six.

They don't actually sell these at any of my local supermarkets, I picked these up from the Krispy Kreme Blogger Summit. I'm not sure how much they cost but I would guess between $1 and $2.

Frozen Friday: Marie Callender's - Swedish Meatballs

Marie Callender's Swedish Meatballs (aka Beef Stroganoff except with meatballs) is served with egg noodle pasta and a sour cream sauce.

The box touts a new recipe but I'd never tried it before so I really can't comment on the old recipe.

A 13-ounce box retails for about $3.99 but it's not uncommon to find it on sale around $2 to $2.50.

What's on the Menu: Lent 2012 Round Up

Here it is! A round up of the limited-time seafood fair some of your favorite fast food restaurants are offering this year. I've included pictures and descriptions to the menu items that I never got around to doing a news post for and have linked the posts I did manage to write up.

Arby's - Arby's Fish Sandwich is back

Boston Market - Baked Whitefish only on Fridays and only for a limited time.

News: Ben & Jerry's - New Flavors for Spring 2012

Ben & Jerry's has a few new flavors to try this Spring, perhaps they'll catch your fancy. They are: the returning Chocolate Therapy (last seen in pint form in 2005), Chocolate Nougat Crunch, and Rocky Road-ish.

While Chocolate Therapy has been available in Ben & Jerry's Scoop Shops, it now returns to your grocery aisle in pints. It features chocolate ice cream with chocolate cookies and swirls of chocolate pudding ice cream.

News: Papa Murphy's - New Mini Murph Make 'N' Bake Pizza Kit for Kids

Kids can now make their own pizzas courtesy of Papa Murphy's new, limited-time Mini Murphy Make 'N' Bake Pizza Kit.

Each kit is contained in kids-sized pizza box and includes:

- A seven-inch pizza crust rolled out on Papa Murphy's signature bake 'n' serve tray
- a container of pizza sauce
- 100% all-natural, whole-milk mozzarella to sprinkle on the pizza
- almost a dozen slices of pepperoni
- a temporary "Murph" tattoo
- and baking instructions

Review: McDonald's - Shamrock Shake

McDonald's Shamrock Shake is a seasonal St. Patty's Day-themed shake and blends mint-flavored syrup with reduced fat vanilla ice cream and tops it off with whipped cream and a maraschino cherry.

I paid $1.89 for small 12-ounce size at a local McDonald's.

News: Ben & Jerry's - Free Cone Day Set for April 3, 2012

It's that time of the year again... Free Cone Day at Ben & Jerry's! This year on Tuesday, April 3, 2012, you can once again wait in line as many times as you want (or can stand) and stuff your face with free ice cream cones!

When: Tuesday, April 3, 2012, 12pm to 8pm

Where: At participating locations. You can check at their store locator to see which locations are participating: http://www.benjerry.com/scoop-shops/scoop-shop-locator/index.cfm

News: Starbucks - "Espresso Twice, Half the Price" Event

Starbucks is kicking off spring with a "buy one, get one half-off" promo that they're calling the "Espresso Twice, Half the Price Event."

The event runs from Thursday, March 8 to Wednesday, March 14. During "Espresso Twice, Half the Price," if you buy any espresso-based drink before 11 a.m. and bring back your receipt the same day after 2 p.m., you can get a second espresso-based drink for half-price.

News: Jimmy Dean Launches New Breakfast Quesadillas

Having already "been there, done that" with breakfast sandwiches and breakfast bowls, Jimmy Dean is expanding their breakfast line with new Breakfast Quesadillas which gives your the familiar eggs, sausage, and cheese but in a quesadilla.

There are two varieties to choose from: Jimmy Dean Sausage Quesadillas and Jimmy Dean Delights Turkey Sausage Quesadillas. Jimmy Dean Delights is the Jimmy Dean line of "better-for-you" breakfast options offering lower fat and lower calories than the regular line.

News: Just Born - New Hot Tamales 3 Alarm Candy

If you like your candy extra spicy, you're in luck because Just Born just released new Hot Tamales 3 Alarm cinnamon candy.

It's called "3 Alarm" because each package actually has three different levels of heat denoted by different colors. There's the most familiar and lowest heat in orange Hot Tamales Cinnamon. There's the hotter red Hot Tamales Fire. And, finally, there's the "hottest" Hot Tamales which are a dark red.

News: Dairy Queen - March Blizzard of the Month - Mint Oreo

For March, Dairy Queen's Blizzard of the Month is Mint Oreo coinciding with the 100th birthday of the Oreo cookie. Wow! That's a lot of years on the Oreo.

Mint Oreo takes Oreo cookie pieces and mixes with cool mint and creamy vanilla soft serve. It's like mint chip except mixed with cookies 'n cream.

Dairy Queen also has a buy one, get one for 99 cents Blizzard promotion all of this month.

News: Blue Bunny - New Cadbury Ice Cream Bars and Other New Products

Blue Bunny is out with a lot of new ice cream products this month. They have new Cadbury ice cream bars, new no sugar, lower-calorie "Sweet Freedom" ice cream bars and ice cream, a couple of new flavors inspired by celebrity chef Duff Goldman, and a new snack-sized version of their Champ! Cones.

The new Cadbury Ice Cream Bar features Blue Bunny ice cream dipped in a Cadbury chocolaty coating. These snack-sized bars come 8 to a box and come in four varieties: Caramello, Double Chocolate, Vanilla Chocolate, and Chocolate Almond.

Review: Taco Bell - Doritos Locos Taco Supreme

Since the Doritos Locos Taco is arriving at Taco Bell restaurants nationwide in two days and since I got to try it early at Taco Bell headquarters, I thought it timely to post a review.

The Doritos Locos Taco is the same Taco Bell Crunchy Taco that you know and love but with a Doritos Nacho flavor taco shell. Breaking it down, there's seasoned ground beef, lettuce, and shredded cheddar cheese (plus sour cream and diced tomatoes if you opt to go "Supreme." in a Doritos taco shell.

News: Zatarain's - New Meals for Two

New Orleans-style food brand, Zatarain's is expanding its recent frozen food line up with new Meals for Two as well as two new single-serve entrees.

Meal for Two are frozen entrees meant to be cooked in the microwave or skillet, are 24 ounces each, and carry a suggested retail price range of $6.99 to $7.49 each. The four new meals are:

Blackened Chicken Alfredo for Two which contains seasoned, grilled white meat chicken and penne pasta in an Alfredo sauce.

News: Sara Lee - New Pound Cake Slices

Sara Lee is now serving up their famous Pound Cake by the slice in your local frozen food section/aisle. The new Pound Cake Slices come six to a box and are individually packaged which is convenient for on-the-go eating as well as yielding a fresher experience when eating dessert for one.

News: Cold Stone Creamery - New Frozen Yogurt Creations and Shakes

For a limited-time Cold Stone Creamery is making new Creations and Shakes made from Cold Stone’s low-fat, low-calorie yogurt. The new creations and shakes feature Vanilla, Chocolate and Raspberry Yogurt flavors paired with Fruits, Pie Crust, Fudge and other Mix-ins in various combinations.

For Yogurt Creations, Coldstone is serving up three varieties: Strawberry Crumble, Chocolate Banana Indulgence, and Berries Upon Berries

Strawberry Crumble combines vanilla yogurt with strawberries and pieces of graham cracker pie crust.

Feature: Krispy Kreme Donut Concepts and Creation

After the a morning of coffee and donut pairings as well as learning about: Krispy Kreme marketing (very much about social media and fan engagement rather than TV spots); fundraising programs (great margins for fundraisers--you can get the donuts or certificates for half off and sell them for the regular price); and just the people in the company (it seems like everyone working there has their own Krispy Kreme story and memories), the last thing we did at the Krispy Kreme Blogger Summit was participate in a short class in sensory education (part of the Krispy Kreme University experience) and to have at it with our own donut creations.

Basically, we had the full run of their internal Krispy Kreme shop and donuts; it's like your very own donut shop for an hour... only for free!

News: Subway - The Jalapeno Tuna is March 2012's Featured $5 Footlong

I guess even Subway is jumping onto the Lenten wagon considering this month's Featured $5 Footlong, the Jalapeno Tuna Sub. The Jalapeno Tuna is basically their Tuna Sub but with jalapenos but it gets a name this month. As always, it's served on your choice of bread and with your choice of veggies and condiments.

The Jalapeno Tuna is available for $5 when you purchase the Footlong version all month long.

News: Burger King - New Bacon & Bleu and Bacon Cheddar BBQ BK Chef's Choice Burgers

Burger King is continuing their fancification (not a real word but I'm going with it) efforts by expanding their BK Chef's Choice Burger into a premium line of burgers with the limited-time addition of the Bacon & Bleu Chef's BK Choice Burger and the Bacon Cheddar BBQ BK Chef's Choice Burger.

BK Chef's Choice Premium Burgers all feature premium ingredients (for the fast food segment), like hardwood smoked bacon, sliced red onions & tomatoes, romaine lettuce, cheeses and artisan-style buns. They're available for a limited-time at participating BK restaurants.

The new Bacon & Bleu BK Chef's Choice Burger is built with a 5.5 ounce flame-grilled seasoned ground chuck patty topped with thick-cut, hardwood-smoked bacon, Bleu cheese, red onions, sliced tomatoes, Romaine leaf lettuce, and mayonnaise on an artisan-style bun.

Frozen Friday: Marie Callender's - Three Meat and Four Cheese Lasagna

Marie Callender's Three Meat and Four Cheese Lasagna is a 31-ounce frozen entree meant to serve four and comes with a nifty guarantee: if you don't love it, it's free (up to $8.00 by mail. Offer expires 5/31/12).

I picked it up at my local supermarket for $6.49.

News: Kashi - Four New All Natural Steam Meals

Frozen steam-cook meals have been pretty popular recently in the world of frozen dinners so it's no surprise, that healthy lifestyle brand, Kashi, is out with all natural Kashi Steam Meals.

The four new meals are Chicken Fettuccine, Sesame Chicken, Roasted Garlic Chicken Farfalle, and Spinach & Artichoke Pasta. They come in 9.5-ounce single-serve bags and all feature the company's signature (if a bit redundant) Kashi Seven Whole Grain blend which provides at least 35 grams of whole grain per serving. Each bag carries a suggested retail of $3.99.

Chicken Fettuccine takes Kashi Seven Whole Grain fettuccine pasta and all-natural white chicken and complements them with broccoli florets, mushrooms, tomatoes and yellow zucchini as well as a light white wine parmesan cream sauce and a hint of zesty lemon.

News: Freschetta - Now with Sea Salt and Olive Oil in the Sauce

I've been seeing sea salt and olive oil added to some of the frozen meals I've tried so it shouldn't be too big a surprise that the Schwan Food Company has added sea salt and olive oil to the pizza sauce of their line of Freschetta Brick Oven pizzas.

The Freshette Brick Oven pizzas whose sauce is now made with sea salt and olive oil include: 5 Italian Cheese, Pepperoni and Italian Style Cheese, Zesty Italian Style Supreme, Spinach & Mushroom, and Three Meat Medley.

It looks like they're looking to expand the inclusion of sea salt and olive oil sauce to other Freschetta pizzas as well; the Naturally Rising line of Freschetta pizzas is to include sea salt and olive oil later this year.

Review: Krispy Kreme - Glazed Cherry Pie

Krispy Kreme's Glazed Cherry Pie is of the pocket pie variety with a sealed glazed crust and a cherry filling.

It retails for $1.09 according to the box but they don't sell these in my area; I picked this one up at the Krispy Kreme VIB Blogger Summit because it came in a box and they said I could have it.

News: Del Taco - Crispy Shrimp Tacos and Burritos Back for a Limited Time

Another dish in the Lenten flood of seafood seasonal offers, Del Taco's Crispy Shrimp returns for a limited time. The shrimp is available to you in three forms: Crispy Shrimp Taco, Baja Shrimp Taco, and Baja Shrimp Burrito.

The Crispy Shrimp Taco comes with crispy, fried, battered shrimp, fresh made pico de gallo, cabbage, and "savory" secret sauce (Does that mean Thousand Island? Or something else?) in a flour tortilla with a lime wedge on the side.

The Baja Shrimp Taco is the same deal except secret sauce is replaced with the equally descriptive "tangy" Baja sauce. I'm guessing it might be similar to tartar sauce.

Neat: Justice League Tots at Sonic

For a limited-time, Sonic is featuring DC Comics superheroes in Tot form in their Wacky Pack kids' meals.

Tot toys are stuffed potato tot shaped stuffed plush dolls and, in this case, are made to resemble a popular cast of Justice League characters.

The ten Justice League Tots available are: Clark Kent, Superman, Wonder Woman, Martian Manhunter, The Flash, Hawkgirl, Aquaman, Supergirl, Bizarro, and Plastic Man. Sadly, it seems they were unable to license Batman and the Green Lantern.

Also available (but not as neat) is a special Tots card deck.

News: Popeyes - Butterfly Shrimp Tackle Box Back for a Limited Time

The Butterfly Shrimp Tackle Box is back at Popeye's to join the deluge of limited-time seafood products that arrive for Lenten season.

Popeyes' Butterfly Shrimp is slow-marinated in a blend of Louisiana seasonings before being battered, and deep-fried. The Tackle Box included 8 Butterfly Shrimp, an order of Cajun fries, and a biscuit for $4.99.

They'll only be around through March 25.

In addition to the shrimp promotion, Popeyes is running a game-piece promotion dubbed the Fanta Peel-and-Win promotion through May 13th. Game pieces can be found on 32- and 44-ounce cups.

News: Baskin-Robbins - 3-Point Chocolate - March 2012 Flavor of the Month

It's March which for college basketball fans means March Madness. To celebrate, Baskin-Robbins' March 2012 Flavor of the Month is 3-Point Chocolate.

3-Point Chocolate features chocolate-flavored ice cream with a salty caramel ribbon and orange-colored caramel pretzel balls. Baskin-Robbins is also featuring the flavor in a 3-Point Sundae which is made with 3-Point ice cream, hot fudge, Reese's Peanut Butter Sauce, crushed Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, and whipped cream.

In Baskin-Robbins stores nationwide for all of March, 3-Point Chocolate is available by the scoop (cup or cone) or as a sundae. You can also take it home in hand-packed pints, quarts, and half-gallons. Like most ice cream shops, you can always get a small sample before deciding.

News: Dunkin' Donuts - New Angus Steak & Egg Sandwich

Dunkin' Donuts adds to their breakfast line up with the new Angus Steak & Egg Sandwich.

The Angus Steak & Egg Sandwich consists of Angus beef, an egg, and melted American cheese on an oven-toasted onion bagel. It's made to order and available all day long.

The Angus Steak & Egg Sandwich is only available for a limited time at participating Dunkin’ Donuts restaurants nationwide.

News: Krispy Kreme - 2012 Glaze the Nation Tour is On!

Krispy Kreme is celebrating their 75th birthday in proper festive fashion with the Glaze the Nation Tour 2012.

The event runs for several month (260 days) and features the Krispy Kreme Cruiser, a restored 1960 Krispy-Kreme-branded Flxible Starliner, traveling across the nation bringing prizes, donuts, giveaways, and more.

You can follow the tour and get more details at GlazetheNationTour.com. The tour started this month in Daytona and the next stop is Johnson City, Tennessee on 3/16/12.

News: McDonald's Testing Fish McBites

McDonald's is testing a fish version of their Chicken McBites: Fish McBites out in the Dallas/Fort Worth area and a couple of other market according to the Huffington Post.

Fish McBites feature breaded, bite-sized pieces of Alaskan Pollock and come with tartar sauce for dipping.

As to how they look and taste? One critic from the Dallas Observer (who happens to be a fan of the Filet-O-Fish) did not have such great things to say. Among his comment were this statement: "...I can say with a large degree of confidence that Fish McBites are the worst things McDonald's has created in some time."

News: Papa Murphy's - New Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza

Papa Murphy's Take N' Bake Pizza's latest creation, the Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza, is a fairly novel innovation that sits somewhere between a burger and a pizza.

The pizza starts off ordinarily enough with Original Crust but then instead of pizza sauce there's Burger Sauce--a blend of mustard and ketchup. Going from there the pizza is topped with mozzarella cheese, ground beef, bacon, onions, and Roma tomatoes before being finished with a layer of dill pickle chips and a sprinkling of cheddar cheese.

News: KFC - $3.99 Pot Pie for a Limited Time.

The Chunky Chicken Pot Pie is an often overlooked menu item at KFC; it looks like KFC is looking to remedy that by offering it for a limited-time promotion price of $3.99.

The pies normally sell around the $5 to $6 mark depending on location.

Each Pot Pie contains a filling of KFC chicken, green peas, carrots, potatoes, in a home-style sauce covered with a light, flaky crust.

News: Subway - Free Cookie with Purchase on Feb 29

Since it only comes once every four years, Subway is celebrating the extra day in February (that's the 29th in case you miss it...) by offering a free cookie with any purchase.

While it's nothing to go running to your local Subway about, it's still a nice treat and added bonus if you happen to catching the tail end of the "FebruANY" $5 Footlong promotion.

Remember the offer is only good tomorrow, Wednesday, February 29.

News: Sonic - New Sweet Potato Tots and Limited-Time Popcorn Chicken Deal

Sonic Drive-In is known for their potato tots and with sweet potato fries fast becoming a popular alternative to regular fries, Sonic is now out with Sweet Potato Tots!

They're available for a limited-time as an upgrade over the standard tots in a combo or alone and look to be pretty interesting.

In addition to the new menu item, Sonic is also offering a limited-time deal of a "snack-size" portion of their Jumbo Popcorn Chicken for $1.99 after 8pm.

Review: Jack in the Box - BLT Cheeseburger

Jack in the Box's BLT Cheeseburger along with their Bacon Shake is part of their bacon-themed limited-time offers. The burger takes a beef hamburger patty and accompanies it with hickory-smoked bacon, shredded lettuce, sliced tomatoes, pickles, American cheese, and mayo-onion sauce.

It's offered as part of a combo with a small order of fries and 20-ounce drink for $4.99 or you can get just the burger for $3.29.