It's another mochi ice cream! With MANGO! I NEED! Wait a minute. This looks VERY familiar...where have you been for the last year??? But the packaging looks different? Is this different? Is this a refurbished old favorite? TJ's, take my money!
And yes, happy 50th anniversary to Trader Joe's. And yes, I've seen the alleged list of Top 50 products. With all of the delicious mochi ice creams that TJ's has made, how did a single one NOT make it on the list?? But seasoning salt did??? And Everything But the Bagel Seasoning did not???
I have generally sung the praises of most mochi ice creams that Trader Joe's has had, well except the pumpkin spice one, but I readily admit that I love to hate on some pumpkin spice. :P
The ingredient list looks VERY similar to the OG mango mango mochi. Here's a few of my observations:
1) Serving size is 6 mini pieces vs. 2 normal sized pieces.
2) They've left out vitamin C information on the label - which is kind of confusing because isn't ascorbic acid vitamin C? If there's mango, shouldn't there be vitamin C as well?
3) Both are products of Thailand, but I have no idea whether or not this is from the same supplier.
4) The OG mango mango mochi ingredient list laid out very clearly what each part of the mochi was made of - here it has a lot of the same ingredients but it hasn't been spelled out as clearly what was used for each part.
5) This one shows how much added sugar was used. They've used glucose syrup AND sugar to sweeten this product, whereas the original didn't say. The only glucose syrup used in the original was the tapioca glucose syrup in the wrapper.
All this to say...I'm a little suspicious. That's all.
Anyway, they look so darn cute. Like little eggs snuggled in a carton, wrapped in a mochi blanket. Awwwww.
They look more like bon bons than little mochis (a little too tall, needs to be a bit flatter and wider). If this were the Great British Bake-Off, I'd be taking off points for that. I think had I discovered this apart from the knowledge of the Mango Mango Mochi, I'd be singing its praises more. But I kind of can't help it. Kinda like if you have older siblings that win at life. If he was a piano prodigy and aced every stage of Kumon math, well then of course you've got some shoes to fill (and that's why younger siblings do well to not do the same things as their older siblings as to not perpetuate the comparisons everyone is automatically making in their heads. Or we could just stop comparing people and appreciate them for their unique strengths, passions, and special snowflake-ness. There was a serious comment in there somewhere :P).
These minis of course don't have the same mango jam center but are filled with just mango sorbet, a solidly good one at that with great mango flavor. I'm just feeling kinda like how A felt when I first made him try the mango mango mochi - shrugging and apathetic. It's good but not stop, drop everything, and stock up on this likely seasonal gem before it's gone (although, seeing as I haven't seen the mango mango mochi around, if you do like mango, maybe it would be a good idea to pick up a few of these). The mochi skin is average - not bad but not amazing and on the same level as every other TJ's mochi ice cream. Sigh. I'm second guessing everything now...was the original that good? Or was it just a momentary infatuation? Or is it that this is truly the younger sibling that is making a great attempt but simply not measuring up to the greatness of the first?
If you do pick these up ($3.49 for a box of 15 minis, same price as 6 regular sized ones), please note that they are best eaten straight out of the freezer. Don't let them sit out too long - because of the smaller size, the mochi skin thins out faster and loses its chewiness and the sorbet will melt sooner. Also, because they are minis, you might find yourself popping a few in your mouth one right after another...and soon enough there goes half the box. Or the whole box depending on how much self-control or self-awareness you have. Consider yourself warned.
TL;DR: Trader Joe's Mango Mini Mochi. A reprise of the original best? Not quite. But you still cute and mango-y. 7.5 out of 10.
I like these because they are not dairy or coconut milk based, the sorbet is a cute twist but as you stated, they melt super fast.
ReplyDelete