The pros: Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Toasted Sesame Caramels are new and are a very different flavor combination than what is one the shelves currently.
The cons: I'm not sure this is a knock it out of the park flavor pairing.
The verdict: I'm not sure if anyone has this experience: you make something, you ask someone you know to try it, you get feedback. You ask, "How do you like it?" They reply: "It's interesting."
Not good, not bad, just interesting. That's the default answer in my mind when I'm not sure where should land in terms of feelings.
In fact, this type of conversation happened when I first met my then boyfriend, now husband's mother and grandmother. Now as a cultural reference point, my family is mellow, quiet German-Irish Americans who have been here since the time of the colonies. My husband's family are Bronx Italian Americans .
My now mother in law made meatloaf. She decided to up her cooking game by adding some type of BBQ sauce. I thought it was interesting. Grandma was far less forgiving in her commentary.
The word "interesting" never came out of her petite 4'8" frame.
Nope.
Her 100% pure unfiltered thoughts came flying out of her mouth in all their glory. In fact, she looked at Linda (my mother-in-law) and shared the following details: "Did you make this? It sucks. If you left it outside, even the dogs wouldn't eat this." She went on for a good 30 or so minutes afterwards sharing all of her inner most thoughts on the meal.
It was like there was a tiny Chairmen Mao sitting at the table giving a speech denouncing the efforts of her adult daughter. It made Gordon Ramsay's thoughts seem tame and gentle. I was terrified of her at the time. Things like that never happen in my family. I love her and adore and now know that comes with the territory.
I've actually thought about having her do some taste tests with me for this blog.
I thought about having her try this. This chocolate gets the rating of interesting from me.
The chocolate is dark, crisp and thick at the bottom. On the inside of each bite you get two different textures: caramel and something that reminded of a cookie.
There isn't much caramel to speak of. There was just a little bit of caramel. The part that stands out it is the crunchy cookie like item located below the caramel. I did not know if they flavor of the sesame was an asset or detriment. There was some crunch from biscuit pieces and the sesame seeds.
For $2.99 you get about 9 pieces of chocolate. Overall, it's portion controlled, but not my favorite item from the chocolate section.
Here is the visual run down of what you get if you buy this product:
The bag of Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Toasted Sesame Caramels:
The nutritional information:
The ingredients:
Would I buy this again? No, I would not buy Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Toasted Sesame Caramels again.
Want to see more items I've reviewed from Trader Joe's? Click on Thoughts & Reviews of Trader Joe’s for a searchable list.
Did you try it? Let me know what you think in the comments section!
H M says
This is basically Joyva Sesame Honey Crunch enrobed in dark chocolate. The dark chocolate is good, but the center is less appealing. Perhaps more of a baklava-bite with dark chocolate would be more of a combination, using honey rather than caramel, would have been more unique. I don't know why they just don't bring back Trader Giotto's Cuor Nocciola cookies. Fabulous and my stash is running low. Is there a platform to ask for the return of beloved items?
becomebetty says
Hey H M! Thanks for the insight on this product. I've never had the chocolate you mentioned. Any idea where it is sold? Anyways, to address your question about the return of beloved items, that should be made here: https://www.traderjoes.com/contact-us/product-feedback. Hope that helps and thanks for taking the time to stop by and share your thoughts!
Jamie Keehn says
These sound so good - I drive past a Trader Joes every day on my way to drop my kids off at school - thanks for this review! I'm a chocaholic.
becomebetty says
Hey Jamie! If you get a chance to give it a try, I'd love to know your thoughts. Thanks so much for taking the time to stop by!
Timothy Cain says
They did not have these in my SoCal Trader Joe's last weekend, but I will check again. I really want to try them. i think my review will be more like yours, and less like your grandmother's. 🙂
becomebetty says
Hey Tim! I can't wait to hear what you have to think, even if it is more kind and gentle than Grandma's LOL. I know you have a better insight on chocolate than I ever will. I'm excited to read your review of it. Thanks so much for stopping by!
Cynthia says
I picked up a package today, and will get them again -- probably more than one package to start creating a stash. I really liked them! I can't pass up dark chocolate and caramel combinations, and the sesame seed crunch was a nice addition.
becomebetty says
Hey Cynthia! Thanks so much for stopping by. I'm glad to hear you really enjoyed these. I really appreciate it when readers stop by and share their thoughts!