It’s kind of amazing, actually. Gingerbread is one of the few constants every winter. But as we sit here in the middle of November 2015, we have been bombarded with Hot Cocoa Everything and Sugar Cookie Everything to such a degree that Gingerbread has become almost an afterthought. So much so, in fact, that I bought these Gingerbread Pop Tarts alongside Sugar Cookie Pop Tarts at Target way back in early October but am just now getting around to them. I’ve been too easy eating so much other garbage that these Gingerbread Pop Tarts ended up in the back of the shame closet.
Gingerbread, objectively, is pretty damn delicious. It’s a sweet food-product flavored with ginger and typically uses honey or molasses rather than just sugar, according to the Wikipedia entry that I just copied and pasted from. Many gingerbread recipes use cinnamon and cloves in addition to ginger, so we’re getting awfully close to pumpkin spice here. While it may not be quite as sexy as pumpkin spice, gingerbread rarely disappoints. If you close your eyes at night when you’re under the covers with gingerbread and pretend that it’s pumpkin spice, you’re going to emerge through the winter pretty satisfied.
Confession time. I’m a Gingerbread Pop Tart virgin, if you can believe it. I went about 10 years without eating Pop Tarts, and now I feel like I’m reviewing a new Pop Tart every week. Get used to that. Pop Tarts are a lot of fun, and they introduce new varieties frequently enough to allow us food bloggers to pay the bills (this blog generates pennies in revenue, at best). We already know Kellogg’s is going to drop five new Pop Tarts all over our faces in the coming months, but I’m equally excited to try a classic flavor for the first time and finally lose my Gingerbread Pop Tart virginity. Judging from all of the content on this site, I am probably an actual virgin too.
It’ll all be over soon, buddy.
Kellogg’s Gingerbread Pop Tarts are flavored with cinnamon and ginger. They’re of the unfrosted variety, which puts them at a severe disadvantage if you’re a sugar junkie like me. It’s also a little baffling, since the best gingerbread cookies are the ones with icing on them. They smell faintly of gingerbread when you open the package, but nothing overwhelming. Eaten untoasted, I’m getting a whole lot of cinnamon. A tiny bit of ginger, but mostly cinnamon. What’s really surprising to me is how these Gingerbread Pop Tarts weren’t dry at all compared to many others I’ve tried. These were incredibly soft and the filling made these even more moist (sorry folks). I’m failing to pick up any bold ginger flavor, which is a bummer for sure. But I will admit – this was one of the better untoasted Pop Tarts I’ve eaten due to the textural qualities I highlighted above.
Then I toasted these Kellogg’s Gingerbread Pop Tarts. This confirmed how much softer these Pop Tarts were, because my Pop Tart was extremely pliable out of the oven. Even toasted, it was basically flopping around like Gumby without ever breaking. Pretty odd, but how did it taste? Like a toasted cinnamon Pop Tart. Quite enjoyable, but it didn’t release any more of the ginger flavor that I was looking for. There seems to be so much more filling in these Gingerbread Pop Tarts, and it’s something special when it’s all warm, hot, and runny. Though it’s your standard sugary vanilla filling, it complements the cinnamon flavor of the pastry wonderfully.
Did I enjoy losing my Pop Tart virginity? Hell yes. But they’re not exactly as-advertised, and it really didn’t feel like a holiday seasonal outside of the little snowboarding gingerbread man who I devoured on the surface of the Pop Tart. For this alone, I have to tack off a few points. I would recommend these to Pop Tart enthusiasts, but not so much to gingerbread junkies. I felt a little like I cheated on pumpkin spice, but I’m sure a shower or two will erase any and all traces of my affair.
How Much Guilt I Have Cheating on Pumpkin Spice Rating: 1.5 out of 10
How Much of an Actual Virgin I Probably Am Rating: 7 out of 10
Overall Rating: 6.5 out of 10
