Since I got my wisdom teeth out yesterday, I thought it would be appropriate (and practical) to post about pudding. Not that it has anything to do with taste but do either of these brands have a mascot anymore? Granted, Bill Cosby has become increasingly angry as he gets older and the blond with pigtailed braids is somewhat psychotic looking, but it just feels like there should be some sort of “representative” featured on the label. Ah, if we could only go back to a simpler time when the Cos got worked up about Jell-O pudding and wore sweaters so loud, you needed ear plugs to watch his show.
First up, Jell-O:
When we peeled back the lid, the first thing we noticed was the pleasant chocolate aroma. The consistency was perfect although Ethan and I both noticed a very slight powderyness when eating this. The chocolate flavor was pretty decent although the vanilla didn’t seem to taste like anything. It could just be that chocolate has a stronger flavor and took over the vanilla. In general, this was a pretty good pudding.
Swiss Miss:
We felt this had an even stronger chocolate aroma. The consistency was smoother than Jell-O’s, and although I’m sure it was, left no reason to be reminded it was made from powder.
I like dark chocolate and I appreciated the more intense chocolate flavor Swiss Miss had. While the vanilla was still weaker, it was more detectable than in the Jell-O product. I found myself liking this a lot.
Wrap up:
No clear winner, we thought both of these were good. At the risk of upsetting Mr. Cosby, I’ll say that if given a choice, I’d go with Swiss Miss just for the richer chocolate flavor. Ethan doesn’t like dark chocolate and while Swiss wasn’t “dark chocolate”, he prefered the mellowness of the Jell-O pudding. Me thinks there shall be a re-match with a possibly more dramatic conclusion, perhaps between Hunts and Kozy Shack.
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What is Jello? Is it jelly or something? We don’t have it in australia.
Jello is a name brand. The actual wobbly substance is called “Gelatin”. Jello makes gelatin and pudding.
We reproduced this comparison with plain chocolate puddings.
My daughters found the Jello creamier, smoother and more like milk chocolate. The Swiss Miss was darker, “gloopier”, and more like dark chocolate.
When posed with the prospect of which brand to finish off, they both chose Jello.
“Pudding” meaning “custard-like substance that is cooked on the stovetop rather than baked”. So everyone is on the same page.
The only good pudding cups are Kozy Shack, anyway. Though in my Kozy Shack-less midwestern childhood, Swiss Miss was awesome because they made tapioca pudding cups. For chocolate pudding, though, Jello all the way. I felt sorry for the kids who had to bring those shelf-stable Hunt’s monstrosities.
I grew up eating Swiss Miss butterscotch pudding at my grandparents house. I don’t think I’ve ever had any type of chocolate flavor though. I never cared much for Jello chocolate pudding, but I do love me some puddin’ pops and a good dose of Bill Cosby. “Hey, hey, hey!” ?
Mmm…Jell-O could never win over Swiss Miss. I never feel denied and terrible over a Swiss Miss. I can’t say the same of Jell-O.
I don’t think I’ve ever tried Swiss Miss, but I know I always found that Jell-O’s vanilla pudding didn’t have much flavour. The butterscoth was nice though.
As for Kozy Shack, I LOVE their rice pudding. So creamy… Yum.
As it’s been a while since the original review/post, I don’t know if anyone will get this or feel like responding, but I have to know. Is anyone still able to locate/purchase Hunt’s Snack Pack Chocolate Marshmallow Flavor? I thought it was the best ever, but for around 2 years, I never see it in the store. I don’t think that it’s just as simple as a new grocery store, but I’ve tried that and was unsuccessful. I still see other Hunt’s flavors, so maybe they just discontinued the flavor? That would be disastrous, just like Bubblicious stopping the orange flavor.
@Josh – I totally agree! I sent them an email and got a canned respnse back. I just posted to their Facebook page. There is no way that falvor did not perform well. It is better than 1/2 of the flavors out there! http://www.facebook.com/ConAgraFoods