Creative Snacks Co. Strawberry Pretzels (Costco) Review
Author’s Note: I wasn’t paid in any way for this review. These are my own uncoated opinions. I have no affiliation with Costco or the Creative Snacks Company.
Vivacious. And mostly wholesome.
Welp. This blog is officially 18 months old, and this is my 151st post. Woop-woop!
I hate the color pink. It’s common knowledge. I make exceptions for: pink skies at sunset, pink animals, and pink food.
I’ve purchased these strawberry yogurt pretzels from Costco two years in a row. The deciding factor for me is the ingredients — these are made with real yogurt and other good stuff, like unbleached flour. There’s also an admirable absence of artificial coloring and flavors. In fact, these are colored with natural stuff, like vegetable juice. Yaaas. More about the ingredients later.
The strawberry coating is pleasantly creamy and smooth, with just a hint of yogurty-tang. It tastes like a combination of yogurt, icing, and white chocolate, if that’s your jam. There’s a subtle saltiness that complements the creaminess.
I appreciated how crisp this coating is — it doesn’t melt off while handling the pretzels. In fact, the pretzels are in excellent condition in this giant Costco-sized bag. Few are broken, and they’re not melted together. These are sturdy, resilient little fellows. They’re secure in themselves, like someone who has attended many therapy sessions.
These ARE sweet little nuggets, however. To me, they taste sweeter than your typical chocolate-covered pretzel. Plenty of sugary kick to satisfy a sweet tooth. Even though I’m a fan of “less-sweet” treats, these were still within my comfort zone. More about the Nutrition Facts later.
I would describe the strawberry flavor as “bright” and fruity. Vivacious, in fact. It’s strong enough to be enjoyable, but doesn’t overwhelm or taste fake. In fact, the aroma of berries wafting from the bag is both wholesome and irresistible.
The label says there are no artificial flavors, which is nice. The ingredients list both “natural flavors” and “natural strawberry flavor,” which apparently is derived from real strawberries. These are also made with real vanilla extract.
(Do you love strawberries? Perhaps you would enjoy my review of Fabbri Italian Strawberries in Syrup — which are made with wild berries.)
I’m not going to rave about the actual pretzels. But I’m not mad about them, either. The pretzels inside are adequately crunchy, but otherwise, they’re kinda “meh.” They aren’t very flavorful or exciting on their own — and I normally love me some plain pretzels! These are just OK. I wouldn’t call them stale, but I also wouldn’t voluntarily gush about their freshness.
With the yummy strawberry coating, you won’t notice — the total effect is very tasty.
What did I do with my pretzels?
These pretzels are a great addition to a cookie platter. I even used them in this Christmas-themed assortment. The pink color was a fun compliment to the red peppermint candy on these Fudge-Covered Peppermint Cremes from Aldi; you can read my ridiculous review of them here.
These strawberry pretzels also make great treat bags, especially for Valentine’s Day. In fact, these are kind of the perfect Single’s Awareness Day snack. Ahem.
Ingredients in Creative Snacks Co. Strawberry Pretzels
Here is my best attempt at typing out the ingredients, from the label:
Strawberry and Yogurt Flavored Coating Ingredients
- Sugar
- Vegetable Oil (Palm Kernel and/or Palm)
- Whey Powder (Milk)
- Dry Nonfat Yogurt (Cultured Skim Milk)
- Soy Lecithin
- Salt
- Vanilla Extract
- Strawberry Color (Sunflower Oil, Maltodextrin, Vegetable Juice, Citric Acid, Annatto Extract, Ascorbic Acid)
- Natural Flavors
- Natural Strawberry Flavors
Pretzel Ingredients
- Unbleached Enriched Wheat Flour (Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamin Mononitrate-B1, Riboflavin-B2, Folic Acid)
- Malt
- Salt
- Soybean Oil and/or Canola Oil
- Yeast
I’m delighted to see “unbleached” flour instead of the more ubiquitous “bleached” variety. Again, it’s wonderful to see vegetable juice used as coloring, rather than nasty red dyes. Real yogurt and real vanilla is always welcome. If I was going to nitpick, I’d say I don’t like soybean oil or maltodextrin. But I am not going to nitpick.
More Information from the Label:
- No Synthetic Colors
- No High Fructose Corn Syrup
- No Hydrogenated Oils
- Kosher Dairy
Nutrition Facts
A serving of 6 pretzels contains 140 calories. You get 6 grams of fat and 1 gram of protein. There’s also 14 grams of sugar, of which 13 grams are “added sugars.” Despite being described on the label as “salty,” you are only getting 4% of your daily value of sodium. The Salt Police will be pleased.
Price and Servings
The 26 ounce bag costs $8.49 at my local Costco. But, I’ve seen these go on sale around February. So, maybe that will happen again this year. Fingers crossed like a pretzel.
Since you get 25 servings per bag, each serving is a frugal 34 cents.
Dramatic Conclusion
I like these strawberry pretzels, even though they are pink. They’re fun and fruity, without the nasty artificial “ick.” I have purchased them twice so far, and would probably do so again. I do think better quality/more flavorful pretzels would make these taste even more awesome.
The End.
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