Ben & Jerry's - Keep Caramel and Cookie On (Target Exclusive)

Keep Caramel and Cookie On - Caramel Malt Ice Cream with Shortbread cookies, Fudge Flakes & Caramel Swirls

I was at Target the other day and whenever I am at Target I always pay a visit to the ice cream section to survey the contents.  Much to my surprise, I found a new Ben & Jerry's flavor!  This new flavor is a Target exclusive.  Target has four exclusive flavors:  Blondie Ambition, Brewed to Matter, Peanut Butter World and now this one Keep Caramel and Cookie On.   From the signage at Target, it looks like A Swirled of Difference (formerly known as Peanut Butter Jam Session) might be on the way out.  If that was a favorite of yours, run to Target and grab a pint while supplies last.  Keep Caramel and Cookie On appears to be a play on the classic motivational poster issued by the British government back in 1939 in anticipation of the Second World War.  The inclusion of shortbread as an ingredient also adds to the British vibe to the flavor.  Ben & Jerry's long lost Cool Britannia flavor also contained shortbread.

On to the ice cream!  Removing the lid shows the light color of the caramel malt base with some of fudge flakes visible and hints of the caramel swirl can be seen as well.  I am always curious when malt is included in the base flavor.  As a kid, I was turned off by malt flavoring because my local ice cream parlor overused the malt powder but in practice Ben & Jerry's uses malt to numb a base flavor so as not to distract from the mix-ins.  We'll see if that holds here.  Eating into the pint, the caramel base is indeed mild, but immediately encounter the shortbread cookie mix-ins.  They are soft and chewy -- they almost blend in with the ice cream texture wise.  They have a little bit more sugar in them than the shortbread pieces that Häagen-Dazs uses in their shortbread flavor.  I think that explains why they numbed the caramel base with malt -- there is enough sugar in the shortbread.  The caramel swirls were appropriately thick and flavorful.  The fudge flakes were smaller in size which seems appropriate with the other mix-ins.  It is a good combination.

All in all, a successful new pint from Ben & Jerry's.  Shortbread lovers will be happy that this ingredient has returned to the Ben & Jerry's product line.  Interestingly, it is mixed with chocolate and caramel here -- usually shortbread is mixed with fruit -- but it still worked.