The Good: It does not taste bad, Good scent
The Bad: Expensive, Does not taste like pink lemonade.
The Basics: A new and soon-to-be-discontinued flavor of Magic Shell Pink Lemonade Magic Shell Topping is disappointing.
Whenever a new product comes out, I look at it like both a consumer and a reviewer. As a consumer, I look at all sorts of new products and I think “that’s exciting!” As a reviewer, I seem to look at all new products I encounter when they are introduced to market and evaluate its potential for survival in its given market. There are so many crowded markets in the area of food and it seems like every company is obsessed with putting out new products instead of keeping quality of the existing product lines high and promoting the strength of their familiar products. I actually like the companies that unabashedly admit that their new products will not be around long by calling them “limited edition.” But then there are the new products that I look at upon their release and just smile to myself and say “There is no way in hell this product will survive in the marketplace.”
That was the exact reaction I had in April when I saw the Pink Lemonade Magic Shell Ice Cream Topping in my local supermarket. So, in late June when the Pink Lemonade Magic Shell ice cream topping ended up on that same store’s clearance rack, I felt vindicated. I’m not sure who the intended niche was for the Pink Lemonade Magic Shell, but it seemed like an esoteric concept.
As it is, what little flavor the Pink Lemonade Magic Shell has is only not overwhelmed by the lightest of ice creams. A good, dark chocolate ice cream thoroughly overpowers this topping.
Basics
The Pink Lemonade Magic Shell Topping is part of Smucker’s ice cream topping line and it worked just like any other Magic Shell ice cream topping. The 7.25 oz. bottle has a large flip top which allows one to squeeze the fluid out onto ice cream, whereupon it solidifies into a candy/frosting shell. This is a fun, clever idea and it works after only about a minute worth of shaking it up.
Ease Of Preparation
Shaking well is essential to Pink Lemonade Magic Shell Topping. Pink Lemonade Magic Shell is like an epoxy that then reacts with the cold temperature of ice cream. One needs to shake the product up quite a bit, then dispense it by flipping the top and giving it about a minute to set on ice cream. It is that easy. The Magic Shell forms a fairly solid candy shield on the ice cream. It is bright pink and it looks good.
Taste
For all of my ice cream topping reviews, I am utilizing Blue Bunny Chocolate Chip ice cream (reviewed here!) as it provides a neutral flavor base.
To its credit, this bright pink fluid smells incredibly like lemonade (pink or otherwise). The fruity scent is strong and surprisingly inviting.
On the tongue, the Pink Lemonade Magic Shell is sweet and has a very faint tartness to the aftertaste that is reminiscent of a fruity frosting more than lemonade. In fact, this tastes like a diluted version of a Betty Crocker canned frosting. It does not taste bad, but it is more of a generically sweet and slightly dry flavor than it is anything like lemonade. The somewhat waxy nature of the shell further dulls the hint of citrus zest in the Pink Lemonade Magic Shell.
While the aftertaste is generally as generically sweet as the Pink Lemonade Magic Shell itself, the Pink Lemonade Magic shell did have a few bites that produces a somewhat fruity aftertaste that almost made me rethink the flavor. Sadly, next bite always returned my opinion to the original one.
Nutrition
Pink Lemonade Magic Shell Topping is a dessert topping therefore not the most nutritious things in the known world. I was shocked that there was nothing unrecognizable in the Pink Lemonade Magic Shell Topping. The primary ingredients are sugar, sunflower oil, and coconut oil. It is not vegan compliant as a result of milk solids in it.
What is not a mystery is how high this product is in sugars. In each 2 Tb serving of Pink Lemonade Magic Shell Topping, there are 230 calories, one hundred sixty of which are from fat. There are 8 grams of saturated fat, so one serving of this wipes out almost half one’s ability to enjoy products with saturated fat for a day! There are less than 5 mg cholesterol and a consumer gets 2% of their recommended daily allowance of sodium out of a single serving of this topping! There is a little protein, but not enough to live off this. In other words, this product is not a nutritious food product.
Storage/Cleanup
When one leaves the Pink Lemonade Magic Shell Topping in its bottle at room temperature, it is easy to use and keep fresh. The bottle of Pink Lemonade Magic Shell we bought was not expiring until late November, so finding it on clearance now had more to do with its lack of popularity than a freshness issue. Given that one 7.25 oz. bottle does not yield anything incredibly flavorful, it was only worth buying on clearance.
Overall
Pink Lemonade Magic Shell Topping was an intriguing concept, but is poorly executed, making it utterly unsurprising that it did not survive long in the marketplace and is already on clearance.
For other Magic Shell ice cream toppings, please visit my reviews of:
Chocolate Fudge Magic Shell
Smucker’s Cupcake Magic Shell
Reese’s Peanut Butter Topping
Heath Shell Ice Cream Topping
2/10
For other ice cream reviews, please visit my Ice Cream Review Index Page!
© 2013 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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