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Animal crackers? How about SpongeBob?

By KATHY SAUNDERS
Published October 19, 2005

When I was 5, my brother and sister and I visited the Barksdale Air Force Base clinic in Louisiana regularly to get the shots we needed to join our father at his future assignment in Germany. One thing made those dreadful visits bearable: animal crackers. Today, whenever my children visit the doctor, I always pack a box of animal crackers - even if they don't need shots.

They are called crackers, but they go in the cookie drawer in my kitchen and on the dessert list for our school lunch boxes.

Taster's Choice tried five animal-shaped cracker/cookies. Our panelists didn't reject any of the treats, but they did like the Keebler crackers ($2.99 for a 13-ounce bag) a lot more than the others. Judges gave them 70 out of 80 points.

These SpongeBob SquarePants-shaped cookies were nice and crisp, yet they didn't break easily.

"My kids will love these. They are cute and yummy," one judge said.

Two panelists said they detected a hint of lemon in the flavor. All four judges said they would buy the cookies shaped like SpongeBob and his underwater friends.

"These taste like they were just baked and they crunch like a shortbread cookie," said another taster.

One panelist enjoyed the more "up-to-date" shapes, comparing them to the circus animals in the familiar Nabisco box.

Those Barnum's Nabisco circus animal crackers (99 cents for a 2-ounce box) received 35 points. Judges said these cookies broke too easily. "Cookies should always go crunch - even if they have nothing else going for them," one judge said.

The third and fourth picks each received 32 points. They were Albertsons brand ($1.99 for a 13-ounce box) and Barbara's Snackimals ($1.09 for a 2-ounce bag).

Two of the judges said these brands would be good for younger children because they were softer. Another panelist liked the vanilla flavor in the Albertsons cookies.

Two judges disliked the Albertsons animal crackers altogether, saying they were bland and chalky.

"These look happy. They must not know what they taste like," one judge said.

"Would I give these to my badly behaved nephew? Never!," another panelist said.

But that same judge liked Barbara's, sold in the organic section of the grocery store. "These have great color, good crunch and would be great with a cup of hot tea," he said.

Also sampled were Stauffers ($2.50 for a 24-ounce package).

- Panelists were: Monique Massaro of Pepin Restaurant; Gary Kawalec, chef/owner of Supper Club, a make-and-take meal assembly business soon to open in Safety Harbor; personal chef Julie Overton; and Bob Devin Jones, artistic director of Studioat620. All products were tasted blind.

- Send suggestions for product testing to Taste section, St. Petersburg Times, P.O. Box 1121, St. Petersburg, FL 33731 or e-mail them to krieta@sptimes.com Please put TEST SUGGESTION in the subject line. To read past Taster's Choice columns, go to www.sptimes.com/food

No. 1: Keebler.

No. 2: Nabisco.

No. 3: (tie): Albertsons, Barbara's.

[Last modified October 18, 2005, 09:05:05]