Eaters, are you like me - still occasionally daydreaming about the last new snack flavor you found and wondering when the next will come along?  Okay, I'm relieved I'm not alone in that bone-deep need for new flavors of everything all the time. Sometimes, the FvF family even finds ourselves at Big Lots, scouting for discontinued, limited-edition flavors we can't find anymore.

Mikesell's launched new flavors in spring of '13 and late summer of '14 - which means southern Ohians were ready for something new. Now that the public expects it and competition gets thicker every year - they know they have to stay leveled up. In all sincerity, this company has yet to make anything I don't like. While all of their flavors aren't my jam (I'm a sucky baby about heat), they're all well developed, balanced flavors. They haven't tried to be too trendy, either. Enter Salted Caramel Puffcorn.


I know a lot of you are thinking, "Yeah, but isn't salted caramel sorta trendy?" Depending on who you ask, sure. But, salting sweets is not simply a trend or a new thing. Chefs and home cooks have been doing this for years. I don't remember how, where or when, but about a decade ago - I was traveling and got a taste of something filled with salted caramel and I, the girl who has long salted her brownies, went bonkers for the stuff. I started seeking it out everywhere, but it hadn't really gained momentum.

Is it like their Caramel Puffcorn Delites? Surprisingly, not really. I never really got into the caramel ones, because they were too sweet for me. Again, I like a little balance - a salt tooth, if you will. The flavor on the salted caramel is akin to if you were to make salted caramel at home - very rich, buttery,  and decadent. If you can make something taste buttery, I am ALL in, friends. Even people who haven't been fans of salty sweets in the past just might dig this. The flavor is mellow, but rich. Plus, no hulls and kernels - so you can feed it to babies. What are you waiting for?! Go find a baby and feed it some Mikesell's Puffcorn!!

I'll try to make this simple, eaters - I've missed you, and I plan on coming back full-force, like a boss. In October I left my career of 10 years and made a field change - got licensed and took an offer from a new employer. Terrible idea, terrible company. It was suggested I tender my resignation without a working notice - which I happily obliged, though I had no real plan. My only plan was to not be miserable anymore. Luckily, a friend's business kept me in work for a couple of months over the holidays (nothing like losing your job 10 days before Christmas, huh?) - then I landed what appears to be my dream job, short of getting paid to eat.