Petite Review: Tiramisu Cake Pops From Starbucks
Thursday, Friday and yesterday from 2-5 p.m. at area Starbucks stores patrons were, quite literally, given a treat. If you purchased any drink, you could try one of their new mini sugary snacks from cake pops to red velvet whoopie pies. I happened to be grabbing my daily fix of Pike Place blend when the friendly barista asked if I wanted to try one of their new treats for free. Of course I quickly agreed and asked for the tiramisu cake pop. He said my choice was the best flavor out of the bunch (which includes birthday cake and rocky road flavors). But he did it without seeming like a car salesman touting the same spiel about every vehicle on the lot.
I'm a sucker for sweets (especially baked goods) in combination with coffee. Seriously, if someone made some kind of shake where pastries and coffee were in perfect harmony, my diet would consist of at least three of them a day and I'd die humongous and happy. Enough pipe dreams, let's discuss the pop.
It consists of a traditional lollipop stick topped with a shell of lightly flavored chocolate with what looks like a coffee bean plopped on top. To my delight the topper is actually a coffee-flavored chocolate shaped to look like a bean. I am not in favor of chocolate covered beans or crunching a whole roasted coffee bean at all for that matter. So, for those of you that enjoy that kind of thing, you might be disappointed. As I took my first bite, I was greeted by a hint of coffee flavor in the chocolate coating and a soft cakey filling. It was mooshier than I was expecting, but that's not to say I wasn't enjoying it. However, when I think cake I think firm with a bit of moistness. This was more like a halfway baked cake with coffee mixed in and hand-rolled into a ball. Perhaps it was on purpose with this particular type since tiramisu is technically cake soaked in coffee which does, in fact, make its consistency much softer. Regardless of my preconceived cake notions I enjoyed the first try so I took a few more bites. The consistency was sort of getting to me, but since it's such a small treat, I think I can deal with it. All in all, I give this reasonably tasty pastry on a stick a C+. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't great.
If you missed the free giveaway days, Starbucks is selling all its new petite desserts for $1.50 apiece, with a second one for $1.
