At the end of August, not only did Blue Bell release the new Chocolate Peanut Butter flavor, but they also brought back a flavor that hasn’t been around in a while. Their Blueberry Cheesecake is made up of a rich, cheesecake ice cream loaded with cheesecake pieces and a flavorful blueberry sauce swirl. Blue Bell’s Strawberry Cheesecake, which I tried almost a year ago to the day, had been one of my favorite cheesecake-inspired flavors and one of the few to include actual bites of cheesecake, so naturally I was excited to finally see the Blueberry version show up on shelves. Even though I had to invest in an entire half-gallon carton, I was confident that I would have no issue polishing off the whole thing in due time.
Most cheesecake based flavors tend to be on the heavy side when it comes to the nutrition facts, but Blue Bell has managed to keep this particular combination to a reasonable 170 calories per serving. With the gold lid removed, I had forgotten how appealing the color of Blue Bell’s rich, cheesecake ice cream had been. If the bright beige base hadn’t been enough eye candy, my particular container had vivid stripes of blueberry sitting right under the surface. One pull across the top layer with my ice cream scoop was all it took for the visuals to really elevate. My first bite of the rich, cheesecake ice cream was just as delicious as I had remembered. Unlike some others, Blue Bell is able to find the ideal balance between tangy and sweet for their base.
Where their Strawberry Cheesecake featured actual strawberries and a strawberry sauce, this Blueberry counterpart is much better, and without actual frozen fruit, performs better too. The flavorful swirl may look purple, but it brings a ton of sweet, blueberry taste to the equation. The finishing touch comes from the actual squares of cheesecake scattered about. These chunks feature a rich, tangy cheesecake filling dusted with graham cracker that goes great with the other ingredients; all while bringing an authentic feel to this flavor. Even though I’m biased towards any flavors using cheesecake, I found Blue Bell's Blueberry version to be one of the best I’ve ever had. This also raises the question, with Fall right around the corner, why not release a Pumpkin Cheesecake?
Where I Found It: Ingles Markets
Grade: A
