Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Test #173: Bacon and FRUIT ROLL-UP

The subject

Fruit Roll-Ups (or 'fruit leather' as they're generically called) first landed in BDJ Head Lab Tech Jenni S's lunchbox around second grade, when she was rocking a Dukes of Hazzard box. They provided a snack AND activity in one shot--you could simply eat them, or you could peel 'n play, make food origami, roll into a cylindrical megaphone, or (as artist Rebecca Yaker has done in the picture at left) wear--although the kids in Mrs. Wilhelmi's classroom usually would make simple beanielike hats, and not entire shirts. We weren't THAT crafty. Jenni also confesses to, on more than one occasion, adhering the sticky food to the underside of her desk so she could stealthily snack on them during class if she got peckish.

It's been a while since we've had a Fruit Roll-Up, so we decided to ride down memory lane on a strip of bacon.

The results
The strawberry-flavored roll-up, after bacon baking, completely vanished. This has happened to us before, but we were suprised that there was absolutely no fruit or anything left inside the bacon wrapper--fruit doesn't just disappear, right? Then we read the wrapper--the roll-up contains a wee bit of fruit (pear puree, with no strawberry in sight), but the rest is sugar, oil, and random chemicals. No wonder the disappearing act. There did remain a hint of sugary sweetness inside, but not much. Definitely wouldn't repeat this one--not worth the effort. Although we may seek out fruit leather with actual fruit in it, and see if those taste more like the healthful sheets of fruity fun we remember from back in the day.

The conclusion: Bacon + Fruit Roll-Up = not worth the effort

Next up: Bacon + cheese crackers

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