The Grocery Store Brand Peanut Butter Pretzels That Outshine Utz And Costco

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Trader Joe's popularization of peanut butter-filled pretzels has inspired other grocery stores and retail brands to sell their own versions. Our taster sampled several peanut butter-filled pretzels to find the best of the best. While Costco's Kirkland Signature and Utz were worthy contenders, it was Whole Foods Market 365 brand that beat both varieties and landed in second place.

Whole Foods Market 365 brand Peanut Butter Pretzel Nuggets reigned supreme for their taste, texture, and sodium content. The Costco nuggets had less peanut butter filling than our taster wanted, while the Utz pretzels were a bit too salty. However, the 365 brand nuggets were extra crunchy and had far less sodium than competitors. The low sodium content helped the malty, toasty, pretzel flavor shine while also playing up the sweetness of the peanut butter filling. The sweet, salty, and savory flavors in these pretzels were the most well-balanced of the bags our taster tried, making them especially poppable. They also come in smaller bags compared to most competitors, making them ideal for smaller households who might not get through larger bags without half the pretzels going stale. They still didn't beat Trader Joe's peanut butter-filled pretzels, but they were very close.

We found thousands of reviews on Amazon for the Whole Foods Market 365 brand Peanut Butter Pretzel Nuggets, and the vast majority were above 4 stars at the time of writing. One customer loved how they were "crunchy and then creamy" while another commented that they're "incredibly filling, which means you get more bang for your buck!" Reviewers point out that the peanut butter is plentiful and a good source of protein. However, some negative reviews claim that the nuggets have changed, with less peanut butter filling and fewer pieces in the bag. One comment lamented that they now taste "Much [drier and with] less peanut butter flavor, at times I was wondering if there was even peanut butter in them."

Still, the consensus is overwhelmingly in favor of the Whole Foods Peanut Butter Pretzel Nuggets as hearty, filling snacks with the perfect crunchy, creamy textural contrast. The grocer also sells a solution to the thirst you may have after eating both peanut butter and pretzels: Wash them down with a glass of Whole Foods Market 365 organic milk or soy milk. While these nuggets strike the perfect balance of savory and salty, you can take them in a sweet direction as well. Crush them up as a garnish or even use them as the base of a peanut butter pie. They'd also be a good garnish for a decadent peanut butter, chocolate, or even a vanilla milkshake.