Taste-Off!
Fudge Judging: We found the best local fudge around
The winter holiday season is the best time for fudge. It’s a season of indulgence and sharing and sweets and fun — that’s what fudge is all about. Stock up on some now and hand out pounds of rich, creamy, gooey goodness as presents or keep it home and eat it sliver by...
Taste-Off: Crunchies for the Munchies
One classic question among lazy, hungry people goes like this: if you had to pick one food to eat for the rest of your life, what would it be? It’s a fun question — and, if the Trumpocalypse triggers the end of global food supply lines, possibly a relevant one. But...
Gettin’ Cheesy with it
Cheese, glorious cheese. Many thanks to you, oh creamy fromage, for always being there when we need a snack, a spread turned meal, or simply a tasty addition to a dish otherwise lacking. You complete us. Of course, we Advocate staffers jumped at the chance to eat...
Which cider house rules?
Cider is a great fall treat that’s sadly been smothered by the wave of pumpkin spice that overtakes New England when the leaves start to change. Tart, tangy, sweet, a punch of apple to the taste buds, the underappreciated cider is a robust beverage that truly deserves...
Taste-Off! Pizza Showdown, Final Round: Slices of the Southern Valley
The staff of the Advocate realized something this week: we are really full of pizza. That’s what you get when you commit to judging a blind-tasting contest between 27 of the Valley’s best by-the-slice pizza establishments. In round one, back in March, we chowed down...
Taste-Off! Pizza Showdown: The best slice in the Valley is at …
Drum roll please … After four rounds of blind taste-tests of cheese slices from 27 pizzerias across the Valley — from Greenfield to Springfield — the Advocate staff is ready to announce the winner of our summer slice smackdown. Without knowledge of where the...
Taste-off! Brownie BRAWL, Valley brownies go head to head and the winner may surprise you
Ah, the classic American brownie — it’s the chocolate chip cookie for chocolate lovers. Everybody has a brownie story. Whether your Grandma made the best, you ate that funny smelling one and couldn’t speak for a while, or you had the munchies and ate a whole tray of...
PODCAST Taste-Off! Slice Showdown Part 3, pizza from the northern Valley
It’s round three in our all-Valley pizza slice smackdown. This month we tasted pies from the northern half of the Valley, grabbing slices of cheese from Amherst House of Pizza, Sibie’s, and Sub and Pizza, all of Amherst; Antonio’s and Papa George’s, both of...
Taste-Off! Local ice cream makers go head to head
Now that summer is almost here, we’re reaching for one of our favorite ice cream combos to get us through the work week: thick ribbons of fudge and belts of peanut butter cups in sweet vanilla ice cream. We’d call it Moose Tracks, except that name has been owned by...
Slice Showdown Part 2: Which pizzeria makes the best slice in Springfield?
It’s a tough job, but someone’s gotta bloat their bellies with massive amounts of pizza to find the best slice in the Valley. This week we bring you Part 2 of our Slice Showdown and we tasted Springfield pies. Limiting our pizza to slices only, we hit the streets. And...
Taste-Off!: Dueling Donuts, which shop makes the best donuts in the Valley?
Dueling Donut Podcast Homer Simpson said it best when he drooled out, “mmmm … donuts.” That pretty much says it all: fried, crispy, sugary-sweet, warm, melty cake. Or for short “mmmmmm.” For this Taste-Off! the Advocate staff searched around the Valley for the...
Taste-Off! Slice Showdown, Part 1: Which Northampton by-the-slice pizza joint lays claim to the best?
Pizza — it’s as American as, well, burritos and frankenfurters. Determining what’s the best pizza is a heady, touchy business. And in an area where there’s a pizza joint every 50 feet or so, the stakes are high. For something that is, at its most elemental, just...
Cookie Clash: Which chocolate chip cookie is the ultimate in the Valley?
The lines were drawn. On one side, #TeamChewy and on the other, #TeamCrunchy. The Advocate’s chocolate chip cookie Taste-off was about to commence. Who would have suspected the ubiquitous and beloved chocolate chip cookie would yield such feuding within our normally...
Epic Chowder Smackdown: Old school fish shop takes top honor
Schermerhorn’s Seafood Restaurant clam chowder, Holyoke Score: 4.5 Price: cup, $3.99; bowl, $4.99 The judges found this chowder deliciously creamy and well-balanced. Amanda: Everything a clam chowder should be. You could actually smell the clams. Kristin: The clams...E-Edition
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