Review: Cole's - Middles

Cole's Middles are frozen stuffed bread bites that come in six varieties including: Plain Bread stuffed with 5 Cheese, Plain Bread stuffed with Mac and Cheese, Plain Bread stuffed with Plain Cream Cheese, French Toast Bagel stuffed with Sweet Cream Cheese, Everything Bagel stuffed with Plain Cream Cheese, and Pretzel Bread stuffed with Beer Cheese.

I was able to try the Plain Bread with Mac & Cheese, Everything Bagel with Cream Cheese, and Pretzel Bread with Beer Cheese versions courtesy of Cole's. They normally sell for $3.99 per 10.8-oz box. Each box contains eight pieces.

You can heat these up in the microwave or oven. I tried both and, as usual, the oven yields the best result although you can also microwave them for 30 seconds and give them a few minutes in a toaster oven for relatively the same results.

Just a bit of a warning, the plain and pretzel bread bites seem to be coated in butter or margarine right out of the bag so they feel a bit greasy when you grab them out.

If you bake them in the oven, they develop a thin, crispy crust and feel a lot like fresh baked dinner rolls. If you microwave them, they turn out a bit chewier and remind me a bit of a steamed bun but with a light crust.

As far as the bread portion goes, all three breads offer the same experience as a relatively fresh dinner roll. The pretzel and bagel versions only mildly feel and taste like a soft pretzel or a bagel.

As for the fillings, my favorite was the beer cheese. It didn't have a very distinctive flavor but was suitably creamy and cheesy.

The cream cheese was a little weird to me because it was warm and I prefer my cream cheese room temperature or chilled. The everything bagel seasoning gave it a lot of contrasting flavors with strong notes of onion, garlic, poppy seed, and sesame seed.

The mac and cheese didn't appeal to me. I mean, I like mac and cheese and I love bread but I'm not a fan of the carb-on-carb combination. Plus the space that the macaroni pasta takes up would be better served filled with cheese(!). I found myself wanting more filling in this one.

Overall, Cole's Middles turned out pretty well for a convenient dinner roll snack with a fresh-baked feel and a bit of filling for contrast. Fans of bagels and pretzels might be a little disappointed though.

Nutritional Info - Cole's Pretzel with Beer Cheese Middles
Serving Size - 3 pieces (114g)
Calories - 310 (from Fat - 100)
Fat - 11g (Saturated Fat - 5g)
Sodium - 560mg
Carbs - 40g (Sugar - 4g)
Protein - 11g

Nutritional Info - Cole's Everything Bagel with Cream Cheese Middles
Serving Size - 3 pieces (114g)
Calories - 300 (from Fat - 110)
Fat - 12g (Saturated Fat - 7g)
Sodium - 590mg
Carbs - 43g (Sugar - 4g)
Protein - 8g

Nutritional Info - Cole's Plain with Mac & Cheese Middles
Serving Size - 3 pieces (123g)
Calories - 300 (from Fat - 90)
Fat - 10g (Saturated Fat - 4g)
Sodium - 750mg
Carbs - 42g (Sugar - 2g)
Protein - 11g