No-Pudge? No way.

Last week, I was at Trader Joe's and picked up a box of their "No-Pudge" brownie mix. I made them this weekend.

To be fair, I wasn't expecting much since they're fat free. There's no way a brownie without fat can taste as good as the fudgy brownies I make, with 2 sticks of melted butter & 4 eggs. Basically, I was expecting them to taste pretty much like any other brownie mix. You know, chocolate-y, with a brownie texture and preservative-y. These brownies somehow failed to even meet my meager expectations. They were the worst brownies I've ever had. They did have the brownie texture, but the taste was... off. Kind of like chocolate, but overpowered by preservatives, and with a very odd after taste.

I don't get the hype over these things. Overall, my recommendation is to skip these brownies. If you're eating a brownie anyway, you should have a good one and fully enjoy it. I'll post my favorite full-fat recipe soon.