Happy June, dear friends!

This week’s adventure began in a shopping trip nearly 3 months ago, when I was browsing one of my favorite sections in the supermarket: the cookie aisle. While there were many glorious bright days early this year, it was also exceptionally rainy here in the Lion City. On those rainy days, I found myself thinking of all things summer while watching the rain pour outside my window. Hence, on that faithful shopping day, I decided to do add something to my haul with a twist.

Although this item is available all year round, these flavors remind me of quintessential sunny days. As such, it had been sitting in my snack stash since March, waiting patiently to be unveiled at a perfect summer snacking moment. This is my foodie take on booking an Italian summer holiday ahead and excitedly waiting for the first day of my vacation to arrive! Now that it’s much sunnier and warmer here on the island, I gleefully grabbed this munchie to celebrate the beginning of the season. Who (more like what) is this snack? It is blueberry and yogurt wafer biscuits by Loacker.

Although these wafers are made in Austria, Loacker is an Italian wafer brand. I began pondering on how these flavors are celebrated in Italy. While blueberry and yogurt are rather ‘ordinary’ items that can be found in virtually every supermarket or market around the world, I was intrigued with how they are used individually in the Italian baking scene.

When it comes to dairy products in Italian bakes, I tend to think of cheeses such as mascarpone and ricotta rather than yogurt. Hence, it piqued my curiosity about yogurt’s presence in the Italian baking world. Additionally, how are blueberries enjoyed in baked goods there? I slipped into my sleuthing boots to seek the answers.

Yogurt in Italian Bakes

Yogurt is indeed present in Italy’s baking realm, through various cakes that feature it as an ingredient. The first one that caught my eye is a bundt/ring-looking cake named ciambella allo yogurt (or alternatively known as ‘ciambellone allo yogurt’). A fun fact is that ciambella is classified as a ‘breakfast cake’. Yes, it’s another Italian brekkie delight for sweet tooths along with cookies! Lemon and yogurt is a common flavor pair for the cake.

Another cake appeared in my sleuthing trail too. Italian apple yogurt cake, or ‘torta di mele e yogurt’, is part of the Italian baking circle. This cake has sliced apples on top and in the batter itself. Both yogurt cakes are noted to be easy to recreate at home, which is music to the ears of anyone who is pressed for time or are baking newbies.

Blueberries

There are many blueberry desserts in Italy, and crostata di mirtilli is a blueberry-laden bake that popped up the most whilst sleuthing. Crostata is ‘tart’ in Italian, and ‘mirtilli’ means blueberries. Some of the crostata di mirtilli in my search look like tarts, but many of them either resemble pies or are indeed pies. For blueberry fans, they look like what dreams are made of. A handful of recipes include yogurt as an ingredient for the blueberry filling.

Thinking of all the treats, I was more than ready to begin munching on my wafers!

Ciao, Munchies!

Rather than a splash of blue, this Loacker wafer package’s color scheme leans towards lavender (to my eyes at least). As someone who adores purple to bits, I love the package’s pretty hue. While there are illustrations of the wafers on the package, I was very excited to open the bag and take a peek inside.

The wafers look identical to Loacker’s regular wafers, with the only exception being the cream in-between the wafer’s biscuit layers. It is a purple-colored cream, which, funnily to me, is in the shade of Barney the dinosaur. The pop of color is a fabulous touch to the wafers’ aesthetics, plus it brings a little whimsical vibe. It kind of reminds me of ‘unicorn’ foods such as the ice creams I tasted last year, particularly because of the purple. I’m certain that’s where the magical part comes from – sprinkles of unicorn’s spirit, with a little touch of Barney! Of course, no unicorns and dinosaurs were harmed in the making of this post.

I couldn’t resist waiting any longer to reacquaint my taste buds with yogurt and blueberries!

Taste Test

At first, both yogurt and blueberry’s notes stood out, with yogurt being a little more prominent. A few wafers into the tasting experience, the blueberries took a slight lead for my taste buds, but it did not overshadow the yogurt’s role. In fact, the yogurt elevates the entire experience through the addition of a tangy flavor layer. The sweet-tangy combination is pleasant. The blueberry component is sweet and fruity (as in, fruity from a blueberry viewpoint), hence reminding me of the taste of ripe blueberries.

The waffle-like wafer biscuits taste like Loacker’s standard wafers that are used in their other flavor selections. As always, they possess a nice taste that fittingly showcases the cream.

Pushing the cookie envelope, I popped the bag into the fridge for a little experiment to experience the cold version. It turned out that the wafers are equally fabulous when they are cold, and they pack a little more crunch than at room temperature. Plus, the blueberry and yogurt flavors match the cold temperature as they feel more refreshing.

Personally, I enjoyed eating these bite-sized wafers as-is, but you can definitely add it to vanilla ice cream or froyo for added texture and flavor.

All in all, I enjoyed my fabulous Italian-inspired snack time ‘vacation’ in the Lion City!