Voortman makes several varieties of sugar-free cookies. Some are definitely better tasting than others. Their chocolate wafer cookies are "OK" but they are not the best.

Each cookie looks just like the traditional wafer cookie. Built like a double-decker sandwich, these cookies consist of three very thin wafers, separated with a layer of chocolate cream. The wafers are stamped with a repeating diamond pattern. It's supposed to resemble a honeycomb - providing lots of nooks for the chocolate cream to fill. Despite the multiple layers, each cookie is still less than a 1/2" tall. But, at nearly 3 1/2" long, this cookie is a nice size.

In fact, only 3 of them make a serving. Each serving contains 130 calories, 8g of fat, 40mg of sodium, 0g of fiber, and of course, 0g of sugar. The regular version of this cookie has 140 calories, 7g of fat, 25mg of sodium, and 12g of sugar. As you can see, the sugar-free version has nearly the same number of calories, and more fat and sodium. That sometimes happens with sugar-free products. They have to do something to make them taste good, right? Sometimes that means adding more fat and/or sodium. So don't make the mistake of thinking that sugar-free foods are "diet" foods - in some cases they are, but in many cases they are not. Remember to always read nutritional information.

So what makes these cookies sweet? Sorbitol. This sugar substitute can cause cramping and diarrhea in some people. Always start out in small doses, if you're unsure how your system will react.

How do they taste? These are not Voortman's best product in my opinion. If you are very careful, you can actually separate the layers and taste the wafer and the cream separately. The wafer is paper-thin, and tastes a bit like cardboard. OK - I don't really know how cardboard tastes, but I imagine that it's quite bland. That's what these wafers are. In fact, they really have no taste whatsoever on their own. The chocolate cream, on the other hand, is pretty good. It's sweet, creamy, and has a nice flavor. Eaten together, the two average out to just an "OK" cookie.

The 9oz. package contains exactly 30 cookies. They come in 10 neat stacks, of three cookies each. Some other brands stack their wafer cookies into a plastic tray that can easily be slid in and out of the foil package. This brand does not provide a tray. It makes it harder to keep the cookies neatly stacked, and to remove just one or two. Rather than fight, I end up just getting rid of the outside package altogether, and putting the cookies into a zip-lock bag.

With so many very good sugar-free options out there, this one doesn't receive a recommendation from me. Its taste is nothing special, and it's definitely not a low calorie or low fat food.

See www.voortman.com for more information.



Voortman's Sugar-Free Vanilla Wafer Cookies


Recommended: No