Junk Food Nation, today is a big day. A HUGE day. Yes, I know the health care decision is coming out today…but I’m not even referring to that. I’m referring to the night of all nights of the year: THE NBA DRAFT.

I previously spoke about the sham that is the NBA Draft Lottery, the process that decides the draft order for tonight’s draft.  Here’s how it looked:

The complete silence, the tepid clapping, the awkward cut aways to the owners in the audience? Yep, that’s dramazzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

The MLB Draft has some 1500 people drafted.  During the NFL Draft 6-7 players will be drafted per team and they will be able to fix some holes on a very large roster.  But no other draft can truly have an impact on a team than the NBA Draft.  Why? Because in basketball, five people play at once. Only five. So one player drafted could represent 20% of your team.  20% more success.  Or 20% more bustarooney.

Even more difficult in the NBA is deciding WHO can actually be a help to your team.  Does the college game translate to the professional game?  Is one average sized college player who was amazing even TALL enough to play in the NBA, ruled by near-7-foot athletes? And if my team is loaded with big guys and needs shooters, but the best overall player when my pick comes around IS a big guy, what do I do?

The NBA Draft has the unique blend of a draft pick potentially having a HUGE impact and the players themselves being a GIGANTIC risk. They can’t hide in the minor leagues to get better.  They can’t be third string on an NFL bench til they gain burst, size, etc.  No – if you’re drafted high in the NBA, it’s because you are supposed to be a starter. And that is frightening to a lot of teams. Remember Sam Bowie? No? Google him.

I’ve already valued my top March Madness college prospects. Tonight we’ll get to see anxiety, desperation, anger, victory, and gambling all on one show. No, it’s not the new season of Dallas. It’s the NBA Draft.

Today’s junk food: New Pepperidge Farm Fiesta Cheddar Jingos!

New Pepperidge Farm Fiesta Cheddar Jingos: The Money Shot

New Pepperidge Farm Fiesta Cheddar Jingos were purchased while I was walking around looking for groceries, and there was the huge display at the end of the aisle. Fiesta!!! it cried out.  I had to buy them.  Plus, it’s been a while since I’ve reviewed a Pepperidge Farm product.

Snappy!

So what does “Jingos” mean? I thought of a slew of inappropriate definitions, but then decided to Google it.  Jingoism is belligerent nationalism – that ain’t good.  Jingo is also a town in Miami County, Kansas. Yeah can’t imagine that’s it.  Also from Wiki: Jingo (novel), from the Discworld series. Yeah…

Kinda lazy, but effective

New Pepperidge Farm Fiesta Cheddar Jingos sounds like a great flavor, but I’m bored with how whenever anyone does a “Fiesta”-type snack, the packaging usually displays a block of cheese having sex with a pepper.  I mean, I get it, it’s easy to understand the flavors right away…but why not doll this box up with Mexi-colors and more festive font if you’re gonna go that route? I’m sure you’d only offend like 33% of people.

Always like 2x seasoning

Uniquely crunchy? This I gotta feel.

Decent calorie ratio

Considering I ate 200 calories in one Thin Mints candy bar, 23 Pepperidge Farm Fiesta Cheddar Jingos crackers for 140 is amazing.

I always like tomato powder

Since Jingos are seasoned twice, I figured the ingredients would be listed twice #rimshot #thatjokemadenosense

Little seasoned crackers

New Pepperidge Farm Fiesta Cheddar Jingos smelled strongly like cheese as soon as I opened the box… like cheese mixed with tomato, actually.  It had that sort of tangy smell when you mix queso and salsa. I crunched on a nice fingerful of these crackers, and…

Extremely flavorful!

WOW.  These New Pepperidge Farm Fiesta Cheddar Jingos were actually pretty good!! the first thing I noticed WAS the texture and feel of the crackers.  They were VERY crunchy. Not break your teeth crunchy, but I think in the era of flaky crackers where everything is loaded with butter, these were a nice texture contrast.  One cracker eaten by itself provided plenty of crunch – they reminded me of a crunchier version of those hexagonal crackers you get with soup in restaurants. Crunchy and starchy.

And the flavor lived up to the hype.  I could already see that they were well powdered, but the taste was spot on.  Yes, it tasted a little artificial – but I still really enjoyed it.  The cheese tasted more like nacho cheese than cheddar cheese, but I was ok with that.  The added tomato, garlic, and onion powders definitely provided the proper spice profile to slant this cheesy cracker more in the “festive” direction, as did the bits of red and green pepper.

Flavor-wise? Nothing special, just decently cheesy.  You’re really buying these if you’re sick of flaky buttery crackers and want a little more bite.  These really succeed in that area.

PURCHASED AT: GIANT FOOD

COST: $2.50 on sale

Thoughts? Please comment below (I always reply) or hit me up on Twitter @junkfoodguy or LIKE my Facebook Page and message me there. Also, you can always email me at junkfoodguy@junkfoodguy.com. Let’s hang out.

Sincerely, Junk Food Guy