REVIEW: Panera Brend New Product Tasting

Tonight I went to the Panera Bread in Troy for a special tasting event of new products that Panera will be bringing out soon to the general public.

So I sure you all want to know what we got to taste? Here's a rundown:

· BBQ Chicken Chopped Salad – All-natural, antibiotic-free chicken, a fire-roasted corn medley and crunchy tri-color tortilla strips tossed on crisp, chopped romaine lettuce and drizzled with a mild and sweet BBQ ranch dressing. The corn mixture includes sweet Pacific Northwestern corn, black beans, diced Poblano peppers, red bell peppers and red onions. It’s fire-roasted at more than 1,000 degrees, giving it a distinctive smokey taste.

· Napa Almond Chicken Salad Sandwich – Built on Sesame Semolina bread, this chicken salad combines thin-sliced, all-natural, antibiotic-free chicken, red seedless grapes cut fresh daily, sliced raw almonds, diced celery and a tastefully light, savory dressing. It’s served with fresh tomatoes and crisp lettuce.

· Breakfast Power Sandwich – A grilled breakfast sandwich made with all-natural, freshly-cracked eggs, a thin slice of Vermont white cheddar cheese and lean ham, all grilled between two slices of Whole Grain bread. The sandwich includes four grams of fiber and 22 grams of protein in less than 400 calories.

· Fudge Brownies – A decadent blend of rich European-style cocoa powder, melted bittersweet chocolate and whole butter.

· Macadamia Nut Blondies – Mixed with Macadamia nuts and chocolate and butterscotch chips and made with pure vanilla batter.

The tasting stations also featured some Panera favorites – breads, baguettes and pumpkin spice latte.

The best items of the evening were the Macadamia Nut Blondies -HEAVEN!, the BBQ Chicken Chopped Salad, the Power Breakfast Sandwich -very tasty to be so healthy, and the Pumpkin Spice Latte. The Pumpkin Spice Latte actually surprised me since I do not like coffee nor anything coffee flavored, but this stuff was delicious.

It was all very good and now I am stuffed. We got to write our favorite items on comment cards, so hopefully everyone will be able to try all these tasty things soon at a Panera Bread near you.