I Tried All the Little Debbie Treats and This Is the Absolute Best One

I’ll do just about anything for a food story, including buying every single treat Little Debbie makes. Yes, I did receive some weird looks from other customers while shopping, and yes, the checkout person raised her eyebrows as I set down the eight packages on the conveyor belt, but I was on a mission. A mission to find out which treat was the best. After opening and unwrapping eight different desserts, I found my winner.

How I Tested

Bias could not be eliminated because the desserts were clearly identifiable. Instead, I asked my testers to give their honest reaction to the appearance, texture, and taste of each. Water was provided to cleanse the palate between bites and breaks were given to allow testers a respite from sugar overload.

The Best Little Debbie Treats, Ranked

Out of all of the desserts, the cake-style treats ranked the worst. Testers found them “uninteresting” with “muted flavors.” Most of the desserts were deemed “overly sweet,” and left testers craving water after just one bite. The better desserts had some texture, and notably, no cream filling. Here’s how they fared:

8th Place: Swiss Rolls

Equal parts chocolate cake and cream, it’s a fun-looking dessert, but it lacks flavor. One tester even called it “boring.” We also didn’t taste much in the way of chocolate, even though the cake and coating were both supposed to be made of it. Perhaps it would be better with a cup of strong coffee.

7th Place: Chocolate Cupcakes

Testers liked the overall appearance of these chocolate cupcakes as well as their tender texture. Again, we didn’t detect much chocolate with this dessert. Instead, testers felt like this dessert was “one-note” and also left a weird taste in their mouth after eating.

6th Place: Strawberry Shortcake Rolls

We all loved the idea of this strawberry shortcake roll, but like the others below it on this list, it was overly sweet. The strawberry filling was overpowering and was so artificially flavored, that everyone found it distracting. A quick review of the ingredients revealed not a single strawberry was used to flavor it—and it tastes that way. Cute, but not a winner.

5th Place: Zebra Cakes

This was the winner of the cake-based bunch. The texture was soft and moist, which testers appreciated. The flavor was deemed “better” than the other cakes, with testers claiming they could actually discern the cake from the filling, which was great. It was better than the others, but testers still weren’t overly impressed. One even said it felt “generically sweet.”

4th Place: Oatmeal Creme Pies

The cookie itself is perfectly moist and chewy and the cream filling seemed like the right amount. It looked delicious, but testers didn’t love the deep molasses and flavor of the cookie. Again, the cream filling was sweet and didn’t provide much relief from the heavily flavored cookie. No one hated it, but no one loved it either. Try our homemade copycat recipe instead.

3rd Place: Cosmic Brownies

If a fudgy brownie is what you’re after, then this treat delivers. It’s rich and dense and hits all of the right texture notes. Unfortunately, it falters when it comes to flavor. Testers called it “bland” and wished for more chocolate. Perhaps the addition of a few chocolate chips and a pinch of salt would help this one.

2nd Place: Star Crunch

It’s a classic! A fun combination of crispy rice cereal, gooey caramel, and chocolate that doesn’t disappoint. Testers loved the texture of this treat. It was chewy and dense, but in a good way. The caramel and crispy rice were a big hit, but testers didn’t love the “raisin vibe” they tasted or the chocolate coating. It ranked high because testers enjoyed the experience and that it was uniquely different from the others on the list.

1st Place Winner: Nutty Buddy

I should let you know that my testers are big fans of the chocolate-peanut butter combination, which may be part of the reason this dessert won. Like the Star Crunch, this treat also has a fun textural component. The crispy wafer paired with the peanut and chocolate was delicious and fun to eat. Luckily the chocolate layer (which was everyone’s least favorite part of the bar) was thin, which helped the salty peanut butter inside shine. This is the only dessert I’ll buy again!