There’s a stretch of summer when the heat makes you want something sweet and a little playful, and Target is where I end up chasing that mood — tossing whatever catches my eye into the cart and calling it dessert.
1. America’s 250 Anniversary Edition Birthday Cake Drizzled Mini Rice Cakes – 4oz – $3.79
Feather-light rice cakes get a swirl of birthday cake flavor and a patriotic red-white-and-blue look, timed for America’s 250th and every backyard cookout in between. They’re the kind of thing that disappears fast in a kid’s lunchbox or a Fourth of July snack spread — one bag, gone in an afternoon.
Taste: The rice cake stays airy and crisp, so the birthday cake coating reads more like a light glaze than a heavy candy shell — sweet up front, then it just melts away. Texture-wise it’s closer to a popped-corn crunch than a cookie.
Make It Better: Break a few into pieces over vanilla ice cream for an easy sundae topping — the crunch holds up better than sprinkles.
Parting Thoughts: A fun grab for kids’ snack bins, though adults wanting real cake flavor should look elsewhere.
2. JOYRIDE Ice Pop Strips – 3.5 oz – $4.99
Sour candy fans, add this to the cart: these chewy strips are built like a popsicle, in flavor if not in form, and they’re the kind of thing that vanishes from a beach bag or a road-trip console in one sitting. It’s a shelf-stable candy, so no cooler required.
Taste: Sour up front in a way that makes you squint, then it settles into a fruity chew that actually holds its shape instead of turning into a gummy blob. The sourness is real, not a light dusting that disappears after one bite.
Make It Better: Stash a strip in the freezer for ten minutes first — it firms up and stretches the sour hit even longer.
Parting Thoughts: Best for the certified sour-candy crowd; if you wince at Warheads, skip it.
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3. Tru Fru White and Milk Chocolate Frozen Strawberries – 8oz – $7.29
I keep a bag of these tucked behind the ice trays for nights I want dessert without turning on anything — real strawberries dipped in a two-tone chocolate shell, frozen solid and ready in seconds. It’s freezer real estate, not a pantry grab, but it earns the space.
Taste: The strawberry stays juicy under the shell, so you get a hard chocolate crack followed by a cold, almost sorbet-like center. It’s sweet, but the fruit keeps it from feeling like straight candy.
Make It Better: Let them sit out five minutes before eating — the shell stays crisp but the fruit softens just enough to bite through easily.
Parting Thoughts: Worth the freezer space if you like fruit-forward desserts; skip it if you want something to toss straight in a bag.
4. Oreo Limited Edition Firecracker Pop Sandwich Cookies – 11.46oz – $5.39
Bite into one of these and it’s suddenly summer circa third grade — the classic Oreo cookie sandwiched around a firecracker-pop-flavored creme, built for lunchboxes, potlucks, or a nostalgic solo snack with a glass of milk.
Taste: The cookie itself is the same snappy, cocoa-forward wafer you know, but the creme brings a fruity, faintly tart popsicle flavor instead of classic vanilla. It’s a little more candy-forward than a standard Oreo, less straightforward chocolate.
Make It Better: Crush a few over vanilla soft-serve or blend into a milkshake if you want the flavor without eating the whole sleeve.
Parting Thoughts: Oreo completists will want this one, though it’s a novelty rather than a new go-to.
Keep Reading
- Must-Try Snacks You Can Only Find At Target
- 20 Shockingly Good Target Finds I’m Buying on Repeat
- Things I Never Leave Target Without
- The Ultimate Target Shopping Cheat Sheet: Clean, High-Protein & Worth It
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