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clusters cereal.

its my favorite cereal and i havent been able to find it in months... or maybe the stores close by just arent stocking it???

also ranch wheatables. i loved those crackers...

Trader Joe's Sweet & Hot mustard -- among other things they've ripped from their shelves without a moment's notice!

Also, Spice Islands used to make this amazing product called onion pepper -- it was the perfect seasoning for steak, and well, everything!

I still miss Baskin Robbins' chocolate raspberry truffle ice cream. I'm not sure if the gummy "truffles" would appeal quite as well to my adult pallate, but recently I had a flourless choclate cake with raspberry sauce, and that flavor combo took me right back to those days when my mom would take me for a special treat at BR.

smucker's quince jelly.

blue moon ice cream (still exists, but _very_ hard to find).

Trader Joe's Ginger JoJoes. Those things were AMAZING.

And I mourned and horded Mother's Animal Cookies until they started making them again. And their iced oatmeal.

I performed similar actions as Tiamat when someone (thank GOD mistakenly) told me Celestial Seasonings had discontinued Roastaroma. There are few foods (and brand specific foods) I would say this about, but I don't want to live in a world without Roastaroma.

Royal Cherry candies.

I loved those. My sister would buy them at her secret store and then resell them to me for $.25 each. At the time the entire package cost $.35 .

And my mom wouldn't stop her because 1) it was candy and the high cost thus limited my consumption, 2) she thought it taught me a good lesson about supply and demand, 3) she thought I would gain a sense of outrage and do without them. Which I never did....I remained obsessed. I did learn about supply and demand.

I still have a half-eaten roll in my desk drawer as a memory of the old days. It must be at least 20 years old.

This topic is near and dear to my heart, because it has always seemed that as soon as I start liking a new product, it gets discontinued. The list is so long that I can't even remember most of them any more. I am like the angel of death for packaged foods.

Anyway, the all-timers that come to mind first:

1) Sarah Lee Chocolate Cake. This was sold frozen next the pound cake. How awesome was that stuff.

2) Burry's Fudgetown Cookies. The best.

Interesting that these are both chocolate items, but I'm not a particular chocoholic.

Ah, memories.

Trader Joe's used to make a simmer sauce called Instant India that was super-hot and made anything you put it on awesome. Chick peas and rice have never been the same since it left my life.

In the 90s, I was obsessed with Nesquik Banana Mix... it was so good, but I haven't seen it in stores since I was a kid. Apparently they still sell it in places that are NOT the United States. I miss it!

That Viennetta cake! I think it was Breyers? It was an ice cream type cake. Mmm!

Oh man I feel the same way about Pelican Punch. I do remember that it had carob, but I don't really remember much about it besides that except that it was a major treat. Please post if you find out where we could get some 25 year old boxes of the stuff, or can recreate it somehow.

jell-o puddin' pops.

right before i clicked on "comments" i thought, "i can't think of anything i like that's been discontinued".

then i saw jell-o puddin' pops.

yeah. that.

1. the swedish chef's croonchy stars cereal (cinnamonnamony goodness)
2. russell stovers rosebud mints (memories of grandma)

oh, i thought of another one. though they've not been officially discontinued, they are impossible to find - nabisco chocolate wafers. recently i wanted to make a banana cream pie with chocolate wafer crust. five, yes FIVE, stores later i ended up with a plain old graham cracker crust. boo.

nenasadije, have you ever tried making the refrigerator cake with nabisco chocolate wafers? You just put whipped cream between the cookies, let it sit in the fridge, and it turns into a delicious cake. If you can ever find them, I would recommend trying the cake.

I miss POSTUM! It was the best coffee alternative ever created.

nenasadije, you can get them on Amazon. Fair price and easy!

http://www.amazon.com/Nabisco-Famous-Chocolate-Wafers/dp/B0002QF1NS/ref=smitten-20

Pudding pops are back. They're sold by the Popsicle brand now, though they're still labeled as Jell-O. It doesn't seem like they've changed them, really. Slightly smaller maybe, but still totally awesome. Considering all the things to have come out of 80's nostalgia in the past few years, including a not-so-great Transformers film and a not-so-great Indiana Jones film, pudding pops is probably the best of it. Until M.U.S.C.L.E. men return to toy store shelves.

I find myself totally missing Sunshine Golden Fruit cookies. Raisiny. I've seen similar imported cookies available online and I'm sure there's a way to make them at home, as I once bought a batch of the best ones I'd ever had from an old woman at a roadside stand on an Indian reservation in New Mexico, but neither of those options are really conducive to a perennially-stocked pantry.

Also where's the Ecto Cooler? I remember my parents wouldn't buy it for me because of the artificial coloring, and I only bought it once or twice after reaching adulthood before I couldn't find it anymore. I have to imagine it wouldn't be so bad with a little rum or something.

I know you will shudder at the thought, but I ate it as a kid but.... Chef Boyardee's Sir Chomps-a-lot Mini Cheese Ravioli.

Man, I used to love that stuff.

I loved ecto cooler too! And I think it's not discontinued but definitely not to be found anywhere near me is Ben and Jerry's oatmeal cookie chunk ice cream. That was heavenly.

These are from the New Orleans "ain't there no more" files:

- K&B brand Creole Cream Cheese ice cream, which went away when Rite Aid bought K&B stores

- buttermilk drop donuts and custard pies from McKenzie's

Dammit, my mouth is watering just thinking about this.

@Jezebella

Yeah, those McKenzie's buttermilk drops can STILL be found at Tastee Donuts off Jefferson Hwy. I promise! They bought the recipe off McKenzie's.

malt o meal chocolate flavor
Joseph Schmidt mint truffles

i miss the strawberry- and blueberry-filled kellogg's shredded wheat. my mom used to put a little baggie of them in my lunch since we didn't get real junk food.

and related to mother's, i miss archway ruth's oatmeal cookies because i liked golden raisins better than regular ones. ecto cooler was renamed and (i think) recolored - kids these days probably don't even know who slimer is, hmph!

Kashi's Medley cereal. One day, it was just gone. No warning, no chance to stock up. Just gone.

I know it's a mix of various other Kashi cereals, but I can't seem to get it right, or all of the ingredients.

I totally miss and get saddened every time I think about 1) Oops All Berries- my all time favorite cereal. It was simply a box of just Cap'n Crunch Berries, w/o those pesky peanut butter squares.

2) Brach's cherry twisters- So much flippin better than those nasty twizzlers on the shelves today. Sad, they got discontinued when Brachs moved its plant from Chicago to South America (somewhere).

A few years ago Blue Bunny had a Hazelnut ice cream, it was like a cross between Nutella, ice cream and Rocher chocolates. I miss that one SO bad, if they brought it back I'd be in heaven.

Planter's Cheez Balls. Cheetos just can't compare to that blue can of heavenly, salty, kind-of-cheezy goodness!

Entennman's German butter cake!! I remember one day my mom and I polished off a whole one. whoops!

That three-layer Jello--the one that you mixed, and then it separated into three layers while it set. The top layer was light and foamy, the middle was a more firm sort of creamy, and the bottom was regular Jello. Wow I loved that second layer...

Wayne Gretzky's ProStars cereal. It was SOOOO GOOOOOD!!! Or so i remember.

Also: banana-flavoured syrup for making your milk deliciously banana-flavoured. How i miss it :(

The original recipe for Ovaltine. Sugar moved way up in the ingredient list. I now buy the imported-from-China Ovaltine because it's more like the original.

Celestial Seasonings Mint Magic is super hard to find, but one of my favourites.

Sometime in the mid-late-90s I swear Dr Pepper changed their formula to make it sweeter and play down the spicier notes. I still love the Dr, but it's not quite the same.

1.Samboy 'Atomic Tomato' chips that have recently been rereleased at LIMITED stores (aka not here in the rural are where I live),
2.FIFA World Cup cereal which was released only for the world cup, here's hoping that it'll make a come back during the next world cup,
3. A cereal I ate as a kid, tiny crunchy balls flavoured with honey. Cannot remember the name but they were *delicious*

A reviewer claims that this is very close to the Pelican Punch:

http://www.adagio.com/herbal/foxtrot.html?SID=9d91aca033fcc02d24622cf2a32de9d0

As for me, hmmm...the only think I can think offhand that I'm missing is the Mixed Organic Fruit Spread that Trader Joe's used to carry. It had pomegranates and blackcurrants and other fruit in it. Damn tasty.

new york seltzer!

kellogg's mini raisin squares!

Extra Original Bubblegum (the stuff that tasted grape-y).

Mothers (once again!) Flaky Flix Cookies - the closing of Mothers was a disaster to us all...

carnation instant breakfast bars. my mother used to buy these for my brother when he was on the cross country team. i think i ate half a box once.

C.W. Post Cereal - long gone
Kettle Little Dippers - a recent loss

Robert's Orange Milk. I think I was the only person in the Robert's Dairy area that drank it, but it tasted like orange creamsicles and was sooo good.

And I really miss maple Shreddies, which as far as I know aren't discontinued, but I don't live in Canada anymore, so I can't eat them for breakfast anymore.

Oh my gosh, chow.baby! Jell-o 1-2-3! The second layer was my favorite also. Also, Vienetta! My mom would ALWAYS let me have it at the grocery store. Trader Joe's is doing a dessert now that looks a lot like it. I had hope, but read the description on the box, and it was nowhere near! :(

I believe it was Rold Gold who made these cheddar covered pretzels. Seems they existed only long enough to get hooked before they disappeared. They were more addictive than SmartFoods white cheddar popcorn!

Ben and Jerry's Wavy Gravy.

And currently, Trader Joes Lychees in a can.

New York Seltzer Peach flavor!

ORIGINAL Pudding Pops - the new ones don't measure up.

Shasta Grapefruit soda!

Mickey Mouse ice cream bars - with the chocolate dipped ears

Those disgusting franks with the chili inside, I forget what they were called, but so wrong I didn't wanna be right!

I THIRD the Viennetta cake, the TJ's one SUX.

Pinwheel cookies with the marshmallow fluff.

Slowpokes!

Post Cinna-Cluster Raisin Bran (Kelloggs Raisin Bran Crunch and Honey Bunches of Oats Cinnamon come close, but not quite.)

And even more so, cookies which I can't remember the name of - they were flat and square, and were filled with Raisin puree. They had holes in the top and were a golden color, and I believe they were by Keeblers.

Does anyone have any info on this cookie? I absolutely loved them and now can only remember what they looked and tasted like.

Oh my, I just googled for a little while and found them. Imagine that.

They are definitely discontinued; This is an internet archive page from 1997. So. Sad.

http://web.archive.org/web/20011220184105/www.keebler.com/sunshine/prods_nutrition/golden_fruit/golden_fruit_fam.htm

Wow I forgot about those Cheez Balls. Delicious. The blue can. Loved them.

Russel Stover's made a chocolate bar that tasted just like a Laura Secord French Mint bar we used to eat in Canada. They've been missing for about a year and a half now.

I swear when I was little there was a shredded wheat type cereal filled with blueberry. I have never located it since growing up. Anyone else remember a cereal like this?

If I find out something is not going to be available anymore I stock up. Clear the shelves! Buy it all!

Pine brother cherry cough drops- so gummy and I guess no medicinal value at all, and Bonomo Turkish taffy - frozen and smashed and the melting chewy bits soo good. I am sure I am showing my age. Wait also B&M Indian pudding and brown bread in a can. So sad.

Jardine's used to make a Green Cactus Salsa... wonder if the Cactus Salsa is comparable.

I remember as a child in the 70s eating a pepperidge farm cookie that was two chocolate nut cookies sandwiched with a cream in the middle. i think they were called capri. they were my favorite and i always look for them hopefully (and fruitlessly) on the displays.

I remember the Viennetta was the fancy cake. We had it once and I remember being all "oooh" because the commercial made it out to be all high brow.

I don't really miss anything, but I get a big case of nostalgia thinking about

1) Squeez Its - The drink in those bottles with faces
2) Shasta Super Mario Soda - It was the late 80s, early 90s where Shasta had the characters on the tiny 6 oz. cans. my favorite was Yoshi
3) Those little Fruit Stand punch drinks. I would buy them at school.

I loved Viennetta and miss it so much!

The new Pudding Pops are good, but not as good as the old ones.

I miss the Marathon bar. Anyone remember that? It was a candy bar that was a long carmel braid covered in chocolate. It was my favorite, but it has been gone since I was a kid (mid 80's).

Tandem Bars. I think Nestle made them? They were rectangular ice cream sandwiches, with one end of them dipped in chocolate. SO GOOD.

Goosebucket, I LOVE YOU. And I love the internet for making this information exchange possible.

I didn't realize Cheez Balls had been discontinued. Whatever do suburban couples serve at bridge parties these days along with the mixed nuts and bridge mints?

Oh Squeez Its and fruit punch drinks! I don't really miss them, but that nostalgia is definitely true.

Amymj, I remembered after I'd posted it was called 3-2-1 Jello. I used to scrape off the top layer fast and neat just to get to the second layer to savor....

My sister adored NY Seltzer's clear root beer.

A few years ago there was this amazing indian paste rub that came in a little tub and rocked on chicken...so sad it's gone. Also, I loved IBC Sasparilla - lighter than root beer and creamy, haven't seen it in awhile and all the others taste too spicy or too sweet. Had no idea cheese balls were out - so sad I loved them.

I like the new pudding pops but I agree that the old one are just slightly better :)

As for what I miss...

Ben and Jerry's One Sweet Whirled...YUM

Campbell's Zesty Tomato Soup.
I even wrote them a letter to complain.

When I was really little, I loved chocolate Frookies. They were like chocolate animal crackers flavored with fructose (which at the time was the new Healthy Thing). The vanilla ones were gross but they discontinued the chocolate ones eventually. I think they reintroduced them at some point but, not unexpectedly, they weren't the same. I remember eating them out of a little plastic bag on the playground. :)

I also now have a love-hate relationship with Kix. It was my favorite cereal as a kid, and every once in a while my mom would buy me the Berry Berry ones as a treat. Then they changed - both kinds seemed deflated instead of puffy and light and cut the crap out of the top of my mouth. Eventually they returned to their puffy glory, but shortly after they changed the Berry Berry shapes from fun little triangular "berries" to plain old puff balls. I was not impressed. The shape was part of the appeal!

Banana popsicles. I really miss those.

philipbloomenthal and others: I have a martini recipe that tastes exactly like Ecto Cooler. When people ask about that particular martini at my bar, that's how I explain the taste.

When Trader Joe's discontinued their Soyrizo Taquitos, I was so heartbroken, I didn't step back into the store for another 3 years.
In college, I would sometimes spend half a week's worth of grocery money to buy a box.

Unmissed: a year ago, rifling through my childhood stuff, I found a coupon for Nestea Popsicles. Why eleven year old me thought it would be a good idea to save 20 cents on frozen black tea, I will never know.

1) Philadelphia Sun-dried Tomato cream cheese (the best bagel topping I've ever had - after it was discontinued, my mom tried to recreate it for me by mixing pieces of sun-dried tomato with regular cream cheese. It didn't quite work, but I could see trying again and blending it a bit more.

2) Dreyer's Triple Chocolate Thunder Ice Cream - White chocolate ice cream, dark chocolate ice cream, and another chocolate ice cream that I can't remember all swirled together. I've only found one replacement for it, at Amy's ice cream in Austin (where I should really go more often). When I found out they had white and dark chocolate ice creams (plus a couple of other chocolates, I couldn't resist mixing them together!)

Late to the party (as usual), but three things actually come to mind.
1) Lea & Perrins Barbecue Sauce was amazing; tangy and sweet with just enough boldness that it wasn't sickly.

2) Josta, a weird dark-red and deceptively spicy soda from the 90s.

3) Au Gratin Tuna Helper: As a little kid, I loved the crispy top the most.

I miss:

1. Magic Middle cookies. They were like shortbread kisses with melted chocolate inside. Keebler maybe? My sister and I used to put them in a bowl and pour milk on them, as if they were cereal. They must have had a mini version as well. Or maybe we were just super unsupervised?

2. Yohoo Lite. It's really gone, isnt' it?

3. Giant, individually-wrapped Oreos. My sister LOVED them when we were little.

Here is my list:

Kraft Roka Blue Cheese (in the little jars)
General Mills Smores Crunch cereal
Kelloggs Milk Chocolate & Graham Pop-Tarts
Hi-C Peach drink (it came in a can)
Croisse & Blackwell Date Nut Loaf (it too came in a can)
Cajun Spice Ruffles
Sour Cream-N-Onion Doritos
Bar None candy bars
Triple Chocolate Kit-Kats
Cheddar Melts from McDonalds
Real Coca Cola made with Cane Sugar
Planters Cheese Balls (sour cream-n-cheddar)
Tom's Peanut Roll candy bars
Nabisco Swiss Cheese crackers (came in a red box)
Archway Apple & Walnut cookies

Oh how I miss these wonderful foods & drinks!!!

I forgot one:

Campbells Soup at Hand Vegetable Medley flavor.