Hostess Meltamors Review: Do These Chocolate Lava-Like Cakes Flow With Flavor?

Chocolate lava cakes have been flowing into mouths of eaters since the 1980s, and reaching popular culture heights in the following decade. As we close in on a quarter of the 21st century, these cakes have moved well beyond its moment, and are now as commonplace as apple pie. Hostess has always made baked treats that some fans have taken to another level by heating them up. Now the company is encouraging the practice with its new little lava-like cakes, Meltamors.

Chris Balach, vice president of marketing for Sweet Baked Snacks at The J.M. Smucker Co. said, "Meltamors is a transformational snacking experience that brings carefree joy to everyday moments." He added, "At Hostess, we understand the importance of creating connections, and Meltamors is our tasty contribution to turning those 'little' family moments into sweet memories that last a lifetime."

Hostess' Meltamors come in two flavors, Double Chocolate and Chocolate Creamy Caramel, and both arrived at my door at room temperature. I warmed these babies up to see if they brought the heat, or if they ended up being too much of a massive molten mess. This chew and review is based on taste, texture, temperature, and old fashioned lovability.

Some recommendations are based on first-hand impressions of promotional materials and products provided by the manufacturer.

Removing the Metlamors from their packaging, these treats stand like little mounds that are barely 2 inches wide. Both flavors – - Double Chocolate and Chocolate Creamy Caramel — look identical. They are decked out with a trifecta of brown stripes and icing arches on the ends, adding a bit of texture for gripping. Taking a whiff, they both easily channel the same chocolatey goodness that a standard Hostess Cupcake emits.

Firstly, I decided to try them as-is, at room temperature. The buns are squishy firm, and a little sweaty to the touch. The Double Chocolate instantly delivered on its flavor promise. It's basically a Hostess Cupcake with no vanilla frosting in sight, and sure to satisfy those super chocolate lovers. The Chocolate Creamy Caramel is essentially the same, but its luscious light brown interior filling is both a welcome sight and taste. The caramel is saccharine sweet, which actually adds a nice balance to the rich chocolate cake that surrounds it.

The next taste test involved them being heated up in a microwave. Five seconds was recommended, but that didn't get them as warm as I needed them to be, so I doubled the time. The result made the Double Chocolate even more of a winner, but for the Chocolate Creamy Caramel, something got lost in the translation. Granted, it was still delicious, but the caramel's buttery velvet taste seemed to get zapped in the microwave.

The nutritional facts for Hostess Double Chocolate and Chocolate Creamy Caramel Meltamors are practically identical. A single serving size is one cake. It's good for 130 calories, 6 grams of total fat, 3 grams of saturated fat, 190 milligrams of sodium, 52 milligrams of potassium, 21 grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of dietary fiber, 1 gram of protein, and 1 milligram of iron. The Creamy Caramels have one more gram of total sugars over Double Chocolate at 12 grams, and the latter has 17 more milligrams of potassium at 69 milligrams.

Both Meltamors include such shared ingredients as sugar, water, enriched flour, corn syrup, palm and/or palm kernel oil, maltodextrin, soybean oil, cocoa, and 2% or less of cocoa processed with alkali, natural flavors, whey, baking soda, salt, egg, and nonfat dry milk. The Chocolate Caramel Meltamore also utilizes fruit juice color, sweetened condensed milk, and heavy whipping cream, while the Double Chocolate employs chocolate liquor and monocalcium phosphate. Both contain the allergens wheat, milk, egg, and soy, as well as bioengineered food ingredients.

Hostess Meltamors are currently available for purchase at your local grocery store or nationwide retailer, as well through various online avenues. The two flavors are sold separately, in 9.31-ounce boxes. Each box contains eight individually wrapped mini cakes. Single-serve, 2.33-ounce two packs are also available at convenience stores. They are permanent additions to the Hostess line-up.

Retail price and availability may vary by location, although a recent check at Walmart listed the 9.31-ounce box for $3.48 each. Based on the "Best Buy" date imprinted on the box, these treats will be good for a month and a half.

The Meltamors' packaging puts on display what is about to happen once you get into the middle of them, but an eater truly has no idea what delicious fun exists within. There are two methods to enjoy these and you nearly can't go wrong either way; the box urges you to "eat warm" or just "enjoy now." However, if I was labeling these boxes, I'd note that the Double Chocolate are doubly awesome when nuked for 10 seconds, and that the Chocolate Creamy Caramel are dreamiest straight out of the wrapper.

After downing three of each, my mouth was engulfed in a wonderful chocolate aftertaste and my teeth were caked with, well, cake. My fingers were a bit of a sticky mess, but pleasure has its price, right? The only thing that could save me was a glass of milk, which didn't wash away the taste memories, but only solidified my love for these Meltamors. The only thing missing here is a variety pack. Why choose one flavor, when both should be indulged upon? And if the public takes to these sweet treats, can a vanilla filling option be that far behind?

While Meltamors didn't exactly remind me of chocolate lava cakes, they just felt like a great extension of the Hostess brand. These neat treats will surely melt your heart, and feverishly conjure up warm thoughts of wanting to eat many Melta-more.