Yet Another McDonald's Buttermilk Biscuit and Chocolate Banana Pie Review

(Chowtimes has now run out of gift cards) In case you missed McDonald's free biscuit sandwich promotions on Feb 9 and 10, or want more free sandwiches, Chowtimes is giving away gift cards for additional free sandwiches courtesy of  McDonalds Canada. Head over to their review page to claim your copy. While supplies last!

There is also a giveaway over at Eat 'n About. Go claim your gift card!

As a semi health nut, I normally avoid McDonald's and other fast food joints. However, I'm always interested in trying everyone at least once, and never one to turn down free food. So, I also got in line to get one of McDonald's new Buttermilk Biscuits. In fact, I got 3 over the course of the 2 day promotion. Unfortunately, I ate the bacon one before I got a picture, and on the 2nd day, in the chaos of the free giveaway madness, they gave me two sausage instead of one of each that I ordered, so I only have a picture of the Sausage Buttermilk Biscuit with Egg.

The first thing I noticed about this breakfast sandwich is that it's one greasy artery clogger. So greasy, in fact, that in the short bus ride from McDonalds to work, the oil had soaked and disintegrated part of the wrapper, dissolved the ink on the receipt in the paper bag it was in, and soaked through the napkin and paper bag. I then proceeded to blot the sandwich with 2 more napkins and it still showed no signs of drying up. This is not surprising since one of these sausage biscuits contain nearly 600 Calories and 60% of your recommended daily fat intake.

So is this monstrosity tasty enough worth the massively increased risk of heart disease? Not in my humble opinion. Compared to the classic McMuffin, the biscuit is more moist and flakier due to the increased fat content. However, I like the chewier textture of the English muffin, and the fact that it doesn't crumble and leave a mess anywhere. Rest assured, you will make a mess of crumbs while eating the biscuit. I also have an aversion to foods that leave a film of oil on my lips, and the biscuit does this in strides. If you're also worried about sodium, each biscuit sandwich also contains about 50% of your daily  recommended sodium intake.

In the battle of bacon vs sausage, the bacon is slightly healthier at 460 calories, lower in fat and sodium, but far less tasty. I find that in the midst of the greasy salty biscuits, the bacon kind of gets lost while it helps accentuate the McMuffin by adding a bit of oil and saltiness. The sausage biscuit wins the taste test in this contest.

As for biscuit vs muffin, I would be sticking with the classic McMuffin. I find it far more palatable, and the fact that it's also the healthier option seals it for me. I won't be ordering the biscuit off the menu if I ever choose to have breakfast at McD's.

I also had the opportunity to try one of their baked Banana Chocolate Pies lately. I think this is quite a worthy addition to their lineup. It's not overly sweet, and the banana custard is creamy and the chocolate is smooth compliments the custard. The crust is the same delightful flaky pie crust that is used in the classic apple pies. Unfortunately, I don't think this pie will be in the lineup for very long. A lot of the people I've talked to vehemently hate it and that seems to be the majority opinion from other web reviews I've read. I don't believe this pie will end up being a permanent part of the menu. Given the choice though, I'd rather see something like their baked blueberry pies back on the menu. I see these at select locations but not all of them. I've always rather enjoyed McD's baked pies, and priced at 2 for $1.40 right now, they are quite a bargain as well.