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Can you guess the winning brew? One thing is for certain:Southern Livingeditors have got opinions on sweet tea. ), everyone takes it differently. Credit:Robbie Caponetto; Stylist: Mary Beth Wetzel Testers tried cup after cup, taking tasting notes accordingly. After tasting all of the teas, editors selected their overall favorite. The winner amassed the most points for the highest score. Credit:Robbie Caponetto; Stylist: Mary Beth Wetzel Some had more citrusy notes than others, while others were more bodied, concentrated, and strong....

We have a winner! After tasting all of the bread and butter pickles, testers were then tasked with choosing their overall favorite. The Contenders How Each Brand Ranked Mt. Nine brands of bread and butter pickles.Credit:Robbie Caponetto / Stylist: Mary Beth Wetzel One tester picked this brand as their favorite bread and butter pickle for topping sandwiches specifically. Others were off-put by the texture, noting they were missing a good crunch....

Get ready for the ultimate chocolate ice cream showdown. Who doesn’t have a few pints ofice creamin the freezer for when the craving strikes? If it’s not vanilla that you have on hand, it’s likely chocolate. Credit: Corinne Mucha/Dotdash Meredith And the ideal chocolate ice cream has to deliver on the chocolate flavor. Whether dark or milk chocolate, dairy-free or regular, if it says chocolate it better mean it. Don’t worry, we did the tough job of sampling nine of them for you....

This taste test proves that vanilla is anything but boring. And who are we kidding? No excuse is even needed for a scoop. Credit: Corinne Mucha/Dotdash Meredith Did the more gourmet brands come out ahead, or was a discount brand the best? We ranked them from least favored to the top vote-getter, and you may be surprised by the results. This option was marked as a favorite by one tester but ranked last compared to the other vanillas....

Several people changed their go-to brand after this taste test. That fact makes our taste tests here atSouthern Livingparticularly interesting. From time to time, the classics stand, proving themselves to be the best yet again. Credit:Caitlin Bensel; Food Styling: Torie Cox (That’s what happened in oursweet tea taste test, after all.) We weren’t sure what to expect from ourorangejuice taste test. Let’s just say a lot of people walked away with new favoritesand you might, too....

Because Southerners don’t abide stale biscuits. Fresh from the oven, they woo you with their soft, buttery, flakey goodness. But then, before you know it, the magic is gone, and theyve turned to little rocks. Credit:Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox Unforgiving, seemingly unrevivable little rocks. So heres the question: Can you effectively reheat a biscuit and restore it to its former glory? Nothing, and we meannothing,beats a batch of biscuits straight out of the oven....

For when you absolutely, positively can’t whip up a batch of homemade. Cornbread is a dish that Southerners are willing to fight forandfight over. So, for those desperate times, we turn to boxed cornbread mixes to get the job done. All cornbread mixes baked at 375F or 400F. Most also required an 8- x 8-inch pan; two specifically called for baking in muffin pans. I did not go beyond the bake timeframe suggested by the package....

Our favorite reminded us the most of restaurant-style tortilla chips. Read on to see which brand came out on top. This included multiples of a few brands that sold their chips in key variations such as baked or organic. Credit:Victor Protasio, Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn, Prop Stylist: Shell Royster No flavored chips were selected, such as those with a “hint of lime” added. Publix Yellow Corn Tortilla Chips This chip was among the least liked in the group....

The results are in. Southern Living / Grace Cannan Ranch dressing is quite a versatile condiment. In fact, it’s probably used more for other things that actually dressing a salad. Credit:Southern Living / Grace Cannan Eight of the dressings in the test were shelf-stable while the other two were found in the refrigerated section. All dressings wererefrigeratedbefore the test so they were all served at the same temperature. They were given carrots and celery for dipping to taste the dressings with....

All dozen were delicious, but a few really stood out. Dotdash Meredith There is no bad time for brownies. Another great thing about boxed brownie mixes? Credit:Walmart You just need to verify you start with a fantastic pan of brownies. So we tried a dozen mixes to find the best one. Did your favorite make the list? Credit:Betty Crocker How We Tested I made each brownie mix according to the recipe instructions on the package....

Yes, this is very real. We entered this taste test with full hearts and very open minds. Like at the church. Credit: Caitlin Bensel; Food Styling: Torie Cox The other elements remain the same. Tester Notes Many people place a layer of lettuce leaves on the plate for presentation purposes. The reaction from my testers was mixed. Credit:Betsy Cribb Watson Two of my testers were pleasantly surprised and happily finished the entire ring:Its actually kind of good....

One pie rose above all the others. So the editors atSouthern Livingdecided to do a taste test to determine which store-bought pumpkin pie is best. One pie ultimately came out on top. Credit:Robbie Caponetto; Stylist: Mary Beth Wetzel Can you guess which we picked as the best store-bought pumpkin pie? Each pie was sliced, plated, and numbered, so nobody knew which was which while tasting. After sampling all of the pies, every editor selected an overall favorite....

Because sometimes, there’s just no time to make your own. And we stand by the statements that we’ve made about the art of making homemade biscuits. Homemadebuttermilk biscuitsare indeed a gift of loveand time. Credit:Dotdash Meredith But it’s precisely because of how much time they take, that sometimes you need a shortcut. Then, the biscuits were lined up for editors and staff to taste test anonymously. In other words, no one knew what biscuits they were eating....