Aussie Bodies Mini Protein FX Bars (Home Bargains)

I spotted these tiny protein bars about six weeks ago in Boots. Coming in at less than 100cals eac and packing roughly 8-9g of protein, I thought that they might make suitable handbag 'in case of emergency' snacks. There were a number of flavours available, all of which sounded rather good, but then I looked at the £1.49 price point and decided against them. It was a good job really as a week or so later I saw the entire range in Home Bargains priced at just 39p each, well how's that for a sign?

"Aussie Bodies Protein FX Lo Carb Minis are a delicious, ultra-low calorie chocolate bars contain only 2g of carbohydrates, at a super compact 30g, this is one Mini that delivers maxi-satisfaction with all the protein and fibre you need to keep hunger at bay.

Protein FX Lo Carb Mini's features:

• Super handy 30g compact size

• Enjoy as a low carb snack between meals or as an after dinner treat

• Naturally rich, chocolaty taste experience

• Only 2g of carbohydrates per bar

• Contains NO Sucralose, Aspartame or Acesulphame K."

I decided to try the choc raspberry and salted caramel after my workout this afternoon. I was impressed by how chocolatey they both appeared, but could instantly tell that they would be chewy thanks to their density. How would they taste though?

Absolutely awful, that's what. They were both so synthetic tasting that they immediately turned my stomach. I immediately whacked them in the microwave so see if I turn them into something more edible.

No, I couldn't. I had committed to them, so gulped them down with a mug of coffee. but they were a chore ato eat and far from enjoyable. What annoyed me more was that I had forewent my planned Reflex White Chocolate and Raspberry Ripple protein bar when I went to my cupboard and remembered the Aussie Bodies bars. The other three are going in the bin, and I never throw food away!

Thankfully I've got a slice of Twix Cheesecake tonight to make it up to my poor abused taste-buds. 

Approximate macros per bar: P9/C9/F3 

1/10

Nestle Butterfinger (B&M)

A few weeks ago, when I wrote about Bud's Best Butterfinger Cookies, I mentioned that I'd never tried a Butterfinger before -a comment that I received a bit of stick of for on Twitter! How could I love peanut butter and never have tried a Butterfinger, or a Zagnut for that matter? 

Under orders to get up to speed with peanut butter bars ASAP, I went on a hunt for Nestle's Butterfinger. Returning to Tesco I discovered that they've recently amended their American range and are no longer selling them. I'm still working my way through my February American Fizz order, so I thought that I'd just have to wait. As luck would have it, and just as I'd given up, I stumbled across Butterfinger bars in B&M for a very reasonable 79p!

One of the things I've noticed about American Foodstuffs recently, is that their product names can be very vague -and the Butterfinger is no exception:

"Bolder than bold cravings can’t be contained. Especially when they’re this crispety, crunchety and peanut-buttery. So go on and indulge yourself in the one of a kind taste of an all American classic that can never be replaced."

Thanks for that insight Nestle! It's crispy, crunchy and peanut-buttery, rather similar to the Reese's Crispy Crunchy then?

The long finger bar was covered in a smooth milk chocolate covered coating. Once sliced into, I realised just how crunchy the inside was, as it splintered upon impact, sending shards of orange coloured candy across the table. 

The first taste to hit me was the overwhelming sweetness. The peanut butter centre was reminiscent of solid candy floss, which morphed into a highly adhesive toffee-like substance as soon as it reached my mouth. I mean, it stuck to everything! The peanut butter flavour was also strong, but like the chocolate coating it was completely overwhelmed by the sheer amount of sugar!

I'm afraid that I didn't enjoy the Butterfinger in the slightest. The bar contains a whopping 23.8g of sugar per bar, and it's very evident in the taste. Munching the bar made my teeth ache so much that I felt the need of a Dentist on standby. Not one for me.

1/10*

*a generous scored based on the fact that I managed to eat all of it, just.

NEW! Coconut & Pineapple Flavour Popcorn (Boots)

Whilst picking up my meal deal from Boots, I spied this new Coconut & Pineapple flavour popcorn. I hesitated, wondering whether it would fare any better than their rather revolting Cinnamon & Vanilla flavour which I reviewed back in October, but as the bag cost just 70p I decided to take a punt on Boot's having improved their range. 

I opened it up, and saw lots of fluffy looking plain coloured kernels. I could detect a slight whiff of tropical flavour, which unfortunately wasn't as aromatic as the popcorn made my Propercorn or Portlebay. Biting into my corn, I realised that the flavour was just as lacking as the smell -there was the mildest hint of pineapple, with absolutely no coconut to be found. 

The kernels lacked the crunchiness of Portlebay's Kracklecorn, and without any flavour to back it up, I just felt like I was eating mouthful upon mouthful of polystyrene. To make things worse there was loads of unpopped corn, and at one point I actually thought I'd broken a tooth. Propercorn Peanut & Almond is an absolute taste sensation and utter joy to munch, but this popcorn from Boots just felt like a never-ending chore to eat. 

1/10

NEW! Vegetable Greek Style Yogurts by Tesco

Vegetable yogurts? Give over! I almost walked past these unusual new additions in Tesco, but then I paused for a moment, remembering how surprisingly delicious their carrot cake yogurt was, and decided to give them a shot.

The four pack costs £1.25 and contains 2x Mango & Carrot and 2x Beetroot & Raspberry fat-free Greek style yogurts.

Beetroot & Raspberry 

It was a pretty pink colour -as you would imagine from its ingredients- but it wasn't as thick as most Greek style yogurts and had a watery layer on top where it had separated slightly.
Taste-wise... Yuck. I mean I probably never should have bought them because I hate the flavour of Beetroot (it just tastes like soil to me) but the yogurt was overwhelmingly sour, lacking the sweetness that normally coincides with a tart fruit such as raspberry. It was actually so disgusting that I wouldn't even give it to my dog and the second one went in the bin-  I never throw away food.
0/10

Carrot & Mango

This was a similar colour to their carrot cake yogurt and I hoped it would be just as tasty. Once again it had split slightly, but nonetheless I gave it a good mix and hoped for the best.
The mango came through more prominantly than the carrot, but as with the beetroot version it lacked the sweetness I'm accustomed to in yogurt, rendering it rather unpleasant. The sourness surprised me because carrot is such a sweet vegetable, but it tasted on the verge of going off (despite having a week left on its use by date) 
1/10


I'm not sure who Tesco are targeting with these unusual vegetable yogurts, but I won't be making a repeat purchase.

New Strawberry Cheesecake Cake Stacker at ASDA

ASDA have released a whole host of new products in their bakery aisle recently. There's loads of yummy sounding innovations including: Cinnamon Sugar Cake Slices, Red Velvet Cake Slices, Caramel Brownies, Tiffin slices, Carrot Cake Flapjacks, Apple Crumble Flapjacks and Bakewell Flapjacks to name just a few!. They've also released a range of 'Cake Stackers.' 

With so many new products to choose from I chose what intruiged me the most: the Strawberry Cheesecake Cake Stackers. They comprise of 'a digestive biscuit layer, strawberry jam, strawberry flavoured sponge, cheesecake flavour icing and vanilla sponge'.

I decided that these slices sounded rather special, so instead of having them in the afternoon with a cuppa, I served them with a scoop of strawberry ice cream for dessert. The cakes look pretty, with three bright and distinct tiers.

The vanilla sponge top level was disappointingly dry, which unfortunately tends to be standard fare amongst supermarket cakes. The strawberry sponge wasn't any better, and although it was a pretty pink colour, lacked any identifiable strawberry flavour. The icing that separated the two was normal buttercream, but again I couldn't distinguish any 'cheesecake' flavour to it. The bottom, biscuity level was a good moist digestive base and was the best bit of the stacker by far.

I'm really pleased I served it with ice cream because these Cake Stackers are a let down. Instead of being a glorious combination of sponge cake and cheesecake, they are a bland, dry, and utterly disappointing product. Although the other treats in ASDA's new range sound enticing, I won't be buying them unless I see them in the reduced section. Good idea, but poor execution.

1/10

New Limited Edition Cinnamon & Vanilla popcorn by Boots

Monday's tend to be a pretty rubbish day for most people, but I now have a good reason to look forward to the first day of the working week. As an o2 customer I can make use of their priority offer- a boots meal deal for £1 every Monday. Yes I know it's a bit sad, but as a student, trust me when I say that this lunch feels luxurious compared to the rest of the week. I've got into a bit of a meal deal habit: sarnie/wrap, Pepsi & Portlebay Lemon Sherbet Popcorn. Today, however, I made an exception because I spotted Boots' limited edition Cinnamon & Vanilla popcorn. 

I love cinnamon, it's my absolute favourite spice, and so Boots couldn't have really chosen better in terms of my tastes (unless they'd produced a peanut butter and/or banana popcorn.) I've heard good things about Portlebay's cinnamon popcorn but as I haven't located it anywhere yet,  I thought I'd try Boots' version.

The bags are a decent size and when I opened it up I could see the lovely tell-tale dusty cinnamon powder. I expected it to be sweet- rather like the ProperCorn Sweet Coconut & Vanilla that's also a personal favourite- but it wasn't!

Neither sweet or salty, the popcorn was rather neutral- and as cinnamon can be used in both sweet and savoury cooking- It was left with a bit of a split personality. I wondered if I'd just got an un-sweetened price of corn, but it was consistentlu poor throughout  the bag. I was left feeling really confused (and a bit upset I'd chosen it in favour of the Lemon Sherbet Portlebay.)

I'm now not sure whether I'd like Portlebay's cinnamon flavour or not and so  I'd be keen to know if anyone else has tried it? 

Meanwhile, it's back to the Popcorn I know is good...

1/10

Cadbury Bubbles of Joy Duo: Milk & White Chocolate Mousse

Milk chocolate? White chocolate? I'm often stuck making this choice, so imagine my glee when I spotted these new desserts from Cadbury: Milk & white chocolate mousse... in the same pot!

Having thoroughly enjoyed their Caramellionaire pots of joy, I was really eager to try these puddings and was hopeful that they would be the perfect solution to my chocolate dilemma. They were the same price as the Caramellionaire desserts (£1 for two) which added to my assumption that they would be of similar standard. 

The first thing I realised once I had purchased the desserts was the lack of substance to them. Yes I realise that they are mousse- and therefore not exactly the most substantial of foods- but the pots were literally only half full. I hate feeling like I've got a raw deal and so I hoped that the taste would make up for the size of them.

They do however use a chequered pattern to fill these bubbles of joy, rather than the layers that they use in their 'pots of joy' which makes (what's there!) visually attractive.

I tasted the milk chocolate side first, and the white chocolate second. The milk chocolate mousse was standard fare that I couldn't distinguish as being of 'Cadbury quality.' The white chocolate mousse was worse. I think it must be the same mousse that they use in the Caramellionaire desserts- but with the absence of the lovely caramel sauce and shortcake to buffer it- I realised just how bland it was. Now this might be because I think the new Milkybar mousses are wonderful in comparison, but it certainly didn't remind me of Cadbury's white chocolate buttons, or indeed their dream bar.  

Cadbury have also released a 'chocolate and mint bubbles of joy duo,' but I won't be rushing out to buy either variety any time soon.

1/10

New Dr Oetker Mug Cakes

So, these aren't a brand spanking new product, but they're still labelled as NEW!, and I've never had them before, so they're classified as new in my book...

These Dr Oetker Mug Cakes come in three flavours: chocolate, chocolate chip & lemon. I adore chocolate but I'm pernickety when it comes to chocolate cake: chocolate fudge cake- yes please, dry chocolate sponge- no thanks. With that in mind I figured that chocolate chip mug cake is probably a safer bet.

Normally, I believe that the best part of home-baking is the reward of being able to eat still warm cake fresh out of the oven, the lovely smell filling the house. I was always warned as a child that eating cake whilst it was still warm would give you a dicky belly, but in hindsight that may have been a ruse so that all of the cake wouldn't be gobbled down too quick. I'll have to google it someday.

Anyway, I don't do as much baking as I have done in the past or indeed that I'd like to do due to my lifestyle and the fact that there is only two of us in our home. Dr Oetker must have have realised that this issue plagues a lot of households and have been pretty smart in coming up with a solution: individual mug cake baking kits, perfect for the lazy baker/ those living alone/ people who have a limited amount of time on their hands. The packet proudly claims that it's 'easy, quick and delicious' -big promises Dr Oetker.

Each sachet cost 50p from ASDA, and the instructions are pretty straightforward: simply pour the mix into a mug, add 60ml milk, stir with a spoon until smooth and microwave for 1 minute and 10secs. Simples!

I followed the instructions religiously and watched the cake rise up and above the mug's rim as it spun on the microwave's turntable, but as soon as I opened the door it sunk back down. The cake didn't have that nice tanned top that you get from an oven bake, it remained very pallid. 

My excitement was quickly diminishing, and as i tucked my spoon into the warm cake, I felt it almost resist being eaten. When I tasted my first mouthful I regretted buying into the idea that Dr Oetker had solved my baking dilemma, because the cake was utterly tasteless. I was so disappointed that I almost gave up entirely, but I pushed on, hoping to find reassurance in the chocolate chips. The chocolate chips were plentiful but I couldn't even entertain the idea of enjoying this product because of the texture. It was so rubbery that I believe if I dropped it, it would have continued to bounce around my living room for the rest of the evening.

I'm gutted. I had high hopes for this product, but I won't be having it again. Next time I'm wanting a warm muffin, I'll buy the strawberry & white chocolate ones from ASDA's in-store bakery and zap them in the oven for 30secs.

1/10