NEW! Extra Special Black Forest & Amaretto Desserts Review (ASDA)

I've recently outed my addiction to buying chocolate and ice cream on instagram in an attempt to remind myself that I really need to stop buying more and instead work through my admittedly impressive collection. The trouble is, whilst I love both chocolate AND ice cream, occasionally I'm just not in the mood for either, or I spot something different that I'd rather have. This is especially true when it comes to ice cream, and since promising myself that I'd not purchase any more, my non-frozen dessert cravings have fully kicked in. BAM! All of a sudden I just needed to have the Black Forest & Amaretto Pots that I've been contemplating for weeks.

Even my price conscious nature gave way to the compulsions to try these little desserts. In ASDA Gü are currently on offer for £1.50, yet I still chose their own brand desserts. I must be mad. In my defence, previous experiences with ASDA's Extra Special desserts* have thus far been remarkably positive.

"Amaretto-infused sponge layered with black cherry compote and Belgian dark chocolate ganache."

C'mon ASDA, you seem to have fallen foul of Cadbury's usual trick here and only half filled the pots! The Peanut Butter Millionaire's Dessert was full to the brim, and had much more distinctive layers too.

Digging in to the top I first tasted the dark chocolate ganache, which was as silky and as delicious as expected -there just wasn't very much of it. The little that there was had kind of sunk into the custard below. Talking of which, the custard was a bit of a let down. The flavour was weak against the ganache and so I wished that ASDA had just done away with it and filled the tub with more of the good stuff.

Fortunately the black cherry compote was delicious, offering a sweet tartness against all the chocolate, but again the pot could have done with more. Boo.

The final layer was the main reason why I wanted to try these desserts so badly - the amaretto soaked sponge. The cake was in keeping with the Black Forest theme and was therefore chocolate flavoured. It was a good sponge with a decent amount of cocoa -but I just couldn't taste the amaretto or even almond. Now this might be partly because I was drinking a glass of red wine alongside it, but nonetheless I was disappointed.

I'm aware that I've done a lot of complaining in this review, and perhaps it's not entirely necessary considering I scraped the sides of the tub and really enjoyed it. The trouble is, I know that ASDA sell a much better version of this, and it's cheaper too: their Black Forest Velvets.

7/10

*such as their White Chocolate & Raspberry Cheesecake which was one of my first reviews, and remains my favourite supermarket cheesecake!

NEW! Irish Cream Ice Cream Chocolates (ALDI)

I was in ALDI buying the Christmas Turkey the other day when I took the opportunity to scour the party food freezers as I walked towards the till. Now I really shouldn't be buying more ice cream seeing as we could open a gelateria from our utility room, but I spotted these curious Ice Cream Chocolates for less than a pound and didn't resist. Is there any alcoholic drink more festive than Irish Cream? Yes, OK, Mulled Wine. Still, Christmas Day is the ultimate excuse to crack open the Bailey's, comfort our food babies and indulge in the knowledge that we won't need to move from the sofa all evening. Until then, ALDI's Irish Cream Ice Cream Chocolates would serve to whet my appetite for the slick liqueur due to hit my tastebuds next Sunday.

"Irish cream flavoured ice cream with a chocolate flavoured centre, chocolate flavoured coating and amaretti pieces."

The box contained ten 10ml ice creams on a gold chocolate box-esque platter, which I thought was a lovely touch. They were dinky little barrels that would have looked perfectly at home nestled amongst the Thornton's selection. 

The chocolates were extremely soft straight from the freezer, and the middle was more mousse like than ice cream which made them a little messy to eat. There was a definite Bailey's kick to them though. I shared the 10 with my other half and didn't tell him what flavour they were until he looked disgusted at me when biting into them (he's tee-total). Sorry Bert. I really couldn't distinguish the 'chocolate flavoured centre' against the Irish cream, and only know it existed thanks to the photo evidence. 

As for the chocolate casing, it wasn't particularly thick or of great quality, but then I didn't expect it to scream indulgence given that the ice creams are part of ALDI's 99p party range. The amaretti biscuits studded in the chocolate were tasty however and they added a welcome crunchiness, as well as a little almond to the flavour mix.

I wouldn't rush out to buy these Irish Cream Ice Cream Chocolates again, but I also wouldn't refuse a few if offered at Christmas. 

6/10

E.Wedel Tiramisu Milk Chocolate Bar (Polski Sklep)

A couple of weeks ago I tried, and reviewed, my first E.Wedel chocolate bar. The Cafe Latte Pawelek didn't impress me, and I was left feeling disappointed by the poor quality chocolate and overwhelming alcoholic after burn. I asked you lovely lot if there was another bar that I might get along better with, and Arkadiusz kindly responded; informing me of the peanut Bajeczny bar.  I've been searching for the Bajeczny in every Eastern European deli that I've passed, but haven't had any luck yet -so the quest continues.

On my hunt however, I did spot a couple of other E.Wedel bars that have already been reviewed by other bloggers, and have received much better feedback than I gave the Caffe Latte bar, so I bit the bullet and bought them. To be fair, the Polish chocolates are never too expensive, I just didn't want to feel left down and hankering after a bar of Galaxy when I've finished it. 

The first one I opened was the Tiramisu flavoured bar, which according to the ingredients (there was no product description) comprised of  milk chocolate (50%), a tiramisu flavoured filling, and amaretto flavoured biscuit granules (1.6%). 

The 5 segment bar had snapped in transit, which allowed me to glance at the creamy coloured filling within. Each section held a little nugget on top, reminding me of the Cadbury Toffee Whole Nut bar.

The first taste to hit me was the chocolate, which at first I thought I didn't like. I then realised that it might be because I'm used to milk chocolate with a lower percentage of cocoa solids (Dairy Milk contains a minimum of 23% & Galaxy 25%, whereas E.Wedel promises a minimum of 29%). The more I ate, the more my palate adjusted, and the more I enjoyed it. 

There was an alcoholic flavour to this bar, which was expected this time seeing as Tiramisu typically contains Marsala Wine. It somehow tasted much less overwhelming this time though, and seemed to work in harmony with the chocolate and amaretto biscuits. Talking of the biscuits -and despite them only making up 1.6% of the bar- they were embedded in the top nugget and were delicious, extra points for E.Wedel as they were evident in each and every nibble. The added crunchiness worked wonders for the harmony of the bar, and I really enjoyed them. Without the biscuits, the E.Wedel Tiramisu would be just another alcoholic, creme filled chocolate bar... but with them it became something rather more special. 

At 40p from my local deli, I'll be sure to pick another one soon -and so should you! I've recently discovered the treasures that reside in the Eastern European shops, and so if you don't venture into any, please give them a go every now and then.

8/10

There's also a dark chocolate version of the bar, which One Treat At A Time reviewed here. 

NEW Chocolate Orange Beanies Coffee

I love coffee -especially flavoured coffee. However, as a student I sadly don't have a huge amount of disposable income to be able to regularly get my fix from coffee shops (although I did treat myself to the new Tiramisu latte at Costa yesterday, which I thought was delightful). 

Fortunately there is a solution in the form of flavoured instant coffee. I fell in love with the Douwe Egberts 'Flavour Collective' range when it was released two years ago, and haven't really returned to standard coffee since. More recently I've dabbled into Beanies' flavoured coffee range, although my local Tesco only stocks their Amaretto Almond. Sainsbury's stock a much larger range and so I took the opportunity to stock up on the different flavours when I visited recently, including the new Chocolate Orange Coffee.

Chocolate instant coffee is something I've had bad experiences with. I once bought Little's Swiss Chocolate Coffee, but it was so bitter and had such a disgusting chemical aftertaste  that I was put off the idea completely; so much so that I haven't even dared try the Douwe Egberts version. As the entire Beanies range was on offer for £2 per jar, and given how much I enjoy their Amaretto Almond coffee, I decided to give their jaffa-inspired coffee a go.

'So chocolatey, so orangey, it’s not theirs it’s ours! Smooth milk chocolate with tangy orange flavours - try it once, you'll be hooked - trust us! At just 2 calories per serving every cup of Beanies Chocolate Orange is like a little taste of happiness. All our flavours are 100% SUGAR FREE and suitable for Vegetarians & Vegans!'

Lifting the lid, I was greeted by the sweet scent of dark chocolate combined with an orangey citrus zing- it certainly smelt better than what I remember of the Littles' coffee. Sadly, the chocolate didn't translate as well in taste, however the orange was much more palatable and came through as the star flavour. I guess that making a chocolate coffee with no sugar but maximum taste is quite the challenge, which meant that the cocoa element had a similar (although much less sharp) synthetic aftertaste to the Little's chocolate coffee.  Fortunately the orange saved the day, and whilst it's certainly not my favourite coffee, it won't be going in the bin. It's a shame though, because I think that the other Beanies coffees are wonderful.

5/10

Ratings I'd give other Beanies Coffee:

Amaretto Almond 8/10 

-It's smooth with lovely end note of Almond

Cinder Toffee 6/10

- I didn't find that there was huge amount of flavour, although it's pleasantly sweet

Irish Cream 9.5/10

- If you like bailey's I'd highly suggest buying this, it's difficult to believe this creamy coffee is just 2cals* per serving!

*unless you give it a good slug of milk like I do!