NEW! Cadbury Chocolate Muffins (Tesco)

A few weeks ago it was National Doughnut Week and I reviewed the new Cadbury Caramel Muffin. Today it's apparently National Doughnut Day and so it seems only right to review the other new Cadbury muffin. I mean, the caramel one was so good that it would have been rude not to buy a pack, wouldn't it? Especially whilst they were still on offer in Tesco. 

"Muffin with mini milk chocolate buttons (5%), chocolate icing (9%) and chocolate filling (10%)."

What happened to that icing? It's a bit skew-wiff isn't it? Never mind, at least one side would be super chocolatey at least! 

Oh, it wasn't just the topping that was wonky. Slicing the muffin in half revealed one side that was almost completely devoid of filling...Look for the silver lining... which meant that I could appreciate the muffin's flavour separately. Will that do? 

The muffin was incredibly soft and light though, and although I preferred the toffee tones of the caramel version, it was still delicious. The buttons were too small to be noticeable however, and without the caramel to distract the situation this became more of an issue. 

Given the abundance of icing on one half it was harder to ignore the quality issues of the chocolate this time around. Let's be clear, it wasn't awful, but it wasn't the sort of chocolate you'd want to eat a bar of -and that's what it felt like I was doing in some bites. 

On to the chocolate filling. Thankfully it was fairly good. When I bought the muffins I prayed that it wouldn't have a drizzly sauce consistency, and it didn't. Instead it was more like a soft chocolate spread, and although it wasn't luxurious or creamy like ganache, it was sweet and sort of homely. 

Although I've complained a fair bit in this post, I'd happily have these muffins again. Oddly enough Bert completely disagrees with my thoughts on these muffins and preferred them to the caramel. He's not a huge chocolate fan though so I'm not sure whether that tells you anything or not.

7/10.

Chococcino Muffins (M&S)

I've had such a mixed bag with M&S' cakes recently. Take their new Tiramisu cupcakes for example, which were pretty lacklustre, especially when you compare them to the amazing spiced carrot cake muffins. I found these chococcino muffins reduced to a very reasonable 15p and couldn't resist the bargain.

"Tasty two-tone chocolate & coffee flavoured muffins, studded with dark and milk chocolate pieces."

They were aesthetically pleasing muffins, but then M&S can always be trusted to deliver on the appearance front. Slicing on in two revealed a centre that was entirely chocolate cake. The way my knife cut through it so cleanly with little resistance did set off alarm bells however. 

Just as feared the cake was dry as a bone and I was thankful for my cuppa to help the mouthfuls go down. The flavour didn't save the day either, for it was mostly cocoa and didn't have the coffee kick I hoped for. As for the chocolate chips, they were far and few between and so added very little to these disappointing muffins.

Another miss from M&S' bakery department in afraid; I'd give these a miss if I were you.

5/10

Cadbury Caramel Muffins (Tesco)

It might be national doughnut week but I'm being a rebel and reviewing cake instead. I've had my eyes on these Cadbury muffins for a couple of months now but refuse to spend £2 on a pack, especially when their branded doughnut counterparts are so bad. However, this week they cropped up next to the tills in Tesco for £1.50, where they just fell into my basket. I'm a sucker for an impulse purchase. Oops.

They're sizeable muffins though. I thought that a Cadbury caramel muffin would be chocolate cake with caramel innards, but instead they've opted for a caramel flavoured cake. I thought this might be a good move on Cadbury's part as chocolate cake is so hot and miss.

"Caramel flavour muffin containing mini milk chocolate buttons (3%), with chocolate icing (9%), caramel filling (10%) and caramel flavoured chocolate curls (2%)."

Slicing the muffin in half filled me with joy. Just look at the golden treasure within! Now that's a centre to be proud of. The cake was also very light in texture, and I started to feel relieved that I may not have wasted my money as feared. 

Christ. That's good cake. It was very sweet but perfectly fluffy with more than a hint of caramel. Unfortunately the chocolate 'buttons' were so small that they offered little in the way of flavour, but to be honest I was enjoying the cake too much to mind. I felt similarly about the topping, which tasted more like baking chocolate than Cadbury's, but it was enjoyable in a comforting manner and so I managed to overlook it. 

Let's talk about that caramel sauce instead. It was utterly delicious, super sticky and yet moreish. I felt myself grinning stupidly as I savoured every last drop. Mmm. 

The Cadbury chocolate might take a nose-dive into my basket whilst they're on offer now too...

9/10

NEW! Spiced Carrot Muffins (M&S)

So we've established that the Tesco carrot cake muffins are a bit pathetic and that the M&S carrot cake hot cross buns are the biz*. The carrot cake trend looks set to continue (&/or Marks' bakery team are running out of ideas) as they've recently launched carrot cake muffins into their four pack range. Now their muffins have been hit and miss of late; the banana chocolate chip four packs were decidedly disappointing, as were the rhubarb, strawberry & custard filled affairs,  but let's not forget how good their chocolate oranges were -there's hope yet.

"Light and delicately spiced carrot muffin studded with plump sultanas, a cooling cream cheese centre topped wth granola and pumpkin seeds."

We can even pretend that they're healthy too, what with their fruit and vegetable content and granola & seed topping and all! At £1.50 per pack they're not likely to break the bank either.

Ok, so I might've squished them on the cycle home. I could've cried when I opened my backpack, what a clutz I am. I promise you they looked rustic to begin with, just maybe not this rustic. 

A corner broke off as I sliced the muffin in two, but as I'm not sure whose fault that was, I won't mark M&S down for that. I do remember that before I mistreated the muffins the topping was scattered everywhere though. Once bisected, the pale pocket of filling was visible, and it was a pleasing sight -central and adequately proportionate- just as it should be.

The warming notes of cinnamon were well balanced, not overshadowing the earthiness from the carrot, but instead complimenting it. An abundance of plump, juicy sultanas added extra little bursts of flavour. The cake was a little on the dry side, and more like a country cake, but strangely this didn't detract from the enjoyment given the wet filling within.

The topping was ingenious too. The crunchy seeds offered a joyous textural contrast against the cake combined with a welcome gentle nuttiness. If I was being pernickety I'd point out that the 'granola' was really just oats given its lack of cluster formation, but I enjoyed it so lets forget that.  

The make or break moment comes with the filling though surely. I found the cream cheese to be more akin to traditional frosting than the centre of M&S' carrot cake hot cross buns. That is to say that it's sweeter and fluffier. I'm not sure if the gooeier, sauce like innards used within the buns would've worked better against the sweetness of the cake, but I thoroughly enjoyed it anyway.

Please don't bother buying Tesco's carrot cake muffins, pay the extra 50p and treat yourself to Marks & Sparks' spiced carrot muffins instead.

9/10

* I'm going to re-score the buns as a 10 given my 'currant' 😉 addiction to them and the amount of cream cheese I've had in every bun since writing the review.

NEW! Carrot Cake Muffins with a Cream Cheese Centre (Tesco)

Chocolate orange and carrot cake are the flavours of the season it seems. Every man and his basket have got on the choc orange hot cross buns bandwagon this year (stay tuned for the last in that series very shortly!) and all of a sudden the carrot cake craze is popping up. Hoorah! The humble carrot cake has been vastly under appreciated until now, and it's lovely to see such a summery flavour appearing on a shelves - it certainly makes a welcome change from dulce de leche/salted caramel everything. What's even better is that these companies are filling these products with cream cheese. I always find that cupcakes are a bit lopsided on their ratios. Yes buttercream is tasty (when done right) but the cake should always be the star of the show, and somehow it gets lost under showy icing when part of a cupcake. That's why I think filling cake is a better concept. Anyway, as soon as @productsinstore alerted me to the new Tesco muffins the hunt began. 

The first store I visited wouldn't sell me any because they were "waiting for a manager to set them up" (your guess is as good as mine) but fortunately the nice manager that I found in the bakery department of Hereford's smaller Tesco retrieved me some from the freezer. Thank you kind sir! The four pack cost £1, and I just prayed that they were better than their Christmas Red Velvet muffins. 

"Spiced carrot cake with a tangy cream cheese centre." 

The muffins were a decent size and colour, speckled with sugar crystals on their tops. 

I sliced through and discovered how close crumb it was. Was that all of the filling? I thought M&S were stingy, but this was ridiculous, there could only be a teaspoonful of cream cheese at the bottom there.

The cake was well spiced with a strong cinnamon flavour and a slight warmth from the ginger. There were hints of carrot throughout, but it wasn't as prominent as one would expect in a home made version. The texture was soft, but it was so moist that it was claggy and almost raw in places. 

It wasn't just the cream cheese that was missing either. Where were the raisins at? Surely a carrot cake has to have dried fruit in too? Humf. One of the qualities I love most about carrot cake is the plump raisins that break up the texture and burst in your mouth as you munch.  

I did enjoy the sugar crystal topping however, which reminded me of country cake (albeit without the raisins). 

As for the cream cheese at the bottom, it was fairly good, but its location and meagreness meant that it was impossible to enjoy some with every mouthful of cake. 

Tesco' Carrot Cake muffins are kind of the anti-cupcake I suppose. Let's hope M&S carrot cake muffins are better, and if not I'll be sticking to their buns. 

6/10

FlapJacked Mighty Muffins: Maple Pumpkin, S'mores and Apple & Cinnamon (Online)

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about FlapJacked's Buttermilk Protein Pancake & Baking Mix and also promised to review their Mighty Muffin range. Today I'm reviewing 3 of the 6 flavours -so you'll have to come back again to find out how the peanut butter, chocolate, and peanut butter & chocolate flavours fare. But first, let's get to grips about what Mighty Muffins are all about...

"FlapJacked Mighty Muffins are a delicious, certified gluten free, protein packed and high fibre muffin developed with scrumptious flavour, balanced nutrition and convenience in mind. Bursting with pockets of flavour in every bite, Mighty Muffins pack 20 grams of protein and 240 calories in each serving (1 container). The patented probiotic GanedenBC30 has been added to help you support immune health as part of a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle. Simply add water, microwave for up to 1 minute (time will vary depending on the power of your microwave) and you have a delicious meal or snack on the go."

Gluten free, high in protein and scrummy to boot? Surely not. 

Maple Pumpkin
As usual I opted for the flavour that I thought I'd like least (although they all sounded good to me). I peeled back the lid to find a fair amount of powder, before adding 60ml of water using the provided container as suggested. 

As I stirred the mixture my nostrils were greeted with an array of spices which instantly made me even hungrier; it's a good job I didn't have to wait for this cake to bake in the oven! My microwave took a little longer than the advised 60 seconds to make the muffin peak out the top of the tub (but it is only low watt).

I was still too eager to eat my muffin and soon found that it was still gooey in the middle - but I pretended it was supposed to be a fondant. The flavours were really delicious though, maple and pumpkin are underutilised in the UK, and I loved the combination of spice and sweet. I wasn't expecting the little crunchy maple bits in the muffin either, but enjoyed the contrast in textures.
Maple Pumpkin Mighty Muffin was every bit as scrumptious as FlapJacked promised, and it's certainly a treat I'll happily enjoy over and over again.

9/10

S'mores 
This time I knew the drill: I added my water and mixed, before attempting to give my muffin a sufficient amount of time in the microwave.

The S'mores muffin was packed full of chocolate chips and marshmallow pieces. The cake had a fluffy texture this time (thanks to my patience), but I found that without the spice that the protein flavour was much more prominent. I primarily use whey protein to bake with and haven't ever tried Pea protein before. All of FlapJacked's products are made using a combination of both. It didn't taste bad, but it certainly wasn't your usual sponge cake flavour. 

6/10

Apple & Cinnamon

I was in need of some comfort food after a long day yesterday, so opted for cake and ice cream for pudding. This was much healthier than it sounds though, thanks to the Mighty Muffin's low sugar and fat content and OPPO's low sugar content. Is my healthy halo glowing yet? I think not.

The heavy dose of cinnamon in this cake was scrummy, although now I'd detected the protein taste in the S'mores muffin I couldn't ignore it in the background of this flavour too. The combination of warm cinnamon cake with ample apple pieces and salted caramel ice cream was wonderful though, and I felt like I was eating a hug in a bowl. Serious noms.

8/10

Flapjacked's Mighty Muffins are available to purchase from their website, where you will receive 10% off by using the code AMY10.

If you want to be in with the chance of WINNING 6 Mighty Muffins AND a Protein Pancake Mix amongst many other goodies, please enter my instagram competition.

Thank you to FlapJacked for the samples!

Chocolate & Orange Muffins (M&S)

If you'll remember, back in September I got overly excited about M&S' Strawberry, Rhubarb & Custard Muffins and Banana & Chocolate Chip Muffins which both turned out to be disappointing. Simultaneously Sparks also released a chocolate orange variety, but I couldn't bring myself to waste yet more money on their disappointing cakes. Cut to six months later when my disgruntlement has faded, I spot a pack reduced to just 60p and suddenly I'm giving M&S' muffins another go. Third time lucky right? Surely they've got to be better than their new mini chocolate orange hot cross buns...

"Rich chocolate muffins, studded with milk chocolate chunks, and filled with an indulgent orange sauce, topped with a delicate chocolate drizzle."

The ebony coloured cakes smelt invitingly of cocoa -indeed much more so than their mini Hot Xs. I couldn't detect any hints of citrus, but quickly forgave Marks & Spencer given the ample supply of chocolate chips that graced the top of each.

My knife sliced through the muffin easily, revealing the central core of sticky filling that stayed put (unlike the oozing middle of Greggs' new Jaffa Cake-esque doughnut). The cake was dense and moist too - a good sign from the off. 

Hallelujah! M&S have made a chocolate cake that delivers in being soft, squidgy and extremely chocolatey. In fact it was almost fudgy, and struck the perfect balance between dark and sweet. As for the central orange jam, it was good, but there wasn't enough of it to give the cake a truly citrussy taste. I didn't mind that chocolate was the dominant flavour, given the quality of it, but perhaps some zest through the batter would've given the cake a better zing. 

I'm not sure I'd pay the full £1.60 for these muffins (ASDA's Toffee Fudge still reign supreme in my books) but I'd happily buy them reduced again -especially as they freeze well despite the packaging claiming otherwise.

8/10

NEW! "The Best" Gingerbread Muffins (Morrisons)

When you think of gingerbread do you think of Bonfire Night, Christmas or neither? Either way, the warming spice definitely comes out to play during the latter months of the year, and these Gingerbread Muffins have graced Morrisons' stores since the end of October. I'm still going to include them as a Christmas review though due to their very festive decoration!

I had a very hard job in Morrisons trying to find a pack of muffins without broken (and therefore sad looking) men on top. In fact there wasn't any and I even asked the department manager if there was any intact muffins out the back, but unfortunately I wasn't in luck. He said that they might have a delivery in the next couple of days, but I was too impatient to wait. At £1.50 for 2 muffins they're at the more expensive end of the supermarket muffin range, and I was a bit reticent about forking out for them given my previous experience with Morrisons "Signature" lemon & raspberry and marbled chocolate muffins in the summer. I knew they'd play on my mind if I didn't buy them though, and I refuse to have a snacks I wish I'd tried last Christmas list next year.  

"2 Ginger flavoured muffins with a gingerbread flavour filling, topped with toffee icing and a chocolate decoration."

The muffins weren't particularly light but neither were they notable heavy. They were however a beautiful dark golden colour, and smelt very gingery, which I took as a good sign. Slicing the first in two (for photographic reasons) bared the injection of sauce that ran through the middle. It wasn't particularly obvious, especially given that it was a translucent affair, but there didn't seem to be a huge amount of it. I wondered if it was going to be a similar experience to Tesco's Toffee Apple muffins where the sauce had oozed into the cake itself. I sure hoped so. 

I was expecting the muffin to taste like McVites Jaminger (sorry Jamaican Ginger) cake, but it was less sticky and more fluffy. Unlike Morrisons' previous muffins, this was jam packed full of flavour too, offering warmth in every mouthful. The sauce was disappointing though, it didn't really shout gingerbread, but was more of a super-strength spicy drizzle. Such a shame really because the icing was superb, and complemented the flavour of the muffin well with it's buttery sweetness. If Morrisons had only filled the Gingerbread Muffins with the toffee icing, or a custard instead, I'm sure they'd have been on to a sure fire winner. 

7/10

Christmas Muffin (Greggs)

Hurrah, another festive treat to tick off my 'wish I'd tried in 2015' list -one of the last I might add! The Greggs Christmas muffin just didn't make it to my mouth last year, but I've often wondered if it was as good as it looked. I owe a big thank you to Dan on Twitter for alerting me to their return, and of course I didn't hesitate to buy one as soon as I spotted them peering at me so longingly from behind heir £1 sign in Greggs.

"Who doesn't love cake and custard?! That's why we've combined the two for you. A mixed spice and sweet mincemeat muffin, filled with a custard style filling and topped with a fondant icing and sugar decoration."

This year the high street bakers have apparently improved the recipe, and they certainly looked the part with their rosy red wrapper and sweet gold star atop snowy white icing. The sweet festive scent also gave the impression that I was in for a treat, and I carefully carried it to uni with me so that I could enjoy it on my late evening return home.

As a side note, anyone who follows me on Twitter and saw my muffin post last night may have read about my grumpiness caused by the train being on time for once (a strange sounding complaint, but I explained why in the comment). I really hoped that appearances wouldn't let me down with this train dessert as they had in the past with the utterly disappointing apple crumble doughnut.

I went to slice my muffin in half but it totally fell apart -this is one cake not made for eating on the go! I then started to wonder what had happened to the custard that was supposed to fill the muffin. Sure there was a little pocket of it at the very bottom, but not anywhere near enough to to enjoy cake and custard together in every bite as hoped.

Not wanting to give up on the Christmas muffin before I'd tasted it, I picked up the largest chunk and dug in. The cake was wonderfully soft and the spices were mellow, reminding me of carrot cake -without the carrot of course! The flavour was delicious and I really enjoyed it, although I'd argue about whether or not it was 'mincemeat' considering that there were only two raisins (or sultanas, I can't tell the difference) in the entire muffin. As for the custard, it was the same delicious innards used in Greggs' Caramel Custard doughnut, which actually made my heart sink a little because it was so good and I JUST WANTED MORE OF IT.

I really hope that I got a bit of a duff muffin, and that others contain both more fruit and custard filling. The flavour and texture of the cake was delicious but it was ruined by the lack of proportions. That said I would like to try it warmed up with a big mug of tea. Please let me know if you've tried Greggs Christmas muffin yet and whether you've had a similar or entirely different experience!

7/10

NEW! Red Velvet Filled Muffins (Tesco)

I doubt you're as sad as me. I've been patiently waiting for November to begin and for Tesco to release their Christmas lines. For the past two years the supermarket has sold Mince Pie Cookies and white snowman cookies, but this year they've gone down a decidedly less traditional route with the three new additions in their fresh bakery: Black Forest Cookies, Salted Caramel Filled Muffins and Red Velvet Filled Muffins. Now I'd wonder what on earth red velvet has to do with Christmas (and it's only the red hollies on the packaging that give the theme away) but I really can't talk as I often make a red velvet -gluten free- yule log for the big day. Plus, it's red velvet, I'm always game for red velvet.

At £1 for 4 sizeable muffins, the price can't be complained about either. I couldn't actually find them on Friday in my home town when I found the Merry Mince Pie Flapjacks, but did find them in another store yesterday-so keep looking if you don't have any joy at first.

"4 Red sponge chocolate muffins with cream cheese flavoured filling."

Their sugar dusting did little to conceal the poor flat tops (something I couldn't compute as the packaging didn't appear squashed) although I have to congratulate Tesco on the redness of the cake. The colour doesn't really show up very much in the photos, but I can promise you they had a red hue, and I appreciate how much more difficult the colour is to achieve now that it's so much harder to get hold of the super-artificial red food dyes. I noticed both the softness and the substantial weight of the muffin as soon as I picked one out of the pack; it was easy to slice in two, with a very close crumb and a fair amount of cream cheese filling. So far so good. 

The trouble was, red velvet can be so hit and miss. Sometimes it's bone dry, other times it's flavourless -and unfortunately these muffins fell into the latter camp. Had I blind taste-tasted the cake I'm sure I would've told you I was eating a dense Victoria Sponge. I mean, it tasted good, but it just wasn't red velvet and certainly lacked the chocolatey kick that I hoped for. 

The filling in the middle was super sweet and tasted almost like buttercream. The lack of characteristic tartness was evident, although unsurprising considering it actually doesn't contain any cream cheese (only cheese powder)! Say what?

I'm gutted, These are perfectly tasty little (albeit very sweet) muffins, but they miss the mark on two crucial factors:
1) For a festive muffin they're not very Christmassy
2) They're not red velvet!

Here's hoping the salted caramel fairs better...

6/10 

NEW! Toffee Apple Muffins (Tesco)

I feel like I'm being stalked. Is it you?

As soon as I start moaning about the lack of seasonal products in the UK, the new Haribo come out, followed by these new Toffee Apple Muffins from Tesco -thanks for spotting them Kev! I was actually on my way to Gregg's to try another (different) doughnut yesterday, when I decided to pop into my local store and check if they had any; Hereford is normally very slow on the uptake of new bakery releases. My luck was in, for the store had some in stock and -at £1 for four- they represented good value for money, so my doughnut went on hold for another day and into my basket they went.  

"A toffee flavour infused sponge with a Brample apple sauce centre, finished with a dusting of biscuit crumble."

They looked rather large and fluffy too, and there's something wonderfully seasonal about a crumble topping. I was a bit dubious about how well a toffee muffin would work with an apple sauce, considering that the traditional Bonfire Treat is more fruit than sweet, but I was prepared to find out -all in the name of a review of course ;).

I was delighted to find that the sponge was as moist as could be, generously filled with apple sauce, and emanated a delicious Autumnal smell

As mentioned above, I expected the muffin to taste predominantly of toffee, so I was surprised to find that the apple flavouring had seeped into the sponge, even reaching the outermost edges. This was nothing to complain about, as it meant that the entire cake tasted of toffee apple -scrummy. The texture was so soft that it was almost doughy which, to be honest, is the way I prefer it -sorry Mary Bezzer.

I delighted in the apple sauce filling, which reminded me of Mr Kipling's apple pies (albeit slightly less chunky in consistency) and although it was very sweet, it was perfectly comforting. The biscuit topping was more crumble than biscuit, but it was a welcome addition all the same -adding a third texture to the muffin. 

It's needless to say that I really enjoyed this muffin. My preference in flavours means that it doesn't pip ASDA's Toffee Fudge or new Mississippi Mud Pie muffins to the top spot, but I'm glad I picked up a pack -and you should too!

9/10

NEW! Mississippi Mud Pie Muffins (ASDA)

I don't know about you, but when I'm left with a bad experience of something, I want to see if I can change my last impression to something better (rather like not going to bed on an argument). Perhaps that is why I just *had* to buy these ASDA Mississippi Mud Pie Muffins as soon as I caught sight of them. My dissatisfaction with the two new M&S muffins I recently reviewed (Rhubarb, Strawberry & Custard and Banana & Chocolate Chip) had stuck around, together with my previous frustrations with the last chocolatey muffin I tried from ASDA (the Black Forest if you remember).

"Chocolate flavoured muffins with a Belgian chocolate filling, topped with a crumble filling."

The new muffins at ASDA looked pretty spectacular; covered with crumble with chocolate sauce oozing provocatively from their summits. I should know by now that appearances can be (and often are) deceptive, however for £1 per 2 pack, they were worth a shot. 

They were physically lighter than expected, and I kept everything crossed that it was't an indication of their dryness. Slicing them in half revealed a generous chocolate core that even Ben & Jerry would be proud of. 

Christ. ASDA have turned around their chocolate cake. Full of richness, and utterly fluffy, these were an an absolute delight! The chocolate flavour was punchy, yet lacked the dryness that often co-incides with a generous amount of cocoa. The chocolate sauce in the middle was sweet, but not sickly, and there was enough of it to inject added moistness into the sponge. I could barely taste the topping against the delicious chocolate cake, but the crumbs that had escaped were scrumptious (yes, I used my finger to dab up every last smidge). As normal I microwaved the second half of the muffin -yes it tasted even better warm as the sauce became lava cake like- but they're still delicious at room temperature if you can't be bother to faff or haven't got a microwave to hand. 

Perhaps the muffins could be slightly improved with the addition of chocolate chunks (specifically of the white variety) but that really is just nit-picking. I didn't think that ASDA could create another muffin as delicious as the toffee fudge -but I was wrong. The best chocolate cake I've had in a good while! 

10/10

NEW! Banana & Chocolate Chip Muffins (M&S)

If you read my review of Marks' new Rhubarb, Strawberry & Custard muffins the other day, you might recall that I bought a second flavour in the mix & match bakery offer at the same time. Well, when I spotted my favourite cake flavour (banana), studded with chocolate chips on the shelves, it would have been stupid to resist. These muffins are far cheaper than the rhubarb, with the four pack costing a rather reasonable £1.50 (that's if you don't want to be greedy like me and make the most of the 2 for £2.50 deal). 

"Fabulous banana & muscovado sugar muffin, studded with dark chocolate and topped with banana chips."

As you can see, the tops were generously covered with banana chips; which thankfully were the crispy kind. Breaking the muffin in two revealed an impressive amount of chocolate chips too, making me thinking of a Dalmation cake -yes I'm odd I know. Unfortunately, I could immediately tell from feeling the muffin that the texture was going to be on the dry side.

Unfortunately, the flavour wasn't as banana-ry as I hoped. Trusting M&S to pack a bold punch, I simply wasn't expecting such taste bud disappointment. The abundance of dark chocolate chips completely overshadowed the banana, ending up lost in the background somewhere. Yoo-hoo! Banana! Where are you? This was your chance to shine! Perhaps the fact that M&S chose to use only 14% banana puree accounted for the lack of flavour. I always use a mixture of mashed and chopped banana when baking my own cakes, and I'm sure it accounts for much more than 14% of the recipe.

The dryness of the muffin brought further dismay, it was almost rubbery, and so very different to the perfect fluffiness in the rhubarb versions I tried the other day. What is M&S playing at? My only guess is that because the muffins are made with rapeseed oil, they're missing the soft, richness that comes from a cake made with butter. Warming the second half of the muffin improved the situation slightly, but I felt that these would be best enjoyed drowned in Ambrosia custard. 

Muffin's going to persuade me to buy these again ;). Haha. 

5/10.

NEW! Rhubarb, Strawberry & Custard Muffins (M&S)

Yesterday afternoon on my way home from work I was having conversation with Nat (of a-lot-o-choc blog) about some of the scrummy new desserts and treats that have just popped up in M&S*. Well, actually that's a fib. Nat was actually informing me of the delights because I hadn't spotted them yet. One mention of rhubarb, strawberry & custard crumble muffins however and I knew I'd be taking a pricey detour via Sparks. The dogs could surely cross their tails and wait 10 minutes longer for their wees! 

Now if you've been following this blog for a while, you'll know that I have a very soft spot for rhubarb, and that a bowl of strawberry & rhubarb crumble with custard once rendered me a content but sobbing mess (see the story here if you're interested). Anyway, it's something about the sweet-tart combination that thrills my tastebuds, but I've discovered that it's a delicate balance when translated into other treats. Over the year I've tried rhubarb & custard flavoured dessert pots, ice creams, and even a doughnut -but I can't recall ever seeing a muffin before. I really hoped that M&S would do it justice! 

"fruity rhubarb muffin, double filled with strawberry & rhubarb compote and custard, topped with tumbling crumble."

I ended up buying two different packs of M&S muffins in the end as they were in a 2 for £2.50 offer (otherwise £1.60 on their own). They certainly looked light and fluffy, with a dusting of crumble topping as promised. Their innards appeared even more appetising, and I was thrilled to see the clear pockets of both custard and compote, although where was the rhubarb at? Was the paltry smattering at the bottom all there was? 

Well yes, I'm afraid so. The rhubarb was indeed completely lost in the mix, far overshadowed by the other, more sweet fillings. The custard was pleasant (it just reminded me of cold Ambrosia, which I love) but it felt all wrong to have just a smidge of creaminess in such a large piece of cake -or is it just me who drowns their puddings in custard? The compote (AKA jam) was far more strawberry than rhubarb; and although yummy, missed the mark entirely. It really required the traditionally sharp tang of the rhubarb that M&S promised of. The jot of fruit at was simply disappointing, and felt almost like an afterthought. The muffins would have been far better with the rhubarb chunks rippled throughout; I'm sure Mary Berry would have something to say about the sunken soggy chunks lingering right at the bottom.

On the plus side, the texture of the cake itself couldn't be better. It was light and fluffy with a melt-in-the-mouth butteriness that tasted remarkably homemade. The crumble also added a light crunch and was a welcome addition. 

All in all, these are a nice new addition to M&S' bakery aisle. They're just not outstanding, and in fact are inferior to ASDA's toffee fudge muffins. Here's hoping the other new M&S muffins I bought will be better than the rhubarb versions... Stay tuned!

7/10 

*Yes, we're bored of you now Spirit of Summer, it's time to move over.

Blackfriars Bakery Cakes & Cookies (Online)

It's time for my last instalment of my trio of Blackfriars reviews. We've had the Lumberjack Protein Packed Flapjacks and Bakery Flapjacks, so now it's the turn of their cakes and cookies! In my sample package I received three delicious looking treats: a chocolate muffin, a carrot cake slice and a chocolate chip cookie. All of which sounded delicious to me...

Carrot Cake

"A Scrumptious Carrot Cake Slice with a Cream Cheese Flavour Topping."

 I've mentioned before that I love a good carrot cake. It was a favourite of mine long before I started eating carrots themselves (which for some reason I referred to as 'dirts' as a child). Anyway, the combination of spice, raisins, and cream cheese frosting is a winner in my books -although my fiance would rather watch every single episode of sex and the city than eat a mouthful of carrot cake. All of Blackfriars' products have a long shelf life, so would or could it still taste good?

Well yes, surprisingly so in fact. The cake was bouncy, light and moister than expected. The warming spices came through well, and the icing offered an extra sweetness -but not to the point that it became sickly. The 70g size was also well thought out and (unlike the flapjacks) could be eaten as a mid-afternoon treat -especially as it handily comes individually wrapped. My only qualm was that the slice contained no raisins; which for me is a requisite of a true carrot cake. I recognise however that this might be a bonus for those who like carrot cake but don't enjoy dried fruit!

7/10

Chocolate Chip Cookie

"A Delicious Cookie with Chocolate Chips"

Wowzers! A treat that can compete with Lenny & Larry's face sized cookies! Again, I wasn't overwhelmed by the size of it, as cookies tend to be less filling than flapjacks. I knew this wasn't going to be a soft, chewy bakery-style cookie as it felt much firmer, but I didn't let that put me off.

In fact, the cookie turned out to be less brittle than I'd feared, so it was easy to break chunks off to dunk in my coffee. The chocolate chips weren't particularly high quality, neither were they big or chunky, but there was something oddly nostalgic about the flavour. Once again, the wrapping meant it would be perfect to take on the train/to work without lots of crumbs getting everywhere. I wouldn't turn down another Blackfriars cookie, and I particularly like the sound of their Raspberry & White Chocolate Chunk version.

6/10

Chocolate Chip Muffin

"A Scrumptious Chocolate Flavoured Muffin with Chocolate Chips."

This decadent cake looked amazing. I could see from its colour that it would be rich, whilst it's physical lightness indicated that it would be fluffy.

I wasn't disappointed either. Considering that this too has a shelf life of 3 months, you wouldn't know it. Even writing about it leaves me yearning for more. I heated the muffin in the microwave for 20 seconds which meant that the chocolate chips melted messily into the cake -utter chocoholic heaven.

9/10

Summary

I believe that Blackfriars Bakery definitely comes into its own with their muffins. The rest of their range sound incredible too: from banoffee to black forest, cherry bakewell, cappuccino, jaffa cake and monster white chocolate muffins (to name just a few!) I really wouldn't know where to begin.

Once again, a huge thank you to the British Bakery for sending me such a lovely array of treats to try. Please head over to their website where yes you can buy mixed boxes too! What are you waiting for?