Hazelnut Praline Chocolate Bar (M&S)

Last week I reviewed the M&S Intense Cappuccino bar, and mentioned at the time that I'd made use of the current 2 for £1 deal. Today's review is of the other bar I bought: Hazelnut Praline. It was recommended to me months ago, but I'd since forgotten about its existence. That was until I was lured in by Marks & Sparks' tempting offer.

"Milk and dark chocolate bar with hazelnut praline centre (51%) and roasted almonds (4%)." 

I had been informed that it tasted like Nutella, but in all honesty I hoped it would taste slightly more grown up and less sweet than the chocolate hazelnut spread. The knobbly bar's appearance didn't give much away until I sliced it in two. M&S have a habit of layering the chocolate round the outside of their truffle style bars, and this one revealed the hazelnut centre enrobed in a layer of dark chocolate and covered by milk. Normally I think this is a bit of an odd choice, and that surely people prefer one or the other, but on this occasion it worked exceedingly well. The resulting flavour was rich without bordering on bitter, and served as the perfect backdrop for the sweet centre. I loved the addition of almonds too, which added crunch to the chocolate and made it far more texturally interesting. 

Now for the star of the show: the hazelnut praline. Did it taste like Nutella? Not to me. It was far better than that, probably due to the fact that hazelnuts rank second down the ingredients list, meaning that it's truly nutty -hurrah! In fact if I'd have closed my eyes, I'm sure I could be been convinced I was eating my absolute favourite (and hard to get hold of) chocolate: Côte D'Or's Bouchée. Wow! It was heavenly. I really didn't think I could find another truffle, or indeed bar that could taste anything like my treasured favourite, but it's been under my nose in good old M&S all this time. Silly me! 

10/10 

Intense Cappuccino Bar (M&S)

I was in M&S recently* when I spotted their chocolate truffle bars on a 2 for £1 offer. Normally I veer straight towards their scrummy peanut butter bar, but I was swayed by the idea of a good deal (they're normally 70p each) and the opportunity to try something I haven't tasted before. One of the bars I bought was this intense cappuccino bar, which appealed given my love of all things mocha.

"White and dark chocolate bar with a coffee mousse centre (57%), decorated with milk chocolate (7%)."

The bar's size didn't enter my mind when I bought it, however I was taken aback once I retrieved it from its wrapper. It was weeny! I mean, finger size...

Humf. I know my chocolate cravings are hard to fulfil, but this was taking the Micky! Still, the finger sliced cleanly in two, revealing all of the distinct layers. At least it was attractive.

Fortunately for those who enjoy a strong coffee hit, this bar delivers the intense cappuccino taste that it promises. The truffle-esque filling was soft and packed full of flavour, indeed slightly too much so for my personal latte/weak coffee preferences. Despite the presence of white chocolate, the bar wasn't particularly sweet, and I felt my taste buds longing for more chocolate to provide a more balanced mocha style flavour -silly really considering that the bar is called 'intense cappuccino' and not 'mocha latte'. I couldn't really taste the chocolate in all honesty, for it was almost completely overwhelmed the coffee flavour and just served as more of a vehicle for the mousse filling.

Im complaining, but I shouldn't be really. I imagine the Americano or Espresso lovers out there would really enjoy the bar, but it's not one that I would buy again. I hope the other bar I bought will be more my cup of tea. Or coffee, haha.

6/10

*recently-ish, it was a few weeks ago!

NEW! Mud Pie Ice Cream (M&S)

Today's review concerns another product from M&S' new 'Spirit of Summer' range... So far we've had the Dulce de Leche cheesecake, Banana & Dulce de Leche slices, and mango jaffa cakes, and now it's time to add an ice cream to the mix.

"Smooth dairy ice cream swirled with chocolate truffle sauce, chocolate brownie pieces, chocolate chunks and cookie pieces."

The half litre tub cost £2.20 (introductory offer) which puts it on a par price-wise with Ben & Jerry's  -I never stump up the full RRP and instead either buy the brand either from farmfoods or wait for the supermarkets' money-off deals. The pale ice cream was flecked with cookie crumbs, chocolate chips and a ripple of sauce. Firmer than the likes of carte d'or but not quite as solid as Ben & Jerry's, meant that it was ripe for the scooping straight from the freezer.

I'm not going to be able to give you the low down on each of the components I'm afraid, because each mouthful contained a little bit of everything. Unlike Ben & Jerry's tubs the 'added extras' such as the brownie and cookie pieces were crumbled down, which meant that they permeated the otherwise plain ice cream and ensured an even distribution -injecting a gritty cocoa flavour into every bite. The chocolate truffle sauce wasn't in as ample supply as I'd have liked, but what there was of it tasted delicious.

The new Mud Pie ice cream hasn't knocked M&S' new Salted Caramel ice cream from the topspot, but it's certainly on a par with their Hazelnut ice cream and I'll be stocking up whilst it remains on offer. Well done Marks and Sparks!

9/10

NEW! Magnum Double Chocolate Bar (B&M)

Even on holiday, my long suffering fiance can't escape my excitement when spotting a B&M bargains. Our Hotel in Rhyl was only a few doors down from the high street, at the end of which was a number of discount stores, including my beloved B&M. Of course I couldn't help but pop in on the off-chance that they might have some different stock to my two most local branches.

Most of the products were the same, but I did come across a chocolate bar that I've never spotted before: Magnum Double Chocolate -priced at just 50p. I've never bought any of Magnum's chocolate before, although Kev has written about a number of their bars (check out a review of the new chocolate and almond truffle bar here).

"With layers of Magnum chocolate and an indulgent chocolate filling".

First off, please accept my apologies for the lack of in-depth information about this bar. I have two rather pitiful excuses: 

1. I forgot to keep the wrapper.
2. I had drunk two large glasses of wine before munching it

I did read the wrapper before I munched it, and recall that it was supposed to contain milk and dark chocolate, with a crunchy filling... It was also quite small at only 37g... but that's about all my memory served me! 

Thankfully my taste-bud recollection is better than my visual memory...

The chocolate coating was darker than your normal British milk chocolate, but no different to the coating of a Magnum ice cream -and taste-wise it was very similar. There was a darker layer of chocolate underneath the top coat, and whilst it was richer, it was far from bitter -and I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. The core of the bar contained a truffle studded with crunchy bits. The textural contrast was well thought out, but the flavour less so. The crunchy bits tasted like honeycomb, and the truffle was very sweet too, which when combined with the two chocolate coatings resulted in a very sickly bar.

The Magnum double chocolate bar satisfied my chocolate cravings, but also made me want to brush my teeth. There was just too much going on for me, and I can't say I'll be in a rush to track one down again.

5/10

Monty Bojangles Choccy Scoffy Cocoa Dusted Truffles (Tesco)

Monty Bojangles is a name that I've only come across recently; 1 treat reviewed their bonbons back in October, and only last week Hannah (the review addict) reviewed their bubbly truffles. Both of the ladies gave the products very high scores, so i couldn't resist the mini box of Monty Bojangles' Choccy Scoffy truffles reduced to clear in the January sales.  

The pretty 27g box contained three individually wrapped cocoa dusted truffles. The strong, dark chocolatey aroma welcomed my nostrils as soon as I unwrapped the first one, and it wasn't long until I took my first bite. 

Wow. They pack a punch; they are dark, and taste every bit as indulgent as they sound. As always, I kept my chocolate in the fridge, so they were quite firm, but that meant I could savour them as they melted away so obligingly in my mouth. 

These Choccy Scoffy chocolates are delicious, and terribly moreish. Indeed, if the individual wrappers were an attempt at preventing the consumer from eating them all in one go, they need to perhaps think about padlocking each truffle instead. Monty Bojangles Choccy Scoffy Truffles reminded me of a solid version of Gu's ganache -and that's certainly no bad thing. The larger boxes are stocked in all the major supermarkets year round, and I'm sure I'll buy them long before Christmas rolls around again. 

9/10 

NEW! Good4U Banana & Cocoa Super Bites (ASDA)

Happy New Year! May your 2016 be healthy, happy and full of mischief!

Have you got any New Years resolutions? Are you joining the gym, the clean eating brigade or giving up alcohol? I'm bucking the trend and starting an anti-diet, which will include munching on lots of my favourite foods! However if, unlike me, you're on a bit of a health-kick, I've got a food review for you today.

ASDA have recently started stocking the complete range of the new Good4U Super Bites: Banana & Cocoa, Cocoa & Orange and Coconut. They are are all raw seed & fruit bites which are wheat free, dairy free and vegan. I chose the banana and cocoa due to my love of both flavours -anyone agree with me about the utter food perfection and heavenly nature of a banana & nutella toastie? 

The snack size pack contained 30 nuggets which convincingly resembled miniature cocoa-dusted truffles. They were squidgier than expected, and slightly chewy. The cocoa tasted dark and bitter, but much need sweetness came from the dates and raisins. The banana flavour however, was underwhelming and was completely overshadowed by the intensity of the cocoa. There was no doubting its inclusion in the ingredients, it just felt more of an afterthought than the star of the show -missing the mark in a similar way to the Meridian peanut & banana bar I reviewed at the beginning of November.

Good concept, but for a healthy chocolate hit I'd rather have the Cocoa Chaos Trek Bar (which the delectable Erin informs me is even tastier microwaved).

5/10

Thorntons 'Snowman & The Snowdog' Chocolate Truffle

I was browsing the Christmas products in Waitrose when these cute 'snowman' themed chocolates caught my eye. As I grew up watching the Raymond Briggs classic, and it remains one of the festive traditions that makes up part of my Christmas Eve, I felt impervious to resist.

'Milk chocolate with a white chocolate truffle centre' 

I purchased them for the reasonable price of 2 for £1. Unwrapping my truffle I was happy to discover that the chocolate had a pleasing resemblance to both characters (they've clearly got more advanced moulds than the Reese's Christmas Trees!) As you can see from the photo below, the chocolate was very glossy, which I thought was unusual and oddly off-putting.

It tasted as waxy as it looked, with a horribly cheap and chalky flavour meaning that it wasn't as smooth as I'd have liked -or expected- from what was once considered a luxury brand*. The centre was disappointingly lacklustre, completely devoid of white chocolate's characteristic creaminess, and I couldn't even really determine it against the milk chocolate. Texturally the truffle was very close and only marginally softer than it's covering.

I think these are beautiful little chocolates, and I think they would make children smile -if they pause long enough to look at them before munching them that is! As an adult however I'm a bit despondent at the lack of taste quality.

5/10




*It must be noted  that I don't eat a tremendous amount of Thorntons, so admittedly my taste buds are more accustomed to Galaxy or Dairy Milk