NEW! Limited Edition Strawberry Swirl Jammie Dodgers (Home Bargains)

Yes, I'm still on the coffee caramel digestive hunt. It's driving me loopy now! Apparently they're on Ocado and in some Spars, but they still don't seem to have made an appearance in rural Hereford yet. Or Cardiff for that matter. My sister and I intended to go trampolining on Saturday, but when we got off the bus outside the trampoline park we decided that it was too hot to spend the afternoon inside - let alone doing any kind of exercise. Instead we made a quick detour into B&M and Home Bargains before getting back on the bus to her house for a sunbathing session. As soon as we walked through the door in Home Bargains I spotted jammy dodgers in different packaging. Ooh the past it had an ice cream cone on it! Was this a new flavour? Strawberry swirled. Hmm. It was hardly the most imaginative limited edition, but it was new, and would have to do in lieu of the digestives. Plus who doesn't love a good Jammie Dodger?

"Strawberry flavoured jam with vanilla flavour filling sandwiched between two shortcake biscuits."

I'm not sure where the swirl comes in but the cream filling was present on one side of the otherwise standard looking JDs. The biscuits were just as I remembered, not as crumbly as most shortcakes but with a decent vanilla flavour. It  don't expect that it'll shock you that the strawberry and cream style filling worked well together. The jam was -of course- very sweet and artificial,  and the vanilla was gooey and somewhat marshmallow-like. 

The biscuits were pleasant, but once again we find ourselves with a very lazy limited edition. With endless possible flavour combinations out there, why have we been palmed off with what's essentially a Happy Face/Classic jam ring biscuit? I miss the old banana and toffee JDs, but would love to see Burtons create something more exciting: rhubarb and custard, lemon meringue or peanut butter perhaps? 

6/10 

NEW! Lemon Sherbet Doughnut (Greggs)

Ok, it's not that new. Greggs' lemon sherbet ring doughnut was released the same week as their brilliant caramel cookie filled doughnut*. The thing is, I don't really see the point in non-glazed ring doughnuts -surely the best bit is the squidgy filling? That's if you get any of course, both Krispy Kreme and Greggs seem to be hit and miss. I've been having citrussy cravings of late though, I think it's due to the changing seasons, and so I decided it was time to try Greggs' other limited edition offering. 

"If you're after something with a sweet and sour kick to it, then this is for you! 

A soft ring doughnut topped in a tangy lemon sherbet flavoured fondant finished with a white chocolate flavour spin decoration. "

There's two Greggs in Hereford. I went into the first yesterday, took a look at the sorry state of the lemon sherbet doughnuts and decided to stop into the second branch instead as it was on my way home. Humf. The second lot didn't look any better. The icing wasn't sitting attractively atop the rings, instead it was sliding off all over the place. It wasn't even that hot outside! I even sneakily brought a doughnut box from LIDL with me to protect it, so this time I'm not taking any blame for the sorry state of the topping. 

Slicing the ring in two revealed the well aerated dough. It was adequately soft too, although nowhere near as soft as the Tandem Bakery's incredible doughnuts**.

Sweet and sour icing you say Greggs? Lemon sherbet? That's news to me. Yes it was lemony, yes it had a slight tang, but it certainly wasn't about to cause any lip-puckering. The lemon flavour was little stronger than the icing you'll find on lemon buns**. I found it pleasant, but it certainly didn't earn the sherbet badge. What was stranger was the dusting of caster sugar that I found underneath the icing. It was like Greggs had made too many sugar dusted ring doughnuts and then whacked some lemon icing on top -which perhaps explains why the topping was sliding off. Very peculiar. 

As for the dough itself, it seems to be an improvement on the rings I've had from Greggs in the past. That's to say it was less bread-like, with a sweeter flavour and lighter texture. 

At 75p the lemon sherbet ring doughnuts are unlikely to break the bank, but I know I'd rather have a plain jam doughnut from any of the supermarkets. Last year's rhubarb & custard doughnut was better -but still not great- so please pull your socks up Greggs for your next seasonal release.

6/10

*please buy one if you haven't yet, they're better than Krispy Kreme! 

**Tandem doughnuts...check out these Easter week doughnuts (they were the size of my hand!) 

Creme Egg

Hot Cross Bun

***oh god, I'd forgotten about Sainsbury's nostalgic finger buns, adds to shopping list.

NEW! Limited Edition Muller Corner Goes Nuts (ASDA)

Why do I do this? Please tell me you do it too. You're in the supermarket, you're hungry, you spot something new and vaguely interesting, and before you know it it's in your trolley. Then every time you open the fridge/freezer/cupboard you think 'why the badger did I buy that?'. Cue this Müller corner and the 10 for £3 deal at ASDA. Oops.

"Pistachio flavour yogurt with caramelised crushed almonds."

I mean hats off to Müller for creating something utterly different, but:
1. I'd never choose pistachio ice cream so why buy the yogurt? And...
2. I swore off buying Müller yogurts.

Yet there I was, begrudgingly retrieving it from the fridge last night 'to eat it up out of the way'. Even as a Müller fan there was NO way I was persuading Bert to try this flavour!

The colour of pistachio isn't exactly enticing is it? It reminds me of the walls in my primary school. As always, the smaller compartment was only half full, things weren't looking up.

Well. I take it back. The yogurt was refreshing. The pistachio was mild, but just about noticeable if you really paid attention. I'm still not keen on the wobbly consistency though- it's definitely runnier than it once was.

The crushed almonds however, were absofreakinglutely delicious. They were crispy and perfectly sweet. The roasting brought out the flavour and they were punchy little nibs that were jam packed full of flavour. In fact I'd have been more than happy to eat a bag of them on their own, but they made a super topping for the yogurt.

I really enjoyed this new limited edition corner, it's the best flavour that Müller have brought out in a long time. Now they just need to make a peanut and banana flavour one, or a cherry yogurt with the caramelised crushed almonds for a Bakewell themed corner. Meanwhile, I'll attempt to not dread the new Apple & Elderflower Müller Light that's sat in my fridge quite so much!

9/10

NEW! Pumpkin Spice Latte Style Müller Corner (ASDA)

I'd just about given up on Müller Corners after the pants Oreo Corner and equally disappointing Gold Edition this summer, when they released their most exciting sounding yogurt to date: Pumpkin Spice Latte. It wasn't that long ago that I was moaning about the lack of Autumnal products in the UK, and I've since realised that I simply spoke too soon! Of course we have Starbucks to thank for bringing pumpkin spice popularity to the UK; PSLs have been a regular seasonal addition here since 2012 (a good 9 years after it was launched in the USA I might add). 

Could and would Müller pull off the famous drink in yogurt form? 

"Smooth pumpkin spice sauce with creamy coffee flavoured yogurt."

My honest opinion? No. Sorry to disappoint you...

I really wish that Müller would return to their older method/recipes to make their yogurts in the corners. The liquidity of it was much more similar to their Müller lights than the corners of old. There was also an odd synthetic aftertaste which curdled with the coffee flavour somewhat -it was simply quite bizarre. 

It's a shame really, especially because the pumpkin sauce was really quite tasty -although completely different to what I expected: much runnier and sweeter. I'd have thought it was apple rather than pumpkin, but maybe that's just because it's a similar spice mix that I use in my crumbles. I imagine that the pumpkin sauce would make a wonderful base layer for Müller rices actually. Müller are you reading this?

Meh. Not one for me, and I won't bother again. Kev had a more favourable opinion of the new Corner however, so please do go and check out his review too. Also, here's a tip off if you are a Müller fan: all their single pots (lights, corners and rices) are currently all on a 12 for £3 offer at ASDA!

4/10

Limited Edition Choc Raspberry Brownie Ice Cream (Tesco)

What's the best foodstuff to review on the hottest day of the year? That's a silly question. It's Ice cream of course! Have you joined the hoards who are moaning in typical British style about the one hot & sunny spell we're likely to get? Although... I must admit to whinging when I can't sleep due to the heat either.

Back to the topic in hand. This pint sized pot was released at the beginning of the summer, but I had reservations though about the amalgamation of fruit, chocolate and brownie. If it was banana flavoured instead of raspberry however, I'm sure the tub would have gone straight into my basket.

"Chocolate and raspberry ice creams swirled with a raspberry sauce, chocolate brownie pieces and milk chocolate chunks"

It seemed as if the chocolate and raspberry ice creams took up exactly half of the tub each (in the same format as Ben & Jerry's Karamel Sutra and Blondie Brownie ice creams) but as I dug on down, I realised that there was the usual hodgepodge dollops of each flavour. The firmness meant that it was quite difficult to scoop straight from the freezer, but with a bit of willpower and determination I managed to retrieve a decent portion (much larger than the paltry 64g suggested serving I might add). 

The ice creams weren't anything to shout about I'm afraid, as they lacked the creamy, luxurious quality of most pint size tubs (such as Ben & Jerrys and Haagen-Dazs). The chocolate flavour was better than the ALDI chocolate brownie sticks -but only marginally so- whilst the raspberry was rather nondescript. My favourite part was the sauce which administered a welcome boost of zing and broke up the sweetness nicely. The chunks were in abundance, although I thought the chocolate chips tasted rather more like plain cooking chocolate than the milk variety. Luckily the brownie chunks were soft and moist, and added an extra textural dimension to please my disappointed palate. 

I think this ice cream is better of given to the children, perhaps they won't mind the lack of depth to its flavour!

6/10

NEW! Butterkist Limited Edition Hot Cross Bun Popcorn (Home Bargains)

Another boring lecture was much improved back in January by my twitter feed revealing food news. This time I was grateful to Butterkist for announcing the release of a new Easter flavour to their range, due to be released on Valentines day. Ever since February the 14th, I've been hunting for their new Hot Cross Bun Popcorn, but it's proved more evasive than the Easter Bunny!

Finally, a month after it's release date I found Butterkist's newest product -in Home Bargains of all places- for the very reasonable sum of 69p. It's a big ol' sharing bag too, containing 6 25g servings, what a steal!

"Enjoy the zesty and spicy taste of your Easter favourite, hot cross buns, in Butterkist's crisp and crunchy popcorn -it's the perfect Easter treat."

I had imagined it to be normal popcorn dusted with cinnamon and nutmeg, and hadn't really considered that it would instead be coated with a 'bun spice flavour toffee'.

The 25g serving size was surprisingly generous (more than a handful atleast!), and was coated with the same golden glaze as their Toffee popcorn. I couldn't smell any spices when I opened the bag, and feared they'd be similarly as lacking in promised flavour as Waitrose's 'Cherry Bakewell' & 'Sticky Toffee' Hot Cross Buns.

I needn't have worried; for what the popcorn failed to deliver in aroma, it more than made up for in taste. With my first bite, I was greeted by a strong, sweet citrussy tang, followed by the familiarly warming Easter spices. The popcorn was every bit as crunchy and crisp as expected, resulting in a beautifully balanced harmony of texture and flavour. The zestiness cut through the sweet coating, which meant that the popcorn was far less sickly than Butterkist's toffee flavour, and therefore much more enjoyable to eat. It was so moreish, that I imagine if I hadn't have portioned out my lot, I could've polished off the entire bag in one sitting.

I was pleasantly surprised by Butterkist's limited edition popcorn, and it seems an utter shame that it's not more widely available. If you're a lover of hot cross buns, I recommend that you hot foot it over to Home Bargains and pick yourself up a bag (or more!) of the Easter flavour before it disappears altogether!  

9/10

KitKat Limited Edition Mocha Flavour (Morrisons)

Sometimes I'm quick off the mark when it comes to new food releases, whilst other times I'm not so excitable and wait a long while before buying. This is certainly true when it comes to this KitKat Mocha, as they've since released two new flavours: Stirred Vanilla & Extra Chocolatey (check out One Treat's review here). Anyway, on the off chance that you've not tried the Mocha Kitkat yet either, I thought I'd give it a quick review.

The four-finger bar smelt convincingly of coffee. The chocolate was of standard Nestle quality (I much prefer both Mars' and Cadbury's milk chocolate). The coffee came through as a mild flavouring, certainly earning its status as mocha rather than espresso, which gave it a rather comforting element. The wafers were perfectly crisp, but the ratio of chocolate to wafer was rather stingy- but maybe that's only my chocoholic opinion!

Overall, this is a pleasant bar, but I wouldn't choose it regularly over a more chocolatey product. I just wish there were more true coffee chocolate bars on the market!

7/10

NEW! Black Forest Gateaux Limited Edition Special K Moments (Tesco)

I got through phases with the Special K Biscuit Moments. I'll have weeks where I just can't get enough of them, and then I won't even think about them for months on end. Recently, I've been buying more of the other (more substantial) breakfast biscuits and granola bars, but then I saw that Kellogg's had released a new limited edition flavour: black forest gateaux. 

'Delicious cocoa biscuits with a soft cherry-flavoured filling, topped with a vanilla-flavoured drizzle.'

Now I appreciate that for some it brings back horrid memories of terrible 70's desserts, but as I wasn't born until the late 80s I still think of it as an under-appreciated concoction. I mean, cherries and chocolate are just a match made in heaven, aren't they? One of my favourite breakfasts has to be Coco Pops porridge with added sweet cherries -it's delicious, trust me! 

Anyway, enough of the rambling. Each pack contained two chocolatey biscuits with a rather beautiful drizzle on top; they looked almost too pretty to eat!  The biscuits where thin, but despite their slenderness packed a decent cocoa punch. The rich dark chocolate provided a wonderful vehicle for the sweet cherry jam filling, resulting in a convincing black forest creation. The biscuits were devilishly moreish, which meant that I was thankful that the packs are individually wrapped!

For such low calories, these seem the perfect diet choice for anyone who is a sweet-toothed weight-watcher. I'll definitely buy them again! Well done Kellogg's!

9/10

New Peanut & Caramel Müllerlight (Tesco)

My stomach fell through the floor the other day when I saw the picture Katherine (from Grocery Gems) posted on Instagram of the new limited edition Müllerlight flavour: Peanut & Caramel. I briefly thought it was an April fools, but then realised that we're only just into January. I hot-footed it down to ASDA (where I had no luck) then on to Waitrose (who didn't even know what I was talking about) before ending up in Tesco -who had five single pots on the shelf. Being my usual greedy self, I grabbed all of the pots and rushed on home. 

The yoghurt was typically runny in Müllerlight's characteristic fashion, with a warm beige colour.

On to the tasting... The first thing I noticed was the artificial sweetness, which unsuprisingly lacked the depth and almost burnt-like tones of true caramel. The peanut came through after, but not in a rich peanut-buttery way, it also just tasted super synthetic. Oddly, the flavour reminded me of the warm drink 'Peanut Hottie' if you've ever had that before! The yoghurt had an odd fruity element, but I'm not sure where I got that from.

All in all, its a bit odd. It feels like Müller have sadly missed the mark slightly with this new limited edition yoghurt, but I'm hoping it grows on me as I make my way through my remaining four pots. If you're a dedicated peanut butter fan though, don't get your hopes up. 

5/10

White Chocolate Twix (99p Stores)

Happy New Years Eve Ladies and Gents, I hope you all have a fabulous day and evening celebrating the end of 2015. It seems only right to finish the year with a chocolate-y review! 

So, our little City has its own Saturday market complete with a foodie 'Del Boy.' Each week he pitches up, and you never know what he's going to stock. Some weeks its Lindt chocolate, others its just broken biscuits and out-of-date Easter Eggs. About a year ago though, I hit the jackpot and bought from him some continental chocolate bars that we don't have in the UK -White Chocolate Twixs. I greedily ate my hoard, and went back for more but, alas, he hasn't stocked them since. I've searched online, and short of ordering a case from Amazon (yes I'm a chocoholic but I'm not that bad, and I get bored easily) I was out of luck. 

Until.. I found a single five-pack of the Holy Grail in the 99p store. I think I might've done a little jig right there in the shop, and I bought them quickly before anyone snatched them from my loving embrace. 

I wasn't sure if the rose-tinted spectacles had cast their bewitching spell on the bars, and given my recent affair with the American Peanut Butter Twix I didn't know if I'd still feel the same way about the white chocolate version after our lengthy time apart. 

I needn't have worried. The combination of crunchy biscuit, smooth caramel and creamy white chocolate was a winner. Each component was perfectly executed which led to an indulgent bar that left me wanting more. 

The different varieties of Twix that I've tried recently have been superb, and I'm quite perturbed that us Brits tend to luck-out when it comes to new flavours. I'm keeping an eager-eye out for the Cappuccino Twix that I've been dying to try since Kev from Kev's Snack Reviews spotted it earlier this year! If you see any whilst out-and-about please give me the heads up as to where I might purchase one (or more!).

10/10

NEW Pringles Pigs in Blankets

These new Christmassy Pringles got me really excited! It was disclosed at the start of November that Pringles were going to be launching a new limited edition flavour based around what is arguably the best part of Christmas Dinner, and I've been eagerly awaiting their arrival into stores since.

Chipolata and Bacon Flavour Savoury Snack

Now the one thing I couldn't get my head around was how Pringles were going to differentiate the two pork products. I think after all, what makes 'pigs-in-blankets' so special is the contrast between the crispy bacon casing and the squishy sausage within. So does it work in Pringle form?

For me? No. Whilst the Pringles had a lovely smoky flavour, I didn't find them particularly meaty. The most powerful flavour by far came from the Paprika, with an acknowledgement towards pork (which was more ham than chipolata or bacon) resulting in a product that's probably better described as Barbeque. I've found in recent years that Pringle's flavourings have become more mild, lacking the 'pow' that once kept you going back for more until you'd finished the entire tube.

They are a pleasant crisp, and make a welcome change to the normal salt & vinegar that is the Pringles staple in our house, but I won't be stockpiling them before they're gone from supermarket shelves.

6/10