Mr Kipling Winter Whirls

It's got to that time of year where I'm a little bored of the standard mince pies. Didn't I say that would happen when I reviewed Tesco's Mince Pie Cookies just over a month ago? Anyway, I've seen the Winter Whirls on the shelves for a while now and as I was visiting my sister this weekend (who's also a Christmas maniac) I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to try Mr Kipling's variation on the classic festive treat. 

Winter Whirls, for anyone who hasn't seen or tried them are 'Scrummy shortcake swirls filled with rich buttercream and Christmassy mince pie-flavoured filling.' The box cost £1 from the Co-Op and contains six whirls. 

The biscuits are just as crumbly as I recall -although admittedly I can't remember the last time I bought Mr Kipling's standard Viennese Whirls. The biscuits melt in the mouth with a delicate butteriness that I remember fondly. The buttercream filling is very sweet and soft, and would probably be more enjoyable refrigerated. My gripe however was the mince pie element, which was just a mere smudge of jam flavoured with the traditional Christmas spices*.  The whirl could've benefitted from a better filling ratio, as the jam was almost completely lost against the decadent biscuits and rich buttercream. 

It's such a lovely idea, and it feels like a lovely dainty Christmas treat. It might be one for those who aren't so keen on the richness of mince pies, or who like the flavour but not the raisins! 

7/10

*I Read the ingredients later and realised that it's in fact just a spiced apple jam- how misleading...