Nellienoo Fudge Review: Biscoff, Chocolate Peanut Butter, Zesty Lime, & Lemon Meringue (Online)

The lovely Nic of Nellienoo fudge gave me the most wonderful surprise a couple of weeks ago when I came home to a packet containing not just one, but FOUR of her fabulous fudge packets. You can imagine how excited I was by this delivery, especially given how much I loved both her Caramac and Malteser Fudge....

Even better, Nic had included two of my absolute favourite flavours (biscoff and chocolate peanut butter) as well as two summery flavours: lemon meringue and zesty lime. 

Zesty Lime

"This white chocolate fudge combined with zesty fresh lime juice has such a wonderful flavour, subtle and fresh."

Here's where I admit that I'm not overly fussed on lime. It's not something I crave -mostly thanks to my grandmother's obsession with feeding us lime jelly. Put it this way, I never want to suffer three day old Banana Chartreuse* ever again. Anyway, I tried to forget the memories of Hartley's florescent jelly whilst taking a bite into Nellienoo's fudge.

Jeeeeeeesus, that's good. Nic you are a genius! The white chocolate base was as creamy as all of her other fudges -honestly, I've never known anything like it. Cutting through the sweetness, the lime offered a perfect zing that was utterly delicious. My only possible suggestion for improvement would be for the fudge to include some ginger biscuits within the mix, but then it wouldn't be gluten free. 

Lemon Meringue

"Fresh zesty lemon fudge with sweet crushed meringue pieces throughout."

This was another refreshing flavour. I thought that perhaps the meringue might make it either too sweet, or perhaps make the unbelievably smooth fudge feel a little grainy. Silly me. Of course Nic had mastered both the flavour and the texture. It was absolutely scrummy and a must buy for all lemon lovers!

Chocolate Peanut Butter

"This white chocolate fudge combined with peanut butter is delicious, it has milk chocolate chips stirred through at the end to give a marbled effect and a milk chocolate drizzle finish."

I'm sure Nic is a wizard. She certainly works magic on her concoctions. I was pleased to see that she hadn't watered down the flavour with any caramel. This fudge reminded me of white chocolate Reese's cups (still one of my all-time favourite treats) and it was a struggle to not gobble it down in one sitting!

Biscoff

"This delicious biscoff fudge is packed full of flavour. Smooth creamy texture with chunks of biscoff biscuit throughout. Perfect treat to have with a coffee."

You might think it was the chocolate peanut butter that had me most excited, but you would be wrong. Biscoff fudge? I was all over it. 

I had every right to be excited too. I mean it was everything I hoped for - and more. The sweet cinnamon spice came through in each soft, chewy nibble. The biscuit pieces hadn't gone soggy and added that beautiful caramelised crunch into the mix to really exalt the eating experience. It was sheer heaven. 

You know it's love when I was enjoying my fudge this much and offer a bite to my biscoff loving, but fudge hating other half. Bert seriously detests fudge. I mean he won't go near the stuff at all. Normally. But... Nellienoo fudge apparently doesn't count. It's that tasty that not only has it won him over - but I found myself hiding the rest of the pack from him. What have you done to us Nic?

I'd like to say another huge thank you to Nic for sending me some more of her magnificent fudge. Please do pop on over to her website where you can buy all of her super-duper treats for £3.50 per pack -it might just be the best money you've ever spent.


*An odd dessert made with banana, lime jelly and cream. It was meant to look something like this (photo courtesy of the Food History Journals) but hers never quite did...

NEW! Taste of Summer Lemon Filled Croissants (M&S)

It's been a while since I reviewed any of the Spirit of Summer range! In the meantime I have tried the Chicken Shawarma flatbread* which was recommended to me by friends (and fellow bloggers) Nat and Laura. Good shout ladies, it's delicious, although I personally prefer the lamb kofta -it's a close call though. Anyway, I've had my greedy eyes on Marks & Spencer's new filled croissants since they appeared in store a couple of months back. The croissants are available in both lemon and apricot flavours, but I've been stingy and refused to pay £2 for the two-pack, thus the patient wait to find them reduced. In all honesty, it was the apricot flavour that piqued my interest (it's my favourite flavour jam) but when I found the lemon reduced this week I was governed by budget and bought the yellow-stickered pack. 

"All butter croissants filled with a zesty sicilian lemon curd."

I rarely buy croissants as I find they can be so hit and miss. Unless they're fresh from the oven, the pastry is often dry and tough. I'm sad to report that M&S haven't avoided this pitfall either as I discovered when I opened the pack and gave the croissants a little squidge.

Slicing one in half didn't improve matters either. The lamination was admittedly impressive, but I couldn't see much of the promised lemon curd filling. Come on Marks & Spencer! 

I took a bite. Ghandi's flipflop. To make matters worse, the lemon curd had the bitter pithy flavour also present in M&S' Spirit of Summer Lemon & Ricotta Cheesecake Slices.

There was only one thing for it... could the microwave save the day? 

Oops. I think I might've popped it in there for too long! I now had visible evidence that there was lemon curd in the croissant (now lemon sauce). Warming the croissant improved matters slightly; at least it was now edible and I could use the lemon to give the pastry some much needed moisture. I still found the lemon to be too bitter, but I appreciate that some of you may prefer it that way. 

I don't think I'll even bother with the other croissant though -currently in my freezer- is it safe to give them to dogs? I'm still tempted to give the apricot croissant a go, but I'm definitely not paying £2 for what could be another dog treat! 

3/10 

*

FYI I'd give the Chicken Shawarma flatbread an 8/10.

NEW! Sicilian Lemon & Ricotta Cheesecake Slices (M&S)

Occasionally I find myself craving cheesecake that's not chocolate based. I know. Shocker. In fact I'm quite partial to the odd lemony pud -be it a drizzle cake, meringue pie, tarte au citron or cheesecake- but only if it offers a balanced juxtaposition of sweet and tart. It's for this reason that I'm fond of Gü's citrus cheesecake and steer clear of Aldi's version. The former is delightfully light and zingy whilst the latter is acidic and barely enjoyable. Given my recent experiences with M&S' Spirit Of Summer desserts I believed I could depend upon them to deliver a refreshing, summery cheesecake. 

"Sicilian lemon and ricotta baked cheesecake on a digestive biscuit base topped with a Sicilian lemon glaze and candies lemon peel."

At 110g each they were larger than your usual cheesecake slice, which especially pleased me as I'd only paid 95p for the pack because I'd been lucky enough to pop in at reducing time (I believe they're normally £2.75). 

The consistency of the cheesecake was surprisingly fluffy. It wasn't moussey like M&S' sunken Chocolate & Valencian Orange cheesecake, but it wasn't gelatinous like most other mass produced cheesecakes either. In fact, texturally the cheesecake was pretty damn perfect. It was just the flavour that ruined it. Instead of the sweet tang that I'd hoped for, all I could taste was the bitter lemon pith that you'll find if you ever zest a lemon too far. The resulting flavour wasn't great. I mean it was edible, but I can't say I particularly enjoyed it. 

Against the acidic cheesecake the flavour of the glaze was lost. I tried a little on its own, and it seemed fairly tasty, but it offered little in the way of redemption. Come on biscuit base! Please be better... 

But it wasn't. It was of decent thickness, I'll give M&S that, but what's the point when it was utterly soggy? I can't help but think that an amaretti biscuit would've worked well here, both in terms of flavour and texture. 

Oh dear M&S. 

5/10

NEW! Spirit of Summer: Summer Macaroon Selection (M&S)

I was truly on the bargain hunt yesterday. I started the day at the Malvern Giant Flea Fair (a must for antique lovers nationwide) and found myself in Marks & Sparks just before close. The trouble is, those yellow stickers are just too appealing, and despite not being initially tempted by the summer macaroons, the 65p sticker was irresistible. My last experience with M&S macaroons wasn't that great, and so I felt annoyed with my lack of self-restraint. 65p wasn't too much money to waste I suppose...

"A selection of French almond macaroons in 3 flavours -1 peach and apricot, 1 lemon and 1 cherry."

At least I could tell which macaroon was which this time around thanks to their bright colourings. I couldn't see much in the way of fillings peeping out, so split them in half for a better look. The centres seemed to be saucy as opposed to cream based like the Festive ganache filled macaroons. 

Wow, I was impressed. I didn't think I was a massive macaroon fan, but I indulged in the delicate texture but bold flavours of these miniature French-style treats. The macaroons were light, with a crunchy exterior and fluffy centre. I loved the prominence of the almond, which came through in all of the three flavours. 

The centres were like a solid jam, and were wonderfully well-flavoured. I'm not sure I could pick a favourite because apricot conserve is usually my favourite, but I also adore cherry Bakewell and am going through a lemon-loving phase at the moment. 

I can't believe that I thought I might be wasting my 65p! M&S have created a sensational summer treat here that simply screams of sunshine.  I'll be certainly sure to buy another pack  if I'm lucky enough to find them reduced again, and may even treat myself to them at their full price.

9/10

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! Lemon Drizzle Bun (LIDL)

Often when I wrote reviews of a disappointing product I find myself feeling the need to rectify the issue with a delicious version of said treat. At least that's why I'm blaming Pågen for my cinnamon cravings. Where could I find a decent cinnamon bun though outside of London (thanks for the tips guys)? Normally I can rely on Tesco's bakery -ASDA's aren't nearly so good- but my local Express store has been lacking in supplies lately. Well, either that or there's more cinna-fanatics out there. Then I had a brainwave. Lidl. Lidl sell fabulous looking cinnamon buns, and given the jam doughnut's success I thought I could rely on their bakery. Being the wily mate that I am, it didn't take long to persuade Bert that I really needed more Skyr and he kindly drove me across town. 

Oh dear, dilemma time. I instantly spotted the cinnamon buns, but then cushioned up next to them was an impressive array of iced buns adorned with white chocolate curls. They were simply labelled 'sweet buns, 49p'. Intriguing. I went on a mission to find a member of staff (easier said than done in Lidl) and eventually found a young man who advised me that he thought they were "lemon, lemon drizzle perhaps?". We'll go with that. The cinnamon bun could wait, the lemon drizzle could not. 

I had no idea whether the bun would be filled or not, but given it's coiled shape I found myself dreaming of a sweet yet sharp lemon curd interior. Nom. 

Oh. I guess not then! What the badger? The bun was dry all the way through; no raisins, no butter, and certainly no curd. I suppose on the plus side the dough was well risen with large air pockets, but it was also hard and almost crusty at the edges. 

My disappointment deepened with the first bite. The dough was very dry whilst the lemon flavoured was mild at best. I almost threw it away I was that annoyed by it. Before my frustrations got the better of me I heated the other half in the microwave. 

Ahh, that was better. The nuked dough softened, and the lemon became more prominent thanks to the now melted icing. It shouldn't have to come to that though should it? 

If you're after a citrusy bun, please stick to M&S' brilliant lemon Whitbys. They're gloriously soft, studded with sultanas and filled with a delicious curd. In comparison Lidl's are barely edible when ambient. I'll just stick to their jam doughnuts in future. 

Now I'm craving lemon curd and cinnamon buns. Oh boy.

3/10.

NEW! Balanced For You Prawn & Crab Macaroni Cheese Review (M&S)

The other day I popped into M&S to buy some Mud Pie ice cream (currently reduced to clear at just £1.50 per tub) when I spotted this intriguing sounding ready meal at the end of one of the aisles. A healthy prawn and crab macaroni cheese? That sounded both unusual and oddly delicious. I can understand the addition of ham or bacon -perhaps even chicken-  in the comforting pasta dish -but fish? Hmm M&S could've created an epic fail or had a stroke of pure genius!

At £4.25 for a single ready meal (but also currently part of a 3 for £10 'balanced for you' meal deal) I wasn't prepared to risk it. But then I found myself wondering about the macaroni cheese again and again before finally deciding to treat myself to it yesterday -I was home alone and neck deep in assignments after all! 

"Prawn & crab macaroni cheese topped with a Cheddar cheese & paprika crumb."

The meal comes in a foil dish, which M&S suggests popping into a 200c oven (180 fan) for 10 minutes, before removing the film and returning for the last 15. What a faff! Normally I cook my own meals so am used to being in the kitchen, but I bought this for the convenience! I was working on my assignment when I put it in the oven, and it was 15 minutes before I looked at my watch and remembered to pull myself away from the computer to remove the lid. Oops.

There wasn't a huge deal of 'crust' on top to crisp up anyway to be honest, but my dinner was bubbling by the time I retrieved it. It was an odd colour for a macaroni cheese, more salmon than pale yellow. 

What I hadn't realised is that the crab element actually comes from the sauce! I'd naively thought that the pasta would be in a cheese sauce with prawns and crab in, but if I'd have read the description I'd have realised that the dish is in fact 'cooked pasta with prawns in a creamy crab and lemon sauce, topped with Cheddar cheese and a paprika crumb.' Oh.

The resulting flavour was as odd as it sounds, a kind of fishy, very lemony sauce with a cheesiness lingering somewhere in the background. I mean, there was something quite yummy and very comforting about it (after all Mac & Cheese is the ultimate in cold evening's eating) but there was also something about it that just didn't quite sit right. Perhaps it was due to the overwhelming citrus flavour, or perhaps it was down to the rubbery prawns (25 mins in my furnace didn't do them any favours I can assure you). 

I can't say I'd part with another £4.25 to have this meal again, but I would pick it up if I saw it adorned with those tempting yellow stickers on at the end of the day.

6/10