NEW! Mars Ice Cream Tubs (ASDA)

I wasn't too fussed on trying the new Mars ice cream tub when it first came out a couple of months ago. I mean, the ice cream bars are fabulous (albeit shockingly small) and I couldn't see the appeal of just eating the ice cream on its own. Surely nibbling the chocolate from around the bar whilst trying to stop yourself from getting covered in oozy caramel is the best thing about them, don't you agree? However, I happened to mention the new Mars and Snickers tubs in conversation with my sister though, who sounded much more excited by them. I then received report a week later from her that she's not only tried the Mars tub but had munched her way through three Mars pints since discovering them. That was it. I decided it was high time to get myself a tub. Like hell was I paying £3 though, instead I patiently waited for them to come back on offer, which they did this week -currently £2 per tub, exclusive to ASDA. 

"Dairy ice cream with caramel sauce (12%) and milk chocolate sauce (13%)."

The ice cream was on the soft side straight from the freezer, which makes it difficult to scoop on these hot summers days -not that I'm complaining about the weather, long may it last! I was over the moon when I spotted the large shards of chocolate that were embedded throughout though. Why, oh why, don't Mars highlight this in the tub's description?

Chocolate in the ice cream too? That makes it a winner for me! It reminded me of the new Magnum tubs, but with the addition of  both caramel and chocolate sauces. The second surprise came from the colour of the ice cream itself. I expected it to be creamy, but instead it was a very pale -almost malty- shade. 

Jeez. Whilst it wasn't comparable to Haagen-Dazs, Judes or Ben & Jerry's in terms of creaminess, it was reminiscent of summer days as a child: coming home from school and being given a Mars ice cream by my Gran, which always left me wanting more bars. It's like eating them mushed up, and in a waffle cone they were utterly delicious. The caramel sauce was more noticeable than the chocolate, but was as wonderful as I remembered it to be -sticky, sweet and toffee-like. Despite the shade of the ice cream, it didn't actually taste of chocolate, but I didn't really expect it to from the description on the pack, so I didn't feel disappointed. 

I've only got two real complaints:

1) How quickly the ice cream melted (you have too be quick with this one!)

and

2)  That the suggested serving size of 100ml (2 scoops) really isn't enough. 

Somehow this works better for me than the Magnum tubs, and I think I'll buy it over the Mars ice cream bars again -but only at £2 per tub. 

8/10

NEW! Mars Choc Brownie Review

Theres a new Mars bar in town! Well. I say new, but is it really? Mars Choc Brownie certainly sounds new, but it also sounds eerily similar to the Mars Triple Choc and the Xtra Choc. Are they just rehashing the same bar under different guises? Quite possibly. It didn't sound much different...

The press releases for all three bars went as follows:

2011 Triple Choc: 'tasty chocolate nougat and delicious chocolate caramel, covered in thick milk chocolate'.

2015 Xtra Choc: 'extra chocolatey taste from delicious chocolate caramel and tasty chocolate nougat encased in a thick chocolate coat' 

2017 new Choc Brownie: 'thick chocolate nougat with indulgent dark caramel”, covered in Mars chocolate, to create a “new twist on a chocolate classic”.

Ahem. In any case, I miss the discontinued Xtra Choc, so set out on a mission to find the Choc Brownie at the same time as the new McVities banoffee caramel and coffee* caramel digestives! The new Mars bar was  reportedly launched on the 22nd of May (once again, thanks to @productsinstore for the heads up) but I couldn't find it for love nor money. In the end I harassed my poor corner shop so much that they eventally got them in. Hurrah! It's therefore worth checking your corner shops, although I've seen reports that four packs are in Bargain Buys and PoundWorld (just not in Hereford PoundWorld).

Slicing it in half revealed the distinct Mars layers of milk chocolate (35%), nougat (37%) and caramel (28%) in completely different hues to the standard bar. 

The nougat and chocolate was as expected, indifferent to the Xtra Choc bar, but sweet and scrummy nonetheless. Described as dark caramel I'm unsure whether the gooey layer was meant to taste of chocolate seeing as there was already so much chocolate in the bar. To me it had tones reminiscent of black treacle and was unlike that used in the Xtra Choc bar - but perhaps that was my wishful imagination. 

I enjoyed the Mars Choc Brownie and will be sure to buy more once I've made my way through my extensive chocolate collection! Just be warned - it's a bar for those in dire need of a sugar hit. 

My only gripe is that surely the team at Mars could be more creative than rehashing the old limited editions. Given the variety in flavours of nougat style protein bars, surely Mars could bring out something more creative! It wouldn't even have to be as different as the wonderful Dark Chocolate & Raspberry Smart Bar or Banana Carb Killa -although chocolate bar versions of both of those bars would be great! A peanut butter, white chocolate or mocha Mars Bar would suffice!

7/10

* which I still haven't found yet, so please get in touch if you find them!

NEW! Mars Dessert Bar (Iceland)

I was so impressed with the new Twix cheesecake at Iceland that it was only going to be a matter of time before I ventured back into my local branch for the Mars Dessert Bar. I still think that the £3 non offer price is a tad on the pricey side, but for £2 it wasn't so bad. As with the cheesecake, the dessert bar is also actually made by specialists Coppenrath & Wiese.

"Layers of delicious chocolate sponge, mousse and caramel, smothered in milk chocolate."

The child in me was delighted when I removed the bar from it's box and saw that the inner wrapper made it look like a whopping great big Mars Bar (the pen is there to give you an indication of its size)! Surely that means I could eat it all? Sorry guys, no sharesies! Pah, I don't think my other half or sister would have agreed. Although it wasn't quite as preposterous as the cheesecake, 6 servings did seem a bit meagre and I decided that fifths would be more reasonable.

The serving suggestion warned me to defrost it inside its wrapper for the first hour and then naked for the last 1.5 -what a faff! There was also 3 of us for dinner, and I wanted to keep the remaining 2 portions for another day, so I ignored the destructions and unwrapped the bar straight away -slicing into it whilst still frozen. My defiance meant that the chocolate casing shattered upon impact, but I wasn't too bothered by the aesthetics as long as it tasted good. 
Whilst we're on the subject of prettiness, I did appreciate the distinct layers of cake and mousse, but was somewhat disgruntled when I realised that the caramel sauce only ran through one tier (unlike the picture on the box, humf). 

Meh, my disappointment didn't stop there. The Mars Dessert Bar is yet another case of style over substance. Where was the rich chocolate flavour? The mousse was light and airy, sure, but what's the point when it doesn't taste of much? The same went for the cake, which fortunately wasn't dry or stale, but was so non-descript that I wasn't savouring every morsel as I expected to. What made matters worse was that the caramel was the best bit, and the only nod to the chocolate bar that it's supposed to resemble.. If only there was more of it. Pants. 

Gah. I don't really think I need to tell you that I won't be buying another Mars Dessert Bar. There are far tastier chocolate gateaux on the market -Tesco's own for example.

6/10

Galaxy Treat Cakes (Morrisons)

I was on a rare venture into Morrisons yesterday where I spotted a huge display of 'new' Galaxy, Milky Way and Bounty cake slices. I'm not sure how recent they are because I'm well aware that companies often label their products as new way longer than they should, probably to trap obsessives such as myself. 

I realise that Galaxy has been a mainstay of the bakery aisle for years now with the chocolate cake bars, caramel cake bars and the festive 'Mistletoe Kisses' edition:

*Photos copied from www.tesco.com

The new treat cakes are presumably marketed as little indulgences because they each contain less than 100 calories. The galaxy version is simply chocolate sponge cake covered in milk chocolate, omitting the creamy layer of their previous bars altogether. 

I was disappointed to discover that the packet of 5 was half empty when the wrapper was removed, thanks to each cake being only marginally larger than a matchbox. The bars had a nice even chocolatey coating, which tasted more like the casing of a Mars bar than true Galaxy. The sponges were dry -unsurprising really given that they have a dubiously long shelf life- but the chocolate element edged them closer to enjoyable than simply edible.

These new 'treats' truly taste like the dieters version of the normal Galaxy cakes so -given that the caramel version contains only 18 calories and 0.5g saturated fat more-  I suggest that even if you're watching your weight that you stick to the original (and tastier) bars. 

6/10