Cadbury & More Caramel Nut Crunch (Tesco) By @Cinabar

The main problem with hot weather is that chocolate melts. I mean, there are plenty of problems: not being able to sleep, trying to stay cool and hydrated, worrying about sunburn... but as a food blogger, chocolate is a genuine concern.

Thankfully, this bar was tucked away in a cupboard where it was a little cooler, before being promoted to the fridge drawer once we remembered it during the peak of the heatwave. Honestly, I know the photo shows our bar looking a little less crisp than usual, but considering the temperature, the fact you can still almost read "Cadbury" on every piece feels like a small summer miracle. After chilling it, I finally opened the bar, and it is satisfyingly chunky. There's a generous amount of filling and, as someone who loves nuts and chocolate together, I couldn't wait to tuck in.

The standout flavours are the creamy Cadbury chocolate and crunchy hazelnuts, which work really well together. The caramel isn't particularly gooey, but it adds a pleasant sweetness that complements the nuts nicely. Personally, I would have preferred a pure flowing, gooey caramel filling, but I still enjoyed the combination of textures. The flavour also reminded me of an old chocolate bar. Wasn't there one called Nuts About Caramel, or something similar?

Anyway, fear not, dear reader. Our chocolate stash has now been given priority space in the fridge drawer, along with the chocolate biscuits. Move over, tomatoes, we're snack bloggers.

Pizza Express - Pizzaiolo Specials - Marry Me Chicken [@NLi10]

 Pizza Express at home is quite a fun deal.  Often there are special offers, and with that you get a just about restaurant quality pizza, for a just above home price.

I spotted this interesting flavour - "Marry Me Chicken" - apparently the sauce is so good you propose to the pizza.

Typical professional box and nicely packaged pizza.

And some kind of loyalty for the restaurant app. Nice touch - onboarding but with freebies.

And while I don't want to marry the pizza, the fresh bits are very tasty, the meat luxurious and big chunks.  The sauce could be a little more saucy, but cooking pizza at home you never quite get the heat/time right for these.  

Overall though this (and the accompanying veggie one) were greatly enjoyed and I hope that Sainsbury's still has the deal on next week.

Iced Caramelised Banana Macha Latte and Oat Shaken Espresso (Starbucks) By @SpectreUK

First off, I think they need to work on the titles. Try saying “Iced Caramelised Banana Oat Shaken Espresso” when you need to sober up. Or “Iced Caramelised Banana Macha Latte” when you’re overheating in hot weather.

It’s hot today, and after two mini heatwaves, we stopped at a local service station, as I was feeling tired from driving. Cinabar mentioned a couple of cooling drinks we could try in the Starbucks there.

I was too hot or at least too tongue-tied to order. I also couldn’t decide between Iced Caramelised Banana Macha Latte or Iced Caramelised Banana Oat Shaken Espresso. I couldn’t even decide when they were delivered.

I tried both. The Iced Caramelised Banana Oat Shaken Espresso tasted mostly of coffee, with a little sweet caramelised banana milkshake. It was fairly strong, but at least it didn’t taste like Starbucks regular Americano.

Whereas, on first sip of the Iced Caramelised Banana Macha Latte, it tasted solely of sweet caramelised banana. Well, until Cinabar told me to angle the straw to the top of the drink, which was pure bitter Macha. Once mixed up the Iced Caramelised Banana Macha Latte was quite sweet with caramelised banana and slightly bitter Macha, which was okay. Cinabar like it. I couldn’t decide if I liked either.

M&S Blends Orange and Passionfruit Drink (Ocado) By @Cinabar

For a company that was very upset with Aldi over selling a cake that was, shall we say, 'similar' to their own Colin the Caterpillar, this is a bit of an odd product. Here we have M&S Blends Orange and Passionfruit, which could also be described as 'similar' to a J2O. Perhaps I'm imagining the similarity... just in case I need to include that for legal reasons! 😄

Anyway, what I do know is that this heat means it's important to stay hydrated, and I'm always up for trying a new drink. I popped these in the fridge to chill before giving one a try.

I was really impressed by just how fruity it is. There's loads of flavour and plenty of juicy fruitiness. The mango comes through nicely, while the passion fruit adds a pleasant sharpness that makes it especially refreshing towards the end. If I were to compare it to the market leader, I'd say it's 'similar', but perhaps a little richer in flavour and slightly thinner in texture. I'd probably need to try them side by side to be certain, though.

Either way, it made for a lovely, refreshing drink on a hot summer's day.

Alpro - Matcha Coconut & Coffee AT HOME [@NLi10]

 Matcha is a big deal at the moment, and all the coffee establishments are now doing it in a reasonable way - although they do seem to use the cheap stuff.  And now you can have pre-mixed Matcha at home!

I chose the coconut one but BOY do you have options - a whole aisle of green milks

And yes - it's great cold so make your hot stuff and dump it in almost freezer temperature this

It's got stuff in it!

And without any fuss it's just thick Shrek juice.

Here's the nutrition

And it's only half a percent matcha - and not ceremonial grade Matcha because you bet they'd tell you if it was.  You won't notice in this mind.

And if you brew up a shot of your Exhale espresso and dump it in (with ice - not pictured) then frankly it's my drink of the summer.  I've been tempted to make a whole filter coffee pot of the stuff at espresso strength and then keep that in the fridge to use with this carton - only there isn't much left now.

It's not a thirst-burster until you add the watery ice, and it does overshadow the coffee unless you do it as a 50/50 Matcha cortado style but it's great for these heatwaves and I'll be getting more as soon as it's cool enough to leave the house.