24 November 2012

Turkey Stuffing and Cranberry Crisps (Marks & Spencer) [By @cinabar]



Is it too early for this post? It is just that there is air of Christmas about the place. It’s almost time for Advent Calendars, I’ve seen the Coca-Cola advert, shopping centres have their decorations up… so I thought I’d tempt the water with a Christmas related blog!
This fine new seasonal flavour is from Marks & Spencer and clearly intends to attempt to recreate the traditional seasonal dinner. I was pleased to see that this new variety is made from 100% natural ingredients, and is aiming itself as a luxury snack.
I opened up the bag and the crisps smelt quite meaty, with some good hints of stuffing aroma like sage and onion. The texture of the crisps was decent and what I would call just about right, i.e. thick, but not sharp. Some of the posher crisps can make the mistake of slicing the potatoes too thickly and then they feel a bit awkward to eat.
The flavour was tasty, but not what I had hoped for. They were nice, but didn’t have the detail from the ingredients that I had been hoping for. They were meaty, but mainly salty and had a very pleasant herby aftertaste. I have to confess the sweetness of the cranberry was a bit lost to me. I think there was a tiny bit of fruitiness in the aftertaste but it was very mild, and didn’t quite feel like the “full on flavour” promised on the front of the packet.
Don’t get me wrong I thoroughly enjoyed these crisps, and if you served them when guests are over they will all get eaten up no problem at all. It’s just they are lacking that little bit of extra special magic that I had hoped for.
Not to worry though, I don’t think these are going to be the only turkey dinner style crisps that appear on the shelves this year, and I’ll be keeping my eye out for some others to taste test.
By cinabar

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