Cinnamon & Mixed Spiced Shortbread - Sainsbury's [@NLi10]

Finishing off all the winter snacks I spied a box of winter spice shortbread that had got forgotten about!  The Earl Grey shortbread was a little odd so I think this was also relegated to the 'try later' pile. 

These little luxury boxes are great, but the shortbread inside just was a little too crumbly and not 'short' enough for our liking.

Coriander Clove & Fennel have been added in trace amounts to add a little warmth to the proceedings

This makes them darker and crumblier than normal, and a more difficult to slot in snack.

With a cup of tea in the afternoon though it's quite nice, but like the Earl Grey one finger really is enough to get the idea.  I will make it through the box, but I'm not sure I'll be hunting these down again.

Drop Bear: Bonfire Stout (Ocado) By @SpectreUK

It feels a bit early to be writing about anything with ‘Bonfire’ in the title. November is still a few months away and we seem to have hit Summer. It’s been hot here for a few days, and I’m sure quite a few people are already complaining about the heat. I miss Autumn and Winter too.

I like the comforts of home, wrapping up warm with the heating on, whilst listening to the patter of rain on the window. Right now I’m sitting in front of a huge fan, with an air con unit gurgling away fairly close by. I’m hoping a low alcohol stout will wash my lamb, veggies and roasties down a treat tonight.

This Bonfire Stout was brewed by the fierce looking Drop Bear Beer Company. Being a carbon neutral company, they have planted thousands of sustainable trees all over the world, and are a Certified B Corporation. That means Drop Bear Beer Co. balance purpose with profit, considering their workforce, suppliers, customers, community and environment in every decision they make. So, I hope their beer is good.

Bonfire Stout is 55 calories per 330ml can, and is 0.5% in volume. There is so much malt listed in this stout’s ingredients that it’s difficult to list it all. There is Pale Ale malt, wheat malt, dextrin malt, cara malt, dark crystal malt, chocolate malt, roasted barley, and smoked malt, with Chinook hops added in the brewing.

On opening the can there was a smoked, chocolate and sweet caramel malt aroma from the almost jet black liquid inside. To begin with, this Bonfire Stout had a mix of pale malt with sweetness from the cara and chocolate malts, a touch of roasted coffee, a little bitterness from the hops, and then a whole heap of smokiness into the aftertaste. I could not tell that this stout was low in alcohol, but I could definitely tell why they called it Bonfire Stout.

Mini Cheddars Cheeselets – Intensely Cheesy (Iceland) By @Cinabar

I do like cheese and crisps, so I couldn’t resist picking up this bag of Mini Cheddars Cheeselets in the new Intensely Cheesy flavour. They’re a new addition to the Mini Cheddars range, this time square shaped and extra crunchy.

This is a multipack and the bags inside are fairly small, although that may just be me being greedy. Either way, I opened one straight away and the first thing that stood out was the texture. These are properly crisp and crunchy, which I really enjoyed.

The flavour is nicely cheesy too. It’s definitely stronger than regular Mini Cheddars, although I’m not sure I’d personally call it “intense”. Still, they’re very moreish and easy to snack on.

These would be perfect for lunch boxes, picky bits, or an afternoon snack with a drink.

It’s Giving - Gut Friendly Soda - Black Cherry £1 a can [@NLi10]

 I know I’m older now purely because things that were cheap now feel expensive, but essentially are the same thing.  Case in point - when we were nearing the end of our time at school in the 90s they put a can machine in with Fanta (or maybe Tango?)  and other less fruity, less interesting drinks.

As it was 30p I could essentially get 1 a week and not have to worry about budgeting, then they went up to 35p and then 40p. This was outrageous inflation.  Of course what had actually happened was that they just did an intro offer and kept raising the price til we stopped paying.  As a can from the shop could be as low as 20p for the off-brand drinks it became more of a special treat.

Well guess what - a can of pop from the shop is now £1 - and proud enough of that fact to put it on the can.

My partner picked this one up for me though, so in some ways it was free.  And in other ways probably more expensive.

It’s gut soda, which is essentially like saying Kombucha but drinkable without pulling faces. And while it’s a little sweetener based, it looks more like they have gone for flavour instead - which is the best way. Sour drinks don’t need to taste as sweet to be good.

They have made it very red, which looks good - and the cherry smells are very much those of the sweet-shop.

The taste from the can was a big hit of joy, sipping is where this excels. Big gulps are more in the Tizer territory where you can taste the flatness of the fizz as much as the sweet/sour punch of the cherry.

I’m always wary about drinks, and I only tend to write up the interesting ones (as they don’t get anywhere near as much interest as the alcohol or snacks) but during a heatwave this was exactly what I needed.  Now to find some more pound coins to try the other versions.

Burton’s Fish ‘N’ Chips - Chip Shop Curry Sauce (Home Bargains) By @SpectreUK

I do love a fish and chip takeaway. I always have a pot of chip shop curry sauce to dip my chips and battered sausage. Sometimes I need a snack. Well, a lot of the time to be honest. Something reminiscent of a takeaway from the local chippy sounds great to me.

These Burton’s Fish ‘N’ Chips Chip Shop Curry Sauce fit the bill perfectly. Although I got told off for opening the multipack too early, and diving right in. I loved the smell of traditional chip shop curry sauce on opening the packet.

The fish and chips mini baked snack biscuit shapes were bursting with sweet and spicy curry flavour. They were so moreish, I’d finished most of the multipack before I remembered to write about them.

Information on the packet; Each 25g bag had 117 calories, with 6.3g of fat, 1.4g of sugar, and 0.44g of salt.

Pepsi Cherry & Vanilla (Tesco) By @Cinabar

There was a mixed response on social media to the new summer flavour, Pepsi Salted Caramel. Personally, I liked it, but I do have a very high tolerance for anything aimed at those with a sweet tooth. The other new flavour released alongside it is this Pepsi Cherry & Vanilla, which feels like the safer option. Cola flavoured with either cherry or vanilla has been around for years, but this combines both together.

Again, the label features an ice cream motif, so naturally I’m thinking this would work brilliantly as a cola float. For the purpose of the blog though, I tried it on its own first. After a sip, I found it much milder than the Salted Caramel version. The cherry flavour is there, but gentler, allowing the cola to shine through before finishing with a smooth, creamy vanilla note.

This is an easy-going drink, slightly fruitier than standard cola with a pleasant creamy edge. It may only be a small twist on cherry cola, but I can’t deny that it works really well.

Walkers Wavy Spanish Queso Crisps (Ocado) By @Cinabar

Firstly, I have to admit to using Google. Queso is Spanish for cheese. We have written about over 600 different varieties of crisps over the years, and many of them have included cheese. From the first cheese crisp review in 2014, Aldi’s Vintage Cheddar and Real Ale Crisps, to the more recent Walkers Emmental Cheese flavour that was out at Christmas, I can safely say this is not my first rodeo. I have eaten a lot of cheese crisps.

I was fairly sure nothing could surprise me about cheese crisps anymore, but I was wrong. These Walkers Wavy Spanish Queso Crisps blew my mind. They are the strongest cheese crisps I have ever eaten. The first one was a bit of a shock. I liked it, but the cheese flavour was on another level. They were salty, cheesy, and somehow cheesier than actual cheese, which makes no sense at all. I had poured the wavy crisps into a bowl when Spectre came in. I warned him they were ridiculously strong, but he shrugged, tried one, and immediately said, “Oh my word!” I replied, “I know.”

Fun fact though, we still finished the bag. Once you get accustomed to the strength of the cheese flavour, you really start to appreciate it. I think we would buy them again.

These crisps are part of the FIFA World Cup Flavours of the World range. I have also bought the England Sausage and Mash flavour, although I am assuming that one may be slightly less dramatic!

TGI Fridays at home - BBQ Pork Burnt Ends & Tetris Waffles [@NLi10]

When I bought this the guy in Iceland asked me to let him know how it was as no one there had tried it yet.

Turns out it's likely because it takes 40 mins to oven cook, and would rather you defrosted it first .

That's a lot more mental planning and effort than I'd expected - and also it's for 4 and I'm only one person

Which means getting complicated and using half the sauce

And somehow chiselling off half this bag of horror.

Meanwhile in the frozen aisles these lovely mini waffles appeared.  Looking like Tetris blocks and infinitely divisible they are also much better for dipping.  How have these not been around for 40 years?!

All hail the air-fryer, I'm sticking them in the oven.

Wait ages for a long piece and get loads when you don't need one. 

Thankfully blurred shot of defrosted but not cooked burnt ends bag.  Looks like dogfood.

As I was home alone I decided to just go for it, make the whole bag of burnt ends and some waffle fingers on the side.  With a bit of cooking and the sauce added on it not only started to resemble human food but actually smelt really good.

And turned into a serviceable meal at home.  Had the meat portion not been so big I'd probably have added some other sides, but I could definitely imagine getting this at a TGI and being absolutely fine with it.  Better for two people, but possible for one with a movie and breaks.

The sauce was the star, but the meat was decent quality and while not particularly crispy that might have been me using the glass casserole bowl instead of the tin as recommended.

Bonus Content!

I did spot as well this full Sunday Roast chicken dinner for 4 for £25 (including veg and pigs in blankets) which I think I'd struggle to solo, but for 2/3 might be manageable.  Can't imagine how long this would take in the oven from frozen though.

 

Shandy Shack: M&S Raspberry Shandy (Ocado) By @SpectreUK

It’s a hot sunny day and I’ve been doing chores instead of being out enjoying the sun. I have a cheese and cold meats meal tonight, and fancy something light and fruity to wash it down with.

This Raspberry Shandy made for Marks & Spencer by Shandy Shack, sounds just the thing to go with all that cheese and pickles. At 2.8% in volume it won’t blow my head off, as I have a comic con tomorrow, unless, of course, I run out of shandy and move onto my favourite ruby port.

On opening the 330ml can there was a a light crisp herbal hop aroma just underneath all that raspberry. On pouring there was the slightest pink colour to this golden lager beer. Sort of like a raspberry blonde, I suppose.

On taste this not too bubbly lager had a sweetness from the lemonade, and a mild fruitiness from the added raspberries. Subtle in raspberry fruit, and yet very refreshing after a long day of chores. Yum.

Salted Caramel Pepsi (Tesco) By @Cinabar

This new Salted Caramel Pepsi seems to be the soft drink flavour of the summer. There is a drawing of an ice cream cone on the label, although the flavour itself doesn’t actually mention ice cream. It certainly looks like the sort of drink designed for warm weather. This is also a zero sugar drink, just to warn anyone who isn’t keen on sweeteners.

When I opened the bottle the first aroma was very much caramel. Poured into a glass it was impressively fizzy too. The first flavour you get is caramel and it is an extremely sweet drink. Then the cola flavour arrives, along with the promised touch of salt, while the caramel lingers long afterwards. I have quite a sweet tooth so I rather enjoyed it, although I can imagine it might be a bit too much for some people.

As I’ve been drinking it I’ve also been wondering whether the ice cream cone on the front is a suggestion. Maybe this is supposed to be poured into a tall glass with a scoop of ice cream for the ultimate summer float? The weather is meant to stay hot for a few more days, so I may well give that a try.

Twix Ice-cream and Eurovision 2026 [@NLi10]

A half time icecream at the theatre is important, and when watching spectacle TV at home it's nice to have the equivalent.

For Eurovision 2026 which I watched at home I decided to pick up Bounty & Twix Ice-creams from Iceland to see how they'd changed over the years.

At the half-way point I had the Twix.  One finger which kind of misses the branding, but a decent size one.

And inside is a tunnel with caramel and biscuit balls.  Flo in the background is only interested in the ice-cream.

Overall it was a decent choc-ice with a few added extras to keep it interesting.

The bounty had less coconut than I remember from my youth, but was essentially just a bar shaped choc-ice (I had that as the songs finished)

The show was decent too, and the bad guys didn't win which is always a bonus.  Hope it's still around next year!

 

Mr Kipling Custard Cream Whirls (Ocado) By @SpectreUK

Mr Kipling makes exceedingly good cakes, I hear. In fact Mr Kipling has been making exceedingly good cakes since 1967. They have been the market leader since 1976. It must be tough to come up with new ideas. So, why not come up with a new take on an old classic?

These new Mr Kipling Custard Cream Whirls are a new take on the classic custard cream biscuits. I do love custard creams, from the small ones to the big ones, and also the chocolate coated custard creams.

Described as a custard flavoured shortcake swirl with a vanilla flavour centre, I had already figured these Mr Kipling Custard Cream Whirls would be exceedingly good. On opening the packet of four cakes, there was a lip-smacking smell of baked shortcake, with the sweetness of vanilla.

I usually twist custard creams, eat the biscuit, then lick the cream, then eat the other biscuit. So, keeping with tradition, I twisted the top off, licked the cream and then popped the shortcake top into my mouth. The cream was smooth and tasted just like custard cream, and the top and bottom shortcakes were soft and beautifully baked. I wouldn’t just say these Mr Kipling Custard Cream Whirls are exceedingly good, I would say that they are a triumph.

Information on the box; Each cake has 151 calories, with 8.8g of fat, 7.4g of sugar, and 0.15g of salt.

Sprite Chill (Ocado) By @Cinabar

There is talk of a mini heatwave this weekend, although that does seem optimistic considering Monday is a Bank Holiday in the UK, and those are usually famous for rain rather than sunshine. I’m hoping the forecast wins out over tradition this time. If the weather does behave itself, I’m planning to spend some time in the garden with a good book and a refreshing drink. I bought these summery sounding cans of Sprite Chill for exactly that occasion.

Sprite Chill is essentially the classic lemon and lime fizzy drink but with added mint for an extra refreshing twist. Opening the can released the familiar strong fizz, and it poured out clear with a slight cloudiness.

The mint flavour is more like fresh garden mint rather than peppermint, which gives the drink a bit of a mocktail mojito vibe. It tastes fizzy, fresh, and fragrant, with the mint adding a cooling edge without overpowering the citrus flavours. It’s a very easy drink to enjoy in warm weather because it feels light, zingy, and properly refreshing.

Now we just need the weather to avoid doing its usual Bank Holiday thing.

Sparkling J2O Apple and Raspberry (Ocado) By @Cinabar

Fizzy drinks are nothing new for J2O, although you wouldn’t necessarily know that from the packaging. They have sold a large 750ml fizzy Pear and Raspberry drink for quite some time. What is new, however, is the classic Apple and Raspberry flavour now being available in a sparkling version. As someone who rarely drinks alcohol, I do enjoy a J2O, so I was more than happy to pick up a box of these new cans.

I poured a can into a glass and it had a lovely fizz, while still keeping the same deep colour as the regular drink. On first taste, I was impressed by how strong the flavour was. I think I expected it to be a little watered down because of the added fizz, but it still delivers that full-on fruity sweetness, just with bubbles added into the mix.

It being sparkling is a nice touch and, if you already enjoy the regular Apple and Raspberry J2O, you’ll know exactly what flavour to expect here. I think these will make a really refreshing drink over summer, and I can definitely see myself mixing a few sparkling cans in with the usual still versions.

Aero Pistachio (Tesco) By @Cinabar

Pistachio is still absolutely everywhere at the moment, so it was only a matter of time before Aero joined in with the trend. Their latest big bar flavour is this new Aero Pistachio, which I picked up in Tesco. The wrapper is a muted green shade rather than the loud bright green used for mint, and there is also a competition on pack for The Devil Wears Prada 2.

Inside, the bar has Aero’s classic bubbly texture with a milk chocolate shell surrounding a pistachio flavoured aerated centre. The filling itself is also green, again a subtler shade. 

Texture-wise, this is exactly what you would expect from an Aero bar. The bubbles make it light, chunky and easy to bite into, while the chocolate melts away quickly. I have always liked the texture of Aero and this version works particularly well because the pistachio flavour comes across as soft and creamy rather than overly nutty.

Taste-wise, it is pleasant and surprisingly balanced. Personally, I still think peanut or hazelnut are stronger pairings with chocolate overall, but the pistachio here has a creamy richness that works nicely with the milk chocolate. It feels quite smooth and mellow rather than intensely nutty.

Overall, this is a tasty addition to the Aero range and definitely worth trying if you are fully on board with the pistachio craze. It may not convert pistachio sceptics, but for fans of the flavour trend it is an enjoyable chocolate bar with a lovely light texture.

Gingerbread Latte Imperial Stout (Morrison’s) By @SpectreUK

The weather has been pretty up and down this week. It seems pretty cold, rainy, but sunny, then hailing so hard it makes my blue car go white. Typical English weather you may say. So, I fancy a warming spicy beer with my dinner.

I have steak and curly fries tonight for a treat. The first use of a new grill pan after burning some particularly fat burgers murdered the old tired griddle. I do like a good stout with my steak dinner, and so I have decided to blog about this warming sounding Gingerbread Latte Imperial Stout.

Brewed by Vault City, this 11% in volume Imperial Stout has lactose, brown sugar, ginger, cinnamon, vanilla and coffee added in the brewing with a mix of malted barley, hops, oats and yeast. That’s quite an ingredients list, but what does it taste like?

On opening the 330ml can there were hints of chocolate malt, coffee, vanilla and spiciness. On taste, there was sumptuous chocolate malt to begin with, then a hint of coffee, with milky creaminess from the lactose and sweet vanilla, and oodles of warming ginger and cinnamon into the aftertaste with all that luscious chocolate and cream. Yum. Perfect with my steak and curly fries, and I left a little for my chocolate tea cake dessert.

M&S Ultimate Cappuccino Teacakes (Ocado) By @Cinabar

We quite often buy chocolate teacakes as a sweet treat to have with a cuppa or as an afternoon snack. Marks and Spencer have recently added some new flavours to their teacakes range, and this packet of M&S Ultimate Cappuccino Teacakes is the first I’m going to try.

I love coffee and chocolate together and often think there aren’t enough coffee chocolate bars around, so seeing these cappuccino and chocolate teacakes made me very happy.

There are six in the packet, and they are a decent size. I chopped one in half and you can see the chocolate biscuit base, the generous layer of cappuccino marshmallow, and the chocolate coating.

The flavour was really good. There is a sweet, creamy coffee taste throughout and the chocolate works really well with it. The marshmallow is fluffy and slightly sticky, the biscuit is firm, and the chocolate has a nice snap. These M&S Ultimate Cappuccino Teacakes are all about the texture too.

The coffee flavour is such a treat, and I hope these stick around as I will definitely be buying them again. They are like a giant chocolate coffee cream sweet.

Damacina & Alfred Works Food Hall - Birmingham [@NLi10]

 It's hard eating two 'new' things each week to review that everyone can join in with - so unless you are in the Midlands today you probably aren't going to be able to join in - but you probably have local equivalents.

First up is Damascena which is a local food chain which they describe as the taste of the Middle East but we just think of as part of the furniture.  I'd never clicked they only have 5 locations (2 of which I could walk to, and a third which is in town) as it's just a place we go for good food.

And look at the variety on offer.  I had the lamb rolls with pink mayo, spicy potatoes and pomegranate sticky dipping sauce.  My partner had hummus & some kind of salad with crispy bits, a mushroom thing and an aubergine thing.  I didn't steal any off the inlaws but one had a kebab bowl with all sorts of wonders (my usual choice) and the other had mushroom rolls and a dip.  Naturally everything has a proper name that I can't remember.

We all had a great time and while everything has a spicy slant nothing is devastatingly hot.  We always look forwards to our visits.

Next up was Alfred Works Food Hall in the old Custard Factory in Birmingham 

I've been in before for drinks but this was the first time I'd had enough time to eat too.  I chose a Taiwanese Braised Pork (Lu Rou Fan) and bubble milk tea from Taiwei and happily could have had about 8 other things off their menu.

We spied on a table where they struggled

They had two giant black bowls from the first place you come to as you walk in, a special chicken dish from somewhere and then a rack of pudding crepes that would be enough for 4 people at the back.  We didn't spot them leave but they did not finish anything!  The dangers of the food hall.

They need to do tasting menus as this is their opening period - but it's always really busy and compared to the other new food halls has easily double digit places I'd choose to eat (compared to one in the centre of town that looks like it's a ghost town with maybe two viable options).

As it's by the best games shop & cinema in Birmingham I hope it sticks around and that the beepers range is enough for me to go to both at the same time.

Nestle Yorkie Salted Caramel Pretzel Duo (Londis) By @SpectreUK

I used to eat Yorkies all the time when I was a kid. However, I don’t eat chocolate so much these days, so I do lean towards my favourite brand of dairy milk chocolate. Cinabar saw this Yorkie Salted Caramel Pretzel Duo in the local petrol station shop, and picked it up for me.

I have been writing on this blog for nearly twenty years. I am keen on trying new snack ideas, it would be weird if I didn’t. I do like pretzels, I like the crunchy snacks, as well as the bread version. I do like salted caramel in milk chocolate bars. Mixed together they could be genius or a bit of a stretch.

On unwrapping the Yorkie Salted Caramel Pretzel Duo, there was a luscious aroma of caramel, and also a little pretzel. On taste there was a decent milk chocolate flavour, with a crunchiness from the pretzel, a little caramel and saltiness into the aftertaste. I think it was an acquired taste. You might like it though. I got distracted with picking bits of pretzel from between my teeth.

Information on the wrapper; The 66g Duo contains 171 per bar, with 9.2g of fat, and sugar 17.9g. Please see photograph for the ingredients.