Dairy Milk Dessert With Mini Eggs (Tesco) By @Cinabar

It really must be Easter creeping up, because the eggs are already out in the shops. Never mind that it’s still January. Alongside the usual chocolate aisles, Easter themed desserts are starting to appear too, including this Dairy Milk Dessert With Mini Eggs from Tesco. I spotted it and, obviously, had to give it a try.

The dessert is split into two sections. One half is pure chocolate, more like a thick chocolate sauce than a mousse, as there’s no airiness or bubbles to it. The other half contains five Mini Eggs. I peeled back the corner and tipped the eggs into the chocolate, which instantly made it look much more appealing. Five eggs actually fill the surface nicely, so first impressions were good.

The Mini Eggs themselves are fairly chunky for a dessert topping. Each one gives you that familiar crisp shell and a solid hit of chocolate, which works really well against the smooth chocolate base. When you get a spoonful with a Mini Egg, it’s a genuinely satisfying mouthful and very sweet in a comforting, Easter chocolate kind of way.

That said, there are only five eggs. Once they’re gone, you’re left with several spoonfuls of just the chocolate sauce. It’s nice enough, but it’s nowhere near as enjoyable as getting a Mini Egg in the mix. I know they’re already called Mini Eggs, but honestly, this would have been even better with more of them. Smaller eggs, more frequent crunch. Fifteen tiny ones instead of five big ones would have been perfect. Mini mini eggs, if you like.

So yes, it’s a tasty dessert and very on brand for Cadbury, but it feels like a missed opportunity. Less restraint, more eggs. Now, where do I start the campaign?

Snowflake Design Curiously Cinnamon [@NLi10]

 Now this is how you do a spicy breakfast cereal! A little cinnamon, and a lot of flavour and crunch.

We've had a bunch of very similar cinnamon breakfasts over the years, all of which work really well as a layer on top of Weetabix or porridge.

Even if they do look a little demonic.

And you can't see the design that easily

But some are clearer than others

The flavours are sharp but not too oppressive, the only problem is how the texture is just a bit flat - but mixing with cornflakes solves that.  A nice change and much better than the hot honey cereal from the other week!

Proper Job IPA (Morrison’s) By @SpectreUK

We're coming to the end of the healthy month of January, where some people give up booze as a dry month. This Proper Job IPA from St. Austell Brewery, in Cornwall, is 0.5% in volume.

A special yeast was used to brew this low-alcohol version of the original Proper Job India Pale Ale. Hopped with citrus and tropical fruity flavours, this should be a crisp treat for any designated driver.

On opening the bottle there was a citrus and tropical fruity hop aroma, with wheat and malted barley. 0.5% Proper Job IPA poured a cheerful golden colour with a healthy head. On taste this India Pale Ale tasted just like any alcoholic version to me. Packed full of citrus and tropical hops to begin with, sweet malted barley to follow and a wheatiness to finish. Proper flavour, Proper Job.

Bello Dolce Marshmallow Flowers (Aldi) By @Cinabar

We did our weekly shop at Aldi and, as usual, I found myself wandering down the aisle looking for marshmallows to top my hot chocolate. The plan was simple. Grab the standard pink and white mini cubes and move on. But then my eyes drifted. Sitting there quietly were the Bello Dolce Marshmallow Flowers, and immediately I knew I was due a marshmallow upgrade.

These are not your average marshmallows. They come in white, lilac and pink, each one with a little yellow centre, shaped like proper flowers. They are much larger than the usual cubes and, frankly, very pretty. Almost too pretty to eat. Almost.

Texture-wise, they are spot on. Lovely and soft with a slight chew, and there is a gentle sugary crispness around the edge that adds a bit of contrast. They are sweet without being sickly, which is exactly what you want from a marshmallow. I’ll admit it. I had a couple straight from the bag, purely for research purposes. Later, they will be added to a hot chocolate where they are going to look absolutely divine floating on top.

If you are in Aldi and you spot them, you might as well throw a bag in the trolley. Your hot chocolate deserves it, they look absolutely adorable. 

Irn Bru Winter Bru (Home Bargains) By @Cinabar

It was Burns Night last night, so what is more Scottish than Irn Bru? Ok, whisky is right up there, along with Tunnock’s Teacakes, but when I spotted a winter edition of Irn Bru I decided to lean into the theme.

This is Irn Bru Winter Bru, a seasonal variant mixed with ginger and cinnamon. Regular readers will already know I am very easily won over by warming spices, so this immediately had my attention.

I cracked open the can and poured the bright orange fizz into a glass. The aroma was fairly mild and, if I am honest, mostly just standard Irn Bru. On the first sip it was clear this was not regular Irn Bru, but it also was not particularly spicy. There was a hint of ginger lingering at the back of the flavour, with the cinnamon kept very gentle.

The spice level never really ramped up and something about it kept niggling at me. The overall taste reminded me of Irn Bru mixed with cola. Maybe this is how I have finally realised that part of why I like cola is the subtle spice notes underneath. Hard to say. Will I miss this when the limited edition disappears? Probably not. It was pleasant enough, but it was not the cinnamon hit of a winter drink I had hoped for. That said, it did wash down my Burns Night dinner nicely.

Next year, though, I really should commit properly and get a haggis. Or, failing that, just stick with the Tunnock’s Teacakes.