A Dozen Jaffa Profiteroles - Iceland UK [@NLi10]

 Post New Years there are lots of left over snacks and food presents to be consumed.  We have a freezer full of party foods that we didn't end up needing. Oh dear. I guess movie nights got an upgrade.

As usual most of them are from the UK store Iceland - great for odd things to impress.

Here we have Jaffa Cakes, except instead of cake it's pastry, and frozen, and larger.

The box looks snazzy - the product looks more ordinary.  It also looks like 2 boxes would have been better for sharing as a group. Three is a portion.

They survived well enough though - and defrost in no-time at all.

if you wanted to make them look more exciting then a little icing sugar or sparkly stuff could do that, still - it's an enticing proposition.

And they deliver.  Yes - it's barely chocolate on the outside, but that's not the main event.

The orange is strong and balanced out by the cream which has a good flavour.  The pastry does it's job well enough, and the brown on the outside holds it together.

Small enough to eat in a single bite, you'll want all of your portion. As a light desert and general party food though these are a hit and potentially one to pick up extras for storing once the freezer is a little less full.

Alpro Chocolate flavour Dessert - Dairy Free [@NLi10]

 Alpro are my go -to brand for almond based dairy replacements.  I use the normal milk daily, and the barista for coffee for special occasions. 

So I get tempted to try their desserts...

Looks great - no dairy, veggie friendly and lovely chocolate too

And oddly they seem to think you wouldn't want it chilled - I say the colder the better.

And the date on these is insane - save them for Christmas if you like!

But in the end - it's just brown goo.  It's not chocolaty enough, its not sweet enough, it's not thick enough and it just doesn't spark joy.  Maybe I'll donate the remaining two to my parents and see what they think.

Poppies Macarons (from Home Bargains) [@NLi10]

 We picked up a few things from Home Bargains for a eurovision party - the host has bunnies so we picked up the lovely apple & banana stix for them - and a frozen box of Macarons for us!

They are in the freezer section which means they are perfectly fresh and in tact when you get them home, and 30 mins later they are ready to consume.  This really does feel like the perfect way to sample them.

The flavours are Vanilla, Lemon, Caramel, Chocolate, Raspberry & Pistachio and you get two of each - so a dozen for £2.89 which feels reasonable.

They are well packaged too so a good thing to present to a host of a party!

Poppy wasn't allowed to have one, even thought they do look a bit like dog treats.

The lemon one had a good flavour and was very fresh, the raspberry one was fruiter and very nice.

I'll have to try the rest next time!

What was I drinking? Summery IPAs!  This first one bordered on a sour - and as a split can was a nice size

You could totally taste the fruits!

This tropical one in comparison had none of the fruity sharpness, but the beer itself was more smooth and drinkable.  Our host loved this one so I might have to nab a few to donate.  It's Vocation which we are already big fans of from holidays in Cornwall.

Northern Monk - Apple Strudel with Custard Pale Ale! [@NLi10]

 It was recently Eurovision Weekend (hooray!) so I found and saved a slightly topical beer - Appel Strudel with Custard!

Apple beer is intriguing, and with hints of vanilla?  What could possibly go wrong!

It’s a pretty cool can & idea - pudding beer is a bit like adding fruit to beer and then ramping up the sugar I guess!

And while the contest rages on in the background, I got to sipping what is quite an interesting little mix.  As a cider fan (and someone who likes vanilla) I think this worked magnificently.  It’s light enough that I could happily have gone straight into the second - but with risky flavours I only get one at a time.

I’ll add this to the list of ones to keep in stock though as it made a refreshing change and will be great in the summer

And as a bonus - the night before We’d got to see the northern lights, but localised and entirely in our back-garden! For the UK this is a little unusual - but apparently they will be back within the month too

Wonder if I can find some space beers for then?

Tesco Crème Brûlée - a little home treat [@NLi10]

 We wanted some nice puddings to take to Nannas house (the one that reviewed the Prime) and I chose Crème Brûlée- little did I know it’s kind of a diy version.

You get two little glass containers of custard - and a sachet of brown sugar to pour on top and then grill!

That seems a bit much when you’re round someone else’s house so I just ate it ‘raw’.

An unusually crunchy sensation but all the flavours are there and it’s not bad (but not quite as luxurious as the restaurant version!)

Sky By The Water - Resorts World, Birmingham [@NLi10]

 We don't go out to fancy restaurants very often, but for a surprise 40th we were invited to Sky By The Water, which is on top of Resorts World Birmingham.  This is basically a restaurant on top of a hotel, and beneath that is a shopping centre and cinema.  It's also next door to where they now hold Birmingham Games Expo (and the airport) so I know it well!

I started with the Chorizo Scotch Egg - which was pretty deluxe and warm and crispy - for £8 it was about right.  The textures were great, the flavours a little muted for my tastes, but overall glad I chose this.

Next up was the Lemon Chicken Risotto, which was quite a filling main.  The veggies were balanced and well cooked (and you could order a side of extras if required) and the chicken was tender and did have the lemon flavour.  The risotto could have had a touch more bite for me, but was very enjoyable and I almost couldn't finish.  Almost.

By this point the sun was setting and the smaller groups in the extension could see the view.  Larger parties are more in the main area though so we had to look at the view at the end - but over the water in question it was a little too dark to see.

Having had the Crème Brulé last time I went out (generous portions!) I opted for the fruity crumble.

The topping was very light which was appreciated, and the custard was lovely and strong.

Overall this was very fruity and well worth hanging around for.  A fantastic three course meal for just under £40 (didn't have alcohol).

After dinner you can hang out in the secret garden in these little pods, but there isn't a view as they have put up partitions - so we went to the casino for a few hours and we didn't loose too much.

Gü Plant - Spanish Lemon - and Vegan?! (@NLi10)

 We like the Gu (or Gü as I’ll type once for the records) puddings in this house. We have all the ramekins, and they are great for teabags, sauces and you can use Pringle lids to seal them to pop stuff in the fridge!

When a new one appears it’s a guilt free way to generate some reviews by trying a different, yet familiar thing. But this one - this one’s a bit odd.

Billed as Gü (oh it autocorrected!) Plant - Spanish Lemon this is part of a new vegan range - but has cheesecakes written on the box too - but no cheese here! This is great because I dislike cheese.

So far so normal!

Now that looks a little odd - the smell is new and it’s more similar to a milk jelly texture than the traditional cheese cake ones.

This would not be possible with the real cheese Gü product - Luna gave this a sniff before trying to hit it, instead of attempting to eat it.  And why is this - it’s because it’s got coconut in with the citrus fruits.

This means it’s more of a coconut mousse than a cheesecake (not a problem), and then the base is odd too.  This doesn’t hold together like a normal cheesecake and is pretty much like a sugary crumble.  To this end I think they should flip this - call it a lemon crumble or similar and put the fluff on the bottom and the crunch on the top!

So - nice then (very nice) and gluten free AND vegan which is a pretty powerful trifecta.  Would buy this again, but not when I’m in the mood for a thick creamy heavy cheese cake, but a light summery desert.

Will have to try the rest of the range now too!

The Bretton Crepes/Galletes of Girona (@NLi10)

 While in Spain we visited a smaller town called Girona to the North of Barcelona which has a more eclectic vibe - and had an interesting little Crepe shop - which is one of the top restaurants in the region on trip advisor!

We got there a bit early, and were among the first to sneak in on this cold evening and ordered up some sweet treats (I think the savoury ones are the reason they are famous).

The crepes have their own Bretton style with harsher grains and very specific flavours - here we see chocolate and marmalade!

Girona is very pretty - but I wanted the food to appear first on the Instagram story :)

I had the alcohol & applesauce gallete (not the official name) and it was incredibly potent - almost a little 'wet' for my tastes compared to my partner's crispy one - but it was gorgeous. 

And they even gave me a table with my name on it!

Everything is cooked fresh to order so you get exactly what you want - but in luxury surroundings and with a hint of French flair.  If we'd stayed longer I'm sure we'd have gone back for the 'mains'!

Chiquito at Home Churros (Iceland) @NLi10

Chiquito used to be a nationwide Mexican style chain in the UK.  Now it's a shadow of it's former self - our local two closed, although there is one in Dudley apparently.  It was perfect for cheap meals out, and attracted a lot of younger customers.  They have silly hats.

And now as part of the sale/downsize they are a brand of cook at home food in Iceland!

We are big fan of eating Churros at Christmas markets so I decided this would be a good first test.

Comes with all the essentials and 12 Churros so 2 or 3 portions depending on your hunger.

Bung in oven for a while at the hot temperature - not ideal at these gas prices, but if done with or straight after dinner then it's not so bad.

And they do look pretty similar to the ones we get when we are out - 

 

And once decorated get even closer (I'm not a massive fan of the chocolate sauces)  the sugar cinnamon mix is very good though and as a whole this was pretty successful.  At £3.50 a box (without offers) it's not a daily thing to have, but as something to hide at the back of the freezer these are a lovely winter treat and I expect to have these again.

Instant Blueberry Milk Tea - Good Raw Material Series by @NLi10

 Whilst celebrating Lunar/Chinese New Year by consuming hot exotic meats I popped into the supermarket.  As the queues were the longest I'd ever seen (white supermarket at Christmas level) I got to take a good look at the impulse buy aisle.  I selected only one thing (to go with my Mr Kon Whiskey bottle of tea)  - this really synthetic looking instant tea cup.

While I knew I could persuade the games shop to boil the kettle for me, I took it home to experience with a real mug.

For £1.50 you get three funny sachets - one of tea powder, one of jam, and one of thick condensed milk.

It said to put in according to taste so I added all of all of them.

First the powder, which honestly looked already like a nice enough fruity tea.

I added the condensed milk - and this is the jam

It dissolved as it went in so it wasn't too bad.

My goodness this is now sweet! The Jam almost acted as a bubble tea - if you drank this with a straw you'd get a similar effect. The jam is oddly less sweet than the mix, more fruity than anything.

And the tea is great quality - like the Good Raw Material Series moniker suggests.  I'm not sure this is quite good enough for the price when out (I can get a freshly brewed Happy Lemon from about £3) but if you are looking for a sweet hit then this certainly hit the spot and perked me up for the afternoon.