St Pierre - Croissant Loaf - Toasted Croissants at Home [@NLi10]

 I've been a big fan of pastries ever since I was young - to the extent that when I got bored of the same old bread sandwiches at school every day I swapped to taking in a croissants and jam every day.

Britain has become less 'white loaf' obsessed as time has gone on and now instead of bread for every meal of the day (including bread pudding) there are exciting options.  St Pierre has added to that with this pastry loaf creation. 

It's essentially fat, sweet bread, but combined in such a way that it layers up and has a very different texture.  It's shelf life is also two weeks which is much better than our usual loaves.

It also has the trademark croissant swirl, which kind of hints that they made a giant one and dropped it in a loaf tin.

And it works with chocolate spread and strawberries?  Result.

All I have is upside down Welsh jam and vegan butter.

I toasted it a little more than it suggested

And pilled on the goodies.

And it's fantastic.  Child me would absolutely have accepted this in his tiny yellow lunchbox, although I'd still want to add the jam etc on site to prevent sogginess.

It has the right texture, the right smells and tastes, and it's so much easier than trying to toast a pre bough croissant (or the bake at home ones that while fantastic take ages).

I can't wait to get back from my holidays to have more of this - and I hope it's not a short term product and that I can get other similar things in the future.  Loaf od Pan Au Chocolate? Yes please!

Luxury Pompidou Pies - Gloucester Services [@NLi10]

The benefit to driving back through Gloucester services at the end of the day is that there are bargains to be had.

Still not cheap, but these Pompidou Pies look perfectly positioned to be a late dinner

They look wonderful, if not a little fragile

And cooking exposes their weak bellies - and the fresh ingredients flavours fill the air.

Both were fantastic - I had the chicken and apple - and my goodness were the flavours explosive.  Well worth full price and a bargain at the yellow sticker price.  Another to add to the list to pick up when we visit.

And an apple crumble Danish for dessert - yum!

 

Galaxy Croissants (Ocado) By @Cinabar

I started Friday by upgrading my breakfast. I was looking for some croissants and spotted these new Galaxy ones on Ocado, so thought I would give them a try. I would normally have croissants with butter, but these come pre filled with Galaxy chocolate. Well, a Galaxy chocolate cream at least.

There are four croissants in the bag and each is individually wrapped. Good for the lunchbox, not so great for the environment. I opened the wrapper and found a fairly chunky Galaxy croissant inside. It was notably missing the classic crescent shape, but it still looked appealing enough.

I bit in and the pastry was softer than expected. This is not one of those crisp, flaky, buttery pastries. It is almost more cake like in texture, probably because these are fairly long life. The best before date was April 2026. The flavour was still nicely buttery though. The filling was impressive, as they were not at all stingy. Almost every bite had Galaxy cream inside and it was thick, creamy and sweet, adding plenty of chocolate flavour. There was a big dollop in the centre too, so it definitely felt like a proper breakfast treat. I would definitely buy these again.

nutella croissant - frozen to bake at home - Iceland [@NLi10]

 We used to get bake-at-home breakfast breads all the time, but our oven isn't great so we cut back - but I couldn't resist these.

As with all modern things I guess this an air-fryer sized pack, although how you'd fit all 4 in an average one is anyone's guess.

I do like the serving suggestion making it look like a picnic

We had these as a Sunday evening snacky-dinner so just had a decaf tea

They do need a little longer in the oven I think with ours to get to crispy perfection

But - the layers are still there and the flavours were great.  I'll want these again, but it's much easier to find a time to eat the plain ones

Daily Jam Croissant (Petrol Station) By @Cinabar

We picked up two of these Daily Jam Croissants as part of a DIY all-day breakfast treat. I spotted them at the petrol station and thought they sounded interesting. Once home, we cooked bacon, sausages, fried some mushrooms, made eggs, and then, for dessert (and for theming), finished the meal with the Daily Jam Croissants. We actually waited a while, as we were quite full, but eventually got round to them with a traditional cup of tea.

 

I opened mine and was pleased to see it looked full, large, and fluffy, though not particularly crescent-shaped. The texture was spot on, but it wasn’t as buttery as some croissants, and it lacked the crisp top layer you’d expect from a freshly baked one. The jam was tasty but poorly distributed, thin at the edges with a big dollop in the middle. It really needed to be spread more evenly throughout.

They were pleasant enough, but they didn’t match up to a fresh croissant served with jam and butter. I think I’ll do it properly next time.

Cinnamon Sugar Palmiers (Marks and Spencer) By @Cinabar

Visiting the Marks and Spencer food hall this close to Christmas might not be the best idea, but here we are, hunting for last-minute treats. I have a real soft spot for cinnamon; it’s my go-to flavour, especially during this time of year when it seems to truly shine.

Among the festive offerings, I discovered these Cinnamon Sugar Palmiers. Not being overly refined, I initially assumed they were biscuits. They certainly look like biscuits, and I fully intended to eat them as such! However, once I got home and inspected them properly, I realised they’re actually made from pastry. Essentially, they’re puff pastry sprinkled with cinnamon sugar, rolled from both ends into a charming heart shape, adorably cute!

I couldn’t resist trying one immediately. They start off wonderfully crunchy and are delightfully buttery, an absolute treat. The sweetness is perfectly balanced, with plenty of cinnamon to satisfy any fan of the spice. The texture is melt-in-the-mouth indulgence, and, as often happens with the best snacks, they’re highly moreish. Let’s just say I ate more than I’d planned!

Curious, I tested whether these would work as a dunker for tea. Despite not being actual biscuits, they held up well, softening slightly but staying intact with no crumbs left behind in the mug. A success in my book!

While the box makes no mention of Christmas, I have a sinking feeling these Palmiers might only be available during the winter months. That means I’ll need to stock up before they vanish!

Mars Croissants (Iceland) By @Cinabar

As far as crossover products go, I have to admit this is a bit of a strange one. I would never have considered merging a Mars bar with a croissant, but here we are. Inside the heavily branded pack of Mars Croissants are four individually packed croissants, again very much branded to Mars. I like the fact that the others remain sealed, so they don't need eating right away, but I also don't like all the plastic, so there isn't an easy compromise. 

 

I opened one up and found a slightly smaller than expected croissant; isn’t that always the way? The pastry didn’t seem to be as flaky as a regular croissant. I normally split a croissant in half and add butter; this strikes me as the kind of treat you just eat. I gave it a bite, and on my first taste, there wasn’t much filling. A second bite in, and I found the filling; it was nice but not especially like a Mars bar. The chocolate and caramel were there, but it was lacking that nougat layer and the distinctive taste. The croissant didn’t have enough crispy layers either; it was so dense that it was almost like a sponge. The end result isn’t bad; it was a nice, sweet treat. I just felt they spent a lot of time branding this as a Mars Croissant, and the result didn’t really meet my expectations. 

Light Bites & Meals out in Birmingham [@NLi10]

 We've been socialising a lot this weekend so I had occasion to eat lovely cakes and coffees while out.

First up we went to Lovelife in Digbeth and sampled their fantastic cakes.  I forgot to get a picture of the Baklava Cheesecake (which looked a bit much for me).

Here is the main display - they also had a live DJ with guitar accompaniment which was very groovy.

I chose the little lime and kiwi tart - that my friend said looked horrible - but then tried and quite enjoyed.  Accompanied by the usual coconut latte of course.

As a light bite with coffee it was perfect - and I was kind of glad they'd sold out of the chosen sandwich because we ate at Coconut Tree afterwards and that was really filling too!  And then we went to watch Muse performed by a string quartet by candlelight in a church!

Earlier in the week we'd been out for Pizzas at my summer restaurant of choice The Stables which feels like it must be a chain - but I've not seen other ones.

They specialise in selling pizza and cider

Which is great as I specialise in eating them!  This is the middle special - a pizza with guacamole and chipotle mayo.  I think crumbled nachos on top would have made this amazing, but it was still good enough that I want to go back for a sneaky second try.

Town is great at the moment for small venues with unique things happening and feels like London without the chaos. A great thing for the summer.

Churros For Christmas! (plus Gaudi tour) by @NLi10

Merry Christmas!  It's not often my reviews go up on Christmas Day so I figured I'd make the most of it by sharing the last of the pictures in Spain - predominantly of my favourite part - the Churros.

Here we have a pink icing coated Churro which I'd not seen before so bought a couple to chew on over the trip.

It even came in fake Spanish newspaper which was very entertaining.  The market in this square in Girona was one of the best we saw too.

Each stall had a theme and they didn't seem to repeat - lots of home-made gifts that we couldn't really take with us.  But also a lovely little Churro shed which sold us 250g of Churro and some hot chocolate (no Kinder - boo) to dip it in.

I didn't think to get a picture of the whole lot of them.  I got the impression they expected us to buy a larger pot but this was the perfect size for two.

On other days - back in Barcelona we wandered around at night, looking for bonus food of course.  Here we see one of Gaudi's buildings - this is the one you can go on the roof gardens of.  I'm sure I've done that in the past.

We stayed opposite the Casa Batilo - which seems designed to confuse the iPhones photo processors!

Which led us to a fantastic ice-cream shop that sold me some waffles - even though the owner was Argentinian and the football was on.

They had a TV and a Radio with the commentary so I didn't feel too bad. Maybe we brought them luck in the penalties!

Tried to have a different thing for breakfast where possible - custard swirl

shared a pan-au-choc

Bready croissant?  Probably supposed to be for lunch...

This pastel de nata was for an afternoon snack

xuxho!  It's basically a creme filled deep fried pastry.  I should have tried to have one of these every day really.

So many good options though!

Hope your Christmas table is as bountiful as the pastry counters of Barcelona - have a great one!!

 

Ginster's Chicken Tikka Slice (@NLi10)

 Occasionally the authentic Asian experience isn't available - but you still need to have dinner. Ginster's to the rescue then with this Chicken Tika Slice.

Shaped by Cornwall - but not into the shape of a Cornish Pasty.  I suspect because that means it takes longer to cook and they can't call it that without having them made in Cornwall.

It's a little basic and unexciting, but hopefully the oven will bring it to life.

A few veggies and a slice of ham and it all comes to life.  Sure it's not an authentic pasty, and it's certainly not authentic (Scottish) Chicken Tikka but it's a decent enough meal and tastes close enough to the real thing that I'll probably have one again.

Vegan Slice! Higgidy Family Kitchen by @NLi10

Greggs is Greatt, but sometimes you want something a little more deluxe, and more importantly that you an eat at home.

Here comes Higgidy to the rescue with their brand of veggie & vegan slices.  This first one is for the resident veggie - not vegan due to the feta - but still pretty healthy and good.

 

Here's mine - a slightly spicy Japanese version - with a spicy topping.

Look at that crumbliness.  I'd have eaten two if I had them!  Just crispy enough and spicy enough to please, and not as dry as I'd feared.  It went well with veggies and potatoes (don't get that at Greggs!)