McVitie's Dessert Inspirations...:Sticky toffee cake bars

Product name: McVitie’s Dessert Inspirations...: Sticky toffee cake bars
Purchase details: £0.79 for a pack of five bars (Home Bargains)
Calories: 144 per bar
Country of origin: UK

These new McVitie’s Dessert Inspirations...:Sticky toffee cake bars were another product that caught my eye because, like the Milky Way: Cake bars, they made use of a non-chocolate sponge. The sticky toffee flavour also attracted me, of course, but I still nearly left them on the shelf. It was only when I spotted the pale, gooey cream on the mouth-watering picture that I read the description that finally twisted my arm: ‘moist sponge topped with a toffee flavour cream, a layer of sticky toffee and covered in a smooth milk chocolate’.

Made by United Biscuits, I loved the rich chocolate colour of the packaging, and the individually wrapped bars were a decent size to boot. The sponge was clearly a little more than your standard Madeira cake with some added colour that brought its appearance more in-line with a less-aerated bread. This was topped with a generous layer of fudge-coloured cream, a slightly thinner layer of a much darker caramel sauce (13%), all encased in a chocolate shell (35%).

The bars emitted a sweet chocolate scent through which a slight hint of caramel also made itself known. The latter was much more apparent in the taste. For starters, whilst not as moist as the Milky Way: Cake bars, the sponge had an added brown sugar element. The silky smooth cream then provided a lovely, deep caramel flavour, and the sauce was even richer. Combined, there was almost a smokiness to the experience.

There’s no pretending that these bars were like an actual sticky toffee pudding, but I didn’t expect them to be! Instead, like their name suggested, they had simply been inspired by the dessert. They were much lighter and had a gentler flavour, but they also added something positively different to the cake bar market. The best thing for me, though, was the fantastic way the toffee sauce oozed out as I took each bite of the treat...fabulous. 

Appearance: 8.5/10
Aroma: 7/10
Taste: 7.5/10
Texture: 8.5/10
Overall score: 7.88/10

Butterkist Toffee

Product name: Butterkist Toffee
Calories: 113 for a 27g bag
Country of origin: UK

Believe it or not, I still haven’t finished my Christmas stock, and this mini bag of Butterkist Toffee was another edible treat I received from Santa.

The packaging’s shade of red and general branding was identical to the Toffee Apple variety I’ve previously reviewed but this was a flavour I was much more familiar with!

Made by Tangerine Confectionery Ltd, I was impressed by the whopping 80% toffee coating on this popcorn – there was me thinking that 65% was decent on the Toffee Apple! This lovely, thick and buttery-looking coating looked delicious and made the white centres look particularly fresh.

When it came to the aroma, whilst there was a slight hint of popcorn, this wasn’t of a cinema standard. However, it did have a general carbohydrate smell that was quite like crackers.

The thick toffee coating allowed for a fantastic crunch, although I did find that, even with this handily-portioned bag, chewing did become slightly hard work after a while. However, I loved how even the pieces with a thinner coating still had a noticeably caramelised flavour, and I enjoyed the slight salty hints that seemed to be mixed with the sweetness.

I didn’t expect anything less than a tasty little treat from this Butterkist product and that’s exactly what I got...with the added bonus of a familiarity that made me feel like I was at the pictures!

Appearance: 8/10
Aroma: 6.5/10
Taste: 7.5/10
Texture: 7.5/10
Overall score: 7.38/10

Marks & Spencer Best of British Baking: Toffee fudge & Belgian chocolate hot cross buns

Product name: Marks & Spencer Best of British Baking: Toffee fudge & Belgian chocolate hot cross buns
Purchase details: Two packs of four buns for £2.50 (Marks & Spencer Simply Food)
Calories: 207 per 68g bun
Country of origin: UK 

I’ve been wanting to try a more exciting hot cross bun for a while but I’m from a more traditional family who just don’t do things like that at Easter. Imagine my delight, then, when I found this packet of new Marks & Spencer Best of British Baking: Toffee fudge & Belgian chocolate hot cross buns in the freezer! I know these were purchased on a multibuy offer but, since I didn’t get them myself, I don’t know how much they would have cost for a single pack. 

These hot cross buns contained 8% ‘dark Belgian chocolate chips’ and 17% fudge and toffee pieces. They were presented on a cardboard tray in a simple clear plastic wrapper which allowed their standard appearance to be viewed clearly. Whilst these looked like ordinary hot cross buns, though, the dark bits were the chocolate chips rather than raisins. The buns’ outer appearance was mid-brown with a sticky-looking gloss and, inside, they were like brown bread rolls that had been flecked with chocolate.

The buns were sticky and moist to the touch and had a cinnamon cake scent that was strengthened when heated. There weren’t actually any serving instructions on the packaging and, whilst I enjoy microwaved hot cross buns, I know a lot of people toast them, so I decided to try them both ways. I also wasn’t sure whether or not to add butter (they already contained 2% unsalted butter and I expected the chocolate and fudge to be luxurious enough!) so I had each bun ‘half and half’. (This additional butter obviously wasn’t included in the above calorie count but I wasn’t worried about that on this occasion!)

I found it difficult to fit a bun’s halves into my toaster but their doughy texture did mean I could squish them in – they did get a bit stuck when I tried to remove them again though! I toasted them on the second lowest setting which resulted in a slightly burnt chocolate smell and, I thought, a hint of sweet raisins. However, I think this may have been my brain making a connection with the presence of cinnamon. The chocolate pieces looked a little burnt rather than melted but I could see where the toffee and fudge pieces had become molten.

The plain toasted half bun had remained surprisingly doughy and moist but had an added crisp too. Its flavour was familiar and not dissimilar to standard hot cross buns but there was an extra sweetness that was more like brioche. I definitely could have eaten a whole bun like this but I just had to go the whole hog in the name of research! The only downside was that I didn’t find either the chocolate or toffee fudge flavours were very noticeable as distinct elements.

On spreading the other half of the toasted bun with unsalted butter, its surface felt a little crispy, like actual toast. The butter melted in quickly and, understandably, added an extra level of flavour to the bun. However, this seemed to go beyond the butter itself, and actually brought the dark chocolate’s flavour out a little more – possible due to providing a greater contrast for the slight bitterness.

I microwaved my other bun on full power for 20 seconds. This made the chocolate look a lot more melted than burnt (you can see the mess it made on the plate!) and the dough just tore apart. This texture was just as enjoyable in the mouth – it was so soft and doughy that it stuck to the roof of the mouth beautifully. I still didn’t find the toffee fudge’s presence to be obvious but I did find the chocolate’s flavour more noticeable in this format. The bun was very sweet but this chocolate added a welcome undertone.

The butter melted in even more quickly on the microwaved bun and this was my favourite method of consumption. The texture was truly incredible. It was the same as the plain microwaved half, really, but it was just that little bit more special due to the butter making it slightly more dense. The chocolate’s flavour remained relatively subtle but it did add an enjoyable warmth too.

One thing I really don’t like about standard hot cross buns is the presence of mixed peel so the absence of this in these buns was an added bonus. Aside from that, these hot cross buns were very pleasant in their own right. The flavours weren’t as powerful as I’d expected (particularly the toffee and fudge pieces) but the separate elements presumably added to the overall warming sweetness on offer.

I probably enjoyed these more than normal hot cross buns but I know this was down to personal preference (more so than normal). My Dad also tried one of these buns and didn’t really enjoy it at all. He felt it lacked the spicier flavours that are present in the traditional version and, since this variety did taste very similar to brioche, he felt he may as well have been eating one of those instead. However, I would argue that the superb texture provided by these buns made them superior to brioche!

Appearance: 7/10
Aroma: 7.5/10
Taste: 8/10
Texture: 10/10
Overall score: 8.13/10

Müller Corner: De luxe (Mississippi mud pie)

Product name: Müller Corner: De luxe (Mississippi mud pie)
Purchase details: £1.00 for a pack of two 130g yoghurts (tesco.com)
Calories: 251 per yoghurt
Country of origin: UK

Following my enjoyment of the Müller Corner: De luxe (crème praline), I couldn’t resist trying this new Mississippi mud pie version.

 

My first ever review was of Mr Kipling Dessert Classics: Mississippi mud pies but Müller’s take on the pudding was somewhat different since it added both coffee and toffee. I still haven’t had the real thing, though!

These yoghurts came in the same style of elegant packaging as the crème praline variety, and was represented by a purple tinge, as well as photographs of its flavour inspiration. The product was described as ‘velvety smooth coffee and toffee’ flavoured yoghurt that had been ‘made with whipping cream’ (14%, in fact) and contained an ‘alluring hidden dark chocolate layer’. On this occasion, the ‘add-on’ that got mixed into the yoghurt accounted for 12% of the product and was a pot of ‘exquisite coffee infused dark chocolate coated biscuit pearls’.

 

Starting with the biscuit pieces, these were very small and glossy balls (I could see why they were called ‘pearls’!) that had thick chocolate shells and appeared to contain cocoa inside. Trying a couple on their own, they were very bitter and their thick coating was emphasised by the long time it took to melt. This shell produced a cracking sensation, when chewing, and was the dominant texture. As a result, I found the biscuit itself wasn’t that noticeable, and I didn’t think it tasted of much either.

As previously, I didn’t think the layering of the yoghurt was as impressive in appearance as suggested by the packaging, and the chocolate underlayer had the same watery appearance. The yoghurt was a paler shade than the crème praline and, above anything else, it seemed to have a slightly acidic toffee aroma.

The yoghurt was smooth in texture and had quite a dark coffee flavour that was lifted by the toffee. It had the slight tang that you’d expect from a yoghurt but I didn’t think the chocolate flavour was very powerful. However, the crunchy biscuit pieces were the overwhelming element of the product, and they provided a strong dark chocolate taste that gave the impression of a grown-up dessert. The only downside of this, for me, was that the creaminess of the yoghurt was overshadowed.

I can’t say I enjoyed this yoghurt as much as the crème praline but I think that was more down to personal preference – I’ve got a very sweet tooth so these were a little too bitter for my liking. I would have preferred the whipping cream to be more noticeable but this was a pleasant product nonetheless.

Appearance: 7/10
Aroma: 7/10
Taste: 7/10
Texture: 7.5/10
Overall score: 7.13/10