Jammie Dodgers Jam'n Custard

Product name: Jammie Dodgers Jam’n Custard
Purchase details: £0.39 for a 150g packet (Home Bargains)
Calories: 83 per biscuit
Country of origin: UK 

I’ve always liked jam-filled biscuits but find that, to be properly enjoyable, they need some kind of cream layer mixed with the jam. These Jammie Dodgers Jam’n Custard seemed ideal, then, and they were such a bargain!

These biscuits were made by Burton’s Foods Limited and came in a red and yellow packet that reflected their flavour, along with a jam splat which was a nice touch. Carrying the slogan ‘Double Trouble!’, the wrapper depicted an attractive looking sandwich biscuit with a two-tone filling showing through the heart cut-out. Someone obviously needs a word with the designer, though, about the use of apostrophes (pet hate – grrr!).

The packet contained eight biscuits, served on a cardboard tray, each consisting of two shortcake biscuits with a custard and ‘raspberry flavour plum jam’ filling. The filling was actually quite substantial and equally portioned, with 13% of the product being jam and another 13% being custard.

The biscuits themselves were so cute! As the wrapper had promised, they were round in shape with a heart-shaped window through which the filling could be viewed. What surprised me, though, was that this really was neatly divided – I fully expected the reality to be some kind of mishmash of colours. They obviously weren’t identical to each other but they were near enough. I also liked how the top biscuit was decorated with the splat design, as well as the ‘JD’ logo.

The biscuits were a pale colour whilst the jam was a shade of deep pink. However, what I found most exciting was the appearance of the custard. It was cream in colour, rather than yellow, and whilst I thought it would be the texture of a custard cream filling, it was actually moist, gooey and shiny, so looked like real custard.

I had been able to smell the jam when I opened the packet but this did become less strong after the initial hit. There was also a faint aroma that I vaguely associated with the Jammie Dodgers brand and a biscuit scent was a part of this.

Each layer of these biscuits was relatively thick and, on breaking apart the biscuit, I found the filling to be stringy, with the custard being particularly gooey and sticky to touch. It was rather glue-like, in all honesty, which is why the cross-section photograph is so random – I had great difficulty separating the layers!

I usually eat the outer edges first with Jammie Dodgers since I don’t think the biscuit itself is actually that nice. Here, it was as normal – quite sugary and not the greatest flavour. It’s wasn’t very buttery either and, for some reason, it just tasted a bit stale despite only just having been opened.

Thankfully, the jam was the main flavour in this product, and it had quite a deep taste and was also sweet but not what I’d call ‘fruity’ – it was the expected offering from this style of biscuit, though. Sadly, I did find it difficult to detect the custard flavour since the jam did take over, but it did come through every now and then, offering a different kind of sweetness with a hint of vanilla, and a slightly creamy element. Combined, the filling created a pleasant distraction which made the biscuit taste nicer!

One thing that I did find a bit frustrating about these Jam’n Custard biscuits was just how crumbly they were – they seemed to be impossible to eat without making a mess! Convenience aside, I did think they would have been nicer if they were a bit crunchier, but I did like the chewiness of the filling, as well as the way the custard prevented the overall experience being too dry.

Ultimately, these Jammie Dodgers were designed for kids and, as a result, the flavours were not very sophisticated and they certainly didn’t taste as good as they looked. However, having eaten this style of biscuit in my childhood, I know it’s the kind of thing that children do enjoy and, as a result, the fact that these biscuit contained no artificial colours or flavours and no hydrogenated fats, is something that should be applauded. 

Appearance: 8.5/10
Aroma: 6.5/10
Taste: 6.5/10
Texture: 6.5/10
Overall score: 7/10