Cadbury Roses: Pots of joy (strawberry dream)

Product name: Cadbury Roses: Pots of joy (strawberry dream)
Purchase details: £1.29 for a pack of four desserts (Tesco)
Calories: 160 per 70g dessert
Country of origin: UK

I was very privileged, growing up, as I was the only member of my family who particularly liked the strawberry and orange cremes in tins of Roses. As a result, they were practically guaranteed to be mine! I couldn’t wait to try them in the form of Cadbury’s Pots of joy by Mondelez.

These new, limited edition strawberry dream desserts had the same overall design as the hazel whirl but it was very pink rather than being brown. They again promised to be ‘smooth’ and ‘creamy’, containing melted milk chocolate (9%) and a strawberry flavoured fondant. Sadly, there was no sign of anything close to real strawberries on the ingredients, so I knew this element was purely achieved through flavourings.

 

Produced by Müller Dairy, the outward appearance remained the same as the hazel whirl and Creme Egg varieties. Beneath the chocolate layer on this occasion, though, was a pale pink delight that added a delicate, sweet strawberry scent to the existing chocolate mousse aroma.

This strawberry dream version actually contained more cream (7%) and chocolate than the other two types I’ve reviewed and I really enjoyed the incredibly creamy taste that combined with the usual, delicious chocolate flavour. The texture was also as exceptional as the Creme Egg's had been – thick and amazingly smooth.

And the strawberry? Well this was a bit artificial and quite medicinal but it was still sugary and tasty. It wasn’t as sweet as an actual Roses chocolate but I don’t think the strawberry element was quite as strong either. However, it did taste like a far superior strawberry milkshake that had the added bonus of chocolate.

Fan-flipping-tastic!

Appearance: 8.5/10
Aroma: 7.5/10
Taste: 8/10
Texture: 10/10
Overall score: 8.5/10

Cadbury Roses: Pots of joy (hazel whirl)

Product name: Cadbury Roses: Pots of joy (hazel whirl)
Purchase details: £1.29 for a pack of four desserts (tesco.com)
Calories: 155 per 70g dessert
Country of origin: UK

Although I’ve only reviewed the Creme Egg version so far, I love trying Cadbury’s Pots of joy, so I was really pleased when they released two new Roses varieties that are based on the popular selection box chocolates. First up, for me, was the hazel whirl.

The cardboard packaging contained the usual bright blue and rose flowers that feature on real boxes of Roses. However, there was also a large brown section to reflect the flavour, with the background leaves tying in with the flower heads above.

The hazel whirl is one of my favourite Roses since it features a whole nut encased in milk chocolate. I was really intrigued by the product illustration, for that reason, since it seemed to show a bitty, nutty section in the centre of the dessert. The description confirmed this, with the ‘smooth’ and ‘creamy’ treat (containing melted chocolate) having ‘a centre with chopped hazelnuts on a smooth hazelnut flavour fondant’. This nutty centre made up 14% of the product and also contained caramel syrup – sounded interesting! 

Made by Müller Dairy, this Mondelez product looked outwardly identical to the Creme Egg: Pots of joy. Unfortunately, the reality of the centre was that the chopped hazelnuts weren’t really visible, although a bumpiness could be seen through the thick topping that contained 7% milk chocolate. There was no nutty scent, either, but the chocolate mousse aroma was still pleasant.

The chocolate layer was the same as the Creme Egg version so tasted just as good. Beneath this, the beige hazelnut section didn’t have the strongest nutty taste ever, but it did have a mild icing sugar-like sweetness which I enjoyed. Combined, these layers remained smooth and still tasted creamy, with cream contributing to 6% of each pot.

As for the chopped nuts, these were soft but chunky and, with the other layers, did a pretty good job of replicating the original hazelnut whirl. Understandably, though, the texture was completely different. It would have strayed from the initial idea further but I did think this layer would have been nicer if the hazelnuts had been caramelised so they provided a crispy texture instead. That’s just me, though!

I found these Cadbury Roses: Pots of joy (hazel whirl) to be another great addition to the range of desserts. I can’t wait to try the strawberry dream next!

Appearance: 7.5/10
Aroma: 7/10
Taste: 7.5/10
Texture: 8.5/10
Overall score: 7.63/10

Cadbury Creme Egg: Pots of joy

Product name: Cadbury Creme Egg: Pots of joy
Purchase details: £1.29 for a pack of four desserts (tesco.com)
Calories: 165 per 70g dessert
Country of origin: UK 

I was really excited when I found out about this new Creme Egg variety of Pots of joy – I’d had the Caramel and Buttons versions before and found that the white chocolate one was to die for. I hoped this version would be as good but I’ve had to wait a little while to find out as it took some time to get hold of it at a reasonable price (the £1.29 I paid was actually advertised as ‘half price’). 

These ‘smooth’ and ‘creamy’ desserts came in cute purple pots in a cardboard sleeve featuring the well-know purple, red and yellow colour scheme. Unfortunately, the cardboard wasn’t the most secure packaging in the world since, when I held it level above my head to read the bottom of the pack, one of the tubs fell out and hit me on the nose! However, it was eye-catching, and the illustration of the product looked fantastic. I am always dubious when real photographs aren’t used, though, because it makes me think the reality won’t be as good.  

The desserts were made by Müller, under license from Mondelez, and contained ‘melted Cadbury milk chocolate with a fondant layer’. The chocolate contributed to 7% of the product and sat atop the dessert. Undisturbed, the relatively pale layer looked molten, glossy and, texturally, a bit like wobbly custard. 

I was a little disappointed by the appearance of the inside of the dessert but only because of how it compared to the image on the box. Yes, the fondant contained both the white and orange colours that were designed to look like egg, but these layers had a tendency to mix together a bit and lose their definition. However, it did still it looked pretty great! 

The product contained cream (6%) which I thought may have contributed to the slight scent of chocolate milk that I could detect. The taste of the chocolate, though, was far stronger than the aroma – surprisingly so considering the relatively low amount the dessert contained! I found these Pots of joy provided two distinct elements simultaneously – the tip of the tongue had a chocolate party whilst a subtle hint of marshmallow-like sugary sweetness tickled the back of the tongue. I can’t say the combination was exactly like a real Creme Egg (or even that similar), but the balance between the two flavours seemed just right in this format. The desserts were delicious and I felt they were a much better continuation of the brand than the Biscuits I’ve previously reviewed. 

For me, the best thing about these Cadbury Creme Egg: Pots of joy, was the texture. In fact, I think it’s the first set of full marks I’ve ever given in a review (I must be hard to please!). It was, quite frankly, divine. The chocolate was beautifully thick and silky smooth and, whilst the fondant was slightly thinner, the texture was still substantial. I loved it! 

I really enjoyed this product so I can only hope that, when the packaging warned that they were a limited edition, what it really meant was that it would be a seasonal regular like Creme Eggs themselves! 

Appearance: 9/10

Aroma: 6.5/10
Taste: 9/10
Texture: 10/10
Overall score: 8.63/10