Wall's Minions Bello! Banana & Vanilla Ice Creams review

I am always up for trying a new banana flavoured product and when ice cream is involved I am even more keen to try it! These minions Bello ice creams were released around the same time of the movie release but I am only now getting round to trying them. These come as a pack of 4 ice creams quite small in size but that is probably because they are designed for children, however they were still big enough to satisfy and sweet banana-y cravings. These are the push up style ice creams so come on a plastic stick in a cardboard holder that you slide down the ice cream as you are eating it.

The ice cream itself is a mix of pale yellow and white swirls representing the banana and vanilla flavours. I tasted the ice cream and was actually very pleasantly surprised. Since these are a Wall's product I should have realised that these would taste of a pretty good quality but I didn't realise that these would taste as creamy as they did. The banana flavour was sweet and delicious however it was actually quite mild when mixed with the banana preventing that artificial banana flavour which is noticeable in banana products. These made for a lovely little after dinner treat and although they are not the most sophisticated of products, they are well worth a try if you love banana flavoured goodies as much as me.

Urban Fruit Straight Up Coconut Chips review

Having recently developed a coconut obsession, I knew as soon as I saw these coconut chips in my local supermarket that I had to try them. These chips have been sprinkled in sea salt but are triple toasted rather than fried, are high in fibre with no refined sugars. These are also suitable for both vegans and those who require a gluten free diet and so seem to tick all of the boxes! Urban Fruit are a London based company and this is the first time that I have tried any of their product so I didn't know what to expect.

I opened the bag and the smell of coconut hit me making me think the flavour was going to be too intense. There were plenty of crispy coconut pieces inside of different sizes in a pale yellow like colour and I was impressed with the texture. They were crispy but seemed to be slightly softer than a generic crisp. Now, down to the flavour! I took my first bite and to be honest I didn't know what to think. They definitely tasted of coconut but also like salt! I took another mouthful and came to the decision that I love them! These are a really weird combination of sweet yet salty with an underlying coconut flavour and I found them incredibly moreish.

I think that these are a love them or hate them product and they are certainly unique but I personally haven't stopped craving them since I tried them! They are surprisingly sweet for a salty snack which I can imagine a lot of people would find too weird but any coconut lovers should at least give these a try. I cant stress how much these are a strangely delicious product but I for one am now a huge Urban fruits fan and will be seeking out more of their products in future.

Rude Health Almond Butter With Sea Salt Porridge Pot review

I have heard of the Rude Health brand before but don't think that I have ever bought any of their products. I looked into the brand and it turns out that this is a London based company who focus on clean eating so avoid using any artificial flavourings, preservatives, colourings or additives in their products. This is pretty impressive and with porridge pots being my staple breakfast when I'm working, the sound of the addition of almond butter and sea salt sounded amazing!

As with most porridge pots this required the addition of boiling water and a good stir. I waited a couple of minutes and took a bite. The texture was good and thick with large chewy oats. The flavour was very nutty and I could definitely taste the almond flavour, although if I'm honest I was slightly disappointed that it didn't really resemble almond "butter". The sea salt element was very subtle and mild but it did add a slight tang that I quite enjoyed. This is worth trying if you are after a nutty flavoured porridge with the added bonus of a lack of artificial flavourings. My only warning is that this is more of an almond and sea salt porridge in my opinion as I couldn't detect any almond butter flavour at all. All in all this is a fairly decent pot of porridge.

New Pasta n Sauce Pot Chicken & Mushroom Flavour review

Pasta n sauce is one of those easy go-to meals which generally every British household has at the back of the kitchen cupboard. Although they have a bit of a bad reputation, I have to admit that I actually quite enjoy them and an added bonus is that they are low in fat unlike most packet pasta/noodle snacks. The chicken and mushroom flavour is one of the most popular and these new pot versions are even more convenient since they only require boiling water, a quick stir and a few minutes patience.

I added the hot water and a word of advice.... make sure you wait long enough for the pasta to soften otherwise it remains uncooked and crunchy. This tasted just as you would expect from a chicken and mushroom pasta and sauce. Creamy with a mild chicken and mushroom-y flavour that I was surprised at how much I enjoyed. This new pasta pot surprised me with how much it tasted like the original product but with even more convenience! Its not the most filling of meals and it's not anything spectacular taste wise, however it was tasty and stopped me feeling hungry for a good few hours. These are a handy on the go lunch and if you are a fan of the regular Pasta n Sauce meals then these are definitely worth a try.

Zizzi Ravioli Di Capra review

Zizzi's is one of my favourite Italian chains to visit and I have had quite a lot of options on their menu, however I like to always try something new and so on my most recent visit I ordered the Ravioli Di Capra. Being a little obsessed with both goats cheese and pesto I don't know what has taken me so log to try this dish consisting of spinach and goats cheese ravioli in a tomato sauce and topped with green pesto and pine nuts.

The dish came fairly promptly and there were also a few green and red cherry tomatoes amongst the pasta. I wouldn't normally choose to eat tomatoes but they were well cooked and covered in the pasta sauce and pesto and I actually didn't mind them. The pasta was cooked perfectly, soft yet not soggy and an interesting green colour due to the spinach. The goats cheese made for a creamy filling which worked perfectly against the strong pesto flavour. I was pleased at the amount of pesto that was drizzled on top of the pasta but this sis mean that it was the most dominant flavour of the meal. There were only a few pine nuts but it still added a nice bite to the texture. The overall flavour of this dish was delicious but definitely one for any pesto lovers out there. Although not massively filling I really enjoyed it and its something that I would certainly consider ordering again.

Haagen Dazs Strawberries & Cream Ice cream review

Okay, so we may not be having the hottest of summers here in the UK but that doesn't mean that we should miss out on enjoying as much ice cream as possible! This is especially true when the ice cream is from the Haagen Dazs brand and the product flavour is "strawberries and cream" and so is perfectly themed for the summer season. This is described as being rich, gorgeous strawberry ice cream with sweet summer strawberries. Being a lover of Haagen Dazs strawberry cheesecake ice cream I was eager to try this although I expected it to be a slightly more plain version of this.

I lifted the lid and saw the pale pink coloured ice cream. When I stuck my spoon in and dug around I was impressed with the amount of large frozen strawberry chunks. I don't think that I have actually tasted Haagen Dazs strawberry ice cream before but it was really delicious. Sweet and fruity but somehow the "cream" element of this ice cream really shone through. This really was a creamy strawberry ice cream that tasted incredibly luxurious. The strawberry pieces added a burst of flavour every time that I got a mouthful and added a welcome chew to the texture.

I expected to find this ice cream a little boring but am more than happy to admit that I was wrong. This is a rich, creamy and sweet ice cream that I would highly recommend to any strawberry lovers. This definitely lives up to the high quality standard that Haagen Dazs are known for and makes for an ideal summer time treat.

Marks & Spencer's Valencian Orange & Almond Cupcakes review

After not posting for a little while due to a chaotic couple of weeks I will try my best to make up for it starting with these cupcakes from M&S's spirit of summer range. These "moist orange zest and almond cupcakes come as a pack of 2 and are topped with orange frosting and candied orange peel. Although I am not a massive lover of orange I regularly buy M&S's mandarin and orange pancakes which I think are sweet yet zesty and delicious. I also love almond and so the addition of this flavour in the product name made these too tempting to resist.

These cupcakes looked very pretty and were decorated in a floral like pattern. I took y first bite and the sponge itself was indeed very moist. It had a slightly dense texture which I think works really well for cupcakes and so these were quite filling. The flavour itself did leave me slightly disappointed however. The sponge had a sweet orange flavour but if I'm honest that's all I could really taste... no almond. The frosting was thick and creamy and had a tangy orange flavour and I liked the addiction of the candied orange and the texture worked well against the heavy textured sponge.

These cupcakes weren't bad by any means but I would only recommend these to someone who really is a lover of orange. I think that I was just really disappointed by the promise of the almond flavour which just wasn't noticeable at all. If these had just been labelled as orange cupcakes then I may have been more impressed (although to be honest I probably wouldn't have bought them). These tasted of a high quality as most M&S products do, however these aren't to my personal taste and so I doubt that I will be buying these again.