Walkers Pops Melted Cheese and Crispy Bacon review

There are an increasing number of the varieties of "popped" crisps available on the market. These Pops from Walkers contain 50% less fat than traditional crisps and being from a brand as popular as Walkers I had high hopes. I have previously reviewed these in the sour cream and onion variety which I really enjoyed and so I was eager to try the slightly more unusual sounding flavour of melted cheese and crispy bacon.

I am always hesitant to buy bacon flavoured crisps as they can often taste too "Smokey" with quite an artificial flavour. I opened the bag and the crispy bacon smell hit me like a brick in the face so I was instantly sure that I wasn't going to like these. I tasted the first bite and am happy to admit that I was wrong and the bacon flavour, although very strong and smokey wasn't too overwhelming. The melted cheese wasn't too obvious but was slightly noticeable in the aftertaste. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the flavour of these crisps which had a meaty bacon flavour with a subtle cheesy background flavour. These Pops had the usual light yet crunchy flavour that all popped crisps have but I think that this worked particularly well with this flavour.

I was surprised at how much I enjoyed these crisps especially after my hesitation towards them once the strong bacon smell hit me. I was impressed with the amount of crisps in the bag which all had a slight orange dusting. Walkers have maintained their high standards in my opinion with these Pops and I would definitely buy them again as a healthier alternative to a sizzling meaty crisp.

ASDA Pistachio Eclairs review

Éclairs are something that I rarely buy but after enjoying Asda's caramel éclairs, these pistachio variety caught my eye. My love of pistachio got the better of me and I decided that I needed to try these when I read the description which stated that these were choux pastry topped with pistachio fondant, filled with pistachio mousse and topped with roasted pistachios. These are a new product and are a part of the Bakers selection so I expected them to be more of a luxury product.

The pistachio fondant was very runny and barely stayed on the pastry which was very soft and not like traditional crisp choux pastry. The fondant was very sweet but I cant say that it tasted particularly nutty. There was a generous amount of pistachio mousse which was also very mild in flavour but it was thick and light. There were a few roasted pistachios on top that added a nice crisp to the texture but overall there wasn't a lot of flavour to these eclairs. They were soft and chewy and if I'm honest I was pretty disappointed. These didn't taste unpleasant and they tasted okay, I was just expecting a lot more and if you are looking for an éclair with a pistachio flavour then I would avoid these.

Greggs Belgian Chocolate Salted Caramel Shortbread review

Caramel shortbread to me is the ultimate indulgent treat and salted caramel is also a weakness of mine. This is why I couldn't wait to try Greggs salted caramel shortbread. Greggs is  a brand that I am very rarely disappointed with and I always enjoy their products so my expectations were pretty high despite never having salted caramel in one of these bars before.

The bar came topped with small chewy pieces of salted caramel. The layers looked perfectly in proportion with a thick layer of Belgian chocolate, a clear layer salted caramel on a sturdy shortbread base. The bar had a distinctive smell of salted caramel rather than the usual sweetness that goes alongside caramel shortbread bars. I was pleased with this as I was initially concerned that this would just taste like generic caramel shortbread with a "salted caramel" label just so Greggs could jump on the salted caramel band waggon.

I needn't have worried. The bar was rich and delicious with a strong flavour of salted caramel that wasn't too bitter or overwhelming. Although not huge in size it was quite a generous portion and I think if it was any larger it would have been too heavy and rich to finish. The chocolate tasted of a good quality with a buttery shortbread base and clearly salted caramel. This is well worth a try for any salted caramel fans or for anyone looking for a slight change to a traditional caramel shortbread.

Muller Rice Apple review

With Muller rice being my ultimate go-to dessert, I have to admit I have only had the apple variety once and don't remember loving it which is why I haven't had it since. Due to the bright summer weather and my need to seek out new flavours I decided to give it another go.

There were a lot of quite large chunks of apple throughout and there wasn't quite as much apple sauce throughout. This is often not the case with apple rice puddings which contain a large amount of artificial sauce and hardly any chunks of apple. This made a refreshing change and let the pudding maintain its creaminess with a little extra sweetness from the sauce and sharpness from the apple pieces.

I enjoyed this apple Muller rice much more than the first time I had this and can't understand what took me so long to try this again. It was sweet and creamy with plenty of rice and apple throughout. I love that Muller rice is such a delicious dessert but that it also is low in fat and high in protein making it completely guilt free. This apple flavour Muller rice will be a regular addition to my shopping bag from now on.

Harvester Soya & Leek Sausages And Mash review

Despite not being a vegetarian, I often prefer vegetarian sausages to pork ones and so when I popped into Harvester and saw this option on their early bird menu I thought it would make a nice change to my typical choice of chicken. The meal came relatively quickly and was presented pretty well with 3 vegetarian sausages neatly placed on a generous portion of mash surrounded by a puddle of gravy.

I took my first bite of the sausages and was really impressed. Vegetarian sausages are generally very well seasoned which can often lead to the taste being a bit too strong and leaving an unpleasant after taste. Although these had more seasoning than traditional pork sausages, it was not overwhelming so the flavour didn't linger. They were cooked perfectly with just the right amount of crispiness to the outside and a soft slightly chewy centre. The gravy wasn't anything spectacular and was very thin and watery but I expected this sort of gravy granule type gravy but the taste was quite meaty and tasty so I didn't mind too much. The mash was smooth and buttery and sopped the gravy up well. It tasted creamy and so worked really well with the strong herby flavour of the sausages. Overall I really enjoyed this meal and would probably order it again, especially as it was part of the early bird menu meaning that it wasn't too expensive and I got an ice cream included!

Marks & Spencer's Count On Us Prawn Risotto review

I am not usually the type of person who buys ready meals, however I am happy to make an exception for M&S due to the quality of their products. Their count on us range is one of my favourites as it doesn't taste "healthy" yet all of the meals have a low calorie count including this prawn risotto which had only 378 calories. I have been eager to try this for weeks as seafood risotto is one of my favourite meals and my faith in M&S meals meant that I was sure that I would love this.

The packet describes this meal as a prawn risotto with tomato and white wine. This sounded delicious and I could see that the portion size was fairly generous so I didn't worry that I would be left feeling hungry. I could see plenty of prawns throughout the meal however they were all quite small. This meal could be microwaved but I chose to cook it in the oven.

When cooked I sat down with the meal but in all honesty I wasn't very impressed. The prawns were very small and slightly dry and I didn't enjoy the sauce. I could subtly detect the white whine but this just seemed to add a slight bitterness to a relatively bland tomato sauce. The texture of the rice was pretty good in fairness and I found it creamy with just the right amount of chewiness to it. There is no one more surprised than me that I didn't enjoy this meal and I highly doubt that I ill try it again. I found it quite bland yet somehow slightly sharp and I just didn't think that this was up to the usual quality of M&S.

Smiths Spicy Tomato Flavour Snaps review

These spicy tomato snaps from smiths are crisps that I have passed numerous times in small corner shops but I am not sure if I have ever actually tried. When I was looking for an alternative to my typical favourite crisps I decided to try these spicy tomato potato snacks.

I opened the bag and saw the slightly red square shaped snacks. They were all slightly curved and although there weren't that many inside each snack was a fair size. I tasted the first snap and the name of the snacks was spot on as they did indeed "snap". These weren't so crunchy that they hurt my teeth but just enough that they required a decent bite yet they still managed to maintain a light crispiness as promised on the packet. Taste wise, these were also true to the description. I wouldn't describe these as hot but there was certainly a subtle spice to the main tomato base flavour.

These snaps made a nice alternative to my traditional crisps and I really did enjoy them. They weren't anything earth shatteringly spectacular but I would happily pick them up again. These had a nice flavour and just the right amount of crunchiness. If you fancy a snack with a mild spicy tomato taste then I would recommend giving these snaps a try.