Kaspa's UK Banoffee Cookie Dough review

Banoffee and cookie dough.... 2 desserts that make me salivate at the mouth and so just the thought of the combination of these treats got me more than a little excited. Kaspa's is an American themed dessert diner serving ice creams, crepes, waffles, milkshakes and more. Their large menu is the stuff of dreams for anyone with a sweet tooth like mine, however as I previously mentioned a Banoffee cookie dough sounded just too good to pass up!

Served with fresh vanilla ice cream, this dessert cost £5.50 and although it did take a little while to arrive, when it came it looked well worth the wait. The portion was very generous and my cookie dough was topped with plenty of toffee sauce and milk chocolate curls. I took a bite and it was just warm and gooey with melted chocolate chips throughout. The bottom of the dessert had sliced banana pieces that went well with the sweet and gooey chocolate chipped cookie dough. This wasn't boiling hot but just warm enough that I could tuck straight in without burning my mouth. The whippy vanilla ice cream that came alongside it was also light and tasty, complimenting the rich cookie dough flavour and heavy, gooey texture. This dessert could easily be split between 2 but I have to admit I polished it off myself quite happily! My only complaint is that there wasn't really that much of a banoffee flavour. It was basically a standard cookie dough with a few pieces of sliced banana at the bottom. Although delicious, I think the cookie dough itself could have done with a little banoffee or toffee flavour to truly make this an amazing dessert. Having said that, I will certainly be returning to Kaspa's to try out some of their other very tempting sounding goodies!

Propercorn Chocolate review

I am  a massive fan of the entire Propercorn range and so couldn't wait to try out this new chocolate variety. With only 1wy calories per 26g bag, these are also a pretty guilt free snack. This fairtrade opcorn is gluten free, suitable for vegetarians, made from all natural seasonings and dusted with cocoa and demerara sugar.

I opened the bag to see plenty of dark brown popcorn pieces. There was a slightly earthy cocoa smell which wasn't what I expected but then again having never tasted chocolate popcorn, I didn't really know what to expect! This bag of popcorn had the usual crunchiness that I know i can always count on Peppercorn for. The flavour however was quite surprising because it was nowhere near as sweet as I imagined a chocolate flavoured popcorn would be. The flavour was more of a raw cocoa and so although not unpleasant, it just wasn't the sweet chocolatey snack that I imagined this would be.

In all honesty this is probably my least favourite flavour from the Peppercorn range bit even so I happily finished off the bag. It wasn't sweet but it also wasn't savoury so I'm just not sure where this fits. Although slightly more-ish I can't say that I am rushing to pick this up again. Having said that, I think that anyone who is a fan of rich and authentic cocoa flavours would love this and even though it wasn't my favourite variety, I'm still glad I tried it and it made for a bit of a novelty treat!

Marks & Spencer's Coconut Chicken & Mango Sunshine Wrap review

Around this time of year, M&S always release a new range of summer themed wraps and I have been keeping my eye out for them. This year, one of the new additions is this coconut chicken and mango wrap. Although I'm not the biggest fan of mango, my love for both coconut and M&S meant that I had no hesitation on picking this up when I needed an easy on the go lunch. Consisting of a pumpkin tortilla, chicken, coconut chutney, spinach and a coconut & lime mayonnaise it didn't even sound like the mango was a dominant flavour in this wrap and I was looking forward to trying it.

Opening the packaging up I think the mixture of bright, vibrant colours explains why this is labelled a "sunshine" wrap. It was also filled with mixed beans, some mango salsa and couscous. Its fair to say that M&S did not scrimp on the filling as the wrap was packed and I was impressed by the large chunks of juicy chicken. The best way to describe the flavour of this wrap, is to liken it to a Thai green curry. It didn't taste as I expected it to but it was still delicious and the more I ate, the more I realised it tasted exactly like a Thai green curry in a wrap.

I loved the combination of all of the different ingredients from the beans and chicken which provided a little heat, to the cool coconut lime mayonnaise and sweet mango chutney. All of the ingredients tasted fresh and this even count towards one of your five a day! The ingredients are also all sourced from Great Britain but even with all of these extra bonus's aside, this was a filling and tasty lunch that I cant wait to have again. I highly recommend trying this whilst its around and it is an ideal flavoursome lunch for a hot (and rare) summers day.

Prezzo Monte Bianco Black Pizza review

Having seen this Black base pizza advertised on all the Prezzo posters, it's fair to say that I was more than curious to try it. Made from activated charcal dough, thus pizza is topped with a bechamel sauce base, mozzrella and truffle oil. It is supposed to come with rocket on top too but I asked for it without since I am not a big rocket fan.

The pizza cane promptly and I was impressed with how large it Was. It was very strange to see the black base but I was interested to see how it would taste. I took my first bite and didn' really know what to make of it. It wasn't massively different to a standard pizza base but it did have a slightly more earth-y flavour. It was really crispy and far from un-enjoyable but I don' know if I would order it again. The mozzrella and bechamel sauce made for a slightly overwhelmingly cheesy flavour so I did feel slightly queasy by the end of it however I'm still really glad I got to try it. It's a bit of a novelty but it did have a slightly deeper and more interesting flavour. This is also definitely one for any cheese lovers out there and I only wish that I did like rocket because I think the sharp, peppery flavour of the rocket was needed against the strong and creamy cheese toppings.

Costa UK Vanilla Milk Whip review

I never thought I would see the day that I went into Costa and ordered a non-coffee related drink, however after already having 2 latte's and the blazing sun beating down on me, this did indeed happen over the hot weekend! I opted for a vanilla milk whip which sounds essentially like a vanilla milkshake. I didn't realise when I ordered this drink that it is made from whipping skimmed milk into a mousse like texture and so is a lower calorie option. I'm not sure if these drinks are aimed at children or not but who doesn't love a milkshake!

The drink came and I took my first sip and am happy to say that I really enjoyed it. It was sweet with a strong vanilla flavour and the foam-y, mousse-y texture that topped the drink made for a nice change to a standard milk drink. I would never have known that this was made from skimmed milk or that it was a lower calorie option. If I'm honest this would probably have stopped me trying it since I normally avoid skimmed milk at all costs so I'm really glad that I tried it without knowing. I would happily order this again if I fancied a sweet milky drink over summer and this drink is one to be enjoyed by both children as well as any adults with a sweet tooth like myself.

ASK Italian Pea & Prosciutto Risotto Special review

Risotto is one of my favourite meals and I order it regularly when I go out for an Italian. The only downside is there are usually the same varieties wherever you go i.e mushroom, chicken or seafood, meaning that they can often get a bit same-y. However, on my recent visit to ASK I was delighted to see this pea and prosciutto risotto appear on the menu as one of their spring specials. I knew instantly that I had to order this dish described as a vibrant pea and asparagus risotto, topped with crispy smoked prosciutto and baby watercress. This can be ordered without the prosciutto making it an option for vegetarians too.

Wow, they weren't joking when they said "vibrant". The risotto came and was a bright green colour with the deep pink prosciutto standing out on top. The portion was a decent size and I was eager to tuck in. I took my first bite excitedly and .... it was decent. In al honesty I was a little disappointed. I think that it could have used a little more seasoning because all in all the risotto itself was a little land. There were only a few pieces of prosciutto which was as described crispy and it had a lovely smoky flavour but there just wasn't enough of it to add a lot of flavour to the meal. The risotto was the perfect texture and the watercress on top was a lovely touch but in all honesty I doubt that I will e ordering this again. I love that ASK have ventured out and added some new risotto options to their menu but this one still needs a bit of work. A little more seasoning could have completely changed this dish and made it amazing and like I said it was decent enough, I just think that there are much better options on the menu than this new spring special.

Danone Light And Free Pomaberry Yogurt review

I have tried other varieties of these light and free Greek style yogurts from Danone before and generally I have been really impressed. I have always found these to be thick, creamy and flavourful. As a matter of fact, I usually find it very hard to believe that these are a fat free yogurt. The blueberry variety are probably my favourite and so when I saw this new addition to the range made from pomegranate, blackberries and raspberries I was pretty sure that I would enjoy them. These contain 0% fat as well as having no added sugar and are suitable for vegetarians. They come in a pack of four and this variety is an Orla Kiely edition. Not only do the pots come with a pretty design on but they also provide the opportunity to win a £5000 shopping experience simply by entering the codes on the tops of the lids online.

I was excited to try these and I have to be honest I was a little disappointed. They weren't unpleasant however they are probably my least favourite from the light and free range. They had a mild berry flavour however I think there is a reason that pomegranate, despite being the main reason that I wanted to try these, is not a common yogurt flavour. There was a tartness that I didn't really like and I think that pomegranate is just not a sweet enough fruit to be a dominant yogurt flavour.
All in all these were a decent enough yogurt and I did finish them all but I wont be buying them again. The pots are very pretty and they have a fair mixed berry flavour but there was a lack of dominant sweet berry flavour that you get with other fruits such as a strawberry or cherry that ended up making these a little bland. I am still a fan of the range and even these had the usual thickness and small pieces of fruit that I always enjoy but in my opinion this flavour is a bit of a let down.