Review: Asda Rainbow Hoops Vs Kellogg's Froot Loops

I couldn't resist reviewing the new(ish) Rainbow Hoops from Asda. This blog has seen more than it's fair share of reviews for brightly coloured hoopy cereal. There was the original  US Kellogg's Froot Loops, the launch of a UK Version in 2012 Limited Edition Kellogg's Froot Loops, which were followed in 2017 by a Unicorn themed variety. These last too are no longer available in the UK so I was pleased to find the Asda Rainbow Hoops to fill the gap. 

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The Asda Rainbow Hoops are the first time I've seen a supermarket own-brand join in. And luckily - I just so happened to have a box of Kellogg's Unicorn Froot Loops (from Germany!) and a mini box of the American Kellogg's Froot Loops in the house - so get ready for a lots of comparison photos.

Asda Rainbow Hoops: These are made with natural colours so it's not surprising that they are quite pale in colouring. They are also covered in a visible white sugary glaze which makes them even paler. The overall flavour is fine, although not as fruity as I was expecting, and far too sweet. I know this type of cereal is always going to be sugary but these were pushing it even for me.

Kellogg's Unicorn Froot Loops: I found these in Home Bargains for £1.49. I thought they were a return of the Unicorn Froot Loops from a few years ago, as they look identical, but it seem that these are imported from Germany (and even feature a wordsearch in German on the back). Even though these are also made with natural colours, they are much more colourful than the Asda Unicorn Hoops. The pinks and yellows are especially vibrant. I also preferred the flavour of these Kellogg's Unicorn Froot Loops, they manage to stay on the right side of sweetness and also have a generic fruity flavour in the background.

Kellogg's Froot Loops (US): Lastly, the craziness that is the original American Froot Loops from Kellogg's. These are packed full of colourings and look super bright next to the paler British versions. Personally, I find the bright blues and greens really off-putting in a food but they are fun as a one-off. The flavour is also the fruitiest and most distinctive. 

Overall, my favourites are the Kellogg's Unicorn Froot Loops which have the right combination of colourful fun and sweetness (I know fans of American cereals will disagree!). Sadly they don't seem to be available in the UK anymore, but look out for them in bargain shops as they are available in other European countries.

If you've tried any of these cereals, especially the new Asda Unicorn Hoops, then let me know in the comments below.

I'll be back with some more reviews soon so check back.

Katherine @grocerygems

New Instore: Vegan Ben & Jerries, Cloudy Lemonade Jelly & More

Non-Dairy Ben & Jerry's: The much anticipated vegan Ben & Jerry's has finally hit the shelves in the UK. There are three flavours available: Peanut Butter & Cookies, Chocolate Fudge Brownie and Chunky Monkey. So far spotted in Tesco - for £5.50p.

Hartley's Cloudy Lemonade Jelly: Spotted in two flavours; Elderflower Lemonade or Original Lemonade. Spotted at Tesco - £0.70p each. 

Tesco Black Forest Profiteroles: It's that time of year when all the festive party food starts to appear instores. Most of it is looking similar to previous years but I did spot these new Black Forest Profiteroles from Tesco. Hopefully there will be plenty more new products in the run up to Christmas. £2.00p at Tesco.

Nakd Limited Edition Lemon Drizzle: I know this flavour has been around for awhile but this is the first time I've seen it instore and in a multipack. £2.79p at Tesco.

Tesco Caramel Latte Cookies: An interesting new cookie flavour from Tesco and a bargain price too. Check out the review from A Review a Day. £0.99p at Tesco.

MOMA Porridge Almond Butter & Salted Caramel: A new flavour from MOMA Porridge that is dairy and gluten free. £1.29p at Tesco.

Vitalite Dairy Free Coconut: I only use Vitalite at home so I'm keen to give this coconut variety a try. Available at most supermarkets - spotted at Asda for £1.00p.

Müller Light Crumble Inspired: A limited edition Rhubarb Crumble & Custard Flavour Yogurt from Müller. Spotted at Iceland and Asda - £0.68p each.

Ben & Jerry's Berry Neighbourly: Also new from Ben & Jerry's is this Berry Neighbourly flavour described as - vanilla ice cream with cookie & blueberry swirls & white chocolate chunks. Spotted at Tesco - £4.20p.

Carthy & Black Yorkshire Gin Cream Liqueur: Made using an unique blend of Yorkshire cream and gin from the award winning Slingsby Gin. Spotted at Asda.

Thanks so much to Lucy W. for the last five photos and for such great finds. If you've spotted any new products instore then I would love to hear from you - send any photos to grocerygems@gmail.com or @grocerygems.

New Instore: Shreddies Max Protein, New York Bakery Cheese Bagels & More

A round up of some more new items spotted instore - this time with a few added Mini Reviews! 

Shreddies Max Protein: This new oat granola cereal is available is also available in a Cranberry flavour. It contains 10g of protein per serving as well as being high in fibre. It's a tasty enough granola with a crunchy texture and sweet flavour, and I'd buy it again if it was on special offer. Spotted at: Asda - £2.49p (for 400g).

Tesco Choco-Nut Malt Wheats: I don't usually buy chocolate cereals but this Choco-Nut flavour appealed to me. Is it wrong that I was secretly hoping it would have a Nutella-y taste? Anyway, the good news is that the combination of chocolate and creamy hazelnut does give this cereal that hint of Nutella that I was hoping for. Don't worry, it's not as super sweet or cloying as a chocolate spread, but these Malt Wheats do have a lovely chocolate and nut flavour. I also want to try the new Golden Syrup Malt Wheats in the same range - the price is great too! Spotted at: Tesco - £1.19p (for 500g).

Soreen Squidgy Cake Bites: Available in Chocolate or Toffee flavours. Each tub has 12 mini bites of squidgy cake. I don't usually buy these types of tubs - I prefer individually wrapped minis. Spotted at: Asda - £1.50p. 

Cadbury Mini Rolls Mega Roll Cake: There were quite a few new celebration cakes at Asda. I love the look of this giant Mini Roll - such a fun and simple idea. Spotted at: Asda - £6.00p. 

Asda Donut Cake: Another cute and appealing cake. This one is shaped like a massive doughnut complete with pink icing and sprinkles. Spotted at: Asda - £8.00p. 

Ghostbusters Cake: This is one of those cakes that made me happy and annoyed at the same time. This would have been so useful for my husbands birthday last year which was Ghostbusters themed! Spotted at: Asda - £10.00p. 

Asda Extra Special Muffins: I spotted two interesting new flavours of these savoury muffins; Mild Red Cheddar and Ancient Grains. If you've tried these then I'd love to know what you thought in the comments below! Spotted at: Asda - £1.00p. 

New York Bakery Co Cheese Bagels: I buy bagels regularly so I'm always on the lookout for new flavours. These Cheese Bagels have been an instant hit with my kids and I'll definitely be buying them again. Each bagel has a cheddar cheese topping which is full of flavour and compliments an array of savoury fillings. Spotted at: Asda - £1.00p.

Warburtons Protein Range: Warburtons has a new range of products that are high in protein and fibre. I saw a Wholemeal Loaf with a blend of pulses, Wholemeal Thins and Wholemeal Soft Wraps in the range. Spotted at: Asda - £1.00p each. 

As always, if you spot anything new instore and fancy sending me a photo then let me know via email: grocerygems@gmail.com or Twitter: @grocerygems.

New Instore: Asda Celebration Cakes, Mr Kipling Bumble Bee Slices & More

A few more new finds spotted instore.

Asda Una the Unicorn Cake (above): Asda always has the best celebration cakes but this unicorn cake might just top them all. It's so cute! £10.00p at Asda.

Asda George the Corgi Cake: This one just makes me smile. A cute little corgi cake topped with a crown. I think Asda have released this one with the Queen's upcoming 90th birthday celebrations in mind. £10.00p at Asda.

Asda Smash Cake: This is a new concept to me but it looks really fun. This large Smash Cake features a hollow chocolate dome, on top of the cake, which can be smashed to reveal lots of sweets. It's available in white chocolate or milk chocolate. £13.00p at Asda.

Asda Baby Elephant Cake: It was hard to get a good picture of this but it's a lovely looking cake - I really like the simple design and pretty pastel colours. £9.00p at Asda.

Barbie Party Cake: This is a super bright and colourful cake. Is it just me or is the design quite retro and 1980's looking? I missed the price on this one!

Batman Vs Superman Celebration Cake: There are two Batman Vs Superman themed celebration cakes available at Asda. This is the simpler one and features a fairly basic printed design on top. £10.00p at Asda.

Batman Vs Superman The Ultimate Showdown Celebration Cake: There is also this impressive looking, and much larger cake, with a chocolate logo on top and black and red capes to decorate. £20.00p at Asda.

Mr Kipling Bumble Bee Slices - Chocolate & Honey Flavour: This is such an interesting new flavour from Mr. Kipling. I love the dark brown and yellow striped pattern on each cake which is similar to the previous Mr. Kipling Tiger Slices. £1.50p at Asda.

Barny ABC Bears: These mini bear shaped biscuits look just as cute as the Barny Bear Cakes. They're available in Vanilla or Cocoa flavours. £1.00p at Asda.

Maryland Creations Choc Dipped Cookies: Maryland speciality cookies are being rebranded as 'Maryland Creations', alongside this new addition to the range, Choc Dipped - Dark Choc Chunk Cookies. £1.00p at Asda.

Asda Carrot Cake Puds: There lots of new cake themed desserts at Asda which come in twinpacks. Thank you to Fran T. who spotted the delish sounding Carrot Cake Puds. There are quite a few other varieties in this range also such as a Gingerbread Latte and Blueberry Muffin. £1.50p at Asda.

Asda Coconut Sublimes & Dessert Islands: These tropical flavours from the same range look delicious too!  £1.50p at Asda.

Many thanks again to Fran for the photo. If you spot anything new instore and fancy sending me a photo then let me know via email: grocerygems@gmail.com or Twitter: @grocerygems.

New Instore: Tesco Free From Choc Stick Ices, Twix Spread & More

Thank you to Lucy W. who sent me all these great photos of her new finds this weekend.

Tesco Free From Choc Sticks: It's fab news that Tesco are expanding their Free From ice cream range. They successfully launched the Tesco Free From Strawberry & Vanilla Cones last year and have now added Free From Toffee & Vanilla Cones and Choc Sticks to the range. I've also seen online that there are Free From Fruit Splits available too. I'll be tracking these down soon! £2.00p at Tesco.

Eat Natural Bars: A new Apple, Ginger & Dark Chocolate flavour which looks very tempting! £2.00p at Tesco for box of three.

The Collective Dairy Choccy Orange: A big pot of Collective Dairy yogurt which features a dark chocolate infused with orange flavour. Available at Asda and Sainsbury's - £2.00p. 

Alpro Go On Blackcurrant Soya: A new alternative to strained yogurts from Alpro Soya. The Alpro Go On range is available in three flavours; Blackcurrant, Mango or Passion Fruit. I buy a lot of Alpro Soya 'yogurts' so I was really pleased to hear about this new range. I'll try to review these soon. Spotted at Asda.

Arla Protein Snack Pot: I can't find any information about these online but from the photo these consist of a portion of thick Arla yogurt with a crunchy topping. There are two flavours; Mellow Vanilla or Warm Ginger. £1.25p each in Asda.

Twix Spread: The latest addition to the Mars range of chocolate bar themed spreads turns the Twix bar into a chocolate and caramel spread. The range already includes a Bounty Spread and a Maltesers Spread so it makes sense that Twix was next. Available at Asda.

Bioglan Raw Bites: Lucy said she usually buys this brand in Holland & Barrett but she actually spotted this new Cacoa+Coffee+Coconut flavour in Tesco. This combination really appeals to me - it sounds delicious. £1.99p at Tesco.

A massive thank you to Lucy W. for all of these great finds and photos - she's an absolute star! If you spot anything new instore and fancy sending me a photo then let me know via email: grocerygems@gmail.com or Twitter: @grocerygems.

It's Back! TRIO Toffee Chocolate Biscuit Bar

Trio was a very popular chocolate biscuit back in the 1980's, which was probably better known for the shouty "I want a Triiiioo and I want one NOW' adverts than for it's flavour. Seeing as I'm slightly *ahem* older than most snack bloggers out there, I can vouch for just how iconic and memorable those adverts were. 

Along with the 54321 chocolate biscuit bar, the Trio was one of my favourite chocolate treats as a young child. Although, I didn't actually realise that the Trio was still around until as late as 2003, I thought this brand had disappeared much earlier than that. 

I like the fact the the new Trio bars are wrapped in gold foil with an outer red paper wrapper, rather than plastic. It enhances the retro and nostalgic feel of the experience and it's certainly how I remember the Trio from back in the day.

The Trio is so named because it's made up of three elements; chocolate, biscuit and a toffee flavour cream layer. It also consists of three distinctive and chunky segments. The best part of the original Trio for me was just how thick the outer chocolate layer was and I'm pleased to see that's still the case here. In fact the whole thing instantly brought back memories of eating these as a kid. The inner layers are both really tasty, with a light and crunchy biscuit base and a caramel leaning toffee flavour, but it's the thick chocolate that makes these so memorable for me. 

I do remember the toffee as being a bit lighter in colour and creamier then it is here, but I'm not sure my memory can be relied on after all this time! Regardless, the Trio is still a delicious biscuit bar and one that I'm very glad to see return. I hope this is a limited edition that will be around for a little while longer! 

Grocery Gems Review: Trio Chocolate Biscuit Bar

RATING: 9 out of 10.

Buy them again?: Yes!
Nutrition: 124 calories each.
Purchased: Asda.
Price: £1.00p for six 23.6g biscuit bars.