Review: Fab Birthday Cake Flavour Ice Lollies

Now that the weather is turning warmer it's time to finally look at all the new ice creams instore (I don't really enjoy ice cream during the colder months!).  Fab have released a new festive birthday cake flavour for their 50th anniversary. 50 years is an amazing achievement for an ice cream brand and it's certainly enduring well - it's one of my kids favourite ice lollies.

The Birthday Cake Fab is described as a raspberry flavoured ice with a sponge cake and vanilla flavoured coating and sugar strands toppings. Compared to the regular Fab, this limited edition has a yellowish colouring and delicious cake-like scent. I couldn't wait to get stuck in! The best part of the Fab is of course the top part where crunchy the sugar strands meet both the creamy ice cream and sweet raspberry inner layers. The cake flavoured ice cream actually comes through, with a creamy, almost biscuity flavour. Combined with the raspberry flavour of the ice lolly it did create the flavour of a cake - even if it's more jam roly poly than birthday cake.

This is definitely one the kids will enjoy, grab a pack while they're still around! 

Grocery Gems Review: Fab Birthday Cake Flavour Review

RATING: 8 out of 10.
Buy it again?: Yes.
Nutrition: 76 calories.
Purchased: Sainsbury's.
Price: £2.20p for 6 - although currently on offer for £1 in Iceland.

Review: Minion Ice Cream Lollies

With the UK currently basking in a mini-heatwave I made a trip to the supermarket just to stock up on ice cream and ice lollies. Since I've reviewed quite a few Minions related products already I though it was about time to give the new Minion Ice Cream Lollies a try.

I was actually surprised by how cute the ice lollies are - sure their mouths look a bit weird but they're a lot more recognisable than previous character ice lollies I've reviewed (anyone remember the Star Wars Stormtrooper Ice Lollies?). They really do look like Minions and the eye being an actual hole in the ice cream is quite a cute touch. The texture of the ice cream is very light and fluffy, almost airy, so they do melt quite quickly. The flavours here are surprisingly good, I was expecting bland, but instead there is a strong vanilla flavour at the top and a clearly differentiated fruity flavour on the bottom. It's a fairly simple ice cream overall but the kids really enjoyed them (and so did I!). 

Grocery Gems Review: Minion Ice Cream Lollies

RATING: 8 out of 10.
Buy them again?: Yes.
Nutrition: 71 calories(per 60ml ice lolly). 
Purchased: Sainsbury's.
Price: £2.00 (box of 6).

New Instore at Iceland: Authentic Italian Gelato, Walls Big Bite and more!

I popped into Iceland today and spotted so many new ranges of ice creams, bakery products and summer treats. Here's a round up of my top picks.

Iceland Lemon Delights & Coconut Delights (photo above): Years ago I used to buy a product like this from Costco that included lemon, orange and coconut icecreams in their shells. Sometimes Lidl has a coconut version, but I'm really pleased to find them easily available in the UK. I'll have a full review soon. £2.00p - pack of 2.

Iceland Bellissima Italian Gelato: I couldn't get a decent photo of these but they look absolutely gorgeous. Each tub has several different ice cream flavours. There are two varieties available: a fruity combination and a chocolate version. The fruity version is a quartet of Peach & Mango , Strawberry, Cherry and Lemon iced fruit desserts with sauce and white chocolate curls. The chocolate variety is a combination of White Chocolate, Chocolate & Cocoa and Hazelnut & Chocolate ice creams with a rippled sauce and white chocolate curls. £2.00p each. 

Iceland Prime Italiano Ice Cream: There is also a great looking range of authentic Italian ice cream in several different flavours; Mint Choc Chip, Cherry Ripple, Raspberry Pavlova, Vanilla and more that I can't remember! £1.50p each.

Iceland Solo Ice Lollies: Fans of Solero ice lollies may be interested in this similar looking version from Iceland. There are two varieties available; Exotic Burst and Berry Burst. Each ice lolly has 94 calories. £1.00p - pack of 3.

Iceland Ice Cream Biskits: My kids are big fans of the Oreo ice cream sandwiches and these look very similar. I picked up a box so I'll have a review soon. Also pictured are the new Mini Ice Cream Donuts which look quite interesting. Both £2.00p - pack of 8.

Iceland Majestics Peach Melba: I've tried the Iceland Majestics range before (they're a bit similar to Magnums) and they've always been very good. I love peach so I can't wait to try these Peach Melba Majestics soon. £1.50p - pack of 3.

Walls Big Bite Ice Cream: A new ice cream tub from Walls available in two simple flavours; Vanilla & Strawberry or Vanilla & Chocolate. £1.00p at Iceland.

Iceland New Yorker Hot Dog Stuffed Crust Pizza: This was labelled as new in my store but I'm not really sure if it is or not. Let me know in the comments below! £2.00p each.

Iceland Nacho Quarter Pounder Burgers: These are described as beef burgers with tortilla breadcrumbs, mature cheddar and chilli. I'm sure Mr. Grocery Gems will be tempted to give these a try! £2.00p - pack of 4.

Iceland Summer BBQ Range 2015: There are plenty of new barbecue products as you would expect, such as an extensive range of summer inspired kebabs. 

Iceland Salt & Pepper Pork Twisters: I'm not sure what these things are but they certainly look different! If you've tried them then let me know what you thought in the comments below. £2.00p - pack of 6.

Iceland Pork Sausage Curls: I bet Mr. Grocery Gems is hoping that I bought these! £2.00p - pack of 5.

Iceland Stonebaked Bakery range: I also spotted an extensive bakery selection of part-baked frozen products. There is absolutely loads in this range - just in the photo above there is; Ciabatta, Rye Bread, Corn Bread, Sourdough Loaf, and a Cinnamon Raisin Loaf. Also available is also Pain Parisienne, Petit Pain Brown, and a Dinner Roll Selection, Yum! From £1.00p each. 

Iceland Patisserie Bakery Range: There is also a sweet selection of frozen bakery products available. In the photo above are; Belgian Vanilla Waffles, Belgian Chocolate Chip Waffles, Raisin Danish, All Butter Croissants. There are also Pain au Chocolat available. I'll be trying some of these for sure! From £1.00p each.

Let me know if you've spotted any other new products at Iceland or if you've tried any of the products above!

Review: Limited Edition Fab Tropical Ice Lollies

Fab Tropical is a new limited edition flavour for the classic ice lolly brand. It's a great idea and, even though we enjoyed their last new flavour, the Apple & Blackcurrant, this Tropical flavour is much more appealing. The Fab Tropical is described as a mixed tropical fruit flavour ice lolly with a chocolate flavour coating and sugar strands. From the ingredients there are natural fruit juices from pineapples, oranges and passion fruit, with a small amount banana puree too. The ice lollies are also free from aritifical colours, flavours or preservatives.

In terms of flavour, the top half of the ice lolly is dominated by the chocolate and sprinkles coating, so there was only a light tropical fruity flavour coming through. Underneath this top layer, I initially found the combination of pineapple and passion fruit created a mango-like flavour in the main ice lolly. This sweeter tropical flavour then gives way to a stronger passion fruit taste with a pleasingly tangy edge. It definitely feels strange eating an ice lolly when it's still winter, but once the days start getting warmer, I'm sure these will be fab (sorry couldn't resist!). 

Overall, it's lovely to see an updated twist on a favourite classic ice lolly. I hope they release these in a Mini version aswell, like they did with the previous Fab Apple & Blackcurrant edition.

Grocery Gems Review: Fab Tropical

RATING: 8 out of 10 (for both).

Buy them again?: Yes.
Nutrition: 83 calories per 58ml ice lolly.
Purchased: Sainsburys.
Price: £2.00p for a box of 6.

New Instore: Ben & Jerry's Speculoos Ice Cream, Easter Cakes & More!

A round up of new products spotted instore - let me know in the comments if you've tried any of these!

Ben & Jerry's Speculoos? Specu-love Cookie Core: Any regular readers will know how much I love Speculoos as a flavour. I'm barely over the excitement of the Krispy Kreme Biscoff doughnut and along comes another awesome speculoos biscuit inspired product. There are two other new varieties available in this Cookie Core range; What-a-Lotta Chocolate Cookie Core and Utter Peanut Butter Clutter Cookie Core. I'm sure I'll try those last two eventually but look out for my review of the Speculoos variety soon! £3.00p at Sainsbury's.

Limited Edition Fab Tropical: I didn't get the best picture of the box - it shows lots of tropical fruits along the bottom. I'm a fan of the Fab range, especially during the summer, as it's a relatively low calorie choice for an ice cream/lolly and I'm looking forward to trying this new Tropical variety.  Review coming soon! £2.00p at Sainsbury's.

Cadbury Dairy Milk Marvellous Ice Creams: For some reason I'm not that excited about these ice creams from Cadbury, and I wasn't really tempted to buy them at £4.00p a tub. The flavours above are; Zingy Raspberry Choc Brownie and Jelly Popping Candy. The first one doesn't sound too bad but I think I'll pass on the second one. £4.00p each at Sainsbury's.

Cadbury Dairy Milk Marvellous Ice Creams: There was also this yellow tub which is a bizarre Salted Caramel & Sour Cherry concoction. I was disappointed that this wasn't a banana ice cream instead! If you try any of these varieties then I'd love to hear from you in the comments below. £4.00p at Sainsbury's.

Magnum Pink Raspberry: I've posted about the new Magnum Pink and Magnum Black before. I had heard that they were available at Tesco but I haven't been able to find them in a Tesco near me. I finally spotted them today in Sainsbury's at £3.40p.

Magnum Mini Pink & Black: I was hoping that the new Magnum Pink & Black would be available as Mini version but I didn't expect to find them both in a Multipack too. I much prefer the mini sized Magnums, as I find the large ones a bit too much to eat in one go, but the smaller sizes are perfect. I picked up a pack of these too - my freezer is now well stocked with ice creams! £2.00p at Sainsbury's.

Walls After School Family Favourites: Not new, but an interesting new rebranding as "after school" snacks for this selection of classic Walls ice creams. £3.00p at Sainsbury's.

Walls Push Up with Haribo Gold Bears; I think these have been available individually in freezer cabinets and from ice cream vans but I don't remember seeing them for sale in a multipack before. I wonder if they are replacing the Walls Haribo Dino Candy Ice Lollies? £2.50p at Sainsbury's.

Walker's Limited Edition Linda's Chicken & Chorizo: I can't find any information about these but they don't seem to be part of any new Walker's flavour competition. I tried these today and they're very tasty with a distinctive smoky chorizo flavour, I'll have a full review soon. £1.50 at Sainsbury's.

Bahlsen Choco Leibniz White: These are white chocolate covered cocoa biscuits. I've tried the Choco Liebniz Milk Chocolate and Caramel varieties before but never this White chocolate version. I picked up a pack while they're on special offer. £1.00p at Sainsbury's.

McVities Marie Biscuits: I was quite surprised to see McVities branded Marie biscuits in the UK. Marie Biscuits (also known as Maria in Spain/Portugal) are the European version of Rich  Tea biscuits. They have a slightly different taste and I always used to pick up a few packs on holiday. At least McVities didn't release their Finger Marie version here in the UK! £1.20 at Sainsbury's.

Mr Kipling Lemon Fancies: Once again there are lots of lemon and orange flavoured cakes for Easter. I'll refer you my post last year "New Instore: Easter Cakes" as I spotted most of the same products - just with different packaging. Also back are the Mr. Kipling Lemon Whirls and Mr Kipling St. Clements Slices. £1.00p at Sainsbury's.

Shape Pineapple & Coconut Special Edition: A tropical inspired 0% fat yogurt with 63 calories per pot. £1.00p at Sainsbury's. 

Müller Light Inspired by Barbados Piña Coloda: This is quite similar to the Müller Light Inspired by Bali yogurt from last year, except with added Rum flavour! £0.70p each at Sainsbury's.

Lidl Jolly Choc Spreads: I'm not sure if these are exactly new but it's certainly the first time I've seen them. These are chocolate spreads with added chocolate drops - basically mini Smarties - in either Chocolate Spread or Milk Spread. They're available this week as part of the Lidl "Taste of the USA" promotion. £1.29 at Lidl. £0.99p each at Lidl.

Don't forget if you spot any new products in store please let me know via email - grocerygems@gmail.com. Thank you!

Hello Kitty Ice Cream Lollies Review

When I reviewed the Star Wars Stormtrooper Ice Lollies I should have also mentioned that there was a girls version available from the same company; these official Sanrio licensed Hello Kitty Tutti Frutti Ice Cream Lollies.

Usually Hello Kitty is known for her lack of a mouth, but with these lollies she has no eyes or nose either. Actually it's probably a very wise decision to eshew recreating Hello Kitty's face in the ice cream. It didn't work out too well for those uni-browed Stormtroopers after all. These Hello Kitty Ice Cream Lollies on the other hand whilst they have a fairly basic appearance, are also quite cute looking.

The ice cream has quite a soft and fluffy texture rather than being overly creamy, which makes these quite a light treat. The Tutti Frutti flavour is not as exciting as it sounds. It has a vague fruitiness but it's quite to pin down exactly what fruit it could be (no clues from the ingredients either). The most I can say is that the flavour does have hints of banana and strawberry flavour in there. Surprisingly the overall ice cream is not too sweet or sugary, and they were pleasant enough as a cold snack.

 It's interesting to note that these are made in Slovenia and imported to the UK. They are free from artificial colours, flavourings and preservatives, and are suitable for vegetarians.

Grocery Gems Verdict: Hello Kitty Ice Cream Lollies

RATING: 6.5 out of 10.
Buy them again?: Maybe.
Nutrition: 66 calories. 
Purchased: Iceland.
Price: £1.00.

Disney Monsters University Ice Lollies

These Monsters University Ice Lollies were released last month to coincide with the UK release of the Disney Pixar film of the same name. They're made by R&R Ice Cream, owners of brands such as Fab, Skinny Cow and Kelly's of Cornwall, who have also released other Disney themed ice lollies in the past. I like the fact that the lollies, whilst fairly basic looking, are blue and green in colour - very fitting for the Monsters Inc theme.

They're described on the box as blue raspberry flavour ice lollies with vanilla and lime centres. The outer blue layer is hard in texture, like an ice shell around the inner ice cream, and has a very subtle generic fruity flavour. The inner vanilla ice cream is quite fluffy and creamy, the usual kids ice lolly stuff. The contrast of the hard icy outer layer and soft vanilla inside reminded me of the classic kids Fruit Split ice lollies. Then there is an extra burst of lime flavour from the bright green core. The taste here is quite strong and sweet, a bit like undiluted squash, although it is offset by the plainer outer layers.

My kids however, didn't enjoy the flavour of the lime centre, which was a bit too concentrated and syrupy for them. I still think they're good value at £1.00 for 4 lollies and they're worth a try if your kids are Monsters Inc fans. I've happily eaten one or two (I'm obviously a lot less fussy then my kids!) and I find them nicely refreshing. Each lolly has only 58 calories and is free of artificial colours, flavours and preservatives.

Grocery Gems Verdict: Disney Monsters University Ice Lollies

RATING: 5.5 out of 10.
Buy them again?: Probably not.
Nutrition: 58 calories. 
Purchased: Tesco.
Price: £1.00.

Smooze Coconut & Pineapple Fruit Ice

I bought this box of 10 Coconut & Pineapple Smooze Fruit Ices at the recent Allergy show, held at the Olympia in London. I also received samples of their other flavours to try; Simply Coconut, Coconut & Pink Guava, and Coconut & Mango. They're described as a coconut milk based gluten and dairy free iced treat with no artificial colours, preservatives or cholesterol.

The Smooze come in pretty nifty triangular packaging that's easy to hold without any mess. The fruit ice iteself is made of pure coconut milk and simple 100% natural ingredients.

All the Smooze flavours are deliciously creamy - it's hard to believe they are completely dairy free. My kids loved all the flavours, but the Coconut & Pineapple and the Coconut & Mango were their favourites. The coconut milk provides a perfect base for the fresh and sweet fruity flavours. At only 64 calories in each Smooze, they're also a fantastic alternative to ice cream and have been going down a treat during this heatwave!

I bought these at the Allergy Show, but they are also available at some health food shops. (They can be stored at room temperature until they need to be frozen).

Grocery Gems Verdict: Smooze Fruit Ice

RATING: 9 out of 10.
Buy them again?: Yes.
Nutrition: 64 calories each. 
Vegetarian: Suitable for vegetarians and vegans.
Purchased: Allergy Show, but check local health food shops.
Price: £3.99 for box of 10.

Star Wars Stormtrooper Ice Cream Lollies

I've previously reviewed Star Wars Ice Lollies, which were shaped like lightsabers (review HERE). But who needs those when you can get your very own edible Stormtrooper instead? The image on the box depicts a floating head on a stick that actually looks pretty good, if a little short for a Stormtrooper. But if you think the real ice lolly is going to look exactly like the one on the box then these are not the ice lollies you're looking for. IT'S A TRAP.

Move along now.

From what I can see, this Stormtrooper is wearing a headband and sporting a fetching handlebar moustache - he is from a 70's movie after all. Or perhaps he is simply a battle damaged Stormtrooper who has been through a few rounds with an angry Ewok. Either that or he's one of those elite fighter Stormtroopers who still manages to hit his head walking through doorways.

Meanwhile... back to the box.

Yep, not looking quite the same as the image on the box. But still, I'm going to complain too much about a product that costs £1.00 for four ice lollies, it's obviously a budget product and one that is still fun for any Star Wars fan.

Each Stormtrooper ice lolly only contains 64 calories, less than any of the mini ice creams I've been reviewing lately. The vanilla and chocolate ice cream is very similar to what you would find in a standard supermarket tub of neopolitan ice cream - very basic but still surprisingly enjoyable.

Grocery Gems Verdict: Star Wars Stormtrooper Ice Cream Lollies

RATING: 7 out of 10.
Buy them again?: Probably.
Nutrition: 65 calories, 0.04g protein, 15g carbs (15g sugars), Trace fat. 
Purchased: Iceland.
Price: £1.00.

MilkyBar Minis Ice Cream Lollies

Nestle has been busy miniaturising some of it's iconic ice lolly brands, such as the Nobbly Bobbly (review here) and Fabs. They've also made one of their most popular chocolate bars, the MilkyBar, into an ice lolly - and as a mini version too. I know MilkyBar chocolates are clearly aimed at kids but I can't resist the occasional bar myself!

The ice creams are very cute - and really very small. They're described as "delicious MilkyBar ice cream dipped in creamy white MilkyBar chocolate".

The white chocolate coating is classic Milkybar - all sweetness and creaminess. The inner ice cream was much nicer than I was expecting - with a lovely texture that is not too "icy" as is often the case with kids ice cream based lollies. It's not just a plain vanilla either, it's has a caramel undertone to the creamy flavour. Undoubtedly most kids who love white chocolate will love these MilkyBar ice lollies, but I'm also sure that many adults looking for a less calorific treat will love them too.

Grocery Gems Verdict: MilkyBar Minis

RATING: 9 out of 10.
Buy them again?: Yes.
Nutrition (per lolly): 96 calories, 5.4g fat, 10.4g sugars. 
Vegetarian: Suitable for vegetarians.
Purchased: Sainsbury's.
Price: £2.49p for 10 lollies.