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: Ben & Jerry's Cookie Dough 'Wich Ice Creams & Mr. Kipling Cupcakes

A few more new products spotted instore:

Ben & Jerry's Cookie Dough 'Wich: Many thanks to Luci J. who emailed me the photos of these new ice creams from Ben & Jerry's. I can't wait to try out a Ben & Jerry's Cookie Dough 'Wich - they look so good! It's described as a vanilla ice cream with cookie dough sandwiched between chewy chocolate chip cookies. Purchased at Sainsbury's.

Ben & Jerry's Cookie Dough  Son of a... 'Wich: There's also a mini version of these ice cream sandwiches available; the rather brilliantly named Son of a... 'Wich. Well played Ben & Jerry's. A big thank you again to Luci photos. Purchased at Morrisons.

Mr Kipling Cupcakes: Also new are these single pack Mr Kipling Cupcakes which are available in three varieties; Apple Pie Cupcake, Angel Cupcake and Cherry Bakewell Cupcake. They cost £1.20p each but are also available in a large 12 pack for £8.00. Thanks to Lucy W. for this photo. I believe these are currently exclusive to Tesco but let me know if you spot them anywhere else!

Many thanks again to Luci J. and Lucy W. for these great finds and photos. As always, if you've spotted any new products in store then I'd love to hear from you - email grocerygems@gmail.com or tweet @grocerygems.

New Instore: Müller Light Peanut & Caramel, Mr Kipling Oat Slices & More

A round up of new products spotted instore.

Müller Light Peanut & Caramel Flavour: I finally managed to track down the latest limited edition flavour from Müller. Thank you to everyone who left comments letting me know that these had been spotted in Sainsbury's and Iceland. £0.70p at Sainsbury's. 

Mr Kipling Dark Chocolate & Coconut Oat Slices: These look good! I like the idea of the combination of dark chocolate with coconut on an oaty base. £1.00p at Sainsbury's.

Yeo Valley Winter Sun Yogurt: This limited edition flavour is a sunny combination of Mango, Passion fruit and Pineapple to 'brighten up the winter months'. £1.00p at Sainsbury's.

Innocent Smoothie for Kids Fruit & Veg: My kids are big fans of Innocent Smoothies so I was pleased to spot a new Fruit & Veg flavour in the range which contains Pineapples, Apples & Carrots. I'll be interested to see what the kids think of this flavour - review to follow! £1.49p (half-price offer across the range) at Sainsbury's. 

Innocent Light & Juicy: I also spotted this Light & Juicy range which I don't think I've seen before. There were two flavours; Pineapple & Lime and also Peach & Raspberry. £1.25p (half price offer) at Sainsbury's. 

M&S Hello Kitty Easter Egg: This is almost identical to the Hello Kitty Easter egg that Marks & Spencer's have produced in previous years, just even more PINK. £7.00p at M&S.

Image: Tesco

Fibre One Lemon Drizzle Squares: I reviewed Fibre One Brownies from Canada in the early days of my blog. The brand is now available in the UK at Tesco in two flavours; Lemon Drizzle Squares and Chocolate Fudge Brownie. £2.89p at Tesco.

As always if you've spotted any new products instore then I'd love to hear from you - email grocerygems@gmail.com or tweet me @grocerygems.

Review: Mr Kipling Tiger Slices

A quick review of the new Tiger Slices from Mr. Kipling. I was quite surprised by these as Mr. Kipling have recently released plenty of new holiday-themed products, such as the Mr. Kipling Witches Hat Fancies and the Mr. Kipling Elf Slices. I'm not sure if the new Tiger Slices are a limited edition release, or if they are a permanent addition to the Mr. Kipling range, but I'll update here once I find out.

The Mr. Kipling Tiger Slices are described as orange flavoured and chocolate flavoured sponges, topped with a decorated orange coloured icing. Don't they look amazing? I love the striped sponge cake and the wavy tops, the whole thing looks very impressive.

The flavour is good too, although it's a much lighter chocolate and orange flavour than I was expecting. Mr Grocery Gems even called them 'slightly bland' but as I'm not really a fan of chocolate-orange, I was fine with the lighter flavour here. The orange flavour is certainly not as strong as the recent orange flavoured Mr. Kipling Witches fancies and thankfully they're far less sweet too. The texture seemed a little drier than the usual cake slices from Mr. Kipling which I often find quite greasy, but the cake itself is still nice and soft. 

Overall, even though the orange and chocolate flavours are not particularly strong, we still all enjoyed these new Tiger Slices from Mr. Kipling. Let me know if you've tried them!

Grocery Gems Review: Mr Kipling Tiger Slices

RATING: 7 out of 10.
Buy them again?: Yes.
Nutrition:  111 calories per slice (29g).
Purchased: Asda.
Price: £1.00p.

Review: Mr. Kipling Elf Slices

Another day, another Mr. Kipling cake! I don't normally buy Christmas products so early in the year but I really couldn't resist these new apple flavoured cakes from Mr Kipling. As Mr. Grocery Gems put it "you just couldn't 'elf yourself could you".

There are six Elf Slices in each box which are helpfully wrapped in three portions of two slices. 

The cakes look really festive with their light green sponge topped with a bright red and green icing. Like all Mr. Kipling Slices, the sponge is lovely and soft, and the sugary icing is just melt in the mouth - a couple of bites and these are gone! Of course most people are going to be interested in the apple aspect and I'm happy to report that the sponge cake has a lovely, sweet apple flavour. It's a slightly strange experience at first because it's a bit like eating an apple pie flavoured cake, but the whole thing is ultimately very tasty. It would have been great to have some flavour in the icing too, perhaps a little cinnamon to make it really Christmassy, but that's just me being picky!

Also check out my review of the new Mr. Kipling Witches Hat Fancies from yesterday. 

Grocery Gems Review: Mr Kipling Elf Slices

RATING: 8 out of 10.
Buy them again?: Yes but nearer to Christmas!
Nutrition:  108 calories per cake (27g).
Purchased: Tesco.
Price: £1.00p.

Review: Mr. Kipling Witches Hat Fancies

Mr. Kipling have plenty of Halloween themed cakes out at the moment, from Terror Whirls to Chocolate & Slime Slices, but I was especially drawn to their new new Witches Hat Fancies. They're designed to play a trick on your taste buds as the green sponge is actually orange flavoured. Each cake is also topped with a vanilla flavoured cream and is decorated with black icing. 

I'm not actually the biggest fan of the original Mr. Kipling French Fancies, and I'm not usually tempted by their limited edition flavours either, but I just thought these ones looked extra special. The black icing gives the cakes a very unique appearance and they're certainly great looking little cakes for Halloween.

The flavour is just as sugary sweet as I remember these being (the last time I had Mr. Kipling French Fancies was this British version back in 2012!), but they do have a lovely soft cake texture and melt in the mouth topping. The orange flavour does come through strongly but it's funny how the green colouring does trick your brain into thinking they have a bit of a lime flavour in there too! Orange is not really one of my favourite flavours so I didn't enjoy the taste here as much as the rest of my family did. I would prefer to see a more interesting autumnal flavour used for these but I still appreciate Mr. Kipling giving us such innovative and fun themes for their seasonal cakes.

Grocery Gems Review: Mr Kipling Witches Hat Fancies

RATING: 7 out of 10.
Buy them again?: Yes but nearer to Halloween!
Nutrition:  98 calories per cake (27g).
Purchased: Sainsbury's.
Price: £1.00p.

New Instore: Mr Kipling Cocktail Fancies & Galaxy White Hot Chocolate

Mr Kipling Limited Edition Cocktail Fancies: Mr Kipling Fancies are all grown up with this range of cocktail inspired flavours. Thank you to Richard W. via Twitter for the photos!

There are three flavours in each pack; Raspberry Daiquiri, Peach Bellini and Pina Colada. Spotted at Morrisons - £1.25p. 

Galaxy Ultimate White Hot Chocolate: Thank you to Laura who sent me the above photo via Twitter of her awesome white hot chocolate haul! I've mentioned the White Maltesers Hot Chocolate before but it seems to be really hard to find. The Galaxy Ultimate White Hot Chocolate is a new one to me! The milk chocolate Galaxy version is my favourite hot chocolate out there so I'll have to give this white choc variety a try too. Spotted at Asda.

If you've spotted any new products instore then I'd love to hear from you - email grocerygems@gmail.com or tweet me @grocerygems.

Mr Kipling Milkshake Slices - Banana Milkshake and Chocolate & Vanilla Milkshake Slices

Mr. Kipling have launched a range of milkshake flavoured cake slices in Banana Milkshake, Chocolate & Vanilla Milkshake, and Strawberry Milkshake flavours. They are available in four-packs and contain a source of calcium with lower fat compared to other Mr. Kipling cake slices.

Mr. Kipling Banana Milkshake Slices: These are described as banana milkshake flavoured sponge cakes with a vanilla filling and and a banana flavoured fondant on top. The cake has a wonderfully sweet and creamy banana flavour, with a hint of vanilla, that really is reminiscent of a banana milkshake. Some might find the banana flavour too sweet but it's spot on for me. Everything about these is just delicious - the cake itself has a perfectly soft and moist texture too. I haven't always been a fan of Mr. Kipling Slices but this new Banana Milkshake flavour is going to be hard for me to resist! I much prefer these to the previous Mr Kipling Banoffee Slices which had a much lighter banana flavour.

Mr. Kipling Chocolate & Vanilla Slices: These are made up of chocolate and vanilla flavoured sponges with a vanilla filling and decorated with fondant icing. I have to admit I only bought these because the range was on a 2 for £1.50p deal but I'm really glad I did! They're much tastier than I was expecting. Both the chocolate and vanilla flavours come through nicely with a creamy edge. The combination of chocolate and vanilla sponge works well and reminds me of a classic marble cake. Perhaps the "milkshake" theme is not as evident in the actual flavour here but I still enjoyed these little cakes.

Overall, these new Mr. Kipling Milkshake Slices were surprisingly good and I'll certainly be buying them again - I might even try the Strawberry Milkshake flavour too. In fact I would have given them slightly higher scores (and a 10 out of 10 for the banana flavour) if the packs hadn't been reduced in size from 6 to 4 cakes. 

Grocery Gems Verdict: Mr. Kipling Milkshake Slices

RATING: Banana Milkshake: 9 out of 10, Choc & Vanilla: 8 out of 10.
Buy it again?: Yes.
Nutrition (per slice): 140 calories. 
Purchased: Tesco.
Price: £1.29p or 2 packs for £1.50p.

Mr Kipling Winter Whirls Review

I didn't try these when they were released last year, but after the success of the Mr Kipling Gingerbread Whirls, I decided we should give their Winter Whirls a try.

There are six cakes in each box and they are described as melt in the mouth shortcake swirls filled with rich buttercream and a mince pie flavour filling. 

The Winter Whirls, like the rest of the Mr Kipling Whirls range, have a soft texture, somewhere between a cake and a biscuit. The filling is a combination of a cream layer with an additional layer of jam. This jam is described in the ingredients as "spiced apple jam" with added warming spices such as cinnamon. The overall effect of this layer is indeed very reminiscent of a mince pie but with the flavours toned down by the vanilla biscuit and cream. For anyone who hates raisins as much as Mr Grocery Gems, the Mr Kipling Winter Whirls offer a festive mince pie flavour without any of the dreaded dried fruit!

Grocery Gems Verdict: Mr Kipling Winter Whirls

RATING: 8 out of 10.
Buy them again?: Yes.
Nutrition (per Whirl): 145 calories.
Purchased: Tesco.
Price: £1.00p.

New Instore: Christmas Treats & Gingerbread Swirls

Another quick round up of new and returning products spotted instore.

Asda Snowman Cake-Pop Kit: This looks really cute and a fun activity for the kids over the Christmas holidays. £2.00 at Asda. They also had an awesome Make Your Own Rocky Road House Kit (see below) which is an interesting twist on the classic Christmas gingerbread house.

Hartley's Jolly Jelly Strawberry and Raspberry: Hartley's jelly packs have been given a cute festive makeover. There is Santa on the Strawberry packs and a reindeer on the raspberry packs. The idea is similar to the Halloween packs they had last month but it's just a shame that there isn't a new flavour to go along with the festive designs. £0.49p each at Asda.

Hartley's Jolly Jelly Orange: The orange jelly also had a festive new look with a snowman design on the front. The Lime and Lemon jellies were both in standard packaging - if you spot the new ones please do let me know! £0.49p each at Asda.

Asda Chocolate Sprouts: I know Marks & Spencer had a similar product last year. These Asda Chocolate Sprouts are quite large so there are only about 6 or 7 chocolates per net. £1.00 for 90g at Asda.

Asda Extra Special All-Butter Palmiers & Cinnamon Straws: There were plenty of new Christmas themed biscuits and cakes in the Asda Extra Special range. This box stood out to me in particular because of the cinnamon straws. I'll probably pick them up at some point, although I might just use the idea and make these at home myself! £2.00 at Asda.

Cadbury Turkish Cake Bars: I don't think these are new, they've certainly been around before in previous years at least. However, I think this "Special Edition" is a seasonal product. £1.00 at Asda.

Mr Kipling Frosty Fancies: These are also back from last year. £1.00 at Asda.

Warburtons Winter Fruit Loaf: I reviewed this a few years ago HERE. It has a lovely spiced flavour that is perfect on a winters morning. £1.30p at Asda.

Activia Intensely Creamy Duo: I mentioned these yogurts before in my post HERE but this is the first time I've seen them instore. I spotted two varieties; Apricot & Nectarine and Pear & Apple. There is also a Blood Orange & Passionfruit available. £2.38p for a 4-pack at Asda.

McVities Batman Justice League Biscuits: Each box comes with four packs of six biscuits. The biscuits are chocolate flavoured sandwich biscuits with a Batman image printed on each one. Spotted in 99p Stores.

Sun-Pat Hazelnut Spread: Not a new product, I reviewed it HERE previously. I thought it was interesting that it's now in 99p Stores. I wonder if the fact that it's really a peanut butter in disguise has something to do with that? Very misleading packaging. It's made of 62% peanuts and only 12% hazelnuts. Spotted in 99p Stores. 

Sun-Pat Cashew Spread: My brother sent me this photo of Sun-Pat Cashew, which happily does actually have cashew nuts as the main ingredient. This one has 67% cashews and 8% peanuts. I still think the labelling is misleading as some shoppers may think this is a pure cashew nut spread. £2.40p at Sainsbury's.

M&S Gingerbread Swirls: I didn't hesitate in buying one of these! What a brilliant idea from M&S. Cinnamon swirls are my favourite pastries and this Gingerbread version is just as appealing. Review coming soon but here's a spoiler - it was DELICIOUS. £1.00p at Marks & Spencer (in the fresh bakery section).

M&S Apple, Pear & Brussel Sprout Juice: I didn't get a chance to look at the bottle properly but I'm guessing this juice probably contains less than 5% sprouts. £2.29p at M&S.

Tesco Gingerbread Smoothie: And if sprout juice isn't your thing then look at this beauty. A Gingerbread inspired smooth with orange, apple, ginger and cinnamon from Tesco. Thanks so much to Lucy for the photo - I'm off to try to find this today! Apparently there was also a pudding inspired smoothie too! Will update with price.

M&S We Whip You A Merry Christmas: You know how at Christmas you can get those metre long tubes of Jaffa Cakes or Wispa bars? Well, M&S has decided to make a metre long tube of their Walnut & Assorted Whips and... wait for it... have called it a WHIP STICK. My Christmas spirit just died a little inside. Can't remember the price, I'm too traumatised.

M&S Chocolate Coins: These are not new but I'm just posting this just to show that I don't understand the fuss about #ChocCoinGate and the fact that Cadbury are no longer making chocolate coins. Chocolate coins are available to buy in just about EVERY single supermarket at Christmastime so what's the big deal? Honestly I'd be sorrier to see the Lidl chocolate coins disappear - they do them with £50 notes in the pack!

A couple of items that I spotted but couldn't take photos of:

Photo: Asda

After Eight Finest Mint Selection: I don't think I've ever had an After Eight chocolate that wasn't the classic mint thins. This selection consists of dark, white and milk chocolates with a peppermint fondant filling. £2.00 at Asda.

Image: Asda

Asda Rocky Road House Kit: This is basically a chocolate version of a gingerbread house. It's a great value kit and I'm regretting not getting one when I saw it today! £3.00 at Asda.

I'd love to hear from you if you spot any new Christmas food products instore - email me any photos to: grocerygems@gmail.com. Thanks!