Kit Kat Chunky Champion 2013 Reviews

All this week I have been reviewing the new Kit Kat Chunky Choose A Champion 2013 additions. In this post you'll find a brief recap of each review and a link to the longer review if you want more! Once again the public will be asked to "Choose a Chunky Champion". The four new flavours for 2013 are: CHOC FUDGE, HAZELNUT, MINT, COCONUT.

CHOC FUDGE

 GROCERY GEMS RATING: 7.5 OUT OF 10

The Choc Fudge Kit Kat has a thick layer of rich chocolate fudge added inside the bar, just above the wafer. Although it doesn't sound very exciting the fudge is delicious with an almost butterscotch flavour to it - it's certainly a more grown up fudge flavour than I was expecting. The chocolate fudge is substantial enough to hold it's own against the wafer layer and thick chocolate coating. Read my full review here.

HAZELNUT

 GROCERY GEMS RATING: 6.5 OUT OF 10

The Kit Kat Hazelnut also has a separate layer within the bar. This "hazelnut cream"  has an unmistakeably hazelnut flavour, but it has been mixed with a fudgey creamy concoction. The hazelnut flavour is strong and does succeed in dominating the wafer and chocolate, but I would have preferred a chocolate based hazelnut flavour instead. The sugary nature of the hazelnut layer was far too sweet for me. Read my full review here.

MINT

GROCERY GEMS RATING: 7 OUT OF 10

Unlike the previous two bars there is no separate layer in this Kit Kat Chunky Mint.  The mint flavour is all in the outer chocolate and it certainly packs a minty punch. At first it tasted of a very sweet mint but once the chocolate flavour ebbed away there is a lingering fresh mint edge. It's full of minty flavour and I expect it will be a big hit with fans of mint chocolate. Read my full review here.

AND MY KIT KAT CHUNKY CHAMPION 2013 IS:

COCONUT

GROCERY GEMS RATING: 8.5 OUT OF 10 

Not only is this the most original flavour of the bunch it was also my overall favourite. Again, there is no separate layer inside, all the coconut flavour is in the outer chocolate and it's a gorgeous combination. The coconut is sweet and quite subtle but is still strong enough to satisfy coconut lovers. As I'm a fan of coconut, I would have liked an additional layer of coconut cream in between the wafers. Despite this, the coconut flavour in the chocolate does hold it's own well against the wafer layers. Read my full review here.

I hope you enjoyed my Kit Kat Chunky Champion 2013 round up. Do let me know which one you will be voting for by leaving a comment below! 

Marks & Spencer Guilt Free Snacking Review - White Chocolate Biscuit Bites

Marks & Spencer describe their Guilt Free Snacking brand as "a range of sweet and savoury portion controlled snacks that don't compromise on taste and quality and are all less than 150 calories". It's seems like an interesting idea - balancing tasty treats with limited calories. There are several new varieties in this range which certainly looked very delicious including; chocolate cornflake snacks, crispy fudge bars and many more. I went for these Mini White Chocolate Biscuit Bites.

Inside the bag there are five individually sealed portions which each have 125 calories...

... and inside the individual bags there are seven small biscuits.

The biscuits have a slightly funny look to them, with little "tails" of white chocolate. The taste of the white chocolate however is absolutely delicious - smooth, creamy, with a slight hint of vanilla and not overly sugary. The inner biscuit is fantastic too, it's a shortcake biscuit and it tastes divine with the white chocolate covering. Seriously delicious. It has a perfect texture, just melt in the mouth and ever so slightly crumbly. I loved them.... but the only problem is that there are only seven of them!

I suppose that is the whole essence of the "guilt free" part - a teeny portion size. This is obviously good for anyone who struggles with portion control. Most biscuits come in large packs and it can be hard to stop at one... or two. The whole pack of these Mini White Chocolate Biscuit Bites probably doesn't add up to more than a few regular sized biscuits anyway but at least they won't break the calorie bank. Overall, they do provide a lovely chocolate biscuit hit, the flavours are all spot on, and I would certainly try more from this range on taste value alone.

Grocery Gems Verdict: M&S Guilt Free Snacking Mini White Chocolate Biscuit Bites

RATING: 8.5 out of 10.
Buy them again?:  Yes (my kids absolutely love them too!).
Nutrition per bar: 125 calories, 1.7g protein, 15.5g carbohydrate (9.7g sugars), 6.2g fat.
Purchased: Marks & Spencer.
 Price: £1.59p for 5 bags.

Asda Chewy Banoffee Cereal Bars

So I'm probably not the only person who is looking out for healthier snacks at this time of year. Cereal bars can be a good alternative to other sweet treats, calorie wise at least. I was pleased to see a few new flavours in the Asda Vitality cereal bar range, such as Apple & Raspberry and Summer Fruits, but the ones that stood really out for me were the Chewy Banoffee bars. I don't think I have ever seen a Banoffee cereal bar before (do let me know if you have ever seen any!).

These cereal bars are high in fibre and contain dried banana pieces. Going from the ingredients listed, they also appear to be vegan. The flavours are all very tasty, there is a lovely sweet banana flavour with a subtle toffee undertone. It's not overly sweet either. The only downside with the bar was the actual texture - it's quite dense and sticky. Yes, they are called "Chewy Banoffee", but it really does require quite a bit of chewing. It's best to have a hot drink to hand for when consuming one of these bars as that helps take the edge off the chewiness!

I had quite high expectations of the Chewy Banoffee cereal bars, given that I love bananas and anything with the word "banoffee". Unfortunately it didn't live up to those expectations but in lieu of having an actual banana these cereal bars are a pleasant enough snack and good value too. Just keep a cup of tea nearby!

Grocery Gems Verdict: Vitality Chewy Banoffee Cereal Bars

RATING: 6 out of 10.
Buy them again?:  I might try the other varieties in this range.
Nutrition per bar: 79 calories, 1.4g protein, 15.3g carbohydrate (5.3g sugars), 0.6g fat.
Purchased: Asda. 
 Price: £1.00p for box of 6 cereal bars.

You might also be interested in:

Asda Banoffee Spread Review

NEW Kit Kat Chunky Hazelnut Review

The final bar in my round up of the four new Kit Kat Chunky "Choose A Chunky Champion" releases is the Hazelnut. So is it a case of saving the best for last?

The basic description of the Hazelnut bar given on the wrapping is "Crisp wafer finger with a creamed hazelnut topping (19%) covered in milk chocolate". Hazelnut and chocolate is a dream combination so I was slightly disappointed that the actual chocolate isn't hazelnut flavoured.

Just like the new Choc Fudge bar, the Hazelnut Kit Kat Chunky has a separate layer of flavoured filling on top of the wafer. You can clearly see the hazelnut layer in these photos above - it's a much lighter shade of brown than the outer chocolate.

So now how to describe the taste of  "creamed hazelnut". I was expecting it to be a fairly simple Nutella type taste but strangely it's not. The nutty flavour is unmistakeably that of hazelnuts, but it has been mixed with a fudgey creamy concoction rather than chocolate. The hazelnut flavour is strong and does succeed in dominating the wafer and chocolate, but I would have preferred a chocolate hazelnut. The sugary nature of the hazelnut layer was far too sweet for me but perhaps that is just the "I've tried four Kit Kat Chunkys in as many days" talking.

As a brief digression there has also been a similar bar available in the UK for a while now, even though it is of East European origin, called the Kit Kat Chunky Hazelnut Cream. It is very similar to this new Kit Kat but the hazelnut flavour is stronger and sweeter in this new bar. I never thought I would say this but I actually preferred the subtle richness of that previous Hazelnut Cream to this.

Overall this was not the best of the bunch for me - that remains the Coconut Kit Kat Chunky. The balance of flavours was much more enjoyable and the coconut flavour was delicious. No surprise then that my vote for the Choose A Chunky Champion is definitely going to: COCONUT!

Since I'm a coconut fan anyway, I'd love to hear from any hazelnut chocolate fans out there with their opinions on the new Hazelnut bar.

Grocery Gems Verdict: Kit Kat Chunky Hazelnut

RATING: 6.5 out of 10
Buy them again?:  Probably not.
Nutrition per bar: 260 calories, 2.0g protein, 28.8g carbohydrate, 15.1g fat.
Purchased: Local newsagents.
Price: 59p.

 Kit Kat Review Roundup:

Kit Kat Chunky Coconut
Kit Kat Chunky Mint
Kit Kat Chunky Choc Fudge
Kit Kat Chunky Hazelnut

NEW Kit Kat Chunky Choc Fudge Review

Following on from my reviews of the Coconut and Mint varieties, here is the Choc Fudge bar from the new Kit Kat Chunky "Choose a Chunky Champion" range.

I was quite eager to try this bar but for some reason it has proved to be the hardest to find. I finally found it today in a local Premier Store.

The Coconut and Mint Kit Kat Chunkys both consisted of flavoured chocolate with a plain inner wafer. The Choc Fudge is completely different. The chocolate fudge flavour is inside the bar, in the form of a separate layer of fudge filling. On the wrapper it's described as "Crisp wafer finger, with a chocolate fudge filling (19%) covered in milk chocolate".

I could smell a definite fudge quality to the chocolate as soon as I took it out of the wrapper. It's not the same as the super sweet and sugariness of a Cadbury's Fudge, it's more buttery with a hint of burnt toffee (I mean that in a good way!).

In the above photos of the filling, you can see that the wafer is topped by a layer of the chocolate fudge. It is darker in colour than the outer chocolate covering but I wouldn't say it is dark chocolate as such. The fudge layer is quite thick and is full of flavour. The taste is exactly as the smell promised, it has a delicious butterscotch flavour to it which I loved, it's certainly a more grown up fudge flavour. The chocolate fudge is substantial enough to hold it's own against the wafer layer and thick chocolate coating.

My only criticism is that the combination of the outer chocolate and inner fudge becomes overly sweet, possibly because there is less wafer to break up the flavours. This bar tastes much sweeter than the coconut or mint variety and I would personally find it hard to eat all in one sitting. Having said that, it's a much more interesting bar than I thought it would be and I don't think there is anything else quite like it available.

Grocery Gems Verdict: Kit Kat Chunky Choc Fudge

RATING: 7.5 out of 10
Buy them again?:  Coconut Kit Kat Chunky is still winning it for me.
Nutrition per bar: 256 calories, 2.4g protein, 28.0g carbohydrate, 14.8g fat.
Purchased: Local newsagents.
Price: 59p.

Kit Kat Review Roundup:

Kit Kat Chunky Coconut
Kit Kat Chunky Mint
Kit Kat Chunky Choc Fudge
Kit Kat Chunky Hazelnut