German Grocery Exchange Part 4 - Christmas Edition!

Followers of my blog may know that I've taken part in some wonderful grocery exchanges with the lovely Steffi from Germany. You can take a look at our previous exchanges posts; the original German Grocery Exchange HERE, Part 2 HERE, and Part 3 (the World Cup Edition!) HERE. I'm delighted that Steffi and I were able to arrange another snack swap (last month), and because it was so close to December we decided to make it Christmas themed. Germany is of course famous for it's Christmas markets and traditional yuletide snacks, so I knew that this was going to be an extra special exchange. Here's a quick run down of the delicious Christmas selection that Steffi sent me:

Haribo Color-Rado Winter Edition: This is a new limited edition of the classic Color-Rado Mix from Haribo. Steffi tells me that there are lots of new flavours in this pack and helpfully provided an explanation of all the flavous listed on the back. I'll have a full review soon. There are some really interesting flavours in here - far more unusual than we get in the UK:

Heiße Zitrone  - which is a hot lemon type drink (sounds like Lemsip!)

Winter Kirshe - literally translates as winter cherry 

Bratapfel - baked apple (yum!)

Vanillekipferl - a classic German Christmas biscuit 

Karamell-Lakritz - Caramel Liquorice

Schneeflöckchen - "Little Snowflakes" (they have a sweet fruity flavour)

Bunte Elche - "Colourful Mooses" - there are different flavours including gingerbread.

Nimm2 Lachgummi: A large bag of fruity gummies. These sweets come in lots of shapes that kids can use to build faces with, and this special limited edition includes Christmas shapes too. If you look closely at the left hand lower corner of the packaging you can see a reindeer made of the fruity pieces. My boys are absolutely loving these sweets - they are so sweet and fruity and the shapes are super fun too!

Yogurette Wintertraum - Bratapfel & Zimt: Yogurette are similar to Ferrero Duplo sticks (and are also made by Ferrero), but are seen as a healthier version as they are made with yogurt flavoured fillings. In our last grocery exchange, Steffi had included the World Cup, Brazil inspired, limited edition Yogurette, which were a tasty white chocolate and lime combination (see HERE). This time there is a lovely "winter dream" edition which is Baked Apple & Cinnamon flavour - doesn't that sound gorgeous? I really wish we could get chocolates with such wonderful flavour combinations here in the UK. These are Steffi's favourites and I can see why, the sweet apple and cinnamon flavours make a delicious pairing with the tangy yogurt filling.

Haribo Weihnachtssterne (Christmas Stars): Another festive treat in the shape of these Haribo Christmas Stars. These are large foam, star shaped sweets in three flavours; cream, vanilla and caramel. The packaging looks wonderful, like a little gift, and would make a lovely stocking filler.

Heilemann Confisene Pralinés: Heilemann is a brand I've never tried before but Steffi tells me their chocolates are delicious. This Christmas selection looks beautiful in it's festive box with a little felt Christmas tree on the front. Inside there are four different chocolates; Gianduja-Nougat, Caramel Crisp, Christmas Nougat, and a marzipan. Each chocolate has a very fine appearance - I'll try to have a review of these soon.

Gewürz Mandeln (Spiced Almonds): These are spiced almonds that are coated in milk chocolate with a Gianduja nougat. The spices in these are described as being not too strong so that even children can enjoy them. These are so delicious! They have a very sweet, almost sugary, cinnamon flavour that is fantastic with the milk chocolate and the crunchy almond inside. I actually found the cinnamon quite strong but these are so sweet that it doesn't become too spicy or overpowering. It's such a simple idea but it works perfectly. And yes, my kids love them too!

Marzipan Kartoffeln: This literally means "marzipan potatoes" and these are a traditional German sweet at Christmas. Not to worry though, they are not actually potato flavoured, just super cute potato shaped marzipan treats. They remind me of potato shaped chocolates that I used to get as a child - anyone else remember those?

Printen - Aachener Schokoladen: Some more traditional treats in the form of these Printen from the German city of Aachen. Steffi gave me lots of interesting information about these which is very useful to share here. Aachen is a city close to both the Dutch and Belgian borders. These Printen are similar to gingerbread, in terms of flavour, but are a bit firmer than Lebkuchen (German gingerbread). There are chocolate coated or plain versions available, and they are described as "spiced cakes" on the packaging but Steffi says that doesn't do them justice. This is one of the treats that I'm saving for Christmas!

Gesüllte Lebkuchenherzen (Filled Gingerbread Hearts): Another traditional treat that I'm saving for Christmas itself are these filled gingerbread hearts. They are coated in dark chocolate and have an apricot jam filling. These are made by a company called Lambertz who are well known for their biscuits. I think they sound really delicious and I'm looking forward to giving these Lebkuchenherzen a try.

Butter Spekulatius: "Spekulatius" is the German version of the speculoos biscuits. There are two kinds available in Germany; Butter or Gewürz (spiced). I have to admit these delicious buttery biscuits were the first to disappear when I opened the parcel from Steffi - everyone wanted to give them a try!

Ritter Sport Winter Editions 2014: Ritter Sport is one of my favourite German chocolate brands and Steffi very kindly included lots of mini sizes of the three new Winter Edition flavours. There is Kaffee & Nuss (Coffee & Hazelnuts - reviewed HERE), Gebrante Mandel (Caramelised Almonds - reviewed HERE), and Vanille Kipferl (Vanilla Crescent Cookie). These mini sizes are adorable!

Ritter Sport Schokowürfel: Steffi tells me this is not a Christmas related product but she had to include it in her parcel because it's new - thank you Steffi! Each selection box is filled with individually wrapped segments of Ritter Sport chocolate. There are three flavours that are all covered in white chocolate; Latte Macchiato, Nut-Almond-Brittle, and Caramel Nut. I love that fact that all the chocolates here are white chocolates - it's such a super sweet collection! Full review coming soon.

I will update here with a photo of the parcel that I sent Steffi in return (once I know she's received it as I don't want to spoil the surprise!). Once it's up I will put "updated" in the title of this post.

In the meantime, I want to send a huge THANK YOU to Steffi for such a special festive Grocery Exchange. I've always wanted to visit Germany at Christmastime (especially for their world famous Christmas markets) and I'm delighted to have so many lovely German Christmas treats to try this year.

Let me know in the comments below if you would like to see any specific reviews for the products above or which one you would like to review first! :)

Limited Edition Haribo Cherry Cola with Liquid Filling

Last year I was lucky enough to try the Haribo Happy Cola with Liquid Filling which I enjoyed so much that they won the Sweets Category in my Best of 2013 review. They were sent to me as part of a Grocery Exchange that I took part in with the wonderful Steffi from Germany. We recently took part in Grocery Exchange Part III and I was thrilled to find a Limited Edition Cherry Cola version of my favourite sweets. 

Even though Haribo Happy Cola sweets are easy to find in the UK, I've still never seen the liquid filling versions available. Come on Haribo please bring these to the UK! Each bottle shaped sweet is a vibrant red colour with a white foam backing. They look fantastic with the darker coloured liquid filling showing through the red jelly. 

The sweetness of the cola flavour is well matched by the fruity and slightly tangy edge from the cherry. I was pleased to find the cherry flavour is not too overpowering, I sometimes find that cherry can be a bit medicinal, but that's not the case here at all. It's definitely a cherry cola flavour rather than just a cherry on it's own. The liquid centres give an extra burst of sugary cola flavour, with their almost syrupy nature, and add a nice squidgy texture to the sweets.

I couldn't resist the above photo to show the liquid cola centre! In reality the filling is not as runny as the photo would suggest, but it does ooze out like this if you squeeze them! Unfortunately I doubt these Haribo will be available in the UK soon, although there are Ebay sellers who are stocking them (at ouchy prices!). British brand Candy Land does there own version of liquid filled cola bottles called Bursting Cola Bottles - see here. 

Thanks again to the lovely Steffi for sending these out! I think I've already found my winner for Best Sweet of 2014 :)

Grocery Gems Verdict: Haribo Cherry Happy Cola with Liquid Filling

RATING: 10 out of 10.
Buy them again?: YES! 
Nutrition (per 100g serving): 336 calories.

German Grocery Exchange Part 3 - World Cup Edition!

I've been lucky enough to take part in two previous Grocery Exchanges with Steffi, a lovely reader from Germany. We basically send each other a surprise selection of new and limited edition snacks from our own countries. Take a look at our original Grocery Exchange last year HERE, and also our Easter themed Grocery Exchange earlier this year HERE. It's been such a brilliant experience that I was thrilled when Steffi suggested a World Cup edition of our Grocery Exchange. As you will see in this post Germany has certainly come up trumps when it comes to releasing new snacks for the World Cup. The selection is fantastic! Take a quick look at all the delicious chocolates and sweets I received - full reviews of all these will follow soon.

Milka Champiolada Coconut: Apparently Milka always releases the Champiolada for big football tournaments. It has a wonderful design with each segment featuring a raised football. This year the limited edition Milka Champiolada is coconut flavoured! It's a delicious alpine milk chocolate with "knusprigen kokosraspeln", toasted shredded coconut. If you've read my blog before (coconut alert!) then you'll know how delighted I was to find this bar in the parcel. It's absolutely huge at 300g, but believe me, it will not last long! 

Haribo Fan Gums Brazil: These are tropical flavoured football shaped gummy sweets in the three colours of the Brazilian flag. They have slightly soft centres and come in blueberry-coconut, mandarin, passion fruit, and lime-watermelon flavours. These are just so much fun! I wish Haribo would release these types of products in the UK - there is nothing like this here. The Brazilian themed sweets I've seen in the UK have been so boring in comparison! I'm so grateful to Steffi that I got the chance to try these - and of course my kids have been enjoying them too!

Haribo Pasta-Flagga: How cool are these! I mentioned in a previous review that I'm a bit of a flag geek and Steffi very thoughtfully included these Haribo sweets in the colours of the German national flag. These sour candies strips can be pulled apart and are blackcurrant flavoured. My son has asked me if he can take them into school for his next German lesson! 

Haribo Cherry Happy Cola with a Liquid Filling: OMG!! Steffi had previously sent me the Happy Cola with Liquid Filling (see HERE) which not only did I absolutely love, but has also been one of my most popular reviews ever. Now there is a limited edition CHERRY COLA version! I think I actually squealed when I saw this in the parcel. Thank you Steffi!! They taste amazing too - full review coming soon.

Ferrero Duplo Whole Milk Coconut: I love these little chocolate sticks, they're a bit like a Ferrero Rocher in a chocolate bar format - and now there's a coconut version! These are so delicious, little chocolate pieces of heaven. I practically inhaled two of these Duplo bars in a row and it was hard to stop myself from just eating the whole box!

Yogurette Brazilian Summer White & Lime: These are white chocolate sticks (they look a bit similar to the Ferrero Duplo above) filled with a lime yogurt cream. Yogurette is very popular in Germany and usually comes with a strawberry yogurt filling inside. Lime is such an underused flavour for chocolate, and I love that it's been paired with sweet white chocolate and tangy yogurt for this Brazil theme. 

Fritt WM-Pack: Lots of German flag themed goodies! On the left you can see the Fritt WM-Pack which contains three packs of chewy sweets in Blackcurrant, Cherry and Lemon flavours. WM stands for Welmeistershaft which means World Cup in German. Fritt sweets have been around for a long time in Germany but the blackcurrant flavour is new for this World Cup special edition pack. I can't wait to try these! There is also a pack of Klatschstangen (top right) which are blow up airsticks, otherwise known as "bang bang sticks" or "cheering sticks". Do we get these in the UK at sporting events? I've never really seen them before but the kids are keen to get them ready for the match tonight! 

Niedregger Marzipan German Flag Edition: This is such a great idea too, individual blocks of flavoured Niedregger Marzipan in the colours of the German flag. It's so simple but so effective. The flavours sound great too; Bittersweet Chocolate Covered Marzipan, Bittersweet Chocolate Covered Espresso, and Milk Chocolate with Rum Croquant. Yum! I'll enjoy these sweet bites, perfectly paired, with a strong cup of coffee. 

Usually at this point I would show you all what British snacks I have sent out to Steffi, but I haven't sent it yet so I don't want to spoil the surprises for her! Once it's sent I will put UPDATED in the title of this post. I'll be honest, I'm struggling to find decent World Cup themed goodies here in the UK, it's all main meals and food, rather than snacks. If anyone has any suggestions, I'd love to hear them! But anyway, I think we can all agree that the parcel Steffi sent me was EPIC and I'm absolutely thrilled all the products! 

A massive thank you to Steffi for sending me all these awesome snacks, and also for all the detailed information about each product which was invaluable too. THANK YOU!!

Ritter Sport Cookies & Cream and Meringue Nuts

I've been getting my chocolate fix a bit early this year thanks to Steffi and our recent Grocery Exchange. As a fan of Ritter Sport I was excited to try these two varieties from the Spring 2014 range; Cookies & Cream and Baiser Nuss (Meringue Nuts).

First up, the Cookies & Cream which is a flavour that was released as a Spring limited edition last year, and that I somehow failed to try. I'm always drawn to "cookies & cream" chocolates so I was keen to put that to amends this year!

The Ritter Sport Cookies & Cream is identical to most chocolate bars of this type in having a vanilla cream centre with chocolate cookie pieces. The textures were all excellent, with a smooth chocolate and vanilla cream, coupled with plenty of crunch from the biscuits. The vanilla flavour is quite strong and reminiscent of a vanilla milkshake, whilst the cookie pieces were sweet, but in comparison didn't really add much flavour. It's still an enjoyable chocolate, but more of a crunchy vanilla flavoured bar rather than a cookies & cream one. 

Next up is the new Baiser Nuss which provides the unusual combination of meringue pieces and roasted hazelnuts in a milk chocolate. 

The chocolate is packed full of crumbly meringue and crunchy nut pieces. Steffi had described this bar as a love it or hate it type of chocolate, and luckily enough we all enjoyed it. I can understand why some might not like it as the meringue pieces make this a very sugary sweet chocolate bar. However, I found that the robust flavour of the roasted hazelnuts more than made up for the sweetness of the meringue, creating an unusual but tasty harmony of flavours. 

Many thanks again to Steffi for sending these out! If you'd like to find these bars in the UK then I highly recommend Monster Sweets for all your Ritter Sport needs.

Grocery Gems Verdict: Ritter Sport Cookies & Cream and Baiser Nuss

RATING: Cookies & Cream: 7 out of 10, Baiser Nuss 7.5 out of 10.
Buy them again?: Yes.

German Grocery Exchange - Sweets, Ritter Sport, Milka Biscuits & More!

I recently took part in a Grocery Exchange with Steffi from Germany. I've already reviewed some of the products that she sent me, such as the awesome Haribo Happy Cola with Liquid Filling and Katjes veggie sweets. I've been happily working my way through the rest of the awesome products which include sweets, biscuits, chocolates and even a savoury spread. Here's a German snack megapost!

Hussel Confiserie - Froschprinzen

Starting with the sweets, these Froschprinzen are made by one of Germany's more upscale confectionery brands.

As the name would suggest these sweets feature little Frog Princes, it's such a cute idea! My packet had four different flavours and they were all very fruity and delicious.

Hitschler Confetti & Brause

I loved these adorable little bags of shaped sweets, which are made by Hitschler, a sweets manufacturer based in Steffi's hometown of Cologne.

They're very bright and colourful, and would look great for cake decorating. They're also very tasty too. The Confetti are delicously fruity and chewy, shaped into largeish batons. The Brause Sterne are a sherbet chalky type sweet, a bit like Love Hearts but not as chalky, shaped into colourful stars. My kids were especially excited by these sweets when we first opened Steffi's parcel! 

Leibniz Pick Up! Choco & Caramel

Leibniz biscuits are usually either a plain buttery biscuit or chocolate covered on one side. Here the biscuit has been filled with an extra layer of chocolate and caramel, creating a classic sandwich biscuit, with added sweetness. 

The individual portion makes it a great little snack. There are several other varieties available in the Liebniz Pick Up range such as Choco & Milk and Choco Black & White which are both stocked in the UK by Monster Sweets. 

Alnatura Cocos Sesame Krokant

Thank you Steffi for adding something coconutty to the parcel! These organic sesame bars are essentially Sesame Snaps, but with added coconut flavour. They're a very sugary treat, but one that's great with a cup of coffee.

Milka Choco Pause

A huge tube of new chocolate filled biscuits from Milka. Steffi described them as a bit like Prince biscuits, a type of chocolate sandwich biscuits that is very popular around mainland Europe.

The outer biscuits reminded me of rich tea biscuits, but just a bit more golden and buttery. The inner chocolate is very tasty as you would expect from Milka! It's a classic combination that works very well here.

Ritter Sport Erdbeer Vanille-Waffel 

I love Ritter Sport bars and this new for Summer 2013 Strawberry Vanilla Wafer was no exception. In fact it was one of those bars that we finished in one sitting, it's just too good to resist.

The filling is a Loacker wafer biscuit base with a strawberry yogurt filling. I love Loacker wafers (see here) so I was intrigued try them in a Ritter Sport bar. Even though it sounds like quite a simple flavour combination, the overall taste is just fantastic. The strawberry yogurt filling is sweet, fruity and slightly tart, and the vanilla wafer provides the perfect crunchy backdrop. This is a Limited Edition, so they won't be around very long.

Tartex Kräuter

Lastly is this really interesting savoury spread which is described as a "herb pate". It's a spread made with organic parsley, chives and leeks, with yeast and vegetable oil.

I tried mine on some dark rye bread but it can also be used as a base for cooking such as in a pasta sauce. The flavour is unusual but very enjoyable, slightly salty and herby but smooth and creamy at the same time. It's totally different to anything I've tried before! Apparently there are also lots of other versions of these spreads in Germany, such as Ratatouille, chilli, and even mushroom.

 I hope you enjoyed this snack round up. Many thanks again to Steffi for sending these out and for providing so much background information to each snack. There is still one more review to come from our Grocery Exchange! 

Review: Katjes Grün-Ohr Bärchen - Veggie Sweets

Another lovely German product from THIS awesome parcel that I received as part of a Grocery Exchange with reader Steffi. Katjes is a brand that I've tried previous as happily their vegetarian Better Bunny sweets are stocked by Tesco. Katjes is actually the second largest producer of fruit gums in Western Europe and rivals Haribo by offering a large range of sweets. These Grün-Ohr Bärchen (literally meaning green eared bears), are one of their newest additions, a bear version of the popular Grün-Ohr Hase - green eared bunnies! And yes, each sweetie bear does have a green ear. Apparently this represents the Katjes guarantee that these sweets are free from gelatin.

The bears have very cute little faces and are a lot more attractive than the slightly freaky looking Better Bunny sweets. There are five fruity flavours each represented by a different colour; cherry, lemon, orange, pineapple, and apple. All the flavours are extremely sweet and fruity and were a bit hit with all my taste testers. We all especially loved the pineapple flavoured bear, as it represents such a unique flavour for a sweet of this type. The fact that these are vegetarian makes the texture quite different to the usual gelatin based sweets, I find them to be not as chewy but slightly stickier overall.

I certainly hope that Tesco picks up more of the Katjes range as I'd love to be able to buy more of these in the future. Thank you again to Steffi for her wonderful parcel. There are many more reviews to come, including a German Snacks Megapost! :)

Grocery Gems Verdict: Katjes Better Bunny

RATING: 8 out of 10.
Buy them again?: Yes.
Nutrition: 327 calories per 100g.
Vegetarian: Yes and free from artificial colours and flavourings.

Haribo Happy Cola - With Liquid Filling!

If you follow me on Twitter you may have seen THIS photo of a fantastic parcel of snacks I received from Steffi, a lovely reader from Germany. Steffi had suggested a "Grocery Exchange" of products, and I was absolutely overwhelmed by the delectable parcel of German goodies that I received. I'm obviously quite childish because the first product I had to try was the Haribo Happy Cola Mit flüssiger Füllung - which translates as with a liquid filling.

Haribo Happy Cola is readily available in the UK but I've never come across this filled version before. The cola bottle shaped sweets look absolutely fantastic with their slightly darker centres. It gives the sweet an almost glass bottle effect. These cola bottles also differ from the standard Happy Cola by being foam-backed sweets - having a squidgier, softer white layer on the back. I love this type of sweet and I have to admit to being the type of person who always takes the foam-backed sweets in a pack of Haribo first!

Cut in half, the liquid centre within the cola bottle is clearly visible. As my kids quickly discovered, biting off the top of the bottle is the quickest way to squeeze out the juicy goodness inside. The flavour is of a super sweet cola sweet, rather than a fizzy sour one, with even more sugary sweetness from the liquid centre. It's such a simple idea but it's act of complete genius on Haribo's part. They've put cola liquid INSIDE a cola bottle - exactly where it belongs. Bravo Haribo. The only problem is this - I don't think I will ever be able to eat a standard boring non-filled cola bottle sweet ever again. Ever. 

JUST LOOK AT IT! I couldn't resist adding the above photo even though the filling is not really as liquid as that would suggest - it's more gooey. However, I can still categorically state that these Haribo Happy Cola Mit flüssiger Füllung were amazing and I LOVED them. 

A big Thank You to the wonderful Steffi for sending me these :)

Grocery Gems Verdict: Haribo Happy Cola Mit flüssiger Füllung

RATING: 10 out of 10.
Buy them again?: BUY THEM! 
Nutrition (per 100g serving): 336 calories.