Review: New Warburtons Giant Crumpets

Warburtons have released a giant version of the classic crumpet. The Giant Crumpets are almost twice the size of regular crumpets but still have the same thick and fluffy texture. 

Each pack contains two large crumpets which are easily double the size of our usual crumpets - almost as big as the plate. I must admit I was expecting them to be quite thin, to make up for the larger size, but they're just as thick as regular crumpets. Even though they're twice the size, these crumpets still fit easily into a toaster. 

Once toasted, the flavour is really delicious, with a lovely soft texture with crunchy edges. A giant crumpet deserves a special topping and for me it could only be bananas and Nutella! Of course this was strictly a one-off treat (ahem) but there are lots of other ideas for how to enjoy these giant crumpets. 

Because the crumpets are so big they can be used as a quick and easy meal option. Warburtons sent me a few gorgeous ideas for their giant crumpets such as chicken breast & avocado or a sweet summer berries with marscaone. I especially liked their savoury idea (pictured above) that combines tomatoes, mushrooms and cheese. It's basically a crumpet pizza! I'll be making this one for sure.

Grocery Gems Review: Warburtons Giant Crumpets

RATING: 9 out of 10.

Buy it again?: Yes.
Nutrition: 187 calories per crumpet.
Purchased: Available at Asda, Sainsbury's, Morrisons and Iceland.
Price: £0.69p (pack of two).

PR Samples- I received a gorgeous Warburtons gift hamper.

Warburtons Soft Brown Sandwich Thins - Asda's Tickled Pink Campaign

In support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Asda's Tickled Pink campaign has launched a range of gorgeous pink products which will be available instore through September and October. Warburtons Soft Brown Sandwich Thins are just one of the products that have been Tickled with Pink and 10p from each pack sold will be donated to the 2015 Tickled Pink fund, helping to support the over half a million women in the UK currently living with or after a diagnosis of breast cancer.

Warburtons Soft Brown Sandwich Thins are a healthier alternative to bread that are also incredibly versatile too. Each sliced Sandwich Thin has 100 calories and I like to use them for lunchtime sandwiches or toasted and served with soup. Even though they re thinner than sliced bread, they're still lovely and satisfying for lunch and it's easy to justify adding a bit extra to the filling!

There are lots of other Tickled Pink products available at Asda also, including these fluffy pink ribbon George slippers and a gorgeous Raspberry Shower Scrub from NSPA Fruit Extracts.

Warburtons Sandwich Thins are £1.28p including the 10p donation. They are available instore and online at asda.com. 

PR Samples.

New Warburtons Shapes - Cat Shapes & Van Shapes!

Warburtons very kindly sent me a lovely hamper in celebration of National Picnic Week, filled with picnic essentials and a few packs of their latest Warburtons Shapes, in Cat Shapes and Van Shapes. 

These Warburtons  Shapes are such a fun addition to the Warburtons Sandwich Thins range. The soft breads are all pre-sliced and contain less than 100 calories each. They're cute enough to be enjoyed as they are but I decided to follow the inspiration from Warburtons and add a few extra touches!

As you can see it doesn't take much to add extra cuteness to the Warburtons Cat Shapes. I'm not creative at all but it really was easy to make a fun lunch for myself "for the kids". NO WAY was anyone getting their mitts on this Hello Kitty inspired sandwich apart from me.

Luckily the kids were still impressed with my efforts with the Warburtons Van Shapes and it's amazing how something so simple can make food more appealing and fun!

Warburtons Shapes are available in packs of six for £1.28p at Asda, Waitrose, Ocado, and will be released in other retailers too. 

PR Samples sent for an honest review.

Review: Warburtons Thin bagels

Thank you to Warburtons who recently sent me a hamper full of their new Bagel Thins to try. These bagels are ideal for this time of year, as they have all the taste of a regular bagel, but are slightly smaller and thinner, with less calories too. 

There are three varieties available; Plain Bagels, Sesame Bagels and Cinnamon & Raisin Bagels. The Plain variety has only 120 calories per bagel, whilst the Sesame and Cinnamon & Raisin bagels have 130 calories each. 

Warburtons Thin Bagels - Plain: Even though the Warburtons Bagel Thins are hinner than regular bagels they are still a good size and are big enough to make a decent sized bagel sandwich. The Plain variety has a lovely soft texture which is great for toasting. I also found that because these are thinner, it makes them less chewy then regular bagels so they can also be easily enjoyed without toasting - which is great for packed lunches!

Warburtons Thin Bagels - Cinnamon & Raisin: These are just delicious and I have to admit I enjoy them most when just lightly toasted and spread with a little butter. Each bagel has a lovely sweetness from the juicy raisins with a wonderful cinnamon spice flavour. My eldest son is a big fan of hot cross buns and he really enjoyed the similar warming flavour in these delicious bagels too.

Warburtons Thin Bagels - Sesame: I don't often buy Sesame bagels but I actually really enjoyed these as an alternative to my usual bread for sandwiches. They're also delicious with cream cheese! 

Overall I really enjoyed the Warburtons Thin Bagels range. I actually prefer this slightly smaller size, as I found them satisfying enough for a filling breakfast or lunch, without being too doughy or heavy. 

Warburtons Thin Bagels are available at Asda, Tesco, Morrisons, and Sainsbury's - they're currently on offer for £1.00p a pack in Tesco. 

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!

Warburtons Sandwich Thins Review

These Sandwich Thins from Warburtons have been around for a little while. They're great for anyone who's looking to for a healthier sandwich option as they have only 100 calories per thin, much less than most types of bread or rolls. There are three varieties available; white Sandwich Thins, Soft Brown Sandwich Thins and Seeded Sandwich Thins.

I was a bit sceptical about these, I didn't think they would be very filling and quite frankly I'd rather just have the bread. However, they turned out to be very tasty and a lovely alternative to the usual sandwich.

The Soft Seeded variety are not too packed with "bits", or too crunchy, which is good for me as I don't particularly like bread that has too many seeds. They are essentially very thin slices of bread (as the name suggests!) but I still found them very filling as a sandwich, especially when bulked out with lots of veggies like tomato and lettuce.

I also tried the Soft Brown Sandwich thins which were very similar but obviously have a more wholemeal flavour. There are 6 Sandwich Thins in each pack and they all have the same square shape and dusting of flour on top. They are also, thankfully, pre-sliced - I imagine it would be virtually impossible to slice a bread this thin at home!

So far I've used them for lunchtime sandwiches and alongside a bowl of soup in the evening, instead of a bread roll. Even though I won't be giving up bread anytime soon, I will certainly be buying these versatile sandwich thins again in the future.

Grocery Gems Verdict: Warburtons Sandwich Thins

RATING: 8 out of 10
Buy them again?: Definitely.
Nutrition (per thin): 100 calories, 4.1g protein, 17.8g carbs (1.9g sugars), 1.5g fat.
Purchased: Sainsbury's.
Price: £1.30 or 2 packs for £2.00.

Warburtons Winter Loaf Review

I loved the packaging on this Warburtons Winter Loaf. The snowflakes and blue and white colours evoke the winter season and colder days. Even though it is called a "Winter Loaf" it could easily have been named a Christmas loaf because of the flavours included. It's described on the packaging as "mixed with cinnamon, nutmeg and spices to give it an unmistakably Christmassy taste". I couldn't wait to see how this would differ in taste compared to a regular fruit loaf.

The Warburtons Winter Loaf is quite a small loaf with little slices. They are quite dark in appearance, making it look almost like wholemeal bread, but it's simply a result of all the spices contained within the bread. There are not too many raisins or fruity "bits" which was perfect for me.

As soon as I took the bread out of the packaging I could smell the "Christmassy" spices. Looking at the ingredients this spice blend is made of; cinnamon, cloves, coriander, dill, ginger and nutmeg, quite an eclectic mix! Even though I couldn't taste all of these spices individually, as a whole they add up to a subtle slice of Christmas.

The combination of raisins, currants, orange and Christmas spices is reminiscent of lots of festive treats from mince pies to Christmas pud. It really does have a richer and warmer flavour than a regular fruit loaf or hot cross bun. It makes a lovely festive treat without having to crack open a box of mince pies!

Update: This bread is available at Asda and the Co-op supermarkets.

You may also be interested in:
Kingsmill New Fruit & Fibre bread

Warburtons Pitta Chips: Sea Salt & Malt Vinegar and Chilli Jack

I spotted these in a local newsagents with the magic word 'NEW' in prominent letters across the top. They looked interesting, pitta bread made into a crisps type snack by the bread makers Warburtons. A quick google tells me that these are not actually new, they've been around since spring last year. I've certainly never seen them before so I was still intrigued by them. I bought Sea Salt & Malt Vinegar and also Chilli Jack flavour.

Inside the pack are lots of triangle shaped pieces of pitta bread. The pitta chips are lovely and crunchy but not too hard. I was a bit worried that 'baked pitta' would equal 'hard as a rock pitta' but they have a great consistency, extremely moreish and munchy. They would be perfect for dipping and are a great alternative to crisps. Indeed they have one-third less fat that potato crisps but still taste delicious.

The two flavours were very different experiences. The Sea Salt & Malt Vinegar were extremely flavourful. If you like your salt and vinegar to be very vinegary then you will love these. After trying the first flavour I thought the Chilli Jack might be too much for me, as I'm not a huge fan of chilli, but these were surprisingly sweet and not too strong. The sweet chilli flavour is combined with a tasty Jack Cheese seasoning which I really enjoyed. My youngest son helped me to eat these, I didn't think he would enjoy the chilli flavour at all, but he really liked the sweetness in them and loved the novelty of these being pitta breads. I can't wait to try the other flavour Sea Salt & Cracked Black Pepper which sound absolutely yummy too.