Degustabox April 2021*

Box gifted by Degustabox
This is a PR box, this means there will sometimes be additional flavours or products than you’d get as a subscriber, I will highlight this within my post.

So the April Degustbox happened to arrive at the peak of my morning sickness/nausea, and the food aversions that have come with pregnancy are very much still present. This means that this isn’t the greatest post you’re gonna read from me, but Bob helped where he could, and we both agreed that this was a top-notch box!

I’d say that this Dorset Cereals nutty granola (rrp £4.15) was one of our favourite products this month. We’re both a big fan of the brand and do treat ourselves when it’s on offer. This is crunchy, sweet breakfast perfection and quite addictive too.
Available from major supermarket chains.

So my biggest food aversion at the moment is chocolate…I know right?! So this is one of the products that has so far remained un-tested. I’ve been eagerly anticipating the Aero dark&milk launch so not being able to stomach it is a real downer! I can’t wait to finally be able to demolish this bar- rrp £1 from major supermarket chains. I’ve loved other dark milk chocolate products and I’m excited to see how it works with the Aero texture.

Thankfully spicy, bold flavoured foods are still on the menu! I love Chipotle- it’s great for chicken and fajitas and I also recommend it with sweet potato chunks too. This paste makes it super easy to coat your food with that deep spicy kick- a new pantry staple (£2 from Tesco).
We are saving the Bull’s-Eye Habanero Hot Sauce for a BBQ (we had one planned but rain spoilt play) and I’m so excited for the powerful punch this promises. It costs £1.99 from Tesco, Ocado and Morrisons as well as from getmorevits.com and Amazon. I’ve had great experience with this brand before so hold high hopes for this.

I’m so desperate to try these Noodl Plus instant noodles- unfortunately the black colour of the charcoal noodles is enough to send my pregnant belly flipping over so I’m waiting for now but will definitely report back on these as they are right up my alley! I’ve never heard of the brand before but they have me intrigued…£2.50 each from Amazon and Ocado.
Jasmine rice is my favourite rice so this limited edition Tilda teriyaki one seemed very appealing until I realised it had water chestnuts in…still, I picked those out, chucked on some chicken and otherwise enjoyed the experience! £1.59 from major supermarket chains.

Another untried product here, I’m not sure how I feel about my vitamins coming from chewing gum! It sounds convenient I suppose but I’ve not actually got my head around testing it yet. Each piece of gum boasts 25% of your daily dose of 10 essential vitamins though which is impressive! £1.50 from getmorevits.com and Amazon.

Dark chocolate orange almond sounds like a flavour match made in heaven right? I passed this KIND bar on to my Grandad who loves them as much as I do and he gave it two thumbs up. I can’t wait to try this for myself when I can face chocolate again. £1.30 from Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Waitrose.

These biscuits were the Degustabox product of the month and are still sat in my kitchen taunting me. I can’t bear for anyone else to try these first so I’m just waiting for that day when I feel like I can eat one, or six to give them a thorough test. I already know they are gonna be good though…McVities know their onions when it comes to biscuits and flavours and chocolate HobNobs are already top of the biscuit tier. £1.59 from major supermarket chains. I am so excited for these!

I’d say these pancakes from Brioche Pasquier were Bob’s product of the month. Individually wrapped in packs of two these were great for him to take on the road with him for work, and equally enjoyed warmed through and served with crispy bacon and loads of maple syrup! £1.65 from Co-Op.

Finally some drinks, and very much his and hers taste test! Bob sampled the Gunna Drinks Ginger Rebel (Ginger Lemonade) as a mixer for rum and thought it was good. It’s less than 5% sugar so has less calories than other soft drinks and is also free from artificial colours and preservatives…£1.50 a can from Amazon, Ocado, Holland & Barrett, Co-op and independent retailers.
I really enjoyed the Get More Vits Vitamin D Mango and Passionfruit drink. It came at a time that fluids were very tricky for me but this served ice cold went down so well and gave me some hope that there was a drink out there that wouldn’t make me extra queasy! £1.50 a bottle (and I would have paid three times that at the time!) from most major supermarkets, getmorevits.com and Amazon.

If you’re persuaded to give Degustabox a go (and really, you should) you can claim £3.00 off of your first box (making it just £9.99!) by entering the code XOQGC at the checkout. It’s been a pleasure to work with the brand regularly over the last couple of years and it’s without a doubt something that I will continue to purchase long after our partnership ends. I love the monthly surprise and excitement as well as the chance to discover products I’d otherwise pass up on the supermarket shelves.

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Degustabox March 2021*

Box gifted by Degustabox
This is a PR box, this means there will sometimes be additional flavours or products than you’d get as a subscriber, I will highlight this within my post.

I’m pretty sure my one and only resolution for this year was to be more regular with my blogging. Given that is has now been a full month since my last post you can see how well that’s going…mostly thanks to the rest of my life going crazily well and keeping me well and truly occupied. Expect my resolution to pick up after a few more weeks (she says optimistically) and in the meantime, enjoy another review of yet another cracking Degustabox!

Quite a few years ago now Smarties released a block chocolate bar that then vanished. I was devastated, absolutely devastated. Seeing it land back on our shelves in a milk, white AND orange form bought joy to my heart. The orange bar is the latest addition to the range and is perfect for those who favour the orange smarties (which I do since they took all the colourings out of the blue ones!). This retails at £1 from major supermarket chains.

I do love a good flapjack but often find the bars you pick up in the shops are just too big, and once open I just can’t not finish it, leaving me feeling sick and on a major sugar high! These new 40g size bars from Brynmor Flapjacks are the solution to my greed- I tested out the apple & raspberry flavour which I didn’t think I would love, but actually I did- the tartness of the fruit balances the extreme amount of sugar! Available at Holland&Barrett, Ocado, Nisam WHSmith Travel and Grapetree (as well as online) for £2 for a pack of four.

I’m still not sure how I feel about these fruit smoothie jellies from Maynards if I’m honest. They were nice, fruity and with awesome flavour combinations, but I think if I’m going to eat sweets I’ll always favour wine gums or sports mix over something like this. However, if another bag made turned up in front of me I certainly wouldn’t turn them away!
£1 RRP from major supermarket chains.

The Esprala apple and red plum is a lightly sparkling vegan fruit drink that apparently also makes a fabulous mixer for gin. Unfortunately I can’t confirm or deny this as I managed to drop and explode the can, oops! This costs £1.09 per single unit or £12.57 for a pack of 12 from Amazon.
Thankfully I managed not to drop both drinks in this month’s box and got to sample the Lucozade Zero tropical. I really liked this- the flavours of pineapple and mango come through well and it provides a good hit of caffeine without the sugar associated with normal Lucozade. This retails at £1.49 from all major supermarkets.

Bob was in charge of testing these Pitch Bloc’O’Choc brioche rolls out and he did so with great enthusiasm. These are great breakfasts or snacks on the go- a soft and fluffy brioche roll with a solid chocolate bar inside (we recommend warming it up if you’re having it at home). Individually wrapped for top on the go points! £1.40 per pack from Co-Op.

I love mug shots (I’m sure I’ve mentioned that once or twice before!) but don’t always find them a very substantial lunch, especially at the moment when I’m trying to eat bigger meals and snack on rubbish a bit less! Mighty Chicken & Mushroom noodles gets a thumbs up from me and my grumbly tummy, and at £1.49 from major supermarket stores it’s a lot more wallet friendly than my usual daily snack haul when I’m at work!

This was the Degustabox product of the month and easily mine too! I’m obsessed with peanut butter on toast right now (and chocolate spread) and I’m all about this blend of smooth peanut butter and crunchy honey roasted peanuts. There 100% needs to be more cereal and peanut butter mash-ups in the world please.
£2.50 a jar from Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Iceland, One Stop and sometimes from Aldi.

My all time favourite cereals are the sugary American ones, but when I’m trying to be good, or trying to not spend £5+ on an import box then it’s Cheerios I always return to. These cheery looking box marks Cheerios UK debut in to the organic market- honey flavour hoops and chocolate cereal pieces make for a delicious breakfast (or lunch, or dinner, or snack…) £3 from Waitrose and on Ocado.

I am currently more obsessed than ever with savoury snacks and did a little dance when I saw Hippeas in the Degustabox! Salt and Vinegar is my favourite flavour, but if you haven’t tried Hippeas yet then you really can’t go wrong with any flavour. These have crunch and flavour like no other and I am addicted. From all major supermarkets and online for around 99p per bag. Shame it’s Easter Monday, the shops are about to close and I have none of these in the house as I could really go for some right now!

How cute are these little bottles of extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar from Fillipo Berio? We are going to save these for when we go camping over the summer as they are the perfect solution to lugging big bottles around with us and both items are staples for us. £1.29 from major supermarket chains.

Not going to lie, I didn’t even try the Enervit Protein bar, I can’t deal with berries and chocolate together and knew I just wouldn’t enjoy this, which is a shame as the product itself sounds awesome- 20g of protein, low sugar, no gluten, no palm oil. I’d 100% try this in any other flavour!
The Mallow & Marsh vanilla marshmallow bar coated in milk chocolate definitely DID appeal. I love marshmallows and this was so indulgent for 134 calories. £1.35 per bar from Sainsbury’s, BP, Boots, WH Smith and Waitrose (I know what one snack I’ll be picking up on my lunch break tomorrow!)

I hope you enjoyed this month’s round up. Let me know which products caught your eye the most and what some of your favourite festive snacks are.

If you’re new to Degustabox, it’s a monthly food subscription box that gives you the chance to try new and exciting products on the market whilst providing amazing value for money.
On a month by month basis the box costs £12.99 (with a discount for longer subscriptions) but the contents are generally worth far more than this as you can see if you do the maths.

If you’re persuaded to give Degustabox a go (and really, you should) you can claim £3.00 off of your first box (making it just £9.99!) by entering the code XOQGC at the checkout. It’s been a pleasure to work with the brand regularly over the last couple of years and it’s without a doubt something that I will continue to purchase long after our partnership ends. I love the monthly surprise and excitement as well as the chance to discover products I’d otherwise pass up on the supermarket shelves.

Degustabox February 2021*

Box gifted by Degustabox
This is a PR box, this means there will sometimes be additional flavours or products than you’d get as a subscriber, I will highlight this within my post.

After the success of the January box, I did wonder if the February 2021 Degustabox would be able to reach the same level of success. In actual fact, I think it surpassed the first box of the year, with a theme of home comforts I really don’t think there was a single product in here that hasn’t been enjoyed by either Bob or myself over the last few weeks. Read on to find out our collaborative thoughts.

Before I became obsessed with almond milk, I went through a phase of only using Koko original milk in my porridge or cereal. I’m not vegan, but I hate the taste of cow’s milk so I always look for a plant based alternative. Getting a carton of this in this month’s Degustabox reminded me of how much I love the Koko original- it’s light and fresh and a little bit sweet. I’m definitely going to switch things up a bit and buy more of this. Available in all major supermarkets and independent health food stores for £1.50.

I’ve been a long time purchaser of BelVita breakfast biscuits, ever since they first launched in 2010; they are so handy for breakfast and snacking on the go, but I’ve never really taken the time to explore the other products in the range. The soft bakes are really rather nice, it’s hard to explain the texture, somewhere between and biscuit and a cake. They are also quite crumbly and not as sweet as you might think and certainly a lot more substantial than they look. These are something I’ll pick up again for sure, I preferred the chocolate flavour over the blueberry (surprise!) but at 60p per single bar I’d happily grab any flavour for an on the go snack. Available in most grocery stores.

On a weekday I always make Bob some toast before he goes to work (pretty sure this is why he’s marrying me!) and his topping of choice is nearly always jam. There’s a reason Hartley’s is the UK’s No. 1 jam; it’s fruity, it’s delicious and on white bread with melted butter makes for the ultimate comfort food.
When he’s not in the mood for jam Bob will sometimes have honey. He really liked this little pots of Hilltop Blossom Honey which will also be perfect for us to take camping with us over the summery- is there anything better than campfire toast?
The jam is £1.59 and widely available in all major supermarkets. The honey is 75p and again, widely available.

Growing up Pot Noodles were a rare treat and something I always coveted. It’s been years since I last had one and I’ve kind of lost track of the brand, but I loved the spin-off Lost the Pot Noodle. My preference was for the roast chicken, but both had a good hit of flavour and at 80p per pack they are a great lock-down lunch or emergency dinner option. Available in all major supermarket chains. I definitely need to hunt down a chicken and mushroom pot noodle too, for old times sake.

Here we have a few items that you’re likely to find in our store cupboard regularly (but we had actually run out of). We love the Very Lazy chopped chillies- we add them to stir fries mainly, and in place of fresh chillies where a recipe calls for them, it saves the pain of chopping and also saves waste as well.
Since we started batch cooking more (hello new freezer) stock pots have become a must-have for casseroles, soups and, well, just about everything really! I find the pots have more flavour than stock cubes and make a lot less mess; I’m yet to master the art of crumbling a stock cube!
Chillies £1.50 from all major supermarket chains (we also regularly buy and use the garlic). Stock pots 95p per two pack.

Snacks Snacks Snacks! I love snacks. Boka bars have been my favourite cereal bar since I first tried one a few years ago thanks to Degustabox. These bars have the perfect texture, taste amazing and score all green on the nutritional traffic lights. They come in 4 flavours and my favourite is hands down the choco mallow one. They cost 75p per bar or £2 for a pack of 4. Available from Sainsburys, Amazon or the Boka website.
The Bounce Almond Plant protein ball was also really, really good. Full of vegan protein, fibre and nut butter…all for under 160 calories. I’m hooked. £1.69 from Holland and Barrett, BP and WHSmith stores.

I’m not entirely sure you should mess with a classic, and nothing will ever beat the original Jaffa Cakes, but these new flavours were quite exciting. I was all over the cherry ones which Bob rejected in favour of the passion fruit ones. Both pair really well with the dark chocolate and iconic sponge base… I would happily eat both again but only if orange wasn’t available! £1.20 per pack from all major grocery store chains.

Love to share?! I do not love to share where these Milkybar Cookies and Cream bits are concerned. Creamy white chocolate with crunchy cookie pieces? I could eat these all day everyday if I wouldn’t wind up the size of a house. £1.59 from most major supermarket chains.

And finally we have a nice cup of tea! Eloments Vitamin Tea (Ceylon breakfast blend) is not only a delicious cuppa in it’s own right, but it also boats 9 essential vitamins including B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B7, B9, vitamin C and zinc. Wow. All derived from herbs, fruits and spices this is probably the hardest working brew you’ll have in your life! It’s also certified organic and fair trade. It costs £3.99 from Holland and Barrett & Ocado.

I hope you enjoyed this month’s round up. Let me know which products caught your eye the most and what some of your favourite festive snacks are.

If you’re new to Degustabox, it’s a monthly food subscription box that gives you the chance to try new and exciting products on the market whilst providing amazing value for money.
On a month by month basis the box costs £12.99 (with a discount for longer subscriptions) but the contents are generally worth far more than this as you can see if you do the maths.

If you’re persuaded to give Degustabox a go (and really, you should) you can claim £3.00 off of your first box (making it just £9.99!) by entering the code XOQGC at the checkout. It’s been a pleasure to work with the brand regularly over the last couple of years and it’s without a doubt something that I will continue to purchase long after our partnership ends. I love the monthly surprise and excitement as well as the chance to discover products I’d otherwise pass up on the supermarket shelves.

Baking- M&M Cookies

During the first lockdown I was obsessed with baking cookies and tried a new recipe almost every week. People eventually had to tell me to stop because I was ruining their diets, and then things went back to some kind of normal (i.e. busy) and I had to stop.

I recently had the urge to make cookies again, so with a few days off work and a good browse of my absolute favourite baking blog; Jane’s Patisserie (seriously, she can do no wrong, every recipe just works) and a bit of input from Bob I decided to make M&M Cookies.

I love m&ms, and whilst I don’t usually favour a chocolate dough for cookies I couldn’t bear to not follow the recipe to a tee, and I’m bloody well glad I did.

I might not have Jane’s presentation or food photography skills, but these cookies still look pretty damn good to me. And they tasted it too. Baked for exactly 11 minute, these are slightly crispy on the edges but soft and chewy in the middle.

I don’t predict this batch of cookies hanging around long, and luckily I have the remaining 750g of a kilo bag of m&ms that I picked up in Costco to whip up some more.
I’m not posting the recipe directly as I really, really feel you NEED to visit Jane’s site and see it for yourselves (recipe here). Anyone else a Jane’s Patisserie fan girl? I know it can’t just be me…which recipe am I going to pick next?

Degustabox January 2021*

Jan 2021 Degustabox contents
Box gifted by Degustabox
This is a PR box, this means there will sometimes be additional flavours or products than you’d get as a subscriber, I will highlight this within my post.

The January Degustabox certainly set the standard high for the rest of 2021. With a theme of “breakfast and on the go” (very relevant to my interests), this was one of my favourite boxes in a long time; something I feel I say most months now!

Grey Poupon vegan mustard mayo and sun-pat peanut butter

Lets get the one product I wasn’t such a fan of out of the way first- the Grey Poupon Dijon Mustard Mayo. And that’s not to say it was bad, I just don’t really like mayonnaise so it was a bit wasted on me. It does so happen to be a vegan mustard mayo though, and whilst I wouldn’t buy it again, it did make a nice addition to a sandwich with a good mustard-y flavour.

Peanut butter also makes for wonderful sandwiches, and toast, and- well, peanut butter makes an awful lot of things wonderful. Sun-Pat will forever be my go to brand for peanut butter, especially for baking with. I used this jar on crumpets, and to make a batch of my Grandad’s favour peanut butter cookies which I left on his doorstep.

The mustard may costs £2.50 from Tesco, the peanut butter is £1.50 from all major supermarkets and also comes in crunchy.

Nat bears breakfast cereal

How cute are these breakfast cereal bears? Bob and I both fell in love with the packing and design of these! They are such a good idea too, you can either give the bear a bath in a bowl of milk and eat it that way, or dunk and munch. These are definitely something we will purchase again, especially for Summer camping trips. The honey flavour was really good but we are desperate to try the chocolate flavour too, which I am yet to find anywhere.
These cost £2.90 for 6 from Tesco and Sainsburys (pricey, but often on special offer to keep your eyes peeled!)

Baker Street Rye Bread

I love bread, all kinds of bread and rye bread is up there near the top of my list of favourites. Whilst I do prefer a super dark rye, this rye & wheat bread is REALLY good! Dense enough to feel like rye, but a bit lighter in texture too. It’s great toasted to go with soup, or as a base for an open topped sandwich. This comes pre-sliced which is a major win for me, and once opened will keep fresh for 7-10 days if properly sealed. This is £1.69 per loaf from Ocado and selected convenience stores.

I’ve been a fan of these Whitworth’s shots since they first landed on the shelves. Perfect for on the go snacking, this mix of sultanas, cranberries and white chocolate coated biscuits is my favourite from the range, ideal for a mid-afternoon sugar boost. These are around £1.60 for a pack of 4 from Sainsbury’s, Asda, Morrisons, Poundland, Savers and Wilko.

This was a very curious product. Barley Cup is described as a cereal drink but looks more like a fine powder instant coffee. It’s caffeine free and has an appealling smell and the taste is kind of like coffee. It’s never going to become my hot drink of choice, but it’s nice to have on hand for a bit of variety. £2.50 from Holland and Barrett, Amazon and a variety of online and offline health food stores.

Who doesn’t love a fruit pastille? Now vegans don’t need to miss out on the joy either, which is great news for vegans and less great news for non-vegans who now have to share! £1.29 from major supermarket chains.

These Mister Free’d avocado tortilla chips are curiously green and curiously tasty. Described as the perfect on the go snack for those who love chips ‘n dip – without the need for dip. I liked these well enough, but nothing is going to beat tortilla chips with guac, salsa or humus for dipping! £1.59 from Waitrose, Sainsbury’s and Ocado.

Muesli has never really been my thing, but Bob loves it and was suitably impressed with Lizi’s super muesli. This comes in two varities- “focus” and “boost”. Bob loved the mix of textures in this and the flavours of hazelnut and pecan. As with all Lizi’s products this really delivers on taste and quality! £0.75 for a 50g pouch, £3.50 for a 400g pack from Waitrose, Ocado and the Lizi’s website.

Another couple of products that got a big thumbs up from Bob were these vibrantly packaged breakfast goods from St Pierre. Both the Brioche waffle and the Millionaires waffle were met with lots of “yum” and “so good” type noises and would make a great on the go treat or special weekend breakfast. I didn’t get a look in!
£1 each from Sainsbury’s, Tesco and WH Smiths.

I’ve tried the Gregory’s Tree fruit twists in another flavour before and really enjoyed them so I was pleased to get the chance to try the Strawberry variety too. These are a fabulous portable snack providing a good hit of sweetness whilst being good for you. I really love these and wish they were more readily available! £0.89 per bar from Amazon, Holland and Barrett, Planet Organic and selected other retailers.

I love marshmallow so I was all over the salted caramel mallow puffs; a vegan salted caramel flavour mallow coated in dark chocolate. It’s a shame these are so expensive as I could eat these all day long. They cost £1.59 each, check mallowpuffs.com for stockists.

I also really rated one of the latest offerings from Trek- the POWER millionaire shortbread. This brand can do no wrong, and again I wish these weren’t so expensive as I’d love to eat them more often. The flavour here is a real winner and the 15g of vegan protein means they fill you up too. £1.75 per bar from Sainsbury’s, Tesco and on Amazon.

I hope you enjoyed this month’s round up. Let me know which products caught your eye the most and what some of your favourite festive snacks are.

If you’re new to Degustabox, it’s a monthly food subscription box that gives you the chance to try new and exciting products on the market whilst providing amazing value for money.
On a month by month basis the box costs £12.99 (with a discount for longer subscriptions) but the contents are generally worth far more than this as you can see if you do the maths.

If you’re persuaded to give Degustabox a go (and really, you should) you can claim £3.00 off of your first box (making it just £9.99!) by entering the code XOQGC at the checkout. It’s been a pleasure to work with the brand regularly over the last couple of years and it’s without a doubt something that I will continue to purchase long after our partnership ends. I love the monthly surprise and excitement as well as the chance to discover products I’d otherwise pass up on the supermarket shelves.