The September 2017 Degustabox

Another month and another delivery from foodie subscription service Degustabox*. Unless you are brand new to my blog (in which case, Hi!) you’ll know this is a regular feature. As with last month I’ve done my absolute best to try everything in the box, but time constraints and wanting to get a post up in a fairly prompt manner means that there are a couple of things I’m yet to sample. I’ll pop up some mini reviews of these on social media when I do try them for anyone who is as curious as I currently am to know what they were like, I’m getting really quite adventurous with my food trying lately so with each month the arrival of this box brings a whole new level of excitement!
Once again kicking off with the drinks selection, this month Degustabox presented me with a bottle of San Miguel Gluten Free (£2 per bottle, or £9 for a six pack). I’m not a beer drinker so haven’t tried this, but it’s essentially a gluten free variety of the ever popular San Miguel. Available for purchase from Tesco for anyone who’s been missing out on a cheeky evening beer.
I’ve become a bit dependent on energy drinks of late, and as much as I love my Red Bull I was pleased to have a healthier variety to try out. Virtue energy water (£1.35 each) costs about the same per can as my current crutch but contains zero calories, no sweeteners and the same amount of caffeine as your average cup of coffee. Once I got over how tart these are I really enjoyed them. The berry flavour was my overall favourite, but if I saw these in my local shop I’d pick these up over a can filled with artificial everything. As an added bonus, for every can sold Virtue will donate 500l clean drinking water.
I’m a serial cereal eater so discovering anything new is always a joy. Cheerios are one of my all time favourites so I was excited by Cheerios Oat Crisp (£2.49) which has whole grain oats mixed in with my favourite loops. It was developed to help lower cholesterol as well as being high in fibre, low in saturated fat and contains beta-glucan from the oat fibre which helps to keep your heart healthy. They don’t have quite the same appeal as a massive bowl of the original, but for a healthy breakfast and for anyone looking to lower their cholesterol through diet rather than medication then I do recommend giving these a go.

I’m not a huge fan of dairy milks on my breakfast and was hugely intrigued to see Dream Ancient Grains (£1.60) included in this month’s box. Ancient grains is made with buckwheat, oat, spelt and linseed. I haven’t tried this yet but I have it ear-marked for porridge and will report back in due course.

Cooking is a re-discovered passion of mine but when pushed for time it’s great to have some short-cuts to creating a quick and easy meal. Latin America Kitchen by Santa Maria is a new line inspired by the many varied flavours of this part of the world.
I haven’t had a chance to cook with these yet but the Caribbean sticky pineapple and chilli sauce (£1.85) is earmarked for a chicken dish ASAP- of course combined with the Aroz Amarillo yellow rice- I don’t yet know what’s special about it, but it certainly sounds fancy! Rice pouches also cost £1.85.
More savoury inclusions in the box, and more that I haven’t yet had a chance to try. Knorr concentrated stock (£2.20) is gluten free and made with real beef extract. This versatile sounding pot can be used to add flavour to meaty dishes such as bolognese or to make a rich stock for soups and stews.
A random but welcome inclusion to the box was Wild Planet Albacore Wild Tuna- I love tuna and this tin contains 100% pole and line caught steaks. There’s no need to drain making it perfect for a packed lunch addition to a salad- hopefully this tastes amazing enough to justify the £3.49 price tag.
Possibly the most exciting inclusion in the box (and one I don’t have the information for) is the Ramen Noodle kit from Miso Tasty. I love noodle dishes and Bob and I are planning to create something awesome this weekend- watch this space!
Mentos are one of my favourite sweets and this mixed up bag of mints has long been devoured. A resealable pouch (£1.19) perfect for keeping on your desk at work, or for sharing (maybe!)- as the slogan says, who says no to mentos?
A more grown up sweet option next in the form of Green & Black’s velvet edition- this is 70% dark chocolate combined with sweet Madagascan Vanilla, this is rich and smooth and entirely delicious. I had intended to share but it just didn’t happen. £1.99 and entirely worth every penny!
Last but not least a blast from the past- Green’s Egg Custard mix (69p) is the perfect way to create a comfort food classic. Egg custard tarts are a secret pleasure of mine, although it’s been far too long since I last had one. I must add pastry cases to my shopping list for a quick and easy fix!
For those who don’t yet know, Degustabox* is 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 a brilliant £7.00 off of your first box (making it just £5.99!) by entering the code 6HZJ8 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.
Let me know if you’ve tried any of these products and what you thought of them.

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2 comments for “The September 2017 Degustabox

  1. Looks like there’s some great bits in here! I love the look of the sachet sauces x

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  2. I always look forward to this post! I’d like to try the fruit drinks and the stock!