Category Archives: snacking

Degustabox- The October Edition

13th November 2015
This month’s Degustabox post features a special guest, Mae! Try as I might I couldn’t get her to leave me alone when I was taking these photos and although I try not to encourage her around human food much, at least it was covered eh?

I’m sure that by now you’re all familiar with what the box is about, but just in case you’re not, it’s a monthly food subscription box that delivers a selection of new and surprise products to your door for the cost of £12.99 per one off box or £11.99 per month when you take out a bi-annual subscription. I’ve been reviewing the boxes over the last year and they never fail to impress me and get me eating outside of my comfort zone.

There was a huge selection of products in this month’s box, most of which were 100% new to me.

Chip Strips were one of the products I was most intrigued by. I’m a big lover of savoury snacks and these are addictive. Perfect for sharing (if you’re that way inclined) these are excellent as a side for lunch or as a vessel for scooping up dips. The paprika flavour was my favourite, it reminds me of eating paprika crisps on the beach in Spain!

Cirio products have featured in Degustabox before and is a brand we always reach for in this house when it comes to tomatoes and passata. Italian is one of my favourite cuisines to cook and these products really add to the experience.

Lorina is a new product and brand to me and although I’m not a lover of non-diet soft drinks I poured myself a glass of these and was surprised by how much I enjoyed it! A premium French lemonade flavoured with coconut and lime, this is delicious straight from the fridge and I’m sure it would be even more amazing with a dash of rum!

Geeta’s: I’m not a curry girl so I passed these Geeta’s products on to my Dad who loves to cook up a korma. Both the korma sauce and the chutney got the thumbs up from him and when he likes something you can be rest assured they are pretty damn good!

Kabuto noodles are something I have tried before and really enjoyed. Despite being a dried product these taste super fresh with a strong hint of coconut and chilli. I like to take things like this to work during the colder months and although a bit of a luxury at £1.99 pack it’s still cheaper than a shop bought sandwich!

The Snack Organisation sounds like my kind of organisation! I’ve had these rice crackers before and always pick up a pack when I see them in a supermarket. These are a gluten free lighter alternative to crisps and come in some really tasty flavours including my favourite sweet chilli. Bonus points for them only costing £1 from Tesco and Sainsbury’s! The freeze dried fruit snacks weren’t quite to my taste but I probably should had added them to some yoghurt or something rather than eating them straight up!

Two more snacks that are new to me were the Nudie coconut chips and some nuts from Liberation Foods. The coconut chips are something I was a little scared of trying although they sound right up my street. Made from 100% natural ingredients, free from trans-fats and gluten as well as vegan friendly these are a good all rounder and surprising flavours such as Salt and Vinegar work really well- I’m not sure what I was expecting from these but they were a revelation! The nuts I had to pass on to my Dad as I can’t eat them. The oven baked cashews and peanuts were another hit with him and I’m pretty jealous that I can’t try them for myself.

9Bar provided us with the product of the month and is an older brand given a brand new look. Packed full of good energy from sunflower, pumpkin, sesame and hemp seeds and topped with carob these make for a brilliantly healthy boost when the mid-afternoon slump kicks in.

Have you tried any of the products in the October box? I’d love to know what you thought of them. If you fancy giving Degustabox a whirl for yourself you can claim an impressive £6.00 off of your first box when you use the code BLDEG15. Mae gives it her seal of approval too!

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Snapea Snacking

18th July 2015
I’m a sucker for a new snack, especially of the savoury variety so when I was offered the chance to try out Snapea Rice Sticks by Yushoi I was game on, and more than a little bit excited.
I love that these are a quirky alternative to the traditional crisp, and much better for you too. According to the website description:

“Yushoi Snapea Rice Sticks are baked, free from nuts and dairy, suitable for vegetarians and vegans, high in protein and fibre and have no artificial colours, flavourings or MSG….And there are less than 99 calories per bag or per serving!”

and with an interesting array of flavours I couldn’t wait to tuck in!

Inside the attractive packaging lies little snack sticks that reminded me of peas in a pod, apt given that they are made of green peas and rice. The flavours are unique, standing out from the standard selection on the shelves and I loved each of them in their own way.

The one flavour I was hesitant to try was the sweet chilli and lemon as I really, really do not like lemon flavoured things. I tucked in to this pack first to get it out of the way, but actually the combination really works and I enjoyed every crumb of these. Somehow the lemon and sweet chilli flavours work in perfect harmony to create something special, and not the least bit offensive to my palate.

My favourite flavour was the smoked salt and szechuan pepper. You could really taste the smokiness in the salt and the pepper gave just the right kick. Both the lightly salted and the soy and balsamic vinegar also exceeded expectations in the flavour stakes, and despite the small pack size and low calorie status of these snacks they don’t leave you feeling like you’ve eaten a puff of air, or craving something else to fill a hole.

I can’t wait to see these launch in shops as they are something I’ll be seeking out on a regular basis. I’m looking forward to seeing what else Calbee snacks (the manufacturer) comes up with as they are on to a winner here. For now, if you want to give these a try- and I strongly suggest you should then you can stock up on the online shop, if I haven’t bought the lot first!

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Degustabox- The June Edition

04th July 2015
I love it when Degustabox time rolls around and I get the chance to try out something new. For the June month the company celebrated all things Summer and sent out a picnic themed box, right up my street!
I’m sure that by now you’re all familiar with what the box is about, but just in case you’re not, it’s a monthly food subscription box that delivers a selection of new and surprise products to your door for the cost of £12.99 per one off box or £11.99 per month when you take out a bi-annual subscription. I’ve been reviewing the boxes over the last year and they never fail to impress me and get me eating outside of my comfort zone.
I’m a bit of a biscuit and sweet treat fiend so the package of Love Chin Chin snacks was an exciting discovery for me. The packaging states that it “crunches like a biscuit, tastes like a cake” and that pretty much sums it up. My pack was cinnamon flavoured which happens to be a favourite taste of mine so I very happily got to work on these…I’ll also be seeking out the vanilla ones (they also come in lemon and chilli too) to try out next. I’ve not come across anything like these before and they are perfect for sharing with friends alongside a beverage or two.
Coconut seems to be taking over the foodie scene lately, which as another of my favourite flavours/foods is no bad thing in my book. One thing that I haven’t come across until now is coconut sugar so the bag of the stuff from Coconom included in this months box was a bit of a mystery. Handily there was also a recipe for some tasty looking brownies which I plan to try out soon so watch this space for a baking post.
This month bloggers received the alcohol free version of the box, which as a non-drinker suited me fine. The Zeo low sugar drinks are delicious served straight from the fridge and come in at under 30 calories a bottle. The lime flavour was a particular favourite and these make a lovely change from diet coke or sparkling water at a social gathering and look a bit posh too!

I think I’ve mentioned before my general dislike of coconut water, although I did give this one from Maui&Sons a go in the name of a fair review. My tastes still haven’t developed to like the stuff though, so I can’t make comment on how good or bad this is compared to others- let me know if you’ve tried this and what you thought!

Melba Thins have featured before on the blog via Degustabox and still remain a firm favourite and frequent purchase. The Multigrain variety were new to me and I really like them. Perfect for packing in a picnic basket to serve with dips or eaten as is as a little snack on the go. The Enhance Apple & Blackcurrant water enhancer is also perfect for a picnic as it takes up next to no space and easily jazzes up a plain bottle of water. I’ve tried other flavours of this too and it’s good stuff! Jelly and I have history so I admit I didn’t try the pouch added in to this month’s box but I’m sure it’s lovely.
Kallo is a brand I’ve long loved so I was excited to see two of their products in this month’s box. The chocolate and caramel rice cakes didn’t last long as they are seriously addictive. I’ve been snacking on the plain chocolate ones for years so this new addition to the range is dangerously good and is potentially going to cost me a fortune! The savoury sea salt and vinegar snack pack are equally addictive and make a lighter addition to crisps at lunch time…yum!
Last but not least comes yet another favourite brand of mine- Brioche Pasquier who make the most perfect picnic worthy brioches ever. This month we were sent the chocolate 6 pack pitch rolls which feature soft brioche with a chocolate filling, each individually wrapped and perfect for sharing (yeah, right!). The chocolate chip 4 pack are a less sickly sweet alternative, and less likely to melt everywhere. These I could eat all day long, for breakfast, lunch and dinner. A four pack literally lasted me a day!
If you received the box this month I’d love to read your thoughts- feel free to link to your posts below. If I’ve persuaded you that you might want to sign up then you can grab a cool £3.00 discount when you sign up using the code BQXK9

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Snackered

12th November 2013
Everyone who knows me knows that I’m a total snack fiend and it would seem that I’m not alone.
Research done by popchips has shown that we are a nation of ‘snackered’ workers (knackered + in need of food = snackered), meaning that the average worker is reaching for the snack cupboard at least twice a day to keep them going. ‘snackered’ workers are tucking into a pick-me-up at 11.30am – and again by 3pm, and over three quarters of brits agree a snack helps to boost energy levels!
some other interesting stats from the study include:
–          one in ten sneaky employees admitted that when previously experiencing an energy slump they have faked an illness so they can go home early.
–          fifty five per cent of brits agreed that eating smelly food is the number one bad habit closely followed by noisy eaters (40 per cent).
–          six per cent choose to hide and snack privately in the bathroom or toilet.

I can’t say I personally relate to any of those little facts, I snack more than twice a day and I have never left work early due to an energy slump. I’m one of life’s grazers. Big meals don’t bother me, I’d rather eat little and often and as a result never get energy slumps. 
Smelly food and Noisy eating is a bug bear of mine but I can live with it.

Writing this post has made me feel quite peckish actually.

Time to get stuck in!
I’d love to know your snacking habits and what you reach for when hunger hits…
My current favourite is cereal. Lots and lots of cereal. Popchips feature when I get a salt craving, which is fairly often and it’s an expensive habit!
xxx

I was compensated in popchips for writing this post.

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Snacking Saturday: The Simply Bar

20th October 2012
Now, I’m no athlete (or even remotely sporty) but I do find protein filled snack bars have an importance place in my diet; long day travelling or a crazy shift at work? These make a powerful dent in my appetite and provide energy and nutrition to last me until I can get a proper meal. When Simply Bar got in touch to announce that their bars had finally made it to UK shores and offered me a sample I was keen to try them out, swung by the short ingredients list and fabulous sounding flavours.

Here’s what they have to say:

“Our product is like no other snack bar on the market. The Simply Bar­­ is a high protein, low sugar, low fat, low glycemic bar with only a handful of natural ingredients. Founder Cathy Richards created the Simply Bars after experiencing difficulties finding snacks that didn’t upset her stomach. She has Crohn’s Disease.

Each bar contains 16 g protein, paired with 2-4g of fat, under 3 g of sugar, 4 g of fiber, and 160 calories or less. Each bar is based on Non GMO soy crisps along organic brown rice syrup. All the cocoa bars are made with organic cocoa mass (we promise this is easy to digest). Check out how The Simply Bar compares to other bars on the market. http://www.thesimplybar.co.uk/compare.html

Loved by many, The Simple Bar makes a great snack for athletes (pre and post workout), vegans, health conscience individuals and those suffering from Celiac, Crohn’s and  IBS.  In addition to it being a great snack, The Simply Bar is gluten free, low GI, dairy free, Kosher and easy-to-digest”

As you can see from the photo at the top of the post the packaging is neat, clean and simple clearly stating what the bar promises and what it delivers. I was sent three of the four flavours available and my thoughts are as follows:

Lemon Coconut: I expected to hate this bar to be honest. I’m not a fan of lemon flavoured anything but in the spirt of fairness I gave this a go whilst travelling up to London on Tuesday knowing I’d need something to hold me over until we could grab a late dinner. The verdict? I loved it! Sometimes I surprise myself, honestly. The lemon flavour was delicate and didn’t overshadow the sweet distinct flavour of the coconut. The bar didn’t leave my mouth dry like some protein bars have done and I would go as far as to say this was my favourite of the bunch. 5/5

Chocolate Peanut Butter: Anyone who knows me by now would expect me to have loved this bar. I didn’t dislike it but it wasn’t my favourite. The peanut butter flavour wasn’t very strong and there was a slight drying edge to the bar. I may have just had one that had been stored too long (these arrived a couple of weeks ago) so I wouldn’t rule it out in the future. It was perfectly edible and still enjoyable, I think I had allowed the flavours to set my expectations too high. This bar saw me through a horrible afternoon at work keeping my blood sugar steady and my energy flowing. 3/5

Cinnamon Pecan: One word, YUM! This could almost replace the Lemon Coconut as my top bar, I love cinnamon, and combined with the pecans this was wonderfully autumnal and really enjoyable. I don’t really know what else I can add to that except try it! 4/5

Most importantly for me, these bars lived up to their promise of being suitable for those with IBS as often new to me foods can trigger that off. Vegans, Coeliacs and low GI folk can enjoy these too which has to be a good thing. At no more than 160 calories per bar these are great if you are on a weight loss diet, or if like me your on a weight gain plan then they make a good addition to another snack (bananas are a good pairing, as is popcorn and biscuits; I’ve tried all three combos!).

You can buy the bars online and I’ve heard on the grapevine that they are looking to launch in to UK retailers soon.

These aren’t cheap, a sample box of 8 bars will cost almost £15 but that’s comparable to other protein bars on the market and the list of ingredients I can pronounce plus the fact you probably wouldn’t eat these every day makes it worth it to me!

Have you tried the Simply Bar yet? Got any other protein packed snacks to share?

xxx

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