NEW! Chocolate & Caramel Pyramids (M&S)

I couldn't help it, ok?

After I tried my luck with the banoffee semifreddos at m&s I went back to see if any of the other frozen luxury desserts would work in the Dine in for £10 promotion. They all looked delicious but it was these chocolate and caramel pyramids that caught my eye. Not because they were particularly ground breaking in terms of flavours, or elements, but just because they looked so damn pretty. Fancy clothes might not tempt me, but pretty food? Always. 

"A cocoa sponge base topped with a Belgian dark chocolate pyramid mousse, a caramel ganache centre and caramel decoration."

I found myself thanking M&S once again for their clever packaging and thankfully, unlike their fresh banoffee cheesecake slices, the pyramids had remained perfectly intact - please ignore the freezer burn caused by my freezer blip. M&S suggests that they require defrosting for 5 hours, but I hadn't been that well organised and took mine out of the freezer a couple of hours before serving. 

That cocoa mousse was rich and fluffy with a deep flavour that I imagine would please most dark chocolate lovers, whilst remaining sweet enough to avoid offending us who prefer their chocolate milkier. Where was that sponge base at though M&S? I thought Waitrose's version was stingy but this was none existent.

Things got worse as I hunted for that supposed caramel ganache. At first I refused to panic, having been initially disappointed when digging into the Waitrose salted caramel mousse (before finding the pocket at one end), but as I got towards the last spoonful I realised I'd been duped. At best there had been a slightly sweeter mouthful, but where was that oozy caramel sauce or sticky dulce de leche?

I thought perhaps I'd got a duff one - but if I did then so did Bert. He didn't even realise that it was meant to contain caramel, and actually asked me not to buy them again as he found them too rich. Admittedly, he's not as chocolate obsessed as I am though.  Meh. Another case of style over substance, that is, unless you're after a show stopping chocolate mousse - in which case, head to Marks and knock yourself out! 

7/10

NEW! Syrup Sponge Desserts (ASDA)

A good five or six months ago I was in Worcester's ASDA before my lecture and spotted a new dessert pot that took my fancy. I even took a photo of it at the time, but didn't think it would survive a 3 hour lecture followed by the 2 hour commute home. I tried the local ASDA the next day but couldn't find it, then tried the Worcester store a couple of days later... but guess what? It vanished, not to be seen again. If it hadn't been for my photo evidence I would've been sure I'd imagined it.

Just imagine my surprise during the weekly shop last week when I spied the very same packet that's been playing on my mind all this time! Without my usual reservation towards the £2 price point I swiftly picked up a pack.

"Vanilla flavoured custard and mousse with a sweet syrup sauce and sponge pieces."

The tiers were distinct and the pot was well filled, but the mousse was a disconcerting shade of yellow.

I was worried that the mousse would just be devoid of flavour but in reality it had pleasant vanilla notes to it. The texture was just as light and fluffy as I'd hoped too. A rather good start.

Underneath was the custard layer, which was thinner than I'd usually like and lacked the creaminess of Ambrosia's version. It was still enjoyable, but could be a lot better.

The final layer consisted of the cake cubes and golden syrup. The combination should be a winner but ASDA have completely messed up the ratios. Of course in a traditional golden syrup sponge the cake element makes up the majority of the dessert, but in these pots there was twice as much sauce to cake (19% and 9.3% respectively). With so much syrup pooled at the bottom the last mouthfuls were almost unbearably sweet -and I've got a very sweet tooth.

C'mon ASDA, you dominated the supermarkets last year. These Syrup sponge puddings and your new cheesecakes are a right let down in comparison!

6/10

NEW! Milkybar Milk Slices (ASDA)

White chocolate. Its adored by most dark chocolate dodgers, yet is still vastly under-utilised in the U.K. The only white chocolate bar currently available in most newsagents is Milkybar, and that's marketed at children. Still, there's something quite comforting about eating children's food. I don't trust anyone who doesn't enjoy a plate of McCain's smiles with Birds Eye fish fingers. I did feel a little silly buying these Milkybar cake slices, but realised soon after posting my Instagram post last night that I'm not the only adult with an affinity towards kiddie junk food.

I used to regularly buy the Nesquik chocolate milk slices, but haven't had them in a while, opting for chocolate cake/ muffins instead. To be honest, I'd all but forgotten about them until these Milkybar versions were released. At £1 for four from ASDA they weren't too badly priced though, and they're good to eat up to 6 hours from the fridge.

"Sponge Cake with White Chocolate Filling"

Oh, well they're not the most appetising looking snacks are they? The thin squares of cake were only a couple of millimetres thick and disconcertingly smooth. Perhaps cutting it in two would make it look prettier. What do you think?

The cake itself was solid and reminded me of rusk as opposed to the sponge it promised of. It didn't have any noticeable flavour either - no butteriness or even egg to it. Hmm.

The situation improved slightly with the filling, which was whipped and moussey in texture. Like white chocolate it was very sweet, but that's where the similarities ended. The filling had a generic vanilla ice cream flavour, with the merest hint of white chocolate, but it was certainly no MilkyBar.

I don't think I'll bother with these again.

5/10