Kev's Snack Reviews

I was quite intrigued when Doisy and Dam announced some new snack products for Veganuary recently, the dairy free, gluten free vegan Ballers, D&D’s and Buttons range that you can now find in Holland and Barrett stores (99p per 30g bag, £1.99 per 75g bag). There’s also some Dark Chocolate Vegan Mini Eggs joining the trio in time for Easter. Unfortunate names aside (Ballers? They must have seen the jokes coming with that one - I’m sure it’s not unintentional!), these are a great idea in theory as they’re meant to be like Free From versions of Maltesers and Smarties for vegans. But there’s a catch...they’re made with dark chocolate rather than a vegan “milk” alternative so are inherently a more marmite product to start with - not everyone is a fan of dark chocolate, and I imagine that doesn’t suddenly change if you’re vegan. And that’s why these products fail. Now personally I enjoy dark chocolate, especially the more flavoursome varieties, so I assumed I would like these. But ...

It's nice to see the range of dairy free/vegan chocolate options expanding in the UK, with the likes of Waitrose , Ombar and others making some respectable options, and so it seems fitting that health food store Holland and Barrett have created their own range. They are now selling Organic Pumpkin Spice and Gingerbread dark chocolates, which come in 100g blocks and cost £3. A bit too pricey if you ask me, but nevertheless I was curious enough to give this a try when I spotted it - it's made with 58% cocoa solids and contains gluten free ginger cookie pieces. Opening the wrapper it certainly had a pleasant ginger aroma that reminded me of dark chocolate gingers.  The cookie pieces are clearly visible within the chocolate and pretty evenly dispersed. Taking a bite they're very evident and nice and crunchy. The chocolate is pretty smooth and sweet, which surprised me as usually chocolate with this percent of cocoa can be a little bitter. It's clearly of good quality a...

Just a quick review for this Pulsin "Raisin & Almond Raw Choc Brownie", as I have no pictures of the brownie since I ate it in a dark cinema recently! I bought this from Holland & Barrett as a "healthier" treat, along with some toasted coconut. It contains natural sweetness from dates, raisins and rice malt syrup, with added almonds and cashew nuts that give it a chewy texture. It was very moist with a strong cocoa flavour, and reminded me somewhat of Naked bars - the texture is very similar - but perhaps more dense and chocolate-y. I wouldn't quite say it deserves the name "brownie" but it's certainly a tasty and nutritious alternative. They apparently count as "one of your five a day", which is handy! Overall, I would recommend Pulsin brownies if you're trying to add nutrient density into your diet but also want a "treat". They might not replace "real" brownies but they're definitely a tasty ...