Aldi Pea Snacks - Chilli with a twist of lime

I'm a big fan of Yushoi crisps,which are a vegan crisp alternative made from peas and it looks like Aldi are trying to copy them with their pea snacks under their Passion deli brand. Like Yushoi these are made peas (marrow fat peas in this case) and are gluten free and from what I can see in the ingredients list also dairy free and vegan.

They offer multipacks of 6 offering a cheaper way of stocking up on these baked not fried crisp alternatives and also offer a flavour twist with this chilli with a twist of lime of flavour.

They're just as good as Yushoi ones in my opinion although I do love the Yushoi brand and would continue to buy them in the future too. They have a nice, light crisp and airy texture , which reminds me of the texture of the salt and vinegar chipsticks even though they're made from peas. You'd never guess they were made from peas and because of this it means the pack also contains 4g protein per pack.

The flavour is really nice, a little bit of mild heat with a lovely zing of lime that I think works really well in savoury snacks. Lime is definitely underused in crisps and snacks. At 88 calories per pack, they're also a guilt free treat. A good little find in Aldi.

Bought at: Aldi
Nutrition per pack: 88 calories, 2.9g fat, 0.2g sat fat, 0.6g sugars, 0.21g salt

Score: 8/10

Aldi Paleo Bar Review - The Foodie Market Macadamia and Coconut

Although there is a lot of excitement around Aldi's freefrom range, I have to admit I find it a little lacklustre compared to other supermarkets. Don't get me wrong, it's great they're doing affordable health foods but the range is so much less interesting than the other supermarkets - case in point these macadamia and coconut paleo bars. They also have a brazil nut and cherr paleo bar and a cashew crush bar very similar to the Nakd Cashew cookie bar. All very well and good and made with clean ingredients at an absolute steal (these are 39p vs a 75p Nakd bar) but you can't help admit that Bounce and Nakd etc have much more treaty and interesting flavours.

Nevertheless I thought it would be worth giving them a try, a 39p it's hardly going to break the bank. To be fair to Aldi, this is just as good quality as any other raw bar - it's just natural ingredients - dates (49%), cashews (21%) , macadamias (20%), coconut (10%) and almond oil. Macadamias aren't cheap nuts and it's good to see Aldi haven't skimped on the ingredients.

It's obviously refined sugar free, gluten free and it's cold pressed and although listed as suitable for vegetarians, looks to actually be suitable for vegans. Opening it up, it's a nice, chunky bar (45g vs a 35g Nakd bar) with a coconutty smell.

You get the taste of coconut very strongly but a real raw, earthy coconut rather than a sweet, creamy coconut. The dates keep things sweet and it's tasty but not exceptional. It more than fulfils the role of a healthy bar to fuel your day but it's functional rather than a taste extravaganza. I'd probably buy it again as I liked it but it's hard to feel like this is a treat.

Price: 39p
Bought at: Aldi

Score: 7/10

Aldi Full of Goodness Mediterranean Quinoa with wheatberries, tomatoes and black olives

Whilst Aldi generally isn't the most exciting place for new treats or interesting food finds, I use it a lot for a lot of healthy staples and quite often they do surprise you, such as the day I found this microwaveable quinoa pouch next t the mircrowaveable rice - considering the likes of Uncle Ben's charge almost twice the price for something that is mostly rice with about 2% quinoa in, it was good to find something that lived up more to the quinoa name - although it is 20% quinoa vs 58% wheatberries...

Along with the wheatberries and quinoa, it also contains tomatoes, olive oil, olives, rehydrated tomatoes, ground pepper and sugar (why of why do they have to add sugar to this?). At 179 calories per half pack it's fairly healthy with 5g of protein and not too sugary (1.5g) and not as salty as some microwaveable pouches (0.69g per half pack)

 Opening the bag after microwaving, it looked fairly decent if not a little beige and uninspiring, it had quite strong wholegrain smell with hints of olive.

It made a pretty quick and easy lunch with falafel and salad (and my beloved ChicP turmeric hummus) but in all honestly was a little bland. I like olives but the olive taste in this is really strong and quite sickly after a while (maybe because it's an ambient pouch product rather than fresh products). The texture is a little soft and 'gruelly' and whilst it was fine as a side, you couldn't make this into a main dish. The tomatoes also didn't really come through - partly as the olive taste is so prominent.

It's not an awful product by any means and pretty healthy for what it is as well as being quick and easy and it might be useful for a work lunch but overall it was a little dull and something I wouldn't rush back to Aldi for,

Bought at: Aldi
Nutrition per half pack 125g: 179 calories, 5.1g fat, 0.9g sat fat, 1.5g sugars, 0.69g salt

Aldi 0% Fat Greek Yogurt Review

After liking the genuine Greek yogurt from Aldi I tried earlier in the way it seems they listened to one criticism of wanting a 0% fat variant as well. I know fat isn't bad but it's great to have a fat free option as well so long as it's not full of sugar.

And this isn't. With a minimal 3.5g sugars per 100g, no fat, a whopping 10g protein per 100g and all for 62 calories, this product is a nutritional powerhouse. It's really useful for someone wanting to up their protein intake especially if you don't eat meat.

For a fat free product, you wouldn't know it's fat free - it's super thick, super creamy and tastes rich. It's also genuine Greek yogurt from Greece, not Greek style and oh did I mention it's a mere £1.39. I had it with some cocoa nibs and some Graze protein granola topping for lots of good stuff in the guise of a tasty dessert and it was lovely but would be just as good for fruit or with cereal for breakfast as well or adding protein to a smoothie.

I'll admit Aldi isn't my favourite shopper as their health offering isn't as varied, expansive or as interesting as other places but for healthy basics like this, you can't fault them.

Bought at: Aldi
Price: £1.39

Aldi Foodie Market Veggie Burst Review

It's January and we're all trying to eat healthier. Luckily I tend to be healthy most of the time so I don't really go overboard over Christmas. I'd rather eat in moderation 12 months of the year so I can still have treats in January rather than swing back and forth between dieting and splurging.

One nice thing about everyone else wanting to eat healthily in January though is it means all the shops have loads of tasty healthy snacks in, including Aldi. I spied their take on a Graze box at the tills for the ridiculously cheap price of I *think* 30 something pence. Considering a Graze punnet is over £1, this is really good value.

Like Graze, this is a mix of healthy ingredients (cashews, almonds and edamame beans but with a tasty twist with salt and black pepper cashews and spicy paprika almonds. It's pure, natural ingredients and a really good source of protein with between 5 and 6g per pouch.  It tastes really nice with a good spicy flavour, a good combination of textures and flavours and the portion size is spot on  - filling and satisfying but also energising with a wholesome feel.

The pouch format isn't as nice as Graze's little punnets but at this price , who would complain?!

Bought at: Aldi
Score: 8/10

Aldi Mulled Wine Teabags

From Christmas coffee yesterday to Christmas tea today. I have been searching desperately for these mulled wine teabags from Aldi ever since I first saw posted on social media. I've made a number of trips to Aldi, desperately looking for them but returned each time empty handed. However, my local store finally got them 5 days before Christmas - a mini Christmas miracle.

I love mulled wine but I love all Christmas food and it's to do with all the spices - nutmug, cloves, cinnamon, ginger...stollen, mince pies, spiced red cabbage, Christmas pudding - I find you either love all Christmas food like this or you hate it all. Well I'm definitely in the former camp.

Priced at £1.89 these are reasonable for 15 pyramid 'luxury' tea bags and part of Aldi's Specially Selected range. The packaging is maybe a little cheap versus genuine high end teabags and the bags themselves are a little flimsy but hopefully the taste would be great. Fruit teas can be disappointing at the best of the times - promising the taste of cherry bakewell or whatever and then tasting like a weak, insipid water with a hint of fruitiness.

Now these certainly smelt amazing when I added hot water. Genuinely with my nose over the mug, it was genuinely mulled wine. The bag said brew for 3-4 minutes but I left the bag in for longer and left it in whilst I was drinking. Initially I thought it was a little watery tasting and not delivering on the mulled wine front and was particularly lacking the mouthfeel of mulled wine - which you have to expect as it's a tea.

However, the longer I left the bag in, the more the flavours came out. Syrupy, slightly sweet with warming spices and a genuine red wine fruitiness, it really did taste like mulled wine. Aldi, you have surpassed yourself here, this is the perfect drink for a cold evening after a day out Christmas shopping. Just add a mini mince pie and this is the taste of Christmas without the alcohol

Price: £1.89
Bought at: Aldi

Score: 8/10

Aldi Greek Style Rhubarb and Fiery Ginger Yogurt

As you've probably seen I've been reviewing a lot of Aldi yogurts recently. I'm pretty hooked on the Domio yogurts and was pretty impressed with their Greek yogurt. In my recent trip I also picked up this new range of Greek style yogurts they've launched. They had an apple and cinnamon one which looked nice too but I love rhubarb and I love ginger so I couldn't not get this.

Opening up the tub, I could detect a faint sweet rhubarb scent and it looked a pretty pink colour. Giving it a swirl and dolloping some out, it had a nice thick texture. It's not as thick as actual Greek yogurt but certainly at least comparable to any branded Greek style yogurt and some people will prefer this texture as it's not solid but instead still slightly runny albeit with a very rich, creamy, thick texture. It's certainly a good deal thicker than something like an Activia yogurt.

It's defnitely not a health yogurt by any means with 21g sugar per 150g serving (third of a pot) or 14g per sugar but it does taste very good. It's a sweet rhubarb flavour that works well with the creamy, indulgent texture with a good hit of ginger, which add a nice spicy afterhint that perfectly works with rhubarb.

There's also lots of nice chunk of rhubarb dotted throughout which add extra bursts of juicy sweetness. It's not something I would serve for breakfast due to the sugar content and I would like to see it lowered but it's a delicious, sweet treat and one I would buy again.

Bought at: Aldi
Nutrition per 150g/ third of a pot: 208 calories, 11g fat, 21g sugars

Score: 7.5/10

Aldi Greek Yogurt Review

After being really impressed the Aldi Domio Yogurts, I decided to give their Greek yogurt a go. The first key thing for me was that this is authentic, actual Greek yogurt not those 'Greek Style yogurts'. At £1.29 for a 500g tub vs the £2.39 I would normally pay for Fage Greek yogurt, I thought I had nothing to lose.

Opening the tub I was met with the thickest, most dense, creamy yogurt - proper hold a spoon upright yogurt. It scoops out beautifully and feel substantial and rich and creamy. I tried a little on its own and both the flavour and mouthfeel were perfect. Smooth, super thick, rich and creamy , it's really indulgent in texture with a smooth flavour that isn't too sharp. You can tell it's proper Greek yogurt.

I had mine with some fruit for breakfast along with nuts and chia seeds (all very healthy and worthy!) and it's super substantial and filling. Because this is real Greek yogurt and the full fat stuff it's very satisfying. Taste wise, I would say it's actually as good as Fage Total and actually slightly creamier and a bit less claggy.

However, whilst I enjoyed it, I think Fage still has a slight edge for me just based on nutritionals. Sugar wise the Aldi Greek yogurt is brilliant at just 3.2% sugar (all of which is natural from lactose) making it lower than Fage and the lowest sugar yogurt I've ever seen. However, Fage also do a fat free version and I would prefer a fat free version where a serving isn't 9.5g of saturated fat. I know natural fat from dairy isn't seen as bad any more but I do prefer my yogurt to be not so high in fat. Even the full fat Fage yogurt only has 3.6g sat fat in 100g whereas this has 7.6g.

The other selling point of Fage is its protein - 9% protein vs the 6.4% protein per 100g in this. It's a tough one really as overall I would definitely recommend this yogurt - it tastes delicious, is natural, authentically Greek and a great price but would prefer to see a lower fat, higher protein version.

Price: £1.29
Bought at: Aldi
Nutrition per 125g serving: 165 calories, 13g fat, 9.5g sat fat, 4g sugars, 0.25g salt

Score: 7.5/10

Aldi Domio Blueberry Yogurt

After being really rather impressed by the passion fruit Danio yogurt copycat by Aldi, I decided to give the blueberryone a whirl as well. I've made no secret that when it comes to yogurt I like high protein ones that super thick and the Aldi Domio yogurts do just this with a high protein content and a thickness that stands up to my 'hold a spoon upright unsupported' test.

Blueberry is also my favourite fruit and a favourite yogurt flavour of mine. Something about tart, plain yogurt and its creaminess just complements the sweetness of berries.  Now this is more of a jammy compote at the bottom so does have some added sugar and it is quite sweet and sticky but I fully expected this as that is what you get with Danio yogurts.

Once again this fully delivers and in my opinion is probably just as good the brand. The top is wonderfully creamy and also a dense but mousse like airiness that makes it feel indulgent and more a dessert than a yogurt. The blueberry compote is sweet but not overly so and when eating with the creamy yogurt almost tastes like a cheesecake without the base. There were also lots of whole bits of blueberry in there as well, which held their shape rather than disintegrating.

At 39p a pot and with a high protein content and fat free, I am fully sold on these yogurts. They taste great and whilst the sugar is a little high, you can always choose to leave some of the compote rather than mix it all in. These are likely to become a regular evening snack for me

Price: £0.39
Bought at: Aldi
Nutrition per pot: <0.5g fat, <0.1g sat fat, 16 sugars, 0.12g salt

Score: 8/10

Aldi Specially Selected Coconut and Vanilla Yogurt Drink

So as you may have gathered by my recent reviews, I went to Aldi recently hence the sudden rush of a lot of Aldi products and it's another one of my random fines I found there. This was a complete impulse purchase from the yogurt section simply because it contained coconut.

It says it's lassi inspired but it's more of a coconut and vanilla smoothie and is made with Irish milk from Donegal that is crafted in small batches with velvety coconut and fragrant vanilla for a lassi inspired drinking yogurt. It sounded pretty good and whilst it's pretty sugary at 11%, the ingredients list is pretty natural although there is added sugar in it and in the coconut and vanilla compote. However it is 82% low fat yogurt and does contain vanilla extract.

It's definitely a high quality smoothie and really delicious. It's not refreshing as such because it's not fruity and the texture is very thick because it's predominantly yogurt. Even though it's a drinking yogurt, it's still pretty and thick and what I would term 'gluggy' but this is how I love my smoothies to be. It has the most amazing thick and rich mouthfeel that you properrly chug back rather than sip and is all the better for it.

Taste is on point too with a fairly subtle exotic coconut taste and an authentic vanilla fragrance that's sweet and creamy without being sickly in anyway. Every now and then you get a bit of dessicated coconut solid in a sip but this isn't a problem and adds to the thickness. Whilst it's not something I would buy too often due to the sugar content, it's a delicious smoothie and I recommend it if you see it.

Price: £0.65 for a 250ml bottle
Bought at: Aldi
Nutrition per 100ml: 81 calories, 2g fat, 1.4g sat fat, 11g sugars, 3.2g protein, 0.09g salt

Score: 8/10

Aldi Specially Selected Fresh Pasta - Sweet Aubergine and Heirloom Roasted Tomato Cappellacci

So impressed was I with Aldi's Danio copycat yogurt, I went back for some more of them and also decided to be brave and give something else a go. I love fresh pasta especially the filled kinds and if they're done well I don't even serve a sauce with them because in theory they should be stuffed with flavour from the filling. Waitrose do some particularly good ones - if you've never tried their pumpkin and pinenut one you must.

These cappellacci promise 'little bites of sweet unctuous aubergine and tangy tomato all wrapped up in fresh egg pasta'. It is also produced in Italy and from the ingredients list it looked pretty good quality. 70% of the contents is filling s 30% pasta and the ingredients list was all natural ingredients and there is no added sugar.

Like most fresh pasta, it's an absolute doddle to cook ; 3-5 minutes in boiling water and dinner is basically done. I also served it with roasted sweet pointed peppers, mushrooms and courgettes (of which there is quite a lot - I love my veg!)

After cooking the pasta remained intact with none of the filling leaking out. I cut in half and there certainly was plenty of filling in there. I took a bite and I have to say I'm very impressed. The flavour here is spot on. A really good blend of aubergine, creamy mozarella, tangy tomato, garlic and fragrant basil. It's Italy in a bite. The filling is soft and fairly rich and it just oozes and coats your tongue with a good powerful punch of well balanced salt and savoury. It's utterly moreish and passed my fresh pasta test. I would be happy to eat this by itself with nothing else.

My one criticism is the pack serves two but only has 9 pieces of pasta in which seems a bit unfair especially as it's just so tasty. Aldi, you might just be winning me over...

Bought at: Aldi
Nutrition  per half pack: 249 calories, 7.9g fat, 3.6g sat fat, 3.9g sugars, 0.97g salt

Score: 9/10

Aldi Domio Yoghurt Review - Passionfruit

As I've said before, I like my yoghurts super thick, strained and high  in protein with Skyr, Arla Protein and Danio the types I tend to favour nowadays. I can't be dealing with runny yogurt, I want something I can stick a spoon unsupported. Now I was pretty impressed to stumble on these knock off Danio yogurts in Aldi - called......Domio. Whilst the name reminds me more of Dolmio pasta sauce than Danio, the packs looks pretty similar and the four flavours they do - strawberry, blueberry, passion fruit and cherry - are the exact same ones as Danio.

It's also a 150g pot and high in protein with a thick strained yogurt on top of a fruit compote. These are only 39p so an utter bargain but they needed to be good as well. Opening it up it looked promising, it looks like the passion fruit compote had spilled out a bit but this was due to my careless transporting of these home.

It looks fairly similar to Danio with the piped design on top. Delving in the yogurt has a nice, creamy mousse like texture and is super thick. It's perfectly tasty on its own and blends well with the passion fruit sauce. Aldi haven't scrimped on the passion fruit and it contains a similar amount to the Danio branded ones. There are some passion fruit seeds in there for an authentic look and feel and it all mixes together well.

The sauce is maybe slightly less sweet than Danio, which is a good thing in my opinion but even with these I didn't eat all the sauce as I don't like my yogurts too sweet. I have to say I was really impressed with these - gorgeously thick and creamy with a really fresh tropical taste and nutritionally it's pretty similar to Danio with a good protein content and actually slightly less sugars than the Danio ones.

Danio is maybe slightly better but only marginally and for the price I am sold on these as these are just as good quality. One I will definitely be returning to. Keep up the good work Aldi!

Price: £0.39
Bought at: Aldi
Nutrition per pot: 80 calories, <0.5g fat, <0.1g sat fat, 14g sugars, 0.23g salt

Score: 8/10

Aldi Cauliflower Rice Review

Well I was surprised (in a pleasant way) to stumble across cauliflower rice in Aldi of all places. I don't shop there that much as it doesn't stock the kind of products and range I want but if they're going to start getting all trendy and expanding their healthier choices then sign me up.

There isn't a huge amount to say about this - it's basically cauliflower that's been whizzed up to resemble rice. You can stir fry or microwave it - either way it's ready in no time at all and quicker than waiting for some rice to boil. It's also an excellent choice for the carb avoiders (although believe I am not one in the slightest!) and at just 27 calories per serve, a lot less calorific than rice.

I tried it in a couple of different ways - once mixed with mushroom rice (the proper stuff!) and roasted vegetables for a quick and healthy lunch and also substituting normal rice for my chilli. Both times it worked well - a nice firm bite and because of the recipes I chose, the cauliflower taste was masked. It's not quite the same texture as real nice and not quite as satisfying (in the same courgetti is nowhere near real spaghetti) but it is tasty and with a strong chilli on top, not really that noticeable.

Yes, I could whizz up a cauliflower myself and it would be cheaper but frankly it's a real hassle and makes a right mess and also a whole cauliflower would make a ridiculous amount. This is healthy, quick and an easy to way to add to your fruit and veg intake.

Aldi, keep up this kind of premium, healthy stuff and you might just win me over. I see they have cold pressed veg and fruit smoothies in Aldis abroad - get some of them over pronto!

Price: £0.59
Bought at: Aldi
Nutrition per 1/3 pack: 27 calories, 0.7g fat, 0.2g sat fat, 1.4g sugars

Score: 7.5/10

Aldi Specially Selected Venison Pate with Burgundy Wine

I found this looking in my cupboards after I bought it ages ago. I'm not really sure why I bought it but assume it must have been ridiculously cheap, coming from Aldi.

It certaintly sounded nice and very premium and luxurious with the burgundy wine and venison is a more unusual meat. However, whilst perfectly adequate, that's all it was. It spreads fine, tastes okay and was meaty enough with a richness that I quite liked but that's all I can say.

The wine didn't come through and overall it was pretty non descript and tasted like any basic Brussels pate really. There's also something quite spooky about pate that is ambient rather than bought from the fridge in the supermarket. An expiry date of 2017 didn't help - I don't really want to think of what's in it to keep it 'fresh' for that long.

Score: 5/10

Cucina Focaccia (Aldi)

I'm not a massive Aldi shopper but do pop in every now and then to have a different experience to the other supermarkets. On my last trip, I decided to give these focaccia a go. I bought a rosemary flavoured one but there was also a cheese and red onion version too. At 99p I thought it couldn't hurt to give them  whirl.

They looked pretty good with a nice colour and lots of visible strands of rosemary. Reassuringly, the ingredients list is pretty high quality with real ingredients: flour, water, extra virgin olive oil, yeast, rosemary, salt and malted barley flour. All stuff you would use in a homemade version. It's also not overly salty, like a lot of breads.

Opening the pack, you could tell there was a generosity with the rosemary as the fragrant, herby smell was very apparent. Heating it in the oven produced a lovely golden colour with a nice crispness that further enhanced the rosemary smell.

Whilst, it wasn't quite as nice as a real restaurant focaccia, it was pretty good and certainly on par, if not better, than a lot of store bought ones. Many can just be like white rolls but this had an authentic texture that was warm with lots of air pockets and a good crunch. The rosemary came through for a lovely Mediterranean taste. I served it as a side to some tortellini Bolognese and it complemented it perfectly.

Price: 99p
Available: Aldi

Score: 7.5/10

Foodie Market Natural Seed Mix (Aldi)

This is a very short review as this is a very simple product. I picked this seed mix up in Aldi for the absolute bargain price of 65p. It's nothing complex - just sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, cranberries, goji berries and pine nuts. Nothing artificial or nasty, just clean, natural ingredients.

I liked the fact it's just a small 100g bag as, much as I like this kind of product, it's not something I want to keep eating loads of so it means you can get through it without getting bored of it.

Everything in it was very fresh and of high quality. The seeds were crunchy and crisp and the berries soft and plump, not shrivelled up and dried out. The ratio is done well too. Enough berries for sweetness but not so much that this becomes overly sugary. I will definitely pick these up again. Perfect pack size and perfect price.

Price: 65p
Available: Aldi

Pros: Healthy, natural, good price, good pack size
Cons: Pack isn't resealable

Score: 7/10

Harvest Morn Milled Linseed, Gojiberries, Sunflower & Pumpkinseeds (Aldi)

Whilst I love seeing innovation from my favourite brands and think it‘s generally worth paying for them for their exciting flavour twists, I happily also eat own label brands and this Linseed with gojiberries, sunflower and pumpkinseeds from Aldi shows you don't always have to pay over the odds for something great.

I've previously paid £5.99 for linseed but this was a mere £1.99 (although it's not organic like my regular brand). I've also never seen it with gojiberries and pumpkin and sunflowerseeds included. As if linseed with its high fibre and omega content wasn't healthy enough, you get extra vitamins and minerals from the seeds and gojiberries are one of the so called 'superfoods'.

The packet gives loads of serving suggestions from adding it to salads, soups and yoghurt but I always use it on cereal or porridge. It's an extra dose of goodness in the morning, makes your breakfast more filling and adds an interesting texture.

Sprinkling this over porridge really showed off the added ingredients. There were lots of nuggets of seeds and berries nestled away in the golden sand of linseed. For £1.99, I couldn't believe how generous the inclusions were.

Stirring this into my porridge gave it a more interesting consistency. Linseed doesn't really have a flavour as such but adds a general toasty nuttiness to the porridge and the gojiberries added even more variety. It's not crunchy but makes the porridge thicker with little grains of goodness studded throughout.

Frankly, I can't believe how good it was for the price. Super healthy, tasty, filling and economical, I would happily start every day with a sprinkle of this.

Price: £1.99
Available: Aldi

Pros: Healthy, plenty of seeds and gojiberries, great value, filling
Cons: Not organic like more expensive brands

Score: 8/10