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

Nature Valley Popcorn Salted Caramel, Almond and Pretzel

Salted caramel, almond and pretzel - the moment I saw this new addition to the Nature Valley popcorn bar range, I had to try it. Three flavours I loved and when mixed with popcorn, I thought this would offer loads of different textures and flavours - exactly the kind of snack I like. Nature Valley have launched lots of new bars to the range recently with a peanut butter flavour of their crunchy oat bars, this addition to the popcorn bars and a new sweet and salty nut range (in dark chocolate and peanut versions) so well worth checking out if you're a fan of the brand.

This new addition to the popcorn range is another lighter snack bar with only 89 calories per bar (probably because of the airy nature of popcorn) and with 4.4g sugars per bar as well so a nice lower sugar snack. It's a chewy popcorn bar with bits of almond and pretzel in and then a smooth, creamy salted caramel coating on the bottom.

Each bar is only 20g and at 89 calories it does look quite small when unwrapped but not as small as I expected, which was a nice surprise. Biting in it's a fairly airy bar with a slight resistance and brittleness but one that is quite easy to eat - not hard and crunchy but not soft either. Unfortunately I found the bar a real let down.

The salted caramel undercoating is the dominant flavour and whilst not awful, it's not super delicious - just a fairly standard sweet generic caramel flavour without being a high quality smooth rich caramel and I wouldn't necessarily call it salted either. The problem with this is that every mouthful although you do get a fair few textures all taste the same. I could feel the odd bit of almond here and there and the odd pretzel piece but I definitely couldn't taste them and there also weren't enough of them.

It's the lack of pretzel that really disappointed me. I love salty pretzel against sweet things (particularly the Cadbury Chocolate covered pretzels - do they even make those any more?) and this was totally lacking. It's probably better than a lot of light bars like the Alpen Lights which again I find  bit monotonous but I can't helped wishing I just stayed with one of the Nature Valley bars I know I like. This just isn't very exciting.

Price: £2.80
Bought at: Sainsburys (currently at £1.50)
Nutrition per bar: 89 calories, 4.2g fat, 1.7g sat fat, 4.4g sugars, 0.2g salt

Score: 5/10

Marks and Spencer Vegan Meal Deal - Nutty Cauliflower Trio Veggie Pot

So just before Christmas I actually decided to go vegetarian and considering I made it through the festive period with no turkey and found it relatively painless, I'm hoping it should be something I stick with. The great thing about January for someone who is into healthy eating, is there's loads of new healthy products and plant based products on the market - it's like a new Christmas for a health freak like me!

One of the really exciting things new to January is that M&S are now doing a vegan meal deal. They've introduced their first vegan sandwiches, there's vegan nourish bowls, coldpressed juices and lots of interesting new snack options, all for £4. One the new snack options in the deal is this nutty cauliflower trio veggie pot. I suppose it's a veggie version of those egg and spinach or crayfish pots you see in all the supermarkets.

It's fairly simple; plain cauliflower florets, spiced cauliflower and a lovely cashew and cauliflower dip along with some seeds and some salad and rocket leaves. It's only 162 calories and makes for a much more nutritious snack option than a bag of crisps. One of the things I hate about the likes of Tesco, Sainsburys and the likes is their meal deals consist of you basically having to have chocolate or crisps. It's great to see healthier and more interesting options out there.

So how does it taste - really nice and fresh! The cauliflower florets are the perfect texture, cooked but definitely al dente and firm but the star is the cashew and cauliflower dip which is like a cauliflower homous, very thick and creamy and adds a nice richness to the rest of the pot. I'd happily buy a pot of this by itself.

At £4 I think this is a reasonable price for the meal deal and I'm happier to pay a bit more for some delicious, vegan and healthier options.

Bought at: Marks and Spencer
Nutrition per pot: 162 calories

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

Graze Supersnacks - Beetroot Crisps with jalapeño chickpeas and sunflower seeds

I used to get Graze boxes loads a few years ago, I loved their interesting and creative mixes of healthy snacks that get the right balance of offering some nutrition but feeling really treaty and special. However, healthier eating is becoming so much easier nowadays and the supermarkets are offering loads of new products, energy balls, crisps alternatives and free from options.

However, Graze have recently launched a range of new supersnacks and being a fan of the company, I re-signed up for a delivery. One thing I love about Graze is the fact it’s a surprise which snacks you’re going to get in a box. It’s like a little Christmas surprise when it comes in the post!

In my box, was one of the new supersnacks, which was a mix of beetroot crisps, jalapeno chickpeas and sunflower seeds. All good, healthy, wholesome ingredients that are completely vegan but actually seem interesting and not too worthy. In addition the pack offers 4g of plant protein and is under 100 calories.

It makes a nice savoury snack and helps curb those cravings when you’re just looking for something to graze on. The beetroot crisps are pure beetroot rather than fried in oil like most veg crisps and aren’t salted so whilst not as crunchy and tasty as proper veg crisps, they are still crisp and are lighterwith more of the beetroot flavour coming through. The jalapeno chickpeas are crunchy with a really nice spicing to them as well and these two elements are very moreish. The sunflower seeds….are just sunflower seeds and to be honest are a little dull but they are very good for you.

The ratio is a bit out for my liking with only a couple of beetroot crisps and a lot of sunflower seeds but overall this makes a delicious alternative to crisps.

Whitworths Full of Super Cayenne Chilli Flaxseed Crisps

Always on the look out for healthy snacks, I was really delighted to see these new flaxseed crisps from Whitworths. I've always associated Whitworths with cake ingredients, dried fruit and sugar rather than health but they've launched a new Full of Super range composing of raw bars, maca-roons and these flaxseed crisps.

I like flaxseed anyway and add it to my porridge every morning so was intrigued to try a crisp version as I enjoy other health crisps like kale crisps or chickpea flour crisps. My Sainsburys had both the garlic and herb flavour and these cayenne chilli ones which I went for as I like a bit of heat.

These are a genuinely healthy proposition. They're dairy free, gluten free and wheat free, soy free and suitable for vegans. Just look at the ingredients below - it's genuine whole foods.

Flaxseeds (50%), buckwheat (19%), sunflower seeds, quinoa (4%), dried red peppers, dried onion, sea salt, spices (1%) [ground ginger, ground cayenne chilli pepper (0.5%), turmeric], chia seeds (0.3%), dried garlic

Nutritionally this makes them really pretty good.  8g carbs per pack vs 6g protein and 6g fibre and with no added sugar. Flaxseed are also a really good source of omega 3 and each pack of these contains a whopping 3.9g

Pouring them out, they are nice perfect little discs sprinkled with lots of seeds. Whilst these do taste a little wholefood-ey and maybe wouldn't appeal to everyone, I thought they were really delicious and very moreish. A good crunchy texture, similar to seeded crackers with a nice good hit of spicy cayenne spice made for a really tasty snack. I said I was going to split this 35g bag into two servings but I easily ended up scoffing the lot, they were that moreish with a nice savoury flavour.

My only criticism is they are expensive. They were £1 on promotion at Sainsburys but even this is pricey for a single bag of crisps yet alone the £1.50 full price. Considering healthier options are becoming more mainstream and there are affordable options out there like Nakd which aren't inaccessible, I do feel these are overrpriced. But like I said I really enjoyed them so would probably buy them again at some point.

Price: £1.50
Bought at: Sainsburys
Nutrition pr bag: 171 calories, 11g fat, 1.2g sat fat, 8.3 carbs, 0.9g sugars, 6.3g fibre, 6.4g protein, 0.5g salt

Score: 8/10

Ritz Bakefuls Sour Cream and Onion

After launching their first crisp style product last year, I found these new Ritz Bakefuls in Tesco along with lots of new other crisps and snacks. These crisp style crackers are all the rage right now and marketed as a lighter option to crisps with these bakefuls promoting themselves as 30% less fat.

The individual bags within the pack feels very light and not substantial at a meagre 23g but at 109 calories, this is kind of what you expect when a brand tries to go down the light route. Having said that when I opened the bag there's actually quite a lot of individual bakes in there.

I can't help but draw attention to Mondelez's cost cutting and cheapness. Not only have they steadily been cost cutting and ruining Cadburys but they seem to be unable to fork out for even a full pack design on the bag. Instead it's printed on the front with a blank back of packet. I can't help say but this looks really cheap.

On to the snacks themselves, they have a quite strong cheese and onion flavour both in smell and taste. They're certainly not bland but I almost find a bit too coated in flavour and it is slightly artificial. The coating is noticeable is as well with a thick, creamy, salty powder. The texture is quite nice - light and crisp but at the same time it makes them feel quite airy and not very filling.

These aren't a bad snack by any means but not super exciting. Great, if you want a low cal snack that provides a lot of flavour but if you were going for taste alone, there's so much more out there.

Price: £1.65
Bought at: Tesco
Nutrition per bag: 109 calories, 4.8g fat, 0.5g sat fat, 1.7g sugars, 0.3g salt

Score: 6.5/10

Hippeas In Herbs We Trust

I've seen a lot of praise for these chickpea based snacks and as I know I love homous and chickpea crisps I decided this would be a safe bet. What makes Hippeas different is that they act like a mainstream crisp and come in individual bags and also do a range of flavors rather than being plain. The fajita sounded tempting but fajita/spicy crisps and snacks are fairly common place whereas this herb variant sounded a bit different.

In the same way they act like normal crisps, they look like a normal crisp and resemble wotsit without the scary luminous glow and that horrible coating that sticks to your fingers. Texture wise, they're maybe a firmer than normal crisps, certainly moreso than wotsit, with a harder texture, which gives a good crunch, which I like. Although hollow, they really don't taste airy.

The flavour is also good. It's a nice mix of subtle onion, tomato, garlic, basil, oregano and thyme which you can taste but that doesn't dominate or overwhelm the crisps and with no one ingredient taking over.

At 91 calories a bag, a source of protein and high in fibre, it's a pretty healthy savoury snack choice and actually this isn't a compromise vs normal crisps because they don't taste like a diet option like Walkers sunbites and you get a good serving in a bag. They're also gluten and dairy free but they just taste good and happen to be better for you. I'll definitely be checking out more of the flavours but it would be great if they did multipacks of these as they're pretty expensive for a single bag.

Bought at: Boots
Price: £1
Nutrition per bag: 91 calories, 4g fat, 0.4g sat fat, 0.6 sugars, 1.7g fibre, 2.7g protein, 0.3g salt

Score: 7.5/10

Graze Seriously Spicy Sriracha with chilli and garlic

In my Boots meal deal I got this week, I decided to try another one of the Graze punnets. I'm trying to make my snack in the deal savoury rather than sweet at the moment and these looked pretty appealing. It's a mix of peas and half popped corn coated in a spicy thai coating and jumbo crunchy corn pieces as well.

It's a nice little punnet that is just the right size for when you fancy something but aren't really that hungry and at 118 calories, nothing too heavy. When they say seriously spicy, they actually deliver on this. For a snack it is fairly fiery, which I loved with a really moreish chilli hint with lots of powerful flavours of paprika, garlic and chilli. It never gets too hot but keeps building giving your tongue a sligthty nice hot feeling.

All the pieces are nice and crunchy but also feel quite light even though they are satisfying to bite down on. The salted corn pieces pop delightfully in the mouth and the spicy peas are crunchy making for a nice mix of textures, which works well with the spicy taste. It's got the right level of saltiness with a moreish savoury quality that make them really enjoyable. It's probably one of my favourite savoury Graze boxes (although they're all pretty good) and one I'd have again.

Price: £1.29
Nutrition per punnet: 118 calories, 4.2g fat, 1.2g sat fat, 1.5g sugars, 0.4g salt

Score: 8/10

Bounce Protein Energy Bites Cacao and Orange

I've reviewed plenty of the bounce balls before and I am a big fan of them even if they are expensive. I just find them a really convenient post or pre exercise calorie dense ball and I love their ridiculously chewy, heavy and close texture. They're feel satisfying and a good source of protein. They've now expanded into a range of snacking bags called bounce bites - available in three flavours: coconut and cranberry, sweet and salty almond and these cacao and orange ones.

The principle is sound -take an existing product and make mini bites of it in a sharing bag - it's something that seems to work for Cadbury and chocolate and cakes so why not for healthier snacks too. This 90g sharing bag has a recommended 3 x 30g servings and nutritionally they're pretty good with each serving giving you 6.6g protein, 7.4g sugars and 129 calories and apparently a good mix of fat, protein and carbs. There's no refined sugar and is made up of your usual cashews, whey protein, dried fruit and seeds etc.

I was expecting little mini versions of bounce balls so was surprised by the flat disc shapes of the bites, which were uniform in shape rather than the squashed irregular shape of Bounce Balls. Biting into my first one I have to admit these are a bit of a disappointment and not as good as bounce balls. The taste is right and I get the cacao and orange - although worth noting this is a healthier wholefoods chocolatey orangey taste rather than a treat version. The taste is actually pretty good but the texture is all wrong.

Rather than the dense fudginess and chewiness of Bounce balls these are dry and kind of dusty tasting and a little tough. I'm also a little confused by the size of the bag, 90g is too much but then the serving sizes are quite small and 129 calories and 6.6g protein is less than a standard bounce  balls so not as good after exercise. A sharing bag also seems odd for a food I associate with after the gym. I think I'd just rather have a bounce ball.

Price: £2.99
Bought at: Holland and Barrett
Nutrition per 30g: 129 calories, 6.3g fat, 2g sat fat, 7.4g sugars, 6.6g protein

Marks and Spencer Cajun Spiced Plantain Crisps

So summer is definitely off the cards now and M&S is fully gearing up for winter treats but that means discounted M&S summer goodies! I found a couple of bits and bobs from the Spirit of Summer range discounted in my local M&S so I'm afraid there are still more summer related M&S products for me to try and review. It's a good chance for me to try things that I liked the look of but that just didn't excite me as much as some of the other products and so got overlooked.

I managed to get a bag of these cajun spiced plantain crisps for just £1 - bargain. Well bargainish as it's only a 100g and you could quite easily eat this pack in a single sitting because they are just delicious. I was slightly wary that these are crisps made of plantain, which is a member of the banana family so was a bit worried they might be a) sweet or b) more akin in texture to the banana chips you get in health food shops.

However, I needn't have worried because these are deliciously savoury. Emptying a few out, all my pieces were nice and large and intact with no broken crumbs like you sometimes get in badly transported crisps. The pieces were a mix of long strips and coins, which do resemble banana. However, texture wise, plantain is similar to a sweet potato crisp but less sweet with a nice crunch. Texture wise they are slightly different to potato crisps with a a nice thin crisp that isn't greasy but that feels satisfying  and light.

They are unbelievably moreish and addictive. As soon as I ate my first one I knew I'd have trouble stopping. Plantain crisps actually work really well but its the cajun spicing that is addictive. A heady mix of garlic, cumin, fennel, cayenne pepper, tomato and onion - it's smoky, deep, slightly sweet, tangy and really rather powerful. It's not spicy but the taste is impactful and it lingers in your mouth long after you've eaten it.

These were utterly wonderful and I'm a bit annoyed I only bought the one bag as had I known how delicious they are, I would have stocked up. On a final note, they are also suitable for vegans as well as vegetarians and the ingredients list is simply plantain, sunflower oil and then salt  flavourings and spices with a coating of rice flour. Too good just for summer, I hope these may make an appearance again next year!

Price: £1 (reduced)
Bought at: Marks and Spencer
Nutrition per 25g serving: 130 calories, 8g fat, 0.9g sat fat, 1.4g sugars, 0.13g salt

Score: 8/5/10

Bounce Cacao Mint Protein Ball Review

I'm well and truly obsessed with bounce balls these days despite their extortionate price. It's not even because they're convenient or because they pack a good hit of nutrition and protein in an energy packet that's great post gym, I just love the texture of them. It is definitely polarising and either you love they're chewy, extremely dense and almost solid fudginess or it's completely unpalatable for you. I'm definitely in the former - I love it's just as much an exercise for your jaw to eat as it is to fuel your actual exercise.

Almond is probably still my favourite one at the moment as it's marzipan-esque tastes just complements the density so well but I decided to branch out and give the cacao and mint one a whirl. Again, it's a nutritious snack with 10g of protein coming from whey and pea proteins and rice bran and it's also high in unsaturated fats, fibre and vitamin E with a good whack of sunflower seeds blended in too. At 9g sugar per ball, it's definitely a lot less sugary than most snacks and you are getting a good dose of other nutrients as well.

Opening it up, like all other bounce ballsm it's squat, small and dense and you intially think this won't be fillling. How wrong you are to think that. With a super high density and chewiness not only do they take a good while to munch your way, they feel filling too. Chocolate and mint is obviously a classic combination so I was interested to see how this would translate into a healthy snack especially with the attractive cacao nibs studded around the ball.

It's definitely delicious but more on the minty side. Not overpoweringly or tooth paste minty but because of the reduced sweetness it's not as chocolatey as say an after eight. It also uses cocoa for the chocolate hit which is much more understated and earthy than actual chocolate. It still tastes delicious and whilst almond is still my favourite bounce ball, I would happily eat this again.

Price: £1.99
Bought at: Holland and Barrett
Nutrition per ball: 176 calories, 7g fat, 2.1g sat fat, 9g sugars, 2.7g fibre, 10g protein, 0.43g salt

Score: 8/10

Graze Lemon Drizzle Flapjack Review

Although I think these Graze punnets are ridiculously expensive when you think about (£1.29 for a single snack when you can buy a multipack of crisps or cereal bars on offer for £1) I can’t help but be drawn back to them. They look really cool and modern, they’re easy to carry out and they are generally pretty healthy. Well generally. Whereas previous reviews of the veggie protein power or punchy protein nuts have snacks with protein benefits and are low in sugar or the herby bread basket is a snack low in calories, it’s hard to justify a flapjack.

Graze seem to be going for being a source of fibre as it’s health selling point although there are much better sources of fibre out there and with considerably less calories, fat and sugar to boot. But then flapjacks are never a diet food and you could argue it’s a good source of energy. It is also slightly less sugary than most other flapjacks at 28% sugars and also less fat than those made with real butter.

Opening it up you get 3 nice little individually cut pieces, which is quite nice as it means you can spread them out should you so wish. They smelt fairly lemony and zesty upon opening and they certainly deliver on the lemon drizzle promise with a nice drizzle of lemon icing on the top.

The lemon drizzle really comes through here and actually pretty similar to the icing on a lemon drizzle cake. It’s sweet and creamy and really tangy and lemony and just generally delicious. Lemon actually works really well with oats and it makes for a fairly indulgent taste with a delicious buttery lemon curd flavour. The flapjack consistency is slightly firm so it does’t crumble or fall apart but definitely on the softer side with a chewy, melt in the mouth texture.

Although it uses margarine rather than butter it tastes rich and is very satisfying although I could quite easily continue eating after it’s finished. I was ravenous when I ate this and  it did plug the gap nicely. Probably one of the tastiest Graze punnets I’ve tried if not the healthiest!

Price: £1.29

Bought at: Boots

Nutrition per punnet: 239 calories, 13g fat, 4.3g sat fat, 15g sugars, 2g fibre, 2.5g protein, 0.32g salt

Score: 8/10

Graze Herby Bread Basket

I don't think I've ever had a bad Graze box. They always tick the box of being both enjoyable to eat and are a relatively guilt free snack. I do tend to stick to my favourites though so decided to branch out with this herby bread baskeet, which contains a mix of garlic crostini, sweet basil breadsticks and oregano rice crackers. The idea behind it is inspired by Italian classic flavours but with a modern twist. Visually, it's a very attractive little snack and I think they've got the mix spot on with an even amount of all the different elements as some Graze boxes can be a bit one sided.

Every piece in this box tasted great and it's really hard to pick what the stand out bit of the punnet is. The breadsticks were nice and crunchy but also easy to eat with a nice mild sweetness and savoury tomato and herb flavour. The oregano rice cakes offered a completely different texture - light but also crisp with a good umami kick and a good balance of salt with mild sticky sweetness. The garlic crostini were liked nice little mini bites of bruschetta with that crunchy, baguette texture and a good decent strength garlic flavour - although not in any way overly pungent.

Eaten individually they were all delicious and equally nice in any combination. Usually with these types of mixes I work my way around, meticulously planning the order of each bite to get the best tastes at the end but it's impossible here as every element is as good as the last. And at just 90 calories for the punnet, anyone looking for a light munch can get stuck in without any guilt and it certainly is a lot more interesting than a couple of ricecakes

Price: £1.29
Bought at: Boots
Nutrition per punnet: 90 calories, 4.4g fat, 1.8g sat fat, 1.1g sugars, 0.33g salt

Score: 7/10

Eat Real Hummus Chips Sea Salt

It's the penny sale at Holland and Barrett at the moment and whilst it can be a bit pricey, this is always a good chance to stock up on some nice little snacks. I bought these Hummus chips by Eat Natural in the penny sale, getting 2 bags for £0.86, which is pretty reasonable.

These are crisps made from chickpea flour mostly and then also some rice, potato starch, rapeseed oil, corn flour and sea salt. And that's it so pretty natural, simple ingredients. As a result of the chickpea flour, they are a little higher in protein than normal crisps and they also have 30% less fat than standard crisps as well. They are also suitable for vegans and gluten free.

The 45g bag is pretty large and you get a lot in here. Although it's worth noting when looking at the nutritional information it is per 28g as the bag apparently contains one and a half servings, which is a bit cheeky! What's the point of half a serving. Either make it one serving or two!

Inside all the chips were whole and intact and in attractive cone shaped shells. They have a nice firm texture and a really good crunch. They're fairly hard but I really enjoyed texture. The taste is fairly neutral and plain with a nice salty flavour but one that would work very well in any kind of dip. Because of the shell shape I imagine they would be great for scooping up salsa or even houmous if you want some chickpea in your snack. The crisps actually have a fairly, nutty chickpea background taste as well but I imagine no one would guess these aren't potato chips unless you told them.

The salt content is maybe a little high but these are a pretty healthy little snack and one that are very tasty to boot. Nice and light with a clean, natural flavour and excellent crunch, I might have to stock up on them.

Price: £0.85
Bought at: Holland and Barrett

Score: 7.5/10

Marks and Spencer Spirit of Summer - Crayfish, Rice and Quinoa Protein Pot

Protein is in as we all know and protein pots are one of the trendy new products in all the supermarkets following them being introduced in the likes of Pret. The protein pot isn't a full lunch or a snack but a little pot focused on protein typically 200 calories or under and also popular with the 5:2 diet crowd. Protein pots typically started out as basically pots of ready hardboiled eggs with some spinach in but as Pret and restaurants continue to innovate, M&S continues to try new things with a crayfish, rice and protein pot.

It's 134 calories and currently included in the Spirit of Summer lunch/sandwich meal deal as a snack option - definitely a more nutritious choice than a packet of crisps or a chocolate bar (although probably less enjoyable). Quinoa is a grain with more protein than others and also very on trend and then you also have the crayfish and some edamame beans for some more protein in the pot.

There's also a bit of spinach and some salad leaves and to make the whole thing more enjoyable a coconut, lime and chilli dressing. If I'm honest it's not the most exciting thing to eat in the world but it is tasty and a very easy way to get a boost of protein. The dressing, like most I have tried at M&S, just works and brings the whole thing to life. With exotic, creamy coconut, zingy lime and a bit of mild heat, it saturates the rice and quinoa giving the whole thing a very light, summery and uplifting feel.

It is also more filling than any other snacks as a result of the protein so perfect for everyone looking to make a healthier choice although it's hard to choose this when M&S have so many other delicious (and naughty!) goodies.

Bought at: M&S
Nutrition: 134 calories per pot

Score: 7/10

Marks and Spencer Spirit of Summer Chimichurri Nuts

Back to the Spirit of Summer range from M&S today. I’ve been pretty impressed with the summer range mostly because the flavours really appeal to me – all modern, on trend, exotic with a focus on spice and lightness. It’s a bit more spice with these chimichurri mixed nuts; chimichurri being a South American zesty and herby sauce with a chilli kick.

It’s M&S so the quality of ingredients is pretty good – all the nuts were prime pieces, no broken bits or shattered crumbs, just whole deliciously crunchy pieces with tones of flavour in themselves. I really believe it’s worth paying more for nuts if you’re going to just snack on them raw as the flavour is so much better. Once you’ve tried them, you do notice cheaper ones are more stale and rancid.

It’s a really interesting mix of cashews, jumbo peanuts, macadamias and almonds with a good equal mix of all the ingredients rather than being bulked out with cheap peanuts. They’ve been roasted and you can tell as the flavour is enhanced and you can really taste the individual nuts flavour and distinguish even against the seasoning.

The seasoning is perfectly proportioned with every nut covered in its spicy, zingy taste but even though it’s got a lot of flavour, you do also get the taste of the nut. If I’m honest the chimichurri flavouring isn’t the most delicious spicing I’ve ever tried but it is tasty, just not as exciting even though it’s fairly spicy. Definitely a tasty mix overall and perfect for a little snack bag for dipping in and out of or for nibbles with drinks before a meal.

Price; £3.50

Bought at: Marks and Spencer

Nutrition per 30g:  173 calories, 14g fat, 2.1g sat fat, 2.2g sugars, 0.35g salt

Score: 7/10

Graze Veggie Protein Power

I buy the Graze Punchy Protein nuts so often now, they’re delicious, filling and good for you and it’s great to have an alternative to crisps for snacking on that contains so much protein. They also have this Veggie Protein Power punnet which is in the same vein and promises 7g natural protein. This mix contains black pepper cashew nuts, spicy chickpeas and edamame beans. 

As usual, I just left the packaging. Perfect sized portions which are skimpy but just right for a light nibble. They’re easy to carry around and the design is lovely and stands out. Everything is high quality as usual with no damaged, dry, brittle or hard pieces and everything was in great condition.

This is another nice mix. The edamame beans are the least interesting element but still tasty with a nice soft crunch and they take on a bit of the chickpea coating. The chickpeas are delicious with a nice mild heat and all were the perfect texture – no overly hard ones to damage your teeth on! The coating is tasty with a nice chilli dusting. The star of this punnet though is the black pepper cashews. Delicious creamy cashews in a peppery coating that is just moreish with a nice savoury hit. I just wish there were more of these in a punnet as it is predominantly the chickpeas and edamame.

It’s a fairly filling little snack for 132 calories and with less salt than your average bag of crisps and the 7g protein, a good choice for a mid morning or mid afternoon snack. Frankly they’re a perfect nibble any time of the day

Price: £1.19

Bought at: Boots

Nutrition per punnet: 132 calories, 6.7g fat, 1.1g sat fat, 6.9g protein, 0.9 sugars, 0.25 salt

Score: 7.5/10

Elephant Food Superfood Snack Nuttin' But Energy Megamix

You can't beat a good bag of trail mix for just carrying around for a little munch on when you're out and about or just something you can dip your hand into at the office or at home. However, I'm fed up of those standard boring bags of just raisins, sultanas with a few nuts (usually cheap peanuts) thrown in. So when I saw this mix by Elephant Food, the combination blew my mind,

This instead is the far more exotic sounding mix of raw cacao nibs, raw brazil nuts, cashews, roasted tamari almonds, sunflower seeds and toasted buckwheat clusters covered in 70% cacao dark chocolate, What an absolutely intriguing and original idea. The Elephant Food superfood snack range comes in little 30g individual satchets for eating in one or, as I bought, larger 100g bags that are also resealable.

Looking into the bag I was really impressed by the wide range of things going on. This is one bag where they haven't skimped and there's a really even mix of the ingredients. All the nuts and seeds are good quality and it's a really fantastic mix of textures and flavours with no two handfuls being the same. The star of the show I have to say is the dark choc coated buckwheat clusters - they are seriously good and addictive. Buckwheat is a low GI grain and it's crunchy texture pairs perfectly with the 70% cocoa choc which has just the right level of sweetness but also a dark intensity that marries beautifully with the buckwheat but also when you eat a piece along with the nuts and seeds. Frankly I could really happily buy a bag of these just by themselves.

The tamari almonds have a slight saltiness to them which also works fantastically with the other flavours. There's just so much going on with these and I found as well as eating from the bag by the handful it made a nice topping for yogurt or porridge as well. It's a genuinely healthy snack with the magnesium and minerals from the nuts and seeds, great for boosting your energy, and even with the choc buckwheat clusters, the product is only 6.3% sugars or only 3.2g per serving. It's also a good source of fibre and plant protein.

The bag is also resealable which I appreciate helping keep things fresh but also making it perfect to carry out and about with you without the fear of fishing seeds from the bottom of the bags. This is a top quality snack and really quite unlike any other trail mix I've seen. I'd be interested in trying more from Elephant Food

Price: £2.49
Bought at: Holland and Barrett
Nutrition per serving: 269 calories, 18g fat, 5.5g sat fat, 3.2g sugars, 4.3g fibre, 7.7g protein, 0.01g salt

Score: 8/10

Kettle Bites Mozzarella and Pesto Curls Review

After quite enjoying the new maple BBQ wholegrain waves from Kettle, I decided to try another one of their lighter range. I went for a different shape and base ingredient this time and went for the lentil curls in the mozzarella and pesto flavour. They also do the curls in sweet chilli, which would have been my preference but my store didn’t have them. I also definitely need to locate the other wholegrain waves flavour which is coconut, lime and chilli and sounds right up my street.

But back to the mozzarella and pesto curls, they’re made predominantly from lentil flour which means you do actually increase the protein content a little vs regular crisps and like the rest of the new lighter range from Kettle, they’re lower in fat than normal crisps and aren’t very calorific with this bag at 97 calories. I also liked the fact the ingredients list is pretty natural and they’re suitable for vegetarians.

Lentil Flour (41%), Potato Starch, Sunflower Oil, Salt, Rice Flour, Dried Butter (Milk), Sugar, Dried Mozzarella Cheese (Milk), Natural Flavouring, Dried Butter (Milk), Dried Cream (Milk), Dried Garlic, Dried Basil, Dried Parsley, Citric Acid, Ground Black Pepper, Basil Extract

Opening up the bag I was a little taken aback by the fairly strong cheese smell. I would never choose any kind of cheese crisps normally and hate overly cheese things. Unlike the waves, the lentil curls contain quite a few in each bag as they're very thin and delicate. The individual bites are light and crispy in texture and feel fairly airy. They looked appetizing and I could tell they were pretty generously coated.

Biting in they have a great texture and are pretty hard and crunchy so you really feel you’re eating a bag of crisps rather than being soft mush. The taste thankfully wasn’t as cheesy as the smell and it was a pretty equal mix of both mozzarella and pesto. The cheese taste was maybe a little strong for my tastes but the pesto helped counteract it and the two worked pretty well together – for some reason it really reminded me of eating pizza topping.

Very enjoyable and at 97 calories, a nice little light snack that is pretty guilt free.

Price: £1.99 for 5 bags

Bought at: Tesco

Nutrition per bag: 97 calories,  3.1g fat, 0.5g sat fat, 0.6 sugars, 0.4g salt

Score: 7.5/10