I tried you don't have to.

[GettingStuffed]

I suspect I'm not the only one who does taste tests in the run up to Christmas.I

So far I've tried

Lidl mince pies, pastry is fantastic crisp with a good flavour , let down by the filling just tastes like a mixed fruit pie
Tesco bog standard, pastry is far too crumbly it disintegrated as I took it out of its cup. The filling was much better than Lidl's with a good boozy taste.

Lidl salt and pepper mixed nuts with olives. I've never had crispy olives before but the were a revelation.
Tesco salted caramel party mix. Loving this, it has nuts, pretzel bits, chocolate covered nuts, Malteser type things , chocolate buttons. A must have.

If you've tried anything perhaps you could say what they were and what you thought of them

A couple of thing I've tried since opening the thread Lidl plum and cinnamon chai latte, far too sweet for me, too much cinnamon for DD. But Milnlikes it. Tesco Christmas pudding crisps. The worst named thing ever, they're lush, they're a bit like ultra thin not over sweet Christmas biscuits. I ate the packet before I realised it. They're certainly no sweeter than cheese & onion or prawn cocktail crisps.

Lidl lobster cocktail are lush, less sweet than prawn cocktail and slightly spicier

I will look out for the Christmas pudding crisps, thanks.

I can report that the Tesco pigs in blankets crisps are nice, and vegan, but not a patch on the co-op ones of 2019 - which were like sage and onion stuffing if the breadcrumbs were replaced with frazzles

I’m going to Tesco tomorrow so will look out for the Christmas pudding crisps , at the moment I’m working my way through my Costco mince pies.

These are lovely and nice thick, crunchy tortilla chips.

Intrigued by the Lidl Lobster cocktail ones!

Aldi's Plant Kitchen Naan bites (jalfrezi and rogan josh) are really good!

What are they @WeirdPookah? Like crisps?

No, they are little party food bites. Naan like dough around a soft curry filling. Then you bake them. Nicely flavoured.

Oooh they sound lovely @WeirdPookah Another for the list!!

I follow a food reviewer on instagram. Yup yup I’m that person😁and I love their page this time of year. They show what all the stores have in new for Christmas.

It’s not a bought item per say but can I recommend homemade sausage rolls. We just started doing them(dads job) and they are a cut above.with proper sausage meat from the butchers. Shop bought pastry. They are so so good. And great,easy thing to whip up over the season

Agree with this. I cheat and just squeeze the meat out of a nice packet of sausages. If you mix the sausage meat with sage and onion stuffing mix (dry packet mix made up with half the amount of water stated) and sprinkle a little bit of the "dust" from the stuffing packet on the pastry before baking you get a very festive batch of sausage rolls.

😍

Oooh I could do 'sausage' rolls (we're vegetarian except DS and he won't eat them anyway)

I'll use a bit of S&O stuffing , not too much. I find the Greggs vegan ones too herby . Most vegetarian sausages aren't squashy though , I'll need to stealthiy prod some

Richmond fresh chiller vegetarian sausages.

Just perfect for this, they have exactly the same texture. My 70+ Dad, confirmed eater of a very limited repertoire didn't even notice they where not pork.

For anyone wanting to make their own veggie sausages, take a look at the sausage seasonings you can get from Amazon. I make a soft seitan sausage using blended cannellini beans and also a soya version. But the seasoning takes all the hard work out of trying to get the flavours right! (Just don't add extra salt) They pass my dog test 😂

Not bought any yet this year but the M&S pack of nine mini mince pies, three of each flavour, are my favourite. Also the M&S pretzel and nut and chocolate mix in the round Santa tin is so delicious I have bought two and squirrels away and the family is only going to know that one exists.

I have bought two and squirrels away and the family is only going to know that one exists.

I started doing that but some bugger found my stash 😂

Which insta account is this please?

Totally love that you’re guzzling down Christmas food in oct and posing it as an altruistic act on behalf of the public 😝

I can confirm that Aldi’s duck spring rolls are absolutely delicious. I thought I’d need a dipping sauce but they’re nice and moist inside with almost like a hoisin/BBQ sauce

Just nipping in quickly but not staying . co op puff pastry mince pies are an absolute game changer .
Will not be commenting anything else xmas related for another 4/5 weeks .

So😁:
there is
newfoodsuk
uknewestfoods ( u need to scroll down till beginning of October ish where their Xmas posts are) usually does a post and in rhat post a slideshow of picks from the store

Also treatsinstore

@kateandme thanks 👍👍

I bravely tried the reduced Clubcard price Baileys just to make sure it was of acceptable quality despite being reduced and can confirm it is still delicious and far too drinkable! Might near another (few) bottles to make it to Christmas...
cannot go near Aldi at the moment as the florentines are in! Thank you to those who have tested them and confirmed that fir the sake of my waistline, financial well-being and dental health I must avoid for a few weeks!