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Betty Crocker Vanilla Buttercream Icing
by Larrabee
I am not a baker, I do not relish spending hours mixing and beating and making things fluffy and light. Therefore when I was recently called upon to provide a homemade cake I decided to cut as many corners as possible and one of those corners was the buttercream filling.
As I stood in Tesco reading the buttercream recipe on ... the side of the Silver Spoon icing sugar box and thinking it sounded like a lot of hard work for the stirring arm, I spotted a little miracle on a higher shelf, ready to use buttercream icing straight out of a tub! Who knew such wondrous inventions existed?
Betty Crocker buttercream is not exactly dirt cheap at over £2 a tub, but when you consider the cost of buying icing sugar that you'll use half of and never touch again, and a packet of real butter, and the time it'd take to make the icing yourself, I think its well worth it. Also, you get a really substantial amount in the tub, about 400g which is a lot more once its spread onto a cake than it looks like all crammed together in the packaging. I was really pleasantly surprised by how far it went, I could easily have had lots left over if I hadn't been over generous with my icing!
The taste of the buttercream is definitely better than any I would have made, its very very sweet of course but the hint of vanilla is lovely and the texture isn't powdery or dry like some you get on top of shop bought cupcakes. Its nice and creamy, it spreads really easily and it complimented my incredibly basic victoria sponge and jam perfectly, no complaints from any of my tasters!
If you're an expert, or even a half decent baker you can probably whip up a buttercream that's nicer and more homey tasting than this readymade version, but if you're like me and making your own is always a bit of a gamble than Betty Crocker is a handy helper to have around the kitchen!
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Hellmanns Mayonnaise (Jar)
by star3683
Up until a few years ago I had never really eaten mayonnaise, this was probably because my parents never purchased it when I lived at home. But now I love it, this is no good of course for my waist line as it is high in fat and calories but I try and only eat it occasionally. My favourite mayonnaise is Hellmann's and you can normally ... find a jar or squeeze bottle of it in my fridge.
My last purchase of the Hellmann's real mayonnaise was from Tesco where I managed to pick up a large 600g jar on special offer for just £1.50. Normally I would purchase a smaller jar but this was a great offer and almost the same price as the smallest jars.
The Hellmann's mayonnaise that I purchased as stated came in a jar which is made out of clear glass with a metal screw top cap. There is a paper label which wraps around the middle of the jar which has the Hellmann's logo on the front as well as a picture of a egg to allow you to see that the mayonnaise is made from free range eggs and is a source of omega 3. On the back of the jar you can find more detailed information about the mayonnaise including full ingredients listings, nutritional information, and a recipe idea. It also states that it is suitable for vegetarians and is made with pasteurised eggs.
Once you open the jar you need to store it in the fridge to keep it fresh. This mayonnaise is almost white in colour and very thick in consistency. The reason I like this mayonnaise so much is that it is so rich and creamy. It is also so versatile, I use it for all sorts of things including as a base for sandwich fillings, as an accompaniment to meals it can also be added to recipes like the mashed potato one on the side of the jar. One of my favourite things to do with it is to mix it with a small amount of English mustard to use on a ham or pork sandwich which tastes just delicious.
In my opinion this Hellmann's is certainly my favourite mayonnaise it is great quality, really creamy and has so many uses. The only downside is that it can be a little expensive but as it has quite a long shelf life before it is opened I wait for an offer to be on and stock up in advance!
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Walkers Squares
by kiss_me2070
THE CRISPS
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The crisps are made by walkers and have been around for as long as I can remember. My mum always used to buy the multipacks of mixed flavours for me, my sister and brother when we took lunch to school. I always used to like all the flavours in here but Cheese & Onion were my favourite flavour, whilst ... my sister loved the Salt & Vinegar flavour. The crisps are available to buy in large multipack bags from supermarkets and local shops. You can also buy the Salt & Vinegar and Cheese & Onion flavour in single bags form your local shop or supermarket. I often purchase single bags from my local Co-Op store near where I work. You can never seem to buy the Ready salted flavour packs on there own so these must be the least popular flavour.
You can purchase single bags of Square crisps for approximately 60p.
The following information has been taken from www.mysupermarket.co.uk
You can purchase a multipack of Squares which includes 6 x Salt & Vinegar, 5 x Cheese & Onion, 5 x Ready Salted from Asda for £2.00 which is good value. It doesn't list these crisps available to buy from any other supermarkets; how-ever I have seen them in my local Sainsbury's and Co-Op store.
PACKAGING
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The crisps come in 3 different coloured bags which represent their different flavours. The Blue bag represents salt and vinegar; the green Cheese & Onion and the Red represent Ready Salted flavour. The bags are made of a plastic foil and have a square mosaic type pattern all over it with Squares in very bold writing on the front. It states that the product is made by Walkers and it has some nutritional information on. On the back of the packaging is more detailed nutritional information, a list of ingredients and contact details if you are dissatisfied with the product. There is a best before date on the back of the pack which is 1st November 2012, so these will keep in the cupboard for a good few months. The packaging can't be mistaken for any other crisps due to the pattern on front of the packet and the fact that there is a small picture of 2 of the crisps on the front as well.
NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION
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Salt & Vinegar:
* Calories - 121
* Sugar - 1.0g
* Fat - 5.0g
Cheese & Onion:
* Calories - 121
* Sugar - 1.2g
* Fat - 5.0g
Ready Salted:
* Calories - 88
* Sugar - 0.3g
* Fat - 4.2g
Allergy Advice: Contains Sulphites
Made in a factory that also handles: Milk, Gluten, Wheat, Barley, Soya, Celery & Mustard.
APPEARANCE/SMELL
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* Salt & Vinegar - As soon as I opened the bag I could smell the salt & vinegar from the crisps which smelt much stronger than any other salt & vinegar crisps I have had before. The bag was just under half full, so I personally think they could make the bags a little smaller. When peering into the bag I could see the square shaped crisps, some curled at the edges and some totally flat. They were a golden yellow colour with some crisps more of a dark golden colour. I could see some traces of salt on some of the crisps and on the inside of the bag, there looked as though there was a fair bit of salt in the bag and I wondered how salty these would taste.
* Cheese & Onion - When I opened the bag I could smell the Cheese & Onion, how-ever it wasn't as strong as I expected to be and it didn't smell as strong as a packet of Walkers Cheese & Onion crisps. The crisps were square shaped, some smaller than others where they had broken in the bag. The crisps were a golden yellow colour and there was no trace of flavour on the actual crisp when looking at one.
* Ready Salted - These crisps were a light potato colour and were a much lighter colour than the other flavours. They smelt slightly salty but didn't smell too strong; there was also a potato like smell as well. You could see the salt on the crisps slightly which gives them the salted flavour. There didn't look as though there was lots of flavouring on them, how-ever enough so that you could taste it.
TASTE TEST
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* Salt & Vinegar - I put a crisp into my mouth. The first thing I noticed was how hard and crisp it felt when on my tongue. I could taste a little of the salt & vinegar taste already. I bit into the crisp and there was a crunchy sound and the crisp broke into a few pieces in my mouth. As I chewed the crisp the salt & vinegar flavour filled my mouth and it didn't taste as strong as I thought it would. There was a lovely amount of flavour on the crisps to give them a lovely taste and not be too strong to finish of the packet. The crisps were delicious and I loved the crunchy taste/texture to them. After eating the bag there was an after taste in my mouth which was slightly salty and tasted of potato. This soon goes away after chewing some gum or washing your mouth out though.
* Cheese & Onion - I put a crisp into my mouth and bit into. Like the Salt & Vinegar flavour the crisp was very crunchy and crisp and I soon got the taste of the Cheese & Onion. The flavour wasn't too strong but it was just enough to fill my whole mouth with an onion taste. I think the crisps tasted more of onion than cheese, how-ever they tasted nice and I liked the flavour. The texture of the crisps is rough on your tongue but the crisps soon soften when they have been chewed. As I chewed the crisps I could feel them crunching in my mouth. After eating the crisps there was quite a strong after-taste in my mouth, and I can't imagine my breath smelt too pleasant either so I ensured I had some chewing gum handy to freshen my breath and take the smell/after taste away.
* Ready Salted - I picked up one of the crisps and put it into my mouth. I could feel a light salty taste on my tongue and as I bit into the crisp there was a crunch sound. The crisp was very crunchy and as I chewed it I could taste the slight salty taste. The crisps tasted more of potato than anything else; how-ever the salt gave the crisps a bit of extra flavour so they didn't taste as plain or bland. The crisps were as crunchy as the other flavours; how-ever I prefer something with a little more taste so these are definitely my least favourite flavour out of them all.
OVERALL OPINION
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I have always loved walkers squares due to the crispy, crunchy texture of the crisps when you bite into them. I also think the flavours are delicious and currently my favourite flavour is definitely the Salt & Vinegar flavour. I don't eat crisps every day but I do like to have them in the cupboard at home when I feel like a snack or something to eat in between meals. The packaging stands out in comparison with other branded crisps available to buy. If you purchase these from Asda for just £2.00 I think this is fantastic value as I often find that crisps are really expensive to buy now and this probably has to be one of the cheapest branded multipack crisps available to buy. I would highly recommend these to others as they are crunchy and taste great. This is another fantastic product from Walkers.
(review may also appear on ciao)
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