May Degustabox Review

This is my third Degustabox* (the first and second ones are here) and after being really impressed with the previous two months, it was keen to get this one open and see what was inside. 

Drinks

It's getting even closer to summer and that means wanting something refreshing to cool you down on a hot day. The Cranes (£1.90) bottles that I received were the perfect choice, and went down a treat when I took them camping over the bank holiday. I had the original cranberry and strawberry & kiwi flavours, with both being very light and easy to drink. They are 4% alcohol so are similar to a number of ciders or alcopops, so if you like fruity flavours of these, you will be sure to enjoy these cranes. The other drink included in this months Degustabox was a carton of Pomegreat (£1.49), which is a sweet and flavourful fruit juice. I've not really tried pomegranate juice before but was pleasantly surprised with the refreshing taste, again perfect for the summer months. 

Meal Items

The item that really stood out to me in this May Degustabox was the Jack Daniel's Tennessee Honey Barbecue Glaze (£1.99). I've tried the original Jack Daniel's sauce before and it was absolutely amazing, so this honey barbecue version is set to be something special. I'm planning to make pulled chicken burgers cooked in the glaze, and have full intentions to buy this in the future if it goes down well, which I'm sure it will. The next item I got was the Garofalo Fusilli Bucati Corti (£1.99) which is described as 'premium taste and texture'. I did wonder whether I'd be able to tell, but I was pleased to notice a subtle difference compared to other brands I've had in the past. 

Other

The Brioche Pasquier All Butter Croissants (£1.80) were another item I took camping with me and they came in very useful. Each of the croissants are wrapped in two's, making them handy to grab on the go. They are free from preservatives, hydrogenated fats and artificial colours, and you can still tell they are fresh when you get them out the packet. They were a nice little sweet breakfast item, and were perfect to take camping, however I could definitely see myself warming them up in the oven and enjoying with some jam. Something for a mid-morning treat such as the Kallo Belgian Milk Chocolate Corn Cakes (£1.29) were greatly appreciated as they are perfect to satisfy a chocolate craving guilt free at only 78 calories per cake. They are suitable for both vegetarians and coeliacs which is great as it provides more low calorie options. There was also the Kallo Yoghurt Coated Rice Cakes (£1.69) which are great as an alternative to a biscuit and would be ideal to take out as a sweet snack. The Beloved Dates (£3.50) wouldn't be something I'd usually buy, and I was a little unsure of what to do with them at first. After a quick search I soon realised that it would be perfect to go into a sticky toffee pudding. The date nectar is gluten, wheat and dairy free and is made from 100% pure dates, plus the fact it's in a squeezy bottle makes it ideal for adding into my baking. 

Treats & Nibbles

The Pechkeks Fortune Cookies (£1.00) were the most quirky product I've seen in all of the boxes I've had. I love a good fortune cookie, so these black cookies we something a little different to the normal ones, and I could definitely see myself buying them for Halloween. They also contain 'black humour' in their misfortunes, which provides a fun element to them. The Mrs Crimbles Classic Madeline Cakes were gluten free and individually wrapped and tasted like the ones you tend to get when you go abroad. Next on the list was the Get Fruity (£1.00) which is an award-winning fruit and oat bar that is 100% natural and gluten free. This is a perfect healthy snack to give that extra bit of energy through the day. The Wonderful Company Almonds (£0.90) and Pistachios (£0.90) are sun ripened in California and provide great taste. The almonds have a sweet but mild flavour and are perfect for cooking or snacking on. I love snacking on Pistachios so was really happy when I saw these, especially seen as it was a handy packet to take out. 

As an little extra to what was in the May Degustabox, I received a Morse Toad Chocolate. As you can see this came as individual chunks with letters on with a little message from Degustabox. I love the idea of this as you can personalise chocolate to send to someone. Being in small chunks also mean you can just pick at it in any amount you want, so even if you just fancied the tiniest bit it's great. When it comes to chocolate I usually stick with my favourite brands, however after tasting this from Morse Toad, I would definitely go out and buy some as I really enjoyed the taste. Degustabox have provided me with a discount code for my readers to get £6.00 off your order, all you have to do is enter BLDEG15 at the checkout!

*This contains a PR sample.

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Funkin Cocktails Range Review

  Not long ago I was offered to review a selection of cocktails mixers from Funkin Cocktails to try with friends and family. Usually when I go out I'm completely swept away by anything fruity so this was the perfect chance to try more flavours out and see whether they changed my mind.

Mojito Personally I'm not a huge Mojito fan, however this didn't stop it going down with friends who really enjoyed it. It's a simple combination of Persian Limes, mint and sugar and can be perfect when combined with white rum. From their opinions it seemed like a true Mojito.

Strawberry Daiquiri Although it suggests adding rum to this strawberry and lime combo, I found vodka was a very good choice and I really enjoyed this one. It was a sweet and easy to drink cocktail, and is my normal choice whenever I go out for cocktails as you can't really go wrong with strawberry cocktails. It tasted like strawberry laces which is an added bonus if you have a sweet tooth.

Brazilian This is pretty much like drinking tropical juice which makes it very easy to drink. As the taste is already perfect, having this mixer with vodka is the best combination as you don't need any flavouring to come from the spirit. 

Hollywood This has to be my favourite mixer that I tried out of the ones sent. It's a mixed berry combination and I wish they did more of these type of cocktails in bars as I'd go for it every time. If you're a fan of berry drinks definitely go with this one, it will not disappoint.

Elderflower Collins This was a very smooth and easy to drink mixer and worked perfectly with gin. A mix of Sicilian Lemons and British Elderflower provided a very refreshing taste and this went down very well and was popular with friends. To describe it overall it's light drink and could be drank at any occasion. 

Strawberry Woo Woo The Funkin version contains fresh peaches and strawberries added to the original woo woo to give it a smooth, sweet flavour. We tried it with both gin and vodka and both worked well and again tasted a bit like strawberry laces which you can't complain about.

Raspberry Mojito This was a very refreshing choice, and the addition of raspberries, mint and lime gave a great taste. Once again, as the flavour was already nice prior to mixing, I found that vodka worked quite well with this. Although I really don't like the classic mojito as it's just too minty for my taste, this raspberry version is well balanced.

Sour Mix A good combination of lemons, limes and cane sugar provides the base for a perfect sour cocktail. The favourite option with my group was to mix it with amaretto. The other good thing about this mix is that instead of having to add egg white to the cocktail, you just have to give the mixer a quick shake for the thick foam on top.
I was really impressed with all of these mixers and the whole idea behind them makes it very easy to make your own cocktails. Each of the mixer cartons come with a handy guide on the side for which spirit to add so it's still easy to whip up your favourite. Make sure to keep an eye out in bars as Funkin Cocktails are stocked in a lot of places. Overall the Elderflower Collins and the Hollywood were a huge hit so if you get the chance to try them, let me know how they were for you.

*This post contains a PR sample.

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Winter Hot Chocolates - Gü

Hey Guys,

Happy Blogmas!

Bit of a random post but I bought these in Waitrose in October and November and instantly fell in love, so just wanted to write a little post about them! You've probably heard of Gü, and they make lovely desserts. As I was wandering through an aisle I saw these and picked up the Salted Caramel Flavour Hot Chocolate and took it home to try. It was the right balance between the salted caramel and chocolate. It was thick (almost like flavoured milk) and incredibly easy to make. The next month I picked up the plain Hot Chocolate version.

I served them differently here, but just wanted to emphasize how lovely they look! These tall milkshake glasses were £1 each from Poundland, and the huge mug (this picture doesn't do it justice on how large it is) was £8 from Marks & Spencer's.
I added some light squirty cream and some mini marshmallows. It makes a huge difference using the Gü hot chocolates compared to getting a powder and mixing it into milk. The texture is so smooth and you can drink them cold if you'd like. You can also add a dash of Disaronno to plain hot chocolate for a marzipan tasting drink.
Let me know in the comments what your fave hot chocolate is, I'd love to do another post on winter drinks!
Don't forget to enter my Christmas Giveaway! (here) 

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