Seasonal Stuff From The Skinny Bakery

With December just around the corner, that means it's finally time to start thinking about Christmas!  My favourite time of the year for many a good reason, but in my opinion one of the best parts about the build-up is the adorable festive treats and gifts you can start buying for your friends and family.  Brands and companies that aren't remotely Christmas-y will suddenly release their Christmas, coffees, chocolates, new flavours, clothes, novelty decorations, lights, cards, crackers, make-up...the list goes on.  It's a busy time of year for business, but it gives people like me the fortunate opportunities to review products from cute little companies like The Skinny Bakery and all their seasonal (and non-seasonal) sweet treats!

If you saw my recent Facebook post you'll already know about their limited edition mince pies, gingerbread men and jam doughnuts- all with less of the bad stuff and designed to make Christmas just that little bit less guilty!  Generally, the Bakery's "Skinny Pearl" sponge cake products are made using tofu and low fat yoghurt in the frosting or cream filling mixes.  You can freeze products for up to six months, otherwise their shelf-life averages a week.  They should be stored in the fridge after opening.

Making festive food fun this Christmas

I've never tried anything from the company before now even though I've been meaning to get round to it all year, so now- with Christmas nearing and their products being likely to make perfect stocking fillers, I decided to do a bulk order and share with you guys what I thought!

Skinny Choc & Orange Cookies

Macros (per 50g pack) - ✸ Cals- 181 ✸ Fat- 2g ✸ Carbs- 36g ✸ Sugars- 18g ✸ Protein- 4g ✸

The Skinny Bakery's Chocolate and Orange cookies I'm not sure were meant to be a bit of a Halloween homage but that's what the flavour always reminds me of because of the bright orange colouring normally seen in these flavour products.  Although these weren't brightly coloured, the zesty, tangy orange taste almost definitely came through in every bite without fail!  

The cookies were more biscuit-like as they were firmer than large bakery-style cookies you've probably tried, they were crumbly but kept their shape pretty solidly and weren't hard either.  The second flavour you get after the overpowering orange is butter and a salty sharpness.  To me, this reminds you that it is true to it's name- it has that buttery cookie taste that melts in the mouth and the slight bitterness heightens the showstopper flavour in the orange.  

Inside were three butterfly-shaped larger cookies, two smaller flower-shaped cookies and a small heart-shaped one to compliment the set.  This was a nice touch as online they're only listed as containing five in a pack- so to have a little added extra always wins points!  The cookies look small but because they're fairly thick they really do feel like a guilt-free treat and leave you feeling content, you could eat more- but you won't...till later maybe.

From a visual and tasting point of view, the cookies could have done with a few more chocolate chips.  I only really got two big chocolate-chip moments in the cookie I tasted which was a little disappointing given that the ingredients state the product is 7% dark chocolate (my favourite kind).  It could have been milk chocolate from what I could taste but its' flavour still really complimented the hint of zest nevertheless, simultaneously combining to complete the citrus showpiece.

8/10

Skinny Lemon Pearls

Macros (per 80g pack) - ✸ Cals- 199 ✸ Fat- 7g ✸ Carbs- 29g ✸ Sugars- 19g ✸ Protein- 5g ✸

I have a real obsession with lemon-flavoured things right now.  And not just edible stuff- air fresheners, scented candles, I love the smell of it in my green tea in the morning.  It always tastes and smells fresh and clean, which the light yellow colouring usually helps with psychologically.  These Skinny Lemon Pearls were no exception...

The first thing I noticed was despite how they'd all been squished together in the ridiculously small containers like the other flavours I ordered, they were very tidily arranged and all perfectly the same size as each other.  And- unlike the chocolate ones (reviewed further down the page) they were still somehow in tact!

The sponge was firm and didn't break apart as easily as the Chocolate and the Pumpkin Spice Pearls I ordered.  A lot of this is down to luck as to whether your parcel is handled with care (as it says on the box, although it may as well not!).  Because the sponge wasn't as mushy it made it taste just like a full-size, full-fat, full-sugar slice of lemon sponge cake- and natural flavouring from the hints of zesty lemon peel.  The Skinny Bakery have done this just right: it's not too weak or too strong, neither too sweet or sour, or too rich or sharp- which is often hard to perfect if you're catering for the masses.  It had that familiar taste of a home-made lemon sponge-cake that has just been baked and left to cool (just when cake is at its best, am I right?).  And with just the right amount of air bubbles inside,  it's desirably light texture doesn't leave you feeling stuffed the way cake often can.

The cream inside was thicker than in some of the other Skinny Pearls and contained icing sugar and had a really familiar lemon cheesecake vibe which is always welcome!  There was plenty of it, it could even be a little bit too cheesy- depending what mood you're in when you eat one- for your liking but overall it worked well and found a balance with the fluffy texture of the sponge.  Of all the products I tried, this was one of my favourites- and definitely my favourite Skinny Pearl flavour.

9/10

Skinny Chocolate Pearls

Macros (per 85g pack) - ✸ Cals- 208 ✸ Fat- 8g ✸ Carbs- 27g ✸ Sugars- 16g ✸ Protein- 6g ✸

When I received these they were a little smashed up from the slightly flimsy packaging cramming the pearls in. That aside (and locking myself out of my phone when I went to take a picture of them because the cake mixture kept sabotaging my fingerprint!) the pearls were delicious!  The first taste you get is a strong one of cake mix and rich chocolate piped icing from the cream piped into the inside in the middle.  There was just enough of this, not too much or too little- but then you can't really go wrong with chocolate now can you?  

The cream filling had a sharp edge to it too like the kind you get with dark chocolate, this made them effective as a treat in my opinion as they were quite filling because of this.  After a few, I imagine they'll feel pretty stodgy in your stomach though.  My only real complaint is that they are so messy to eat!  Unlike the lemon sponges, these are very malleable and fall apart in your hands, the sponge is a lot more moist, if not a little too much so.

They're really not too bad for 42 calories each though, the macros aren't too bad either, there's a total of 16 grams of sugar in the whole pack and only 8 grams of fat which- for a chocolate-flavoured product, is pretty low.  I do prefer the Lemon Pearls though, simply because their consistency was miles better (although as a Skinny Bakery virgin I don't know whether the chocolate pearls are always like this or whether I just received a battered batch).

7/10

Pumpkin Spice Limited Edition Skinny Pearls

Macros (per 80g pack) - ✸ Cals- 186 ✸ Fat- 7g ✸ Carbs- 28g ✸ Sugars- 21g ✸ Protein- 4g✸

I'm always intrigued by all things Pumpkin Spice flavour, especially cookies or cakes.  These mini sponges are 13% pumpkin and are made with water, egg, wheat flour, low fat yoghurt (as a milk substitute), sugar and rapeseed oil.  Again, they are far better held together than their chocolate counterparts.  

They aren't as moist as the Skinny Lemon Pearls, but you'll soon discover that its frosting makes up for that. The frosting consists mainly of soy protein and tofu, with added white chocolate.  Mixed spice is dusted on top of the icing, with definitive elements of nutmeg and cinnamon.  

These flavours combined with the zesty shredded pumpkin (you can see this in the sponge if you look closely) remind me of carrot cake- and the appearance, texture and colours of these mini sponges also visually give you that vibe.  

The icing is on a par with the lemon cheesecake-style icing of the Lemon Pearls- rich, tangy and with an equally cheesy taste, it solidifies that association you're making with carrot cake once and for all.  I don't know if it's just because pumpkin spice and carrot (in a sponge) taste similar anyway or whether pumpkin just isn't that strong or unique a taste to stand out as a separate flavour on its own.  There wasn't any artificial nastiness in the aftertaste but the filling is still very sweet because of the cheesy richness you hit straight away.  There was plenty of it distributed in my mini pumpkin sponges that I ordered, so as nice as it is it can get a little sickly.  Anyhow, it's still yummy!

With Halloween done with, Christmas is on its way, that means more and more
Limited Edition festive food!

I haven't tried anything Pumpkin Spice flavoured in a long time- and with these also being a limited edition product I had to snatch them up quickly!  What better way to finally sack off the Halloween and Fireworks antics of last week in style than with these pumpkin bad boys!🎃

Bring on Christmas!🎄🎅

8/10

Skinny Mince Pies

Macros (per 60g pie) - ✸ Cals- 190 ✸ Fat- 7g ✸ Carbs- 28g ✸ Sugars- 17g ✸ Protein- 3g✸

I was impressed firstly with how this thing was wrapped with a gold glittery ribbon- getting me in the festive mood for buying and wrapping Christmas presents!  You may have already read how excited I've been to try these after I shared the news of the release of these seasonal treats all over the place.  Not to mention, the adorable filled Christmas stocking packages you can purchase online from the company- offered as compliments of the festive season, filled with mini versions of these pies and little gingerbread men (which I'm yet to try)!  Mince is without doubt a weird flavour and I feel it's strange how I love mince pies and hate Christmas pudding and Christmas cake (containing virtually the same ingredients).

Did they live up to my expectations?  And were they as good as an ordinary mince pie?

They were a lot bigger than I expected which already convinced me my money hadn't gone to waste.  They also last a little longer than Skinny Bakery's average products because they keep for a month as they don't contain any icing or cream.  They're also really pretty and one of the most creative and attractive festive foods I've ever eaten.  Sweet and smooth, the top was elegantly dusted with powdered sugar and designed to look like snow.  The star-shaped lid didn't con you out of a ton of missing pastry- the way some creative shapes do, and held the structure together sturdily and aesthetically.    Simply made from flour, butter, Greek yoghurt, egg yolk and cinnamon, the thick, buttery crust wasn't too sweet which enhanced the natural sweetness from the juicy currant, sultana, apple, mixed peel, mixed spice, brandy and orange juice sweet mince inside.

One thing I noticed about the tangy filling was that there was a lot more of it than you would average in a supermarket mince pie of the same size, which naturally is a bonus- especially since it packs less calories (at 190 it's almost 1/3rd of the calories of an average 240 calorie pie)!  I can't quite tell you what it is but there's something about these that tastes different and better than the ordinary pies- as if this is what they all taste like initially before they're doused in sugar.  For this reason, I'd suggest giving these a go even if you are a self-professed mince pie-hater.  These could turn you...

If I'm honest, I like them a lot more than the regular ones, they're bigger and they're less fat, sugar and calories...  I'd never have a normal one again!  I only wish they sold them all year round!  So now I've had my first mince pie of the year, let the Christmas holidays begin!

9/10




For more information on The Skinny Bakery, visit their website: https://skinnybakery.co.uk/