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Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary

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Review: Our Top Five Picks – Christmas

Published on December 7, 2016 by Elizabeth Atia

Issue 15 of our weekly bite-sized review series.

Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary - Top Five Picks #15

This week has been all about the Christmas food! We took delivery of the most posh Christmas food hamper we’ve ever received, taste tested some authentic Italian dishes, nibbled on gingerbread, gave a free-from supermarket brand range a taste test and tried out some new non-stick baking paper.

Cartwright & Butler The Harrogate Christmas Hamper – Available exclusively from Harrods this luxury Christmas hamper contains everything you’ll need for Christmas entertaining. Items include jams and chutney, honey comb, biscuits, crackers, tea and coffee all packed into an incredibly attractive duck egg blue wicker hamper. There’s a rather awesome cheese board too. I am pretty sure this is the most posh foodie item ever to enter my kitchen, and a full review will follow shortly! RRP Ā£250

Tesco Free From Christmas Range – Don’t let food intolerance get in the way of creating special memories with friends and family this Christmas. Tesco’s affordable Free From range gives you all the taste without any compromise on flavours. Check out their iced fruit cake slices, mince pies, chocolate truffles, salted caramel sponge, pastry cases, sage & onion stuffing, vegetable gravy granules and bread sauce mixes. Prices from 35p.

Italinary – “The Italian Palette of Taste” Start Box. This new foodie subscription box service from Italy features eight authentic Italian ingredients for an appetiser, main course and dessert for four people. This month’s appetiser: the traditional Italian cocktail bar – salami, tarallini and Taggiasca olives. The main course: linguine al pesto Trenette alla Taormina followed by a dessert of soft amaretti biscuits. Subscriptions start from Ā£51.90 per month with free delivery direct from Italy. A subscription would be great gift idea for any foodie in your life.

Bacofoil Non-stick Structured Baking Paper – the newest addition to the Bacofoil range. Use this fab new non-stick paper for all your Christmas baking this year. It also makes a great mat for rolling out pastry, or to make a piping bag out of! Available in a 10 metre roll for Ā£2.50 at your nearest supermarket.

Bahlsen Lebkuchen Mischung –Ā A colourful assortment of gingerbread pieces from the makers of the classic Pick Up bar. These festive treats are decorated with glazing and their delicious chocolate; perfect for sharing at festive gatherings with friends and family. They also make a Marzipan Stollen, a traditional German cake made at Christmas and zimsterne, delicious iced cinnamon stars. Look out for them at Waitrose and Ocado. Prices from Ā£1.50.

Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary has received samples of all the above products. This is not a paid post and all thoughts and opinions expressed are our own. Thank you for supporting the brands who make it possible for me to do what I love: mess up my kitchen and share recipe stories.

Category: Product, Review

About Elizabeth Atia

Daydream adventurer. Expat Canadian. Foodie. Calls Shetland home.

Previous Post: « Coconut Mint Christmas Chocolates Coconut Mint Christmas Chocolates + Giveaway
Next Post: Review: Cartwright & Butler’s Harrogate Hamper Cartwright & Butler - The Harrogate Luxury Christmas Hamper »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Amy Hunt

    December 9, 2016 at 10:24 pm

    Baco foil is a must have for sure. I think good quality baking products make the job so much easier!

    Reply
  2. Jessica McDonnell

    December 8, 2016 at 9:06 pm

    Great pick of products. That hamper sounds dreamy and I will definitely check out Tesco’s free from range – I don’t go to Tesco that often but I’m vegetarian and dairy free.

    Reply
  3. Agata

    December 8, 2016 at 7:35 pm

    Oh wow! What a wonderful hamper! I truly wish it would end up in my kitchen too.

    Reply
  4. Crystal

    December 8, 2016 at 6:05 pm

    Wow, these look and sound amazing. Grear picks!

    Reply
  5. Rhian Westbury

    December 8, 2016 at 12:32 am

    I think it’s so good that so many supermarkets are doing gluten/ dairy free alternatives so the tesco range looks so good x

    Reply
  6. Ickle Pickle

    December 7, 2016 at 9:13 pm

    The hamper looks just incredible! I love the sound of the Italian subscription box. I love Italian food. Kaz x

    Reply
  7. Sarah Irving | Susty Meals

    December 7, 2016 at 6:29 pm

    Gosh they look and sound amazing! I noticed the lack of veggie option as well, Anca.

    I like that there is so much out there for everyone’s budget though.

    Reply
  8. Anca

    December 7, 2016 at 5:42 pm

    Italinary sounds interesting, but they don’t seem to have a vegetarian option. The Bahlsen Lebkuchen Mischung is the one I would like to try, I love gingerbread and marzipan.

    Reply
  9. Choclette

    December 7, 2016 at 2:18 pm

    What a lovely lot of goodies. I adore the cheeseboard and the unusual blue of that hamper too. As for gingerbread, December is truly the month to indulge.

    Reply
  10. Ana De- Jesus

    December 7, 2016 at 12:10 pm

    Wow that sounds fantastic , I bet that Tesco’s free from range would be so tasty. That Christmas hamper looks incredible as well!

    Reply

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About Elizabeth

Adventurer. Expat Canadian. Foodie. Loves bikes. Calls Shetland home. Read More…

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“Every day is another chance to get stronger, to eat better, to live healthier, and to be the best version of you.”

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