aah! Bisto Limited edition pigs in blanket gravy

You can really taste the rosemary and thyme with a smoky flavour but unfortunately I'm not keen on rosemary and thyme.

The delicious dessert Co raspberry funfetti yum yums

Finally got my hands on these sweet treats.
The yum yums were definitely sweet and lovely however I felt the pastry could have been lighter or risen more as it was a bit dense.

This particular branch of TESCOs have improved as they no longer obscuring the pretty product with labelling which is now stuck at the base.

Lidl Gingerbread plait [special guests]

The gingerbread plait was surprisingly nice.
It was like eating a crunchy pecan plait but filled with sweet crunchy sugary gingerbread cookie puree.
So you can imagine the filling tasting like a pureed gingerbread cookie with crunchy sugar in it.
The pastry is just the regular plait puff pastry.
Worth a try because it is different.

Lidl deluxe octopus carpaccio

I have been wanting to try this for years but held back because the ones I had in the tin were not nice.
Ultimately you can't beat restaurant slow cooked or fresh ones.
Anyway, it was surprisingly nice in terms of mouth feel because it was springy and not mushy.
Flavour wise, you have to eat a fair bit to notice the taste of the octopus because you taste the heavy oils and lemon which is ok but some might prefer a balanced taste of octopus and seasoning.
I would say, it was ingenious that they serve them as carpaccio slices because some parts can be quite tough so by thinly slicing it served in the oil, it makes it much tender to eat.

Brazilian Nissin miojo caldinho de feijão instant noodle

When I saw this, I had to try it because caldinho de feijao is my favourite Brazilian bean stew!!
The packet is slightly different to other instant noodles because it is flatter.
The noodles are also very different in the sense they are thinner and flatter.
Despite the noodles being thinner, they take just as long to soften up during cooking.
There are no beans in the instant noodles but I enjoyed the bean stew flavouring.
On the noodle packet, it features a Brazilian comic character Turma do Chico Bento.

Rice and Broad beans with dill by Hani Foods

Spotted these long boxes of ready meals at this international convenience shop in Eastbourne so I thought I'd give it a try because I love Persian food.
The container was unique because it was a huge flat tin which you boil.

I got the Rice and Broad beans with dill and there was an aubergine one too but from experience Persian dill rice never fails.

Unfortunately, I didn't check the expiry date as it had already expired but it should still be ok to consume.

To my surprise, if you microwave it the rice tastes as good as the ones I tried at the restaurants.

The texture was soft and fluffy and it was tasty.

There are so many other products from Hani Foods, I would love to get my hands on like the celery stew and ash reshteh (soup).

@hani.foods

https://www.hanifoods.com/

Takfoods sour cherry falooda and honey melon ice cream

Got these Takfood products from a local international store.

They look middle Eastern because of the flavours especially the falooda but they are somehow made in Poland!

The honey melon ice cream was palatable with a strong melon taste but was a bit too sweet.

The sour cherry falooda was disappointing as you could only taste rose.