Jealous Sweets

I was recently approached by the people at Jealous Sweets who asked me if I would like to try some of their new range of sweets to review, obviously I said yes! I didn't really know much about the company so I decided to do a bit of research. 

Everyone loves to be given something precious – a thing of beauty to be admired. We’ve created a range of mouth wateringly moreish treats to tantalise your tastebuds and all our Jealous Sweets are beautifully crafted and like jewels they’re irresistible.

All our Jealous Sweets are 100% vegetarian, gluten free, full of natural fruit juices and free from artificial colours and flavours.

There are nine different jewel boxes in our range – all created for those with an eye for something special.

Fizzy Friends

I expected these to be sour but I was pleasantly surprised to find that they were simply sweet and fizzy. The fizz worked perfectly with the sweetness to add a degree of interest and intrigue to these tasty little sweets. They came in a variety of fruity flavours, I particularly enjoyed the berry ones. Overall, these were simply delicious!

9/10

Fruitylicious

Once again, I loved these sweets. You really can tell that they use natural fruit juices rather than artificial chemicals and additives, the real taste of the fruits is perfect, the texture of the sweets is brilliant considering they are vegan, and you probably wouldn't be able to easily tell the different between these and regular sweets (I'm talking about texture because their flavour is by far superior!)

9.25/10

Sour Beans

If you enjoy sour things, then you will absolutely love these! They are amazingly sour, yet still have plenty of flavour to satisfy you and make the experience delicious. They had a nice crunch from the crispy shell and a brilliant chewy quality from the inside. These came in what I can assume were berry based flavours, I think that this was a smart move because they would have been too strong otherwise!

8.75/10

Skittles Crazy Sours

I know this may sound absurd, but I have never actually had Skittle's before. They had just never really appealed to me, and when i finally did develop a slight curiosity for them I realised that they weren't actually suitable for vegetarians! And, as expected, when I knew that I couldn't have them I only wanted them more... 

So my mum treated me to not just one bag, but three so that I could get the whole Skittle experience. I am a big fan of sour sweets so I decided to try the 'Crazy Sours' first.

I shall go through them by flavour and colour because there is a good chance that I have got the flavours wrong... (The see no evil monkey emoji would have been perfect here, but I am a professional so I shall refrain).

Green (Apple)

I am pretty certain that this flavour was apple, and it was the very first one that I tried. I am glad that I went with this because it tasted a lot like a deliciously tart and crisp Granny Smith Apple! It was sour enough to make your mouth water, but not so much that it was painful to eat, so definitely a win in my opinion.

Orange (Orange)

Even I could identify that this flavour was orange, and if I'm honest, this was by far my least favourite flavour. It tasted really artificial and I found myself leaving most of them out if I'm honest or giving them to my Mum to eat. So this flavour wasn't too great and I think it could do with being taken out of the mix and replaced with a more interesting flavour like pear or perhaps even lemon & lime! Comment below with any better alternatives!

Pink (Raspberry or Strawberry)

This was my favourite flavour, I loved that they had a sour tang that helped to cut through the very sweet flavour of some berry-I am not entirely certain what berry, but I am confident that it was a berry. I think that his was my favourite flavour but I actually really enjoyed all of the flavours so it is only a slight favourite.

Purple (Blackcurrant or Blackberry)

This flavour was a bit sourer than the other flavours but again it worked well, the fruitiness came through well and I enjoyed this flavour, whatever it was.

Yellow (Pineapple)

This was a really nice flavour and probably the strongest in its sour flavour, but this was probably because pineapple is naturally a sour fruit. The flavour only intensified as you chewed away at it.

Rating - 8.25/10

Vegan - Yes

Calories - 218

Buy Again - Yes!

Starburst

Starburst are a staple sweet in the UK and from what I have seen they are very popular in the U.S. With a larger variety of limited editions than we get here, but when do we ever get the exciting flavours ? Anyway, that's enough of my pet peeve, I will get onto the review.

Now I do realise that most people will have tried Starburst before (or Opal Fruits as they were formerly known) but I feel that they deserve a review seeing as they are a national treasure and accidentally vegan! 

Blackcurrant

These had a good strong flavour, and unlike many Blackcurrant flavoured things, it wasn't unpleasant. I tend to avoid Blackcurrant flavoured things for this very reason because often they are too tart or just flavourless but these Starburst seem to have perfectly mastered the combination. Sweet but with a slight sour tang. 

Lemon & Lime

I think that these are my absolute favourites in the pack. I love the fresh flavour of the citrus and how the flavours are so natural tasting. They taste so refreshing, which I one is an odd description to apply to a sweet but it is true. 

Orange

It is shocking how much this actually tastes of fresh oranges. The flavour is just wonderful, I am a lover of all things orange but it is very rare that it is done well and by done well I mean tasting natural. It is obvious that the people at Starburst have used real fruit juice to flavour it rather than artificial additives and it really does shine through.

Strawberry

This flavour was sweeter than the others, but because this was strawberry it worked perfectly. The flavour shone through brilliantly and it is obvious why Starburst are such a well loved sweet all over the world.

Rating - 9/10

Vegan - Yes

Calories - 182

Buy Again - Yes!

Rainbow Drops

As you will have worked out, I am a massive fan of all things sweet, so you can imagine how much I would love the sugary puffed rice delights that are Rainbow Drops. 

Basically, they are crunchy, crispy, sugar coated rice snacks that come in a variety of colours. 

They are absolutely delicious providing you have a sweet tooth and a craving for nostalgia. Both of which I have. 

I really enjoyed these as a treat because they remind me of being little and my mum letting me have a rare sugary treat. They are also surprisingly low in calories considering how moreishly sweet they are, in an 80g bag only 215 calories. 

Rating - 8/10

Vegan - Yes

Calories - 215

Buy Again - Yes!

Freedom Mallows Strawberry

Marshmallows like most sweets, typically contain gelatine which is derived from animals, therefore it is suitable for neither vegetarians nor vegans. Marshmallows are my all time favourite sweet and I miss them dreadfully (perhaps the allure is primarily there because they are off limits).  But thanks to Freedom Mallows I can once again enjoy my favourite treat! I have been looking everywhere for the strawberry variety of these sweets because after trying the original vanilla I was hooked! 

Upon opening the bag, I was greeted with a lovely smell of strawberries mixed with the classic marshmallowy sweetness, the marshmallows themselves were soft and squidgy and brought back many a childhood memories of eating Flumps. They have a very moreish quality to them that means it is very difficult not to eat the whole bag, obviously I have very little restraint… Although, I did allow my mother to try one, and she actually said that they taste better than the regular variety, so a glowing recommendation indeed!

Rating – 9.5/10

Vegan – Yes

Calories – 342 per 100g

Buy Again? – YES!

Reese's Pieces

Peanut butter has to be a favourite of mine, although I am normally put off eating it because of how calorie dense it is. So that for me is a bit frightening (I'm a tad odd I know).

Because of my love for peanut butter, it is no surprise that I am a big fan of Reese's products then seeing as they specialise in peanut butter. I was however surprised when I found out that their Reese's Pieces were vegan (as far as I can tell anyway). 

Basically, Reese’s Pieces are tiny buttons of peanut butter coated in a crispy sugar shell, the peanut butter is classically salty with a sweetness to it. They are incredibly moreish so I try to make them last as long as possible by eating them one by one and letting them melt in my mouth. My dad looks at me with disdain whilst he eats them two packets at a time ( I will let you decide who the mad one here is… )

I am a big fan of these and they are actually pretty low in calories considering the large serving size of 43g. A chocolate bar of this size would probably come in at about 250 calories whereas these are only 214 calories. I know calories aren't everything and taste is the most important thing so I won't go on about it anymore!

Overall, I love these and I have added several bags to my stash and can't wait to eat my next bag!

Rating – 9/10

Vegan – Yes

Calories – 214

Buy Again – Already Have!

Slim Fruits Sweets

This week I received a lovely package in the mail from the kind people at 'Slim Fruits', with a selection of their products. 

Slim Fruits, they’re sugar-free, fat-free and packed with fibre so they fill you up, not out.

Slim Fruits’ best selling sweets are the world’s first product to harness the beneficial properties of soluble fibre.  Once eaten, they combine with water in the stomach and swell which helps to suppress in between meal hunger pangs and leaves your sweet-treat craving well and truly satisfied in a healthy way. 

The pastilles come in two flavours; Luscious Peach Melba and Luscious Rhubarb & Strawberry. At only two calories a pop and packed with the same fibre content as six slices of wholemeal bread - minus the carbohydrates and fat - Slim Fruits has created the dieting Holy Grail: sweets that help rather than hinder slimming.

So I was intrigued to try these sweets, initially I was concerned that they would taste quite artificial but thankfully that was not the case at all! They were natural in flavour and pleasantly sweet. The rhubarb flavour was definitely my favourite and they actually reminded me of rhubarb and custard which was rather enjoyable.

Overall I enjoyed these sweets and found them to actually be quite filling much to my surprise! 

Rating - 8/10

Vegan - No

Calories - 2 per sweet

Buy Again - Yes

Freedom Vanilla Marshmallows

Marshmallows are probably the one thing that I miss most about being a vegetarian. I don't miss bacon or sausages or steak (okay I do sometimes have the odd craving for steak with chunky chips and peppercorn sauce, but I digress) but I do miss the foamy goodness that is marshmallows and sweets in general! 

I have been trying to hunt down these marshmallows for absolutely ages so whilst in town I went into the local Holland & Barratts and I spotted them, so I quickly went to the counter to buy them. 

Now, onto the review. They don't look like marshmallows if I'm honest, but they do smell lovely, with strong vanilla hints that are a good sign. The marshmallows themselves are incredible, seriously. I cannot get over how delicious they are, they taste just like regular marshmallows and the texture is just as good. The texture was my main concern as I was worried that they would be like Haribo Funny Mix but no, they are light and fluffy and just magical!

I can't wait to try the other flavours and products that Freedom has to offer!

Rating - 9.5/10

Calories - 339 per 100g

Vegan - Yes

Buy Again - Yes!!!

Nanobytes!

Now, I am a bit of a lover of all things sweet so when I was offered the opportunity to try out this brand new product I jumped at the chance. 
There is a lovely little back story that comes with them too! There is even a story behind these Nanobytes - some time ago, far far away in space, the sky was filled with edible planets drifting dangerously close to the stars. ‘Planet Nano’ collided with a star and exploded, filling space with lots and lots of little sweets, until Project-Nano astronauts (Nanonauts) were sent out to collect these rare, delicious sweets and bring them back to Earth for our enjoyment

They have a good range of flavours from the classic cola to the fruity strawberry to the deliciously sweet bubblegum

so there is a flavour for everyone, my favourite was definitely the strawberry but when I let my brother sample them he said that he preferred the cola so it is all down to personal preferences. 

The flavour as you will have guessed was rather sweet, they had  a crunchy outer coating with a soft chewy centre! Just one handful is enough to satisfy a craving for sugar!

Rating - 7.5/10 

I must state that all views stated are my own and my families but I did receive these as a free sample to review