Followers of my blog may know that I've taken part in some wonderful grocery exchanges with the lovely Steffi from Germany. You can take a look at our previous exchanges posts; the original German Grocery Exchange HERE, Part 2 HERE, and Part 3 (the World Cup Edition!) HERE. I'm delighted that Steffi and I were able to arrange another snack swap (last month), and because it was so close to December we decided to make it Christmas themed. Germany is of course famous for it's Christmas markets and traditional yuletide snacks, so I knew that this was going to be an extra special exchange. Here's a quick run down of the delicious Christmas selection that Steffi sent me:
Haribo Color-Rado Winter Edition: This is a new limited edition of the classic Color-Rado Mix from Haribo. Steffi tells me that there are lots of new flavours in this pack and helpfully provided an explanation of all the flavous listed on the back. I'll have a full review soon. There are some really interesting flavours in here - far more unusual than we get in the UK:
Heiße Zitrone - which is a hot lemon type drink (sounds like Lemsip!)Winter Kirshe - literally translates as winter cherry Bratapfel - baked apple (yum!)Vanillekipferl - a classic German Christmas biscuit Karamell-Lakritz - Caramel LiquoriceSchneeflöckchen - "Little Snowflakes" (they have a sweet fruity flavour)Bunte Elche - "Colourful Mooses" - there are different flavours including gingerbread.
Nimm2 Lachgummi: A large bag of fruity gummies. These sweets come in lots of shapes that kids can use to build faces with, and this special limited edition includes Christmas shapes too. If you look closely at the left hand lower corner of the packaging you can see a reindeer made of the fruity pieces. My boys are absolutely loving these sweets - they are so sweet and fruity and the shapes are super fun too!
Yogurette Wintertraum - Bratapfel & Zimt: Yogurette are similar to Ferrero Duplo sticks (and are also made by Ferrero), but are seen as a healthier version as they are made with yogurt flavoured fillings. In our last grocery exchange, Steffi had included the World Cup, Brazil inspired, limited edition Yogurette, which were a tasty white chocolate and lime combination (see HERE). This time there is a lovely "winter dream" edition which is Baked Apple & Cinnamon flavor - doesn't that sound gorgeous? I really wish we could get chocolates with such wonderful flavor combinations here in the UK. These are Steffi's favourites and I can see why, the sweet apple and cinnamon flavours make a delicious pairing with the tangy yogurt filling.
Haribo Weihnachtssterne (Christmas Stars): Another festive treat in the shape of these Haribo Christmas Stars. These are large foam, star shaped sweets in three flavours; cream, vanilla and caramel. The packaging looks wonderful, like a little gift, and would make a lovely stocking filler.
Heilemann Confisene Pralinés: Heilemann is a brand I've never tried before but Steffi tells me their chocolates are delicious. This Christmas selection looks beautiful in it's festive box with a little felt Christmas tree on the front. Inside there are four different chocolates; Gianduja-Nougat, Caramel Crisp, Christmas Nougat, and a marzipan. Each chocolate has a very fine appearance - I'll try to have a review of these soon.
Gewürz Mandeln (Spiced Almonds): These are spiced almonds that are coated in milk chocolate with a Gianduja nougat. The spices in these are described as being not too strong so that even children can enjoy them. These are so delicious! They have a very sweet, almost sugary, cinnamon flavor that is fantastic with the milk chocolate and the crunchy almond inside. I actually found the cinnamon quite strong but these are so sweet that it doesn't become too spicy or overpowering. It's such a simple idea but it works perfectly. And yes, my kids love them too!
Marzipan Kartoffeln: This literally means "marzipan potatoes" and these are a traditional German sweet at Christmas. Not to worry though, they are not actually potato flavoured, just super cute potato shaped marzipan treats. They remind me of potato shaped chocolates that I used to get as a child - anyone else remember those?
Printen - Aachener Schokoladen: Some more traditional treats in the form of these Printen from the German city of Aachen. Steffi gave me lots of interesting information about these which is very useful to share here. Aachen is a city close to both the Dutch and Belgian borders. These Printen are similar to gingerbread, in terms of flavour, but are a bit firmer than Lebkuchen (German gingerbread). There are chocolate coated or plain versions available, and they are described as "spiced cakes" on the packaging but Steffi says that doesn't do them justice. This is one of the treats that I'm saving for Christmas!
Gesüllte Lebkuchenherzen (Filled Gingerbread Hearts): Another traditional treat that I'm saving for Christmas itself are these filled gingerbread hearts. They are coated in dark chocolate and have an apricot jam filling. These are made by a company called Lambertz who are well known for their biscuits. I think they sound really delicious and I'm looking forward to giving these Lebkuchenherzen a try.
Butter Spekulatius: "Spekulatius" is the German version of the speculoos biscuits. There are two kinds available in Germany; Butter or Gewürz (spiced). I have to admit these delicious buttery biscuits were the first to disappear when I opened the parcel from Steffi - everyone wanted to give them a try!
Ritter Sport Winter Editions 2014: Ritter Sport is one of my favorite German chocolate brands and Steffi very kindly included lots of mini sizes of the three new Winter Edition flavours. There is Kaffee & Nuss (Coffee & Hazelnuts - reviewed HERE), Gebrante Mandel (Caramelised Almonds - reviewed HERE), and Vanille Kipferl (Vanilla Crescent Cookie). These mini sizes are adorable!
Ritter Sport Schokowürfel: Steffi tells me this is not a Christmas related product but she had to include it in her parcel because it's new - thank you Steffi! Each selection box is filled with individually wrapped segments of Ritter Sport chocolate. There are three flavours that are all covered in white chocolate; Latte Macchiato, Nut-Almond-Brittle, and Caramel Nut. I love that fact that all the chocolates here are white chocolates - it's such a super sweet collection! Full review coming soon.
I will update here with a photo of the parcel that I sent Steffi in return (once I know she's received it as I don't want to spoil the surprise!). Once it's up I will put "updated" in the title of this post.
In the meantime, I want to send a huge THANK YOU to Steffi for such a special festive Grocery Exchange. I've always wanted to visit Germany at Christmastime (especially for their world famous Christmas markets) and I'm delighted to have so many lovely German Christmas treats to try this year.
Let me know in the comments below if you would like to see any specific reviews for the products above or which one you would like to review first! :)
