Summer is finally here! The season of BBQ's, picnics and delicious treats.
One of my absolute favourite treats in summer time is any piece of fruit paired with chocolate.
Can you think of anything more delicious than chocolate covered strawberries or bananas...neither can I!
Luckily Hotel Chocolat had the same idea and they have an amazing range of summer selection boxes
on offer.
I was lucky enough to be asked to do a review of their Island Smoothies.
These chocolates are so delicious, summery, fruity and full of flavour.
The packaging is simple yet stylish, making it A LOT more alluring than supermarket chocolates, but the main star here is the chocolate of course! Hotel Chocolat has a strong ingredients philosophy and only use wholesome, real ingredients. Their overall mantra is "more cocoa, less sugar" and this definitely reflects in the creamy texture and full flavour.
The island smoothies selection box offer four different flavours
apricot smoothie (Magnificently fruity and tender apricot ganache wrapped in soft white chocolate.)
banana smoothie (Lashings of banana paired with our high-cocoa white chocolate.)
passion fruit smoothie (Tangy, juicy Passion Fruit truffle blended with sumptuous white chocolate in a milk chocolate dome.)
Saint Lucian breakfast smoothie (Lashings of zesty lemon and grapefruit blended with smooth coconut, all soothed by creamy white chocolate.)
I served them for dessert with a selection of fresh fruits and they went down a treat.
My favourite was the banana smoothie closely followed by the passion fruit one!
At only £10 these are a bargain and ideal as a teacher gift, as a little surprise for a friend or even as a treat to yourself and oh...just think about how happy you could make the hostess of the next bbq you're invited to when you bring a box of these along for dessert!
If Island Smoothies aren't your thing don't fret,
they have a huge range of summer selection boxes for you to choose from, all of them perfect for sultry afternoons and magical midsummer eves.
I was sent the Island Smoothies selection box for reviewing purposes and would hereby like to thank Hotel Chocolat for the opportunity!
All opinions are my own.
Back in December I did a review for Hotel Chocolat, which you can read here, so I was over the moon when they asked me if I wanted to do another review for one of their Easter chocolates.
Having the kids in mind I choose the You Crack Me Up extra thick Easter egg.
I just loved all the adorable figures and knew they would be delighted as well.
One of the first things I noticed was the careful wrapping and packing.
Having broken eggs is not a lot of fun and Hotel Chocolat does keep that in mind!
The egg itself came in a gorgeous and sturdy box, which Emily has already laid claim to, no doubt to store some of her many treasures.
The main star here is of course the chocolate which is just so delicious.
I would recommend everyone who reads this to head over to their nearest Hotel Chocolat shop or go to their website and have a look at their egg-citing (see what I did there, haha) Easter range. You won't regret whatever you add to your basket and you certainly won't regret eating it.
So, back to the You Crack me Up Easter egg.
Both shells are made from their delicious blend of 40% milk chocolate and high cocoa white chocolate.
It makes for the creamiest and smoothest chocolate ever.
Me and my camera were to slow to capture them, before I could blink they were gone.
Blame it on this munchkin and her dad!
I really wish you could have been here to hear the exciting squeals as my kids saw the adorable figures.
Both of them immediately pointed out which ones they wanted to try and continued on to read the menu to find out what was inside these delightful pralines.
Chocolate brownie, milk praline fried egg, smooth caramel bow tie bunny
white soldiers, milk chocolate chick, crunchy praline
I can tell you right now, each and every one of them was delicious!
Full of flavour, creamy and chocalicious.
The kids and husband were of course more than happy to help me sample them and we each had a different favourite.
Simon's favourite was the chocolate brownie, which had crispy chocolate butter cream encased in milk chocolate.
Emily's was the white soldiers, a creamy white chocolate soldier pre-dipped with a dollop of creamy chocolate yolk.
Dylan's was the smooth caramel bow tie bunny, a dapper Easter bunny cast in smooth and sensual caramel milk chocolate.
Mine was the crunchy praline, crunchy biscuit pieces and praline encased in mocha chocolate. I could have easily eaten a whole box of these!
As a family we really enjoyed this Easter egg. Its so much more tastier and a lot more fun than the Easter eggs found in the supermarket.
If you want to make someones Easter extra special this year then I would seriously recommend this egg.
Fun for adults and children and oh so tasty.
It retails at £28 and you can buy it here or at your local Hotel Chocolat store.
I was sent this Easter egg by Hotel Chocolat for reviewing purposes and would hereby like to thank them for this opportunity!
All thoughts and opinions are my own.
When I was asked if I wanted to review one of the Hotel Chocolat's Christmas selection boxes I didn't need to think very long!
The chocoholic in me was literally doing a little dance.
I was given the choice of some amazing Christmas selection boxes and decided to go with the
Sleekster Classic Christmas selection.
A few days later the box arrived and I was over the moon with my choice!
Now this isn't just any chocolate selection box, oh no, it's so much more luxurious and elegant than the chocolate boxes you can buy in the supermarkets.
The packaging is beautiful but more importantly the chocolates were well protected on their travels!
No one wants broken squished chocolates right!
The classic Christmas selection has 28 chocolates and offers a selection of whites, milks and darks.
The chocolates themselves are beautifully decorated and their taste is exquisite.
There really is something for everyone in this box!
Needless to say I had a hard time deciding which chocolate to go for first but I settled on the
Christmas Mess
(Fabulously fruity cranberry ganache and strawberry mousse with meringue sprinkles)
Boy oh boy, this chocolate did not disappoint and it was definitely my favourite.
It was like a little taste explosion, full of flavour but not in a sickly way.
fabulous!
I quickly moved on to sample some others and they were all sublime! Here are some of my other favourites.
Pistachio praline crunch, Mulled port, Caramel supernova, Chambord Royale
All of them were just divine!
I did feel I had to share this box and the kids and husband were more than happy to help.
Dylan chose the 50% Milk Bauble and Emily Chose the White Chocolate and Vanilla Bell.
I would love to comment on these particular chocolates but before I could even ask for a little nibble they were devoured!
The kids verdict: " yum yum, can we have another one?!"
So, with Christmas lurking around the corner why not surprise someone with this Classic Christmas selection. It would make the perfect gift to any chocolate lover and a fantastic introduction to
Hotel Chocolat.
It retails at £23 and is well worth the price!
You can purchase these in store or online.
Disclaimer: I was not paid for this review but did receive the chocolates free of charge.
All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Thank you to the lovely people at Hotel Chocolat and Blogger Outreach for the opportunity!
