Ültje Cashews & Erdnüsse Honig und Saltz

 

Cashews and peanuts flavoured with honey and salt. Sounds tasty doesn’t it? But somehow this German nutty snack didn’t quite work for me.

Oh, the Chef snacked them down quite happily but I felt the nuts were a just bit too hard. Which made more of a difference than you might expect. Call me picky.... I know you will.

I’m sure they have many fans in Germany.

Carrefour Boules à la Tomate

I wasn’t at all sure about this crispy snack. I mean, it’s a maize puff with added peanut so it should be a bit like these Peanut Flips but it really isn’t. Because it has added extra tomato flavour. Is this a good idea? 

I’m not sure. I think this peanut and tomato combo is a little odd.

This crispy snack has a very off putting smell (more snacks do than you might suppose) and the taste is.... like bolognaise sauce with extra added lemon, or chocolate. I know! Weird eh? The bite is lovely and light but the flavour dust is a sinister dark red which doesn’t look too good on your fingers.

I think I probably won’t be finishing this packet. 

Chio Flips Peanut

I never had a peanut flavour crispy snack (that wasn’t an actual peanut) before my friend Giraffe Fan Taste Tester (who is Jewish) bought me a packet of Bamba peanutty snacks from the local Jewish deli. I learned these are a staple for Jewish children, certainly in North London, probably all over the world. And the ex-chairman of my ex-work told me he was convinced eating this crispy snack prevented Jewish children from suffering the really nasty peanut allergy that afflicts so many British kids. Who knows? It’s just his theory.

Then I discovered the French also fancy a peanut snack like this one from Carrefour. And here’s another from Serbia. And here’s a great big guess: it’s likely there are lots of peanutty crispy snacks produced all over the world. So why can’t you buy a peanut snack in the UK? (Unless you have access to a source of kosher food.) Well, gosh! Probably because we are all so set in our ways there isn’t any danger we might try something a bit different.

So here’s a peanutty snack from Germany which the Chef and I found in Switzerland.

It looks as though it would be the same as a Bamba snack, but it has a harder bite. The Chef thought it would be saltier, but it wasn’t. He also thought it would be sweeter like the fabulous M&S Cheese Tasters, but it wasn’t. And obviously it wasn’t cheesy either. Oh dear. I have discovered that quite a lot of the reasons why you enjoy (or don’t enjoy) a crispy snack are about expectations. The Chef expected something else and so he didn’t really like this peanutty snack. 

I rather enjoyed it. So long as you expect a peanutty taste and a crunchy bite you might enjoy this too.

Stark Smoki with Fresh Peanuts

I was a bit surprised to find this peanutty snack from Serbia in our local Turkish deli. Actually I really don’t know why because I’ve discovered all sorts of goodies there in the past.

This snack looks exactly as it does on the packet, which is not always the case, and reminded the reluctant taste testers of Bamba, the popular Israeli peanutty snack, beloved by Jewish families everywhere. Or so we were assured by our dear departed (busy being a mother to two very active little boys) Giraffe Fan taste tester who ought to know.

Living as we do in North London we can buy Bamba any day at a selection of supermarkets and delis, and we have tried a Macedonian version, so maybe a peanuty snack is always a good bet in the former Yugoslavia?

I’m also pretty sure we have tasted and approved a French version,  so it’s always a bit of a surprise to the reluctant taste testers that there isn’t a British version of this tasty snack.

Chimpeys Baked Peanut Snack

Noble Friend went on a cruise recently and brought back four packets of crispy snacks from Malta. Who knew that Malta would be such a mecca for fans of crispy snacks?

Never having seen anything like this little packet of Chimpeys the reluctant taste testers speculated as to whether the snack would be chimp-shaped or not. I confess I was pretty sure it wouldn't be, but History Graduate taste tester agreed with me that a chimp-shaped snack would be rather wonderful. Not chimp-flavoured. Obviously. Because that would be silly.

Anyway, what do you get  in your Chimpeys bag? A small crunchy snack, not unlike a Cheesy Wotsit or a Cheeto but brown. And a delicate but definite peanut taste.

Despite my disappointment at the shape I rather enjoyed this snack and would be very happy to try it again. The small bowlful was snacked up well before lunch.

In place of the usual little guy throwing away his rubbish responsibly, we have a jolly sun inviting us to keep our country tidy. Which I will attempt to do.

Have you noticed that Tarzan is not dangling from the branch of a tree but from the chimp?

Vico Crazy Craq Spicy Lovers

This squirly crispy snack from France isn't quite what I was expecting.

I thought it was probably a maize based snack but instead it's a maize and peanut based snack. If I had read the packet I would have known that of course. The crunch is heavier than it would be without the peanut. And the odd sounding "spicy lovers" flavour (at least I suppose that's the name of the flavour) is only a gentle chilli flavour. Nothing too adventurous.

But the combination of peanut and chilli, plus onion and tomato and the ever popular "spices", is really extremely tasty. The reluctant taste testers and I liked these spirals a great deal. In fact I liked them much more than I was expecting and ate rather a lot.

Yum! I'd buy these again I think. I may have to. There was nothing left in the bag to take home to the Chef and he was a bit miffed.

Belin Croustilles Cacahuète

Another fabulous crispy snack from French company Belin owned by Kraft Foods France (says the packet). But the Belin Croustilles Gout Emmental seemed to be owned by Mondelez International and no mention of Kraft Foods at all. Oh the weird and wonderful world of crispy snacks.

This packet I found at the local Budgens. Amazing. Well done Budgens. What a thrill.

So this maize-based crispy snack is sort of twig shaped. Sort of like Twiglets, sort of like Nik Naks. Sort of not.

It's got a pleasant softish bite and this flavour tastes (of course) of peanuts. Not at all sweet and only a little bit salty, peanut flavour Croustilles are rather good.

The reluctant taste testers liked these a lot. The bowl I set out in the kitchen didn't last any time at all. One of the pickier testers thought it a "grown up" taste.

A nice soft crunch and a great big peanut taste. What's more to say? It wasn't quite what we expected but we liked them a lot.

According to the packet there's a goat's cheese version. That would be fun to try.

Vico Curly Cacahuète

Another purchase from a French motorway service station, this 60g packet calls itself "Format Pause" which roughly translates as break size.

The packet tells me that Curly have made crunchy crispy snacks for more than 50 years: de delicieux produits soufflés et croustillantes, pour des apéritifs conviviaux et des pauses gourmands, depuis plus de 50 ans. What really puzzles me though is that they've called themselves Curly for more than 50 years when the products are not. A little curved perhaps, but not curly.

I bought a massive load of crisps on our way through France. The Chef has described me as rushing into the shops and buying everything in sight. No rushing was involved in my shopping but I confess I didn't always pay very close attention to what I was buying. So I didn't even notice that what I'd bought was not a cheesy maize snack, but a peanutty maize snack instead.

After the initial surprise (I should have noticed really because the flavour "cacahuète" is a bit of a giveaway) I thought these crispy, and quite crunchy, snacks were rather good. The reluctant taste testers at work finished the packet with no trouble at all so I guess they rather enjoyed them too.

A really interesting peanut snack. Very similar texture and crunch to the usual cheesy maize snacks, with brown sprinkles rather than orange flavour dust. You can also buy Curly Les Maxis, Curly Les Minis, and Curly Les Balls. None of them particularly curly. Deary me! Miles Kington, the late lamented godfather of Franglais, must be enjoying this.

In case you feel the need of a Curly website, here it is. Apparently there's a whole Curly community you can join, and even a Curly Bro' University! I'm sorry to say I haven't really investigated. But you may like to.

Vico Dixi

At least, I think this crispy snack is called Vico Dixi. Either, or both, is/are a French brand from euro snack giant Intersnack and both are listed as brands on Intersnack.fr. And Vico seems to be the second (second to what I have not discovered) brand in the French snacking market.

Whatever... here we have a fluffy little ball of maize and peanut (un boule de maïs soufflé croustillante) flavoured with tomato. Each little ball is about the size of my thumbnail if that big, so not very large, and they are rather more-ish. Quite light, a little dry in the mouth but not off-puttingly so, really rather peanutty, and with a delicious tomato taste. And a rich tomato colour. The packet says the taste is un gout tomate intense et irristibles; and that's about right.

The packet also says that Vico is the king of aperitif  - by which I suppose it means the king of snacks to go with your gin and tonic, or glass of sherry. Or in my case today, a glass of white Swiss wine. Johannisberg since you asked.

Made without preservatives or colouring, and I imagine from the list of ingredients that they are suitable for vegetarians although the packaging does not say so. No palm oil. And made in France.

Avoid at all costs if you are allergic to peanuts: otherwise give them a try. Probably available at a supermarché near you if you happen to be in France (I only saw them at one motorway service station).

The newspapers say it has been the most horrible summer in Switzerland since 1965. My family went to Holland that year for our summer holiday and I can just remember it being freezing cold and very wet. Ever eaten an ice-cream on a freezing cold dark day in a howling gale? You would remember it too. It was lovely here on Thursday and Friday - lizards in the garden enjoying the sun - but today (Sunday) it is grey and wet and dark. So we have a wood fire even though it isn't as cold as it looks, a polar on the TV and a selection of interesting snacks to try. And we thought these little crispy balls were rather good.

Bamba Peanut Snack with Hazelnut Cream Filling

Yes I know. These crispy snacks sound a lot more like miniature biscuits than a savoury snack. But I found them on the same shelf as the savoury crisps. Honest.

I put some in a bowl at work without an explanation or description and it seems that everyone thought they were getting something sweet. Well, they are sort of sweet. You get a soft crunchy corn outside which is salty, and a creamy hazelnut filling - a bit like Nutella - which is sweet.

I rather liked these. And it seems most of the taste testers did too. Even though they felt cheated at not getting a mini sweet biscuitty thing.

But I wish I had read the ingredients list more carefully before this 60g packet was finished (it didn't take long). I failed to notice the rosemary. I didn't notice any rosemary in the taste. Either I must remain forever baffled or I have to buy another packet. As if the house wasn't full enough of crisps as it is.

Another ingredient, and one which sounds a bit dodgy to me, is cellulose. Which  is used to produce paper. And glue. And mainly produced from wood pulp and cotton! OK, let's not suppose that these peanut snacks are made of wood pulp. Of course not. But it does sound odd doesn't it?

Suitable for vegetarians, no cholesterol, no food colouring. Kosher. Contains 0% Vitamin A and C, 0% calcium and 0% iron. Isn't that a strange thing to have in your Nutrition Facts? Contains genetically modified cornstarch and soybean.

I wonder about the long and obviously complicated process used to make these crispy peanut snacks. Not to mention the food miles. I think perhaps I won't get a second packet.

Made in Israel by Osem which is owned by the Swiss multinational food and beverage company Nestle. They get everywhere don't they?

Bamba Peanut Snack

My lovely friend Giraffe Fan taste tester very kindly bought me a 25g packet of Osem Bamba peanut snacks to try.

Giraffe Fan taste tester tells me this is what Israeli children eat. Apparently she ate them too as she hung around with a load of Iraeli kids when she was growing up. I asked suspiciously if she would still eat them and she indicated that yes, she certainly would. She has a wide, sincere smile.

I asked because (very sorry) the packaging design is so ghastly I was not encouraged to try these at all, but rather put off. The dreadful cartoon baby is really rather... dreadful. Honestly I can't imagine why any company would choose such an image to advertise their product. Once again the product is not really aimed at me but I still don't see why the baby motif would appeal to children even if it is brandishing weights.

Anyway, to the snack. The smell is very strongly peanut (49% on the ingredients list) but not salted peanut. The finger feel is smooth and rather soft, and there's no flavour dust. Fairly crunchy, the snack seems to be a reconstituted mix of peanut and corn. Initially there is not much taste but the texture is smooth and velvety, quite unusual, and after you chew you get a soft velvety paste to eat.

The best bit is the sweet, salty, peanutty after-taste.

I can easily see that if you grew up eating these you could find them delicious but I'm pretty sure I would never buy them for myself. The Chef tried them too so it's not just me. Wikipedia tells me the flavour is peanut butter and not peanut at all, but I can't see any evidence of this on the packet - unless it's the small bit in Hebrew in the corner although I suspect not.

Useful info: they are pareve kosher and you never know when that will come in handy. The package tells me Rabbi Jacob Moshe Charlap monitors this for Osem Israel (owned by Swiss conglomerate Nestlé).

Two slightly weird extras: these snacks come with a U certificate as though they were a film, and also I need to protect them from the sun. I wonder why?

Also available in strawberry says Wikipedia. Hmmnn... I'm not sure about that.