Review: Marks & Spencer breakfast products

I used to skip breakfast, as I never had an appetite for it. I am not sure if it is because of the anxiety about going to school (I always felt "different" from the rest and it was hard for me to adjust to the group) or that I just ate enough during dinner time and that I didn't feel hungry yet the next morning. Nowadays, I have started to enjoy eating breakfast. Especially, with the cold weather. I sometimes wake up earlier to make a warm breakfast, such as the pumpkin rice porridge, of which I shared a recipe before on my blog.

Since I don't have much experience eating an elaborate breakfast every morning (suggestions are very welcome!), I was starting to run out of ideas. Luckily, Marks & Spencer has a lot of breakfast products that I had never seen or tried before. After paying many visits to their stores, I was able to try a lot of breakfast products that wouldn't look too bad on the Christmas brunch table.

In total, I will review 7 breakfast products, ranging from pancakes, scones, bread, and sweet pastry. I have shown this on my blog before, but I want to mention it again that the Marks and Spencer sesame bagels are great buys too. If you think that they are a bit too expensive, I have seen them getting discounted very often after 17:00. Most of the times, I visit the Marks & Spencer store in The Hague and Amsterdam after a long day of shopping and right before I go back to Rotterdam (in case, I buy food that needs to stay cool). I always see food items with yellow stickers on them, discounted to a more affordable price.

Marks & Spencer sultana danish

Marks & Spencer sultana Danish

One pack contains two hand twisted Danish pastries filled with lemon custard and sultanas with fondant icing topping. I really liked the almost croissant like pastry covered with a sweet, sugary fondant icing. In the center, there are some sultanas, with just a tiny bit of lemon custard here and there.




Marks and Spencer devon scone

Marks & Spencer Devon scone

One pack contains 4 all butter scones enriched with buttermilk and clotted cream. On the packaging, it states that I just need to add jam. To be honest, I never ate a scone before, so I don't know how a good scone is supposed to taste like. To me, it tasted a bit like a dense and hard piece of bread. I couldn't really taste the butter, buttermilk, or clotted cream, which is supposed to be in there. I think it would taste better with some clotted cream after all, because the thin layer of strawberry jam that I put on it, didn't moisten it enough for me to enjoy it.  


Marks and Spencer iced raspberry soft buns

Marks & Spencer iced raspberry soft buns

One pack contains 5 iced raspberry soft buns filled with raspberry jam and topped with raspberry flavored soft icing. It has the shape and taste of a small soft bun, which I can normally get at the local supermarket, but with an added raspberry flavor. The raspberry flavored icing was a nice surprise, as I never tasted a raspberry flavored icing before. Most of the donuts and pastries here in the Netherlands, just use the standard, pink strawberry flavored icing. The jam filling was also really tasty and not too much. 


Marks and Spencer classic crumpets

 Marks and Spencer classic crumpets

One pack contains 6 classic crumpets (don't mind the empty packaging, as I ate most of it, before I was able to take a picture of it). You are supposed to put it in the toaster for 1-2 minutes, but I fried them in a pan on both sides for a few minutes and it worked too. This is one of my favorite breakfast products that I discovered at the Marks & Spencer store. It has a crunchy exterior and a soft chewy center. It tastes really similar to the Dutch "oliebollen", which I can only get in November and December. Whenever I craved for some "oliebollen", I used to get a pack of Marks and Spencer crumpets, but now, I guess, I have to learn how to fry "oliebollen" myself instead.   


Marks and Spencer mixed roll selection

 Marks and Spencer mixed roll selection

One pack contains 6 rolls (two of each kind) made with 30% seeds, oats, and grains. When I saw it in the store, it looked very healthy, so I just thought that I should give it a try. Although they all look very different, they all taste similar to the brown rolls that I normally get at the local supermarket. In a way, it is nice that it is healthier and not tasting weird because of that (good for children!), but I expected it to have some more flavor. I liked the one with the roasted sesame seeds on top the most, as it added some flavor to the bread, but two other ones were not very special.

Marks and Spencer scotch pancakes

Marks and Spencer Scotch pancakes

One pack contains 6 small Scotch pancakes made with golden syrup. I really liked these pancakes, as they are soft and a bit chewy. It is also great that they aren't too dry. It tasted a bit similar to the ones I bought from 7-eleven Japan, which had a sweet honey flavor. With these, you don't really taste the golden syrup itself, but the exterior of the pancake has a bit of a browned/caramelized flavor.


Marks and Spencer raisin and maple pancakes

Marks & Spencer raisin and maple pancakes

One pack contains 6 moist and springy pancakes made with real maple syrup and topped with raisins. These pancakes are less browned than the previous ones and they taste a bit simpler (making the raisins and the maple syrup shine more). To me, they are also a bit softer and fluffier. It is a bit too sweet for me in the morning, so I prefer eating it as an afternoon snack with some tea to accompany them.  



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