I tried out the weirdest Christmas food from supermarkets including jalapeno pigs in blankets and creme brulee nuts

CHRISTMAS classics have been turned upside down this year by supermarkets bringing out wacky alternatives. 

From chocolate cheese and spicy pigs in blankets, to passionfruit martini panettone and crème brulee flavoured nuts, you can now buy a new twist on every Christmas staple.

Reporter Rosie Taylor tried a festive feast of new flavours from Tesco, Asda, Morrisons and Aldi.

Here she gives her verdicts on the best and the worst:

The best

Morrisons The Best Cheese & Jalapeno Pigs in Blankets

• £3.25 for 210g

This version of the classic pigs in blankets had a great meaty taste with a fiery kick.

There wasn’t an obvious cheese flavour but they were rich and moreish.

A great alternative to the original – but only if you like spice. 

• Score: 8/10

Aldi Specially Selected Barber's Coastal Cheddar With Wasabi & Ginger

• £2.49 for 200g

I wasn’t expecting to like this because it sounded like a crazy combination of flavours but, surprisingly, it worked.

It was a decent cheddar with tasty ginger pieces and a very subtle hint of wasabi – although if I hadn’t been told it contained wasabi I might not have noticed it was there. 

The overall combination made for an interesting cheese which would perk up your Christmas cheese board.

• Score: 7/10

Morrisons The Best Passionfruit Martini Panettone

• £6.50 for 500g

I was hit by the smell of passionfruit as soon as I opened the packet of this Morrisons panettone.

It had a great passionfruit flavour, boosted by candied passionfruit pieces – but there weren’t many of them so the panettone was lacking in fruit.

The dough was soft but claggy in places.

The ingredients list said it contained vodka, although I couldn’t taste this.

It would make a unique alternative if you’re bored of classic panettone.

• Score: 7/10

Asda Exceptional Clementine and White Chocolate Yule Log

• £12 each

This luxurious Asda yule log was like a mash-up between a chocolate orange and a Swiss roll.

It had a festive chocolate orange flavour and was coated in a soft sweet, vanilla flavoured icing.

It was beautifully decorated too, so would look lovely on your table at Christmas.

But it was so rich I could only manage a small slice – although this means it would feed a big crowd.

• Score: 8/10

ASDA Fabulous Crème Brûlée Flavour Cashews

• £2.50 for 150g

I was expecting these nuts from Asda to just taste sweet, but amazingly they did also taste exactly like crème brulee.

They had a vanilla and burnt sugar flavour – like sweet popcorn or the crunchy topping of a crème brulee – and were extremely moreish. 

• Score: 9/10

Morrisons The Best Camembert & Roast Garlic Chutney Crisps

• £1.35 for 125g

These were great crisps by Morrisons.

They were thick and crunchy, with skin on the edges.

The flavour of camembert was cheesy but not too strong, and was balanced well with a hint of sweet garlic.

If you’re looking for an alternative to standard crisps this Christmas, this flavour would make the perfect start to a festive feast.

• Score: 10/10

The worst

Tesco Finest Cranberry & Orange Pane-toastie

• £5.50 for 500g

You are meant to slice and lightly toast this “pane-toastie” from Tesco – and it is worth following this instruction because it is horribly dry if you don't.

But when toasted, the panettone turns soggy and is difficult to get out of the toaster.

It also burns quickly because of the high sugar content.

I found it had a strong, unpleasant smell of burnt sugar – even when toasted lightly – and the dough crumbled into nothing in my mouth.

Although it was full of fruit, it was all pretty tasteless.

It was a bit better with a some butter on, but I’ll be sticking to either teacakes or panettone in future as this mash-up didn’t work.

• Score: 3/10

Aldi Brie and Cranberry Candy Cane Pigs in Blankets

• £2.49 for 248g

These alternative pigs in blankets by Aldi were shaped like candy canes.

I found they were sickly sweet and the melted cheese centre - which was supposed to be luxuriously gooey – just gave the sausage an unpleasant mushy texture.

I couldn’t finish mine – but the kids loved it. 

• Score: 5/10

Tesco Wensleydale with Blueberry and White Chocolate

There was very little that was good about Tesco’s alternative Christmas cheese. 

When I cut into the blue wax wrapper, the cheese inside was grey with purple and brown patches – which looked really unappetising. 

It was only after I read the small print on the back that I realised it contained caramel, which gave it a strong sugary taste.

It also explained the brown patches.

It should have been made clear on the front that caramel was a major ingredient because it’s a surprise to find this in a cheese.

It could have worked as a dessert, as it was a bit like a solid blueberry mousse. But as a cheese it was all wrong. 

• Score: 2/10

Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@news.co.uk.