Pret Veggie Christmas

We do like when shops bring out a proper veggie offering. After all, Christmas is not just for meat eaters. 

This sandwich has a had good texture and I thought that the nutty stuffing was actually better than the stuffing in Pret's meat sandwich. Cold veggies in sandwiches can be a worry, but the butternut squash filling wasn't too offensive. There was a small amount of lingering onion after taste but a reasonable overall effort. 

6.5/10 we've had better but we gave one to our vegetarian colleague and she was satisfied. 

Pret Christmas Lunch

We had big expectations for this sandwich and, although it was ok, it didn't blow us away. Firstly, the bread was a little dry. In the spirit of honesty we should admit we didn't eat it on the day of purchase, as you are meant to with Pret, but logistics mean this is often the case.

As you can see from the photo, Erin took half the sandwich before I took the photo but you can also tell from the picture that the filling was slightly uneven. The stuffing was breadcrumby but good and didn't have a lingering onion taste. The cranberry sauce was the best we've had so far- unique, slightly tangy and not at all jammy. As all cranberry sauce should be. 

Sometimes we are unsure about greens in the Christmas sandwiches, but these worked and added texture.

A strong 7.25/10 but this won't be a winner in our books. Pret have rested on the laurels this year and the Festive Sandwich crown is still up for grabs. 

Tesco Turkey and Trimmings

Before I start this review, yes we do know that Tescos are doing a chocolate and cherry festive sandwich and yes we are going to eat it, without preconceptions. In fact, we went to Tescos to buy it but they didn't have it in stock so we bought the Turkey and Trimmings sandwich instead. Out first sandwich disappointment of the season.

The photograph illustrates where some of the problems lie: all the fillings are unevenly spread and jammed in the middle. There was tons of sauce but it wasn't tasty and it made the bread soggy. The sausages were in lumps and Erin didn't even believe me there was bacon in it until I showed her the label after we had eaten it. The bacon was in very small chunks, like poor quality pancetta. The stuffing was also almost impossible to find- just a few small crumbs. This sandwich was shoved together with no thought; it relied too much on poor quality, salty turkey and didn't have any redeeming qualities. 

I ate my sandwich in the work canteen and half way through I got jealous of a colleague's meat pie, abandoned my sandwich and ate the pie instead. A good choice. Poor Erin didn't realise we had all gone down for lunch so ate her sandwich alone in the staff room. I'd like to offer her this public apology for going through this disappointment alone.

As a side note, you can buy this as a triple sandwich. Don't. Eating more of it won't make it any tastier. 

It wasn't disgusting but a very poor, beige effort. 4/10 

Like getting a poor quality bubble bath gift set from your secret Santa.

Co-op Truly Irresistible Pigs Under Blanket.

Co-op can be a hit and miss contender in the festive sandwich game. Last year they had some strong contenders, such as the Boxing Day sandwich- which I'm please to see they brought back this year- but they also have brought out some duds. The less said about last year's Festive Feast (complete with cold turnips) the better.

So it was with slight trepidation I brought the Pigs Under Blankets today, especially as it boasted the Truly  irresistible label; I want more from a sandwich it it is not available in a meal deal! I'm pleased to report Co-op have pulled it out of the bag with his one.

The sage bread was huge thumbs up: it was soft, lightly herby, untainted by the heavy filling AND the crust was really good - quite like a fine pizza.

The turkey was good but perhaps a little drier than M&S. The stuffing wasn't too overpowering but felt it was on the slightly strong end of the spectrum, although it didn't become too much, even with the sage bread. 

We really appreciated how thinly they'd sliced the pigs in blankets... Erin commented that she never thought she'd say less is more when it comes to pigs in blankets, but for a sandwich you've got to be careful with P.I.B overload: just because the P.I.B is the best part of Christmas, doesn't mean you want a huge lump of pork disrupting your sandwich. 

It was a strong 7 from Erin and I'd have given it an 8 so we'll call it 7.5, meaning it's currently our highest scoring sarnie.

 It played the dangerous game of heavy meat filling but managed to pull it off. Good effort.

M&S Brie and Grape

Here's one for the vegetarians. Brie and grape with a port chutney. I was dubious but it was surprisingly good. Creamy Brie, crisp lettuce and despite all the wet ingredients, it avoided becoming soggy. The oat bread was nice and there was a good range of textures. I thought it lingered in the stomach a bit and made me feel sick an hour later but Erin says she was fine and reckons my sickness was un-sandwich related. 

7/10 I probably wouldn't eat it again but I'd have no qualms in recommending it to a vegetarian. 

M&S Turkey Feast.

Firstly, sorry for the false start on the blog. After an unexpected delay in starting, we are now ready with our first review.

M&S food is synonymous with Christmas eating so this seemed like a good place to start. We are also fans of some sandwich profits going to charity; it relieves us of some of the guilt we get from eating so many.

We actually ate this sandwich twice as we weren't in the right frame of mind the first time we ate it (Erin scoffed hers before 10am and I was generally moody.) This has thrown up a new element - quality control. On first eat I thought my sandwich seemed to have too much bacon but on revisiting it was the right amount.

The bread was nice and soft. The whole sandwich had a good amount of moisture without being soggy. The cranberry sauce was pretty good; I wondered if it was a bit jammy but Erin was a fan. 

The meat was decent quality, which we expect from M&S. The stuffing was ok and not too heavy; it brought something to the sandwich but didn't linger into the afternoon. In fact, despite being a high calorie sandwich, it didn't stick in the stomach at all or lead to the dreaded post- sandwich indigestion.

A fairly solid sarnie. Nothing amazing or groundbreaking 7/10

We Are Stuffed

We are ready to get started on this year's Christmas sandwiches. This year we are documenting our lunches on Instagram: we.are.stuffed and on this blog. Here's a strong sandwich from last year that received 8.75/10. Looking forward to seeing what M&S bring to the table this year.