WHEN it comes to sweet spreads, shop shelves are choc-full.
The latest addition is a Mars bar in a jar.
And the chocolate and caramel-striped paste will be the next big thing, according to food mag Delish.
It reckons it’s perfect: “Stirred into porridge, slathered on toast or just eaten from the jar with a spoon.”
It joins the likes of Milky Way, Maltesers and Crunchie, which are all available in spreadable form.
Here Kate Jackson and her sons Dylan, eight, and Joe, six, give their taste verdicts and combined family score out of five.
And we see how many calories and grams of sugar they contain compared with the bars that inspired them . . .
Mars
£1.99 (350g), Aldi
CALORIES: 114 cal per 20g
SUGARS: 11g per 20g
Mars Bar (51g): 90cal and 12g sugar per 20g
KATE SAYS: “Not a big fan of Mars bars but this is a revelation. Delish is right about eating it straight from the jar.”
DYLAN SAYS: “It’s like being in outer space, it’s so good.”
RATING: 4.5
Twix
£1.99 (350g), Aldi
CALORIES: 113 cal per 20g
SUGARS: 11g per 20g serving
Twix bar (50g): 99 cal and 9.8g sugars per 20g
KATE SAYS: “The crunchy biscuit bits are good but I’m not that keen on the caramel flavour.”
JOE SAYS: “It tastes exactly like a Twix but not as nice as the others.”
RATING: 1.5
Maltesers
£2 (350g), Asda
CALORIES: 109 cal per 20g
SUGARS: 11g per 20g
Maltesers packet (37g): 100 cal and 10.4g sugars per 20g
KATE SAYS: “I love that the sweets have more malted crunchiness than choc, but this is the other way around. Still good.”
DYLAN SAYS: “Crunchy but I can’t taste the inside of the Malteser.”
RATING: 3
Cadbury Caramel
£1.99 (400g), Aldi
CALORIES: 115 cal per 20g
SUGARS: 11.2g per 20g
Cadbury Caramel bar (45g): 97 cal and 10.6g sugars per 20g
KATE SAYS: “The caramel is slightly bitter. I think this one is definitely better on toast than on a spoon.”
JOE SAYS: “Got a really milky flavour. I like it.”
RATING: 3
Milky Way
£1.99, Aldi for 350g
CALORIES: 114 cal per 20g
SUGARS: 10g per 20g
Milky Way bar (21.5g): 90 cal and 12.4g sugars per 20g
KATE SAYS: “It’s got that Milky Way flavour spot on – out of this world. If you like the bar, you’ll be a fan of this spread, too.”
JOE SAYS: “It’s like the bar. Really good.”
RATING: 4.5
Crunchie
£1.99 (400g), Aldi
CALORIES: 111 cal per 20g
SUGARS: 11.4g per 20g
Crunchie bar (40g): 91 cal and 13g sugars per 20g
KATE SAYS: “Like an explosion of sweet fireworks. That Friday feeling is way too sweet."
JOE SAYS: “It made my head hurt.”
RATING: 1
Crispy M&Ms
£2 (350g), Asda
CALORIES: 112 cal per 20g
SUGARS: 10g per 20g
M&Ms sharing pouch (121g): 99 cal and 11g sugars per 20g
KATE SAYS: “All I can taste is hazelnut, which I’m not keen on. Disappointingly too much like Nutella.”
DYLAN SAYS: “It had loads of crunchy bits and it’s really nice.”
RATING: 3
Lotus Biscoff
£2.30 (400g), Tesco
CALORIES: 117 cal per 20g
SUGARS: 7.4g per 20g
Biscoff biscuit (8g): 96 cal and 7.7g sugars per 20g
KATE SAYS: “Anything with Biscoff is a big hit in our family and this is a firm favourite.”
DYLAN SAYS: “It tastes just like the Biscoff biscuits. I love it.”
RATING: 4.5
Lindt Hazelnut
£4.50 (200g), Asda
CALORIES: 112 cal per 20g
SUGARS: 9.2g per 20g
Lindt Excellence creamy milk chocolate bar (100g): 113 cal and 10g sugars per 20g
KATE SAYS: “Much more of a grown-up taste, very rich but too nutty for me.”
JOE SAYS: “I hate this one.”
RATING: 1
Cadbury Milk Chocolate
£2.60 (400g), Morrisons
Most read in Fabulous
CALORIES: 114 cal per 20g
SUGARS: 10.4g per 20g
Dairy Milk bar (45g): 107 cal and 11.2g sugars per 20g
KATE SAYS: “The original and still one of the best. Heaven on a plate . . . or just on a spoon.
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DYLAN SAYS: “I can’t describe it, it’s just so good.”
RATING: 4
MUM'S VERDICT
THE boys couldn’t believe their luck when they saw this sweet haul – and of course they kept retesting, “Just to make sure”.
Great on toast, but I reckon these bars in jars would be even better on pancakes, crumpets and waffles, and in cakes and milkshakes. There are so many possibilities.
I’ll definitely be trying them in my porridge, too – and then putting them under lock and key to save my waistline.