Good and Bad Buys at Lidl and Aldi stores (***Please don't expire***)

Rosa_Damascena

HouseMartin567 said:

Katiehound said:

Sorry, didn't note the seasonal prices, I was a bit gobsmacked to see folk buying mince pies! which go out of date in November! No, I didn't look but chatted to someone who was buying them.
I remember their open top ones, with a lattice? & shaped like a little flan (rather than sloping sided) were very delicious.

But is it just societal convention that tells us we should only eat mince pies at Christmas?! I would eat them all year round if available 😂 The first ones I saw/bought this year were the Lidl basic ones and I think they were about £1.40. I’ll take a look at the Aldi offering this weekend; last year they did some delicious ones with a crumble topping.

Last year's offerings were not particularly good. If you have one with your tea in the morning and one in the evening as a snack that's an extra 500 calories for no good reason. Combined with the price - £2.50 for 6? - which I thought was steep, I could leave them on the shelf. 

Brie

You can all have my portion of mince pies/tarts/whatever.  And Christmas pudding. 

I'll take the shortbreads and the brandy butter.  (for dipping or spreading depending on consistency)

Katiehound

I love mincemeat too! But rather than buy mince pies I tend to buy jars of mincemeat (when reduced, if possible!) Then I make mincemeat tart, or mincemeat & apple sponge , mincemeat bakewell... etc. The bought individual pies have just too much pastry and not enough filling!
Found a Christmas pudding last week- buried in a bag of goodies for my shoeboxes. What a find!

PLRFD

Katiehound said:

I love mincemeat too! But rather than buy mince pies I tend to buy jars of mincemeat (when reduced, if possible!) Then I make mincemeat tart, or mincemeat & apple sponge , mincemeat bakewell... etc. The bought individual pies have just too much pastry and not enough filling!
Found a Christmas pudding last week- buried in a bag of goodies for my shoeboxes. What a find!

I would be tempted to pour some whiskey or brandy on the top to cover then repeat every week or so.

pumpkin89

Rosa_Damascena said:

Last year's offerings were not particularly good. If you have one with your tea in the morning and one in the evening as a snack that's an extra 500 calories for no good reason. 

But surely you'd be eating something else if not mince pies?  Anything is going to look like a lot of calories if it's in addition to your normal food intake!

Rosa_Damascena

My December mince-pie-and-fortified-Irish-cream habit is borne of greed rather than hunger. I'd love to know when Aldi has version of Baileys on offer?

Katiehound

Aldi already have Gluhwein, Mulled wine & gingerbread something (drink I mean) in stock. will try to remember to look next week at other drinkies.

HillStreetBlues

With the Lidl app  from Oct there will be a free sweet bakery treat once you have reached a £10 spend

Rosa_Damascena

HillStreetBlues said:

With the Lidl app  from Oct there will be a free sweet bakery treat once you have reached a £10 spend

I tend to do small / low cost shops at Lidl - suits me well as I get some exercise out of it. So unlike in the summer, I am unlikely to be tempted by a bakery incentive. Which is just as well as cakes, pastries and alcohol were taking their toll. 

Funny how I am happy to destroy my health with these things but not my pocket!

fdama

For those that love Branston Pickle, just tried Batts Sweet Pickle from Lidl and is almost indistinguishable from Branston's. It's very good. I tried Aldi's a couple of years ago and did not like it and assumed this would be the same. It costs £1.19 for a 360g jar versus £2.10 for Branston's at Tesco.