Letterbox brownies
Exeter-based Cake or Death Bakery creates some of the UK’s most loved bakes, available for delivery through your letterbox across the US.
It has also developed a range of vegan brownies that are everything a brownie should be and more: fudgy, indulgent and very moreish.
Founder Katie Cross started her vegan bake business in London in 2019, and soon racked up a firm local following. The pandemic prompted the business to shift to online, devising its consumer letterbox brownie boxes. Named after an Eddie Izzard sketch, Cake or Death is as irreverent and subversive as the comedian herself.
The brownies come in a variety of flavours – think Peanut Butter, Biscoff, Salted Caramel, Coffee Bourbon, Candied Orange and Almond Cherry Bakewell, among others – packaged in the bakery’s signature pink leopard print.
Regular boxes contain 6 brownies (large: 10 brownies) and can be made up of a solo flavour or an eclectic mix of the baker’s best buys.
For the die-hard brownie enthusiasts, Cake or Death is available as a monthly subscription with varying price points, starting from £17.50
Over the rainbow
Popcorn Shed is proud to be celebrating Pride, releasing a limited edition multicoloured Vanilla Caramel gourmet popcorn and donating part of its website sales in June to the LGBTQI Organisation’s Emergency Fund for people caught in the conflict in Ukraine.
The producer’s Rainbow popcorn is designed for the bold and colourful popcorn lover.
“You’re fabulous, jazzy and dazzling. We call it ‘Rainbow Shed’ as it’s filled with sunshine, positive vibes and sprinkled with a little fairy magic. Rainbow is the universal symbol of hope and promise. Guaranteed to put a smile on your face. Be bold, be colourful, be you,” said the company.
“At Shedquarters we have taken this time to reflect on what being proud means to us. We’re not only mad about popcorn but we care deeply about people. Equality starts with creating awareness and visibility.”
For the month of June, Popcorn Shed will be donating 10% of all website sales to Giveout, a non-profit that helps human rights organisation OutRight in providing emergency shelter and support to the LGBTQI Organisation in Ukraine and neighbouring countries.
“This is our way of showing our PRIDE in what we do and show our support and solidarity with the LGBTQI+ community,” said Sam Feller, director of Popcorn Shed.
“We are really aware of the inequality many face. Not only in the UK, but everywhere in the world. So, a deafening applause for all organisations and people who are committed to change this.”
Available on Amazon and from the company, the 80g Rainbow Shed has an RRP of £1.20; 240g Letterbox Gifts £14.99; and 500g Rainbow Bulk Bags £20.00
Neon pink party
Another brand proud to be celebrating Pride is Kellogg’s Pop-Tarts, partnering with queer illustrator Thaddeus Coates and NEONxGLAAD to co-create its first-ever Pride product, NEON Pink Block Party Lemonade.
This limited-time offering marks the first time Pop-Tarts has engaged an artist to create images for not only the packaging, but the frosting, too. According to Coates, the designs are “inspired by a summer block party – a celebration of a community that doesn't prioritise fitting in over living authentically.”
The best part? During June, fans are invited to shop NEON Pink for $5 via Instagram, with proceeds going to support the community via four BIPOC LGBTQ+ groups across the US.
These include the Salt Eaters Book Shop in California, Destination Tomorrow (Bronx borough and Atlanta); Nobody’s Darling, a queer and POC-owned bar in Chicago (also a James Beard award finalist); and Bronx Book Festival/The Bronx is Reading.
Pop-Tarts will spotlight each of these non-profits on social throughout Pride, and will also provide each with a $10k grant to continue their mission to foster inclusive spaces. Plus: Pop-Tarts is also committing $100K to GLAAD to continue its work accelerating acceptance for the LGBTQ+ and BIPOC communities.
But hurry. Only 450 boxes of NEON Pink Block Party Lemonade Pop-Tarts will be made available, so get your bid in fast.
A little taste of France
French bakery manufacturer Bridor has launched Mini Filled Croissants for hospitality outlets looking to satisfy consumers seeking indulgent moments; suitable for breakfast and on the go occasions, also for conferences, events or to share at home.
Rich in butter, these organic treats feature all the characteristics of a French Viennese pastry, made using an exclusive mastering technique so the filling is evenly distributed within the whole croissant.
Available in four enticing flavours – including Cocoa and Hazelnut (chocolate-chip topping intensifies the cocoa notes), Apricot (fruity and tangy), Raspberry (with a stand-out pink sugar topping) and Custard Cream (also with a sugar crystal topping for added crunch).
The Mini Filled Croissants are sold in a 40g ready-to-bake format and fall within Bridor’s clean label ethos, made from ingredients that are all of natural origin. The only tolerated exception is ascorbic acid for its important role in the rising of the dough and extending shelf life.
Validating the power
Borna Foods is flexing its Trail Mix credentials with a new listing, a new format and new packaging.
The brand’s award-winning Trail Mix will be rolling out in WH Smiths in the UK in July 2022. It will also extend its healthier snacking footprint with a brand new 40g pocket-sized pouch and 100% recyclable packaging.
According to the brand, the current craving for unprocessed, moreish snacking offering a heady blend of energising carbs (dried fruit) and healthy fats (nuts) was always going to find favour within today’s increasingly health-conscious snacking fixture.
The growing move away from overtly sugary and processed propositions has left the door ajar for all-natural, vegan-friendly propositions to find their voice and stake a claim within the discerning snacking bays and intuitive grab-and-go impulse fixtures of major footfall retailers.
This is exactly the strategy Borna Foods has adopted, building on its hard-earned reputation for best-in-class dried fruit and nut snacks. It was back in the early 1960s when trail mixes first forged inroads in the snacking space, quickly becoming the go-to treat for at-one-with-nature outdoorsy types and sports adrenalin junkies.
Borna Trail Mixes comes in two variants in 125g sharing bags and 40g pouches, running the gamut of enticing nibbles like blueberries, sour cherries, cashews, toasted coconut and Single Origin Tanzanian chocolate, among others.
Abracadabra
Kellogg’s iconic Cheez-It brand has spawned a bright little star: Cheez-It Puff'd – “a crazy-craveable, puffy and airy snack baked with 100% real cheese inside and out. Every Cheez-It Puff'd starts with a crunch and transforms into a melt-in-your-mouth, indulgent taste that vanishes on your tongue – it must be some kind of magic,” said the snacking giant.
To walk the talk, Cheez-It Puffed teamed up with celeb magician Justin Willman to devise two cheezdefying magic tricks – one so stealthily simple it will inspire budding illusionists to channel their inner magician.
Willman shows fans his stealthy moves on his social pages, including TikTok, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
Cheez-It Puff’d Side Down – the conjuror defies the laws of gravity, mystically making Cheez-It Puff’d float and fly away. Vanishing Cheez-It Puff’d – Willman then repeatedly makes Cheez-It Puff'd vanish at his fingertips. A trick so simple, yet still astonishing,
“Every Cheez-It Puff’d delivers a poppable, airy bite that starts with a crunchy outside layer and transforms into a melt-in-your-mouth, indulgent taste – just like magic,” said Erin Storm, senior marketing director of Cheez-It.
“With at-home magic tricks resurging in popularity on social media channels, our partnership with Justin takes the absurdly uplifting snacking experience of Cheez-It Puff’d and provides families with a magical snacktime activity.”
Added Willman, “Nothing beats blowing fans’ minds with clever – yet shockingly simple – illusions, especially when it’s a trick that anyone can perform, regardless of their magic experience.
“I’ve always been a Cheez-It fan, and now I’m a Cheez-It Puff’d fanatic. So, creating magic with one of my favourite snacks that encourages families to come together and recreate an illusion has been a magical experience.”
Find Cheez-It Puff’d at retailers across the US in three varieties – Double Cheese, White Cheddar and Scorchin' Hot Cheddar. Fans can also share their magic trick performance attempts and tag @CheezIt and @realjustinwillman on TikTok for a chance to be featured on Willman's social media channels.
The spicy side of love and marriage
The flavour masters at Pringles are satisfying American’s craving for spicy and sweet combinations – with a zing of heat.
Introducing limited edition Pringles Wavy Chipotle Ranch, which comes packed with the heat of smoky chipotle soothed by a creamy, zesty ranch in one extra bold crunch. Be it tripping to a favourite holiday spot, backyard barbequing or pool lounging, these new crisps are sure to hit the spot this summer.
“We’re always listening to what our fans crave and pride ourselves on delivering insanely accurate flavour combinations in a single wavy crisp,” said Mauricio Jenkins, US marketing lead for Pringles, Kellogg Company.
“These new crisps boast the perfect balance of spicy and sweet with flavour first and heat second, all while providing Pringles Ranch devotees and snackers alike with a new way to experience this classic bite.”
Pringles Wavy Chipotle Ranch will be available at Walgreens stores nationwide while supplies last.
Berry happy
With the stinging stress of COVID quickly dissipating, it’s time to refresh office snacks to help workers power through their day in a healthy way. Studies show that not only do free snacks at work boost employee morale and productivity, but they also have a low impact on bottom-line expenses compared to pricey health insurance or 401(k)s.
Keeping those office snacks healthy is where Naturipe comes in. People are still snacking in record numbers, and berries are an easy way to snack healthy and make nutritious choices.
The wholesome 5,5oz snack packs come in two variants – Bento Bliss and Boost – carefully curated with strawberries, blueberries, granola, speciality cheese, roasted nuts and chocolate. Packed with protein, fibre, vitamin C and calcium, the ready-to-eat, portable snacks are definitely more exciting than your ordinary bag of chips.
Available online and from selected retailers across the US, in the produce and refrigerated snacking sections.
Prodigious newcomers
Natural confectionery brand Prodigy has debuted in the biscuit category with Phenomenoms.
Positioned as “your favourite chocolate biscuits reimagined”, these clean-eating alternatives are made in a ‘thins’ format and come in two variants: Chocolate Digestives and Chocolate Oaties.
Not only are they better for you and better for the planet, they are plant-based and Vegan approved, wheat-free and contain just half the sugar of a typical chocolate biscuit. They are also high in prebiotic fibre to support gut health, contain zero palm oil and no refined sugars. True to the brand's ethos, the biscuits are also plastic negative as Prodigy removes five ocean bound plastic wrappers from the environment for every product sold. The biscuits also have their climate footprint offset as part of the brand’s work to be Climate Neutral working with Climate Partner.
“This is such an exciting launch for us as we continue on our mission to inspire the evolution of chocolate. We believe we’ve really hit the spot with chocolate biscuits that not only taste incredibly moreish, and that are of course dunkable, but that are also better for you and more sustainable,” said Prodigy founder Sameer Vaswani.
The biscuits are launching initially with Holland & Barrett for an RRP of £2.29/128g. They are also available from Prodigy and will follow with rollouts in wholesalers like Tree of Life, The Health Store and CLF. International listings are also confirmed in Australia, Hong Kong, the Middle East and Ireland.
Added Sian said Sian McDermott, assistant category manager, food at Holland & Barrett.
“Prodigy’s ethos aligns perfectly to our own values of offering nutritionally supportive foods that are also kind to the planet. We are confident the new biscuits will be a hit with our customers.”
My kind of snacking
For the first time, KIND is touring the US in its personalised ice cream truck to give Americans a real frozen treat experience.
KIND will be making stops across the country to give away thousands of its creamy KIND FROZEN Treat Bars. Make sure to be at the designated spot in your town to grab a bite of the plant-forward bars, featuring almonds or peanuts. In flavours like Dark Chocolate Almond Sea Salt & Nut, Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate & Nut and Mint Chocolate Almond & Nut, the treat is guaranteed to have folks chasing KIND’s ice cream truck all summer.
But that’s not all. To top off the all-summer-long celebration, KIND is also launching summer-edition merch inspired by the bars, including a KIND Snacks pack, hanging plant waterer and custom stick-on nails. The limited edition line will be exclusively available from KIND, while supplies last.
This month, too, KIND is showing its LGBTQ+ support, and launched KIND Pride bars (which will actually be available all year long), available in Milk Chocolate Peanut Butter.
In addition, KIND will be donating $125,000 to the Ali Forney Center, the nation’s largest non-profit providing vital support to homeless LGBTQ+ youth, with $25,000 going to helping LGBTQ+ youth in Florida.
First of its kind
Plant-based food producer Outstanding Foods has launched a market first with Dairy-Free Cheese Balls, expected to take the brand into a new stratosphere.
Known for its wildly popular Outstanding Pig Out Crunchies (formerly known as Pig Out Pigless Pork Rinds) and the paradigm-shifting Outstanding Puffs (the first snack to have a good source of 20 vitamins and minerals), the US producer expects its dairy-free cheese option to also become the addictive go-to.
According to Outstanding Foods, it’s time that the much loved cheese snack gets a healthier makeover, especially as more people are choosing to follow a plant-based lifestyle.
Outstanding Cheese Balls, crafted by Dave Anderson, former executive chef at Beyond Meat, are highly nutritious, with 4g of protein and 20 vitamins and minerals per serving, including iron, zinc and vitamins B12, B6, D, E and A. They are also soy- and trans fat-free, vegan, gluten-free, kosher and non-GMO, and come in four flavours – Chedda, Bacon Chedda, Jalapeno Chedda and Garlic Parmesan.
“Cheese balls are a nostalgic snack most of us grew up on, but for so many who avoid dairy for a variety of reasons, our Outstanding Cheese Balls will bring back those smile-filled memories with the great taste everyone loves and the nutrition we all need,” said Bill Glaser, CEO and cofounder of Outstanding Foods.
Outstanding Foods has also had a brand refresh, with a new logo and new packaging for the Pig Out Crunchies and Puffs.
Snacks are available at retailers across the US – including Whole Foods, Walmart, Costco, Safeway and 7-Eleven, as well as from the company and on Amazon – in 3oz bags (RRP of $4.49) and 1.25oz packs (RRP of $2.49).