Be Better My Friend is launching Be Better – the world’s first plant-based butter 100% designed for pastry professionals – in the UK.
Top chefs to have endorsed Be Better include Philip Khoury, pastry chef at world-famous department store Harrods, and Jordi Roca from El Celler de Can Roca in Girona, Spain, former winner of the World’s Best Pastry Chef Award and twice winner of World’s Best Restaurant Award.
Be Better contains a blend of vegetable oils and fats (shea, organic coconut, rapeseed), which together mimic the melting behaviour of dairy butter.
It is free from allergens, hydrogenated fats, palm oil, artificial colours or flavours, and GMOs, and is suitable for vegetarians and vegans.
A sustainable alternative to dairy butter, Be Better also uses 79% less CO2 and 86% less H20 than dairy butter – significant savings that have been carefully calculated and confirmed by Eaternity, a Swiss agency that specialises in measuring the environmental footprint of food products. There is also no damage to the rainforest involved in its manufacture.
”It’s time to rethink pastry as we know it,” said co-founder Marike van Beurden.
“We no longer have to solely rely on dairy butter to create amazing tasting pastry applications. There is now a highly credible alternative.
“As Be Better is a direct replacement for dairy butter, we make it easy for chefs to craft high quality pastry which in addition is better for the planet, for animal welfare and for their monthly budget.”
The launch is also timeously good news for an industry being severely hit by rising energy costs, as Be Better plant butter is 30-40% cheaper than dairy butter, meaning considerable cost savings for pastry professionals.
The product has a neutral taste, which enables chefs to bring the flavours they want to highlight, like chocolate and fruit, which are sometimes hidden due to the strong flavour presence of dairy butter.
“Be Better respects each of the ingredients a chef has carefully selected,” added Van Beurden.
“With the unique character of our plant butter, we’ve created an ideal flavour transporter. It also offers a similar, rich ‘mouthfeel’, but it is fresher, lighter and less fatty than its dairy counterpart. This is a crucial benefit and a big differentiator from other plant-based butters.”
Be Better My Friend is the Dutch-based company set up by pastry chef Marike van Beurden, food scientist Pere Castells and global food strategist Joost Lindeman. They share a vision to cease pastry’s dependency on animal-derived ingredients by crafting delicious plant-based alternatives and revolutionising the industry.
Their first product plant butter is currently available in nine countries: UK, Germany, France, Spain, The Netherlands, Hungary, Greece, Australia and Singapore and is expanding as its reputation grows.
Cheryl’s Cookies – part of the 1-800-FLOWERS.COM family of brands – has expanded its portfolio of buttercream frosted cut-out cookies with four new flavours designed to add seasonal cheer.
The quartet are hand-crafted with the highest quality ingredients and include:
- Caramel Apple Cookie
- Buttercream Frosted Maple Sugar Cookie
- Buttercream Frosted Cookie Dough Cookie
- Buttercream Frosted Cinnamon Roll Cookie
“Our loyal customers, along with evolving market trends, continuously inspire us to create interesting new flavour combinations,” said Kara Jaggers, VP, Merchandising, Cheryl’s Cookies.
“These new flavours are the perfect complement to our roster of beloved baked goods and give shoppers an exciting new range of options for gifting and sharing in the months ahead.”
The new flavours are available for purchase in their own ‘flavour box’ – with prices ranging from $26.99-$29.99 – or within a variety of seasonal gift boxes and boxes on 1.800-FLOWERS.COM.
Just Desserts Yorkshire has taken inspiration from Christmas classics, but with a unique twist for a new trio of festive bakery treats.
Based in the heart of West Yorkshire, UK, Just Desserts is a family-owned business that started life in 1985 in the renowned Salts Mill, specialising in high-quality handmade desserts.
The new trio will be available throughout retail and hospitality outlets from 14 November and include:
- Mincepie Franzi: A sweet butter pastry case filled with classic mincemeat, topped with ‘frangizan’ sponge and finished with a dusting of sugar snow.
- Ginger & Toffee Christmas Pudding: Classic ginger sponge topped with toffee sauce.
- Candy Cane Cheesecake: Digestive biscuit base with a white chocolate peppermint ganache topping, finished with whipped cream and a sprinkle of crushed peppermint candy cane.
“We want to help create memories this Christmas,” said Kate Williams, GM of Just Desserts Yorkshire.
“We have created something different but equally as indulgent for people to enjoy while dining and taking part in festive celebrations.”
General Mills has announced its limited edition seasonal spread for 2022.
Betty Crocker Reese's Trees Cookie Kit ($4.98): Packed with everything you need to create Christmas tree peanut butter cookies, including cookie mix, frosting and Reese’s Pieces candies.
Betty Crocker Melted Snowman Cookie Decorating Kit ($4.98): Including marshmallow crème frosting, fudge drizzle and candy decorations.
Betty Crocker Seasonal Cookie Kit ($4.98): They perfect treat to leave Santa on Christmas Eve.
Betty Crocker Seasonal Cookie Mixes ($4.98): These limited time mixes are back this year to bring all the fall vibes, including Apple Brown Sugar, Pumpkin Spice, Salted Caramel and Gingerbread.
Pillsbury Seasonal Dough – Shapes (2/$7): The iconic tear-and-bake cookies are available in Turkey, Elf and Winter cut-outs.
Pillsbury Seasonal Dough (2/$9): No measuring or mixing required. Available in 30oz Holiday Sugar, Gingerbread and Candy Cane flavours.
Pillsbury Grands! Hot Cocoa ($6.19): Easy-to-bake treats drizzled with marshmallow-flavoured icing.
Lärabar Pumpkin Pie ($8.69 for 6ct): The iconic holiday pie.
Lärabar Gingerbread ($8.69 for 6ct): Break out the cookie cutters. Cinnamon, ginger and allspice bring the zing, while a splash of vanilla guarantees a smooth finish.
Rudolph Cereal ($4.49 for the family sized pack): Hot cocoa-flavoured reindeer cereal with marshmallows in the shapes of Rudolph’s red nose, blue elf hat and green holiday trees.
Sugar Cookie Toast Crunch ($4.49, family pack): Returning to shelves.
Apple Pie Toast Crunch ($4.49, family pack): A perfect balance of apple and cinnamon, great to break the fast or as a standalone snack.
All products are available for a limited time at grocery stores across the US.
Vegan chocolate challenger brand Ombar has launched its first Ombar Oat M’lk Advent Calendar.
The Advent Calendar is a celebration of the Ombar Oat M’lk range, which has less than half the carbon emissions of mainstream milk chocolate and is made using sustainable British-grown ‘naked’ oats.
Fans can expect each door to unveil a mini bite of one of the brand’s popular flavours. Available from Ombar and from Planet Organic for an RRP of £9.99.
The brand has also launched a LTO festive flavour – Spiced Orange Hazelnut Truffle. A twist on the most indulgent bar in the Ombar range, it features a hazelnut truffle centre infused with spiced orange and enrobed in a dark chocolate shell. Available from Ombar, Plat Organic and independent and health food shops across the UK for an RRP of £3.29.
As with the rest of the Ombar range, both products are vegan friendly, dairy-free, organic, contain no palm-oil or refined sugar and are fair trade. Ten pence from each Advent Calendar and 3p from each bar sold will be donated to Jocotoco, an Ecuadorian NGO working to reforest the Choco Rainforest, a global biodiversity hotspot located close to where Ombar sustainably source its cacao.
“As the original super chocolate pioneers, we never stop creating, and are really excited to be launching our very first Advent Calendar and new limited edition flavour,” said Richard Turner, Ombar’s founder.
“As well as our commitments to ethical production, we pride ourselves in making delicious tasting, rich and utterly indulgent chocolate and are delighted to be able to bring all of these things together in two exciting new festive formats.”
One of the UK's leading better-for-you snack brands is continuing to challenge the snacking space by reformulating its full Propercorn range to be HFSS-compliant.
HFSS refers to products that are high in (saturated) fat, salt or sugar, according to the Department of Health's Nutrient Profiling Model (NPM) and therefore constrained to certain restrictions under the UK’s strategy to combat obesity.
The move sees Proper Snacks supporting retailers with the latest legislation that came into effect on 1 October, but also adds to the brand’s strong better-for-all credentials, including being one of the first B Corp snack brands, as well as being vegan, gluten-free and free from palm oil.
The reformulated recipe extend across 10 products within Propercorn’s ready-to-eat range, including Sweet & Salty, Sea Salted, Salted Caramel, Caramelised Biscuit and Kids Sweet.
It also extend to the brand’s new lightly-ridged potato crisps range, Propercrisps, which were developed in response to growing consumer demand for healthier snacks: with low fat, low salt and low calorie ranking as the top three most important health factors according to consumers looking for healthier crisps. Propercrisps HFSS snacks are available in three cult flavours: Thai Chilli, Cheese and Onion and Flame Grilled Steak.
“Since our inception, we have always prided ourselves on offering better-for-you snacks that never compromise on taste,” said founder Cassandra Stavrou.
“Our reformulated Propercorn and Propercrisps range responds to an unwavering demand for snacks that are satisfying, tasty and guilt-free.”
Propercorn is available in all major retailers nationwide for an RRP of £1.80 (90g), £0.95 (20g) and $2 (6 x 10g bags), while Propercrisps are available in Asda, Ocado, Boots and on Amazon for an RRP of £2 (100g) and £0.95 (30g).
Seabrook is rolling out a limited edition collaboration with favourite British brand, Aunt Bessie’s.
The partnership sees the introduction of three quintessentially British roast dinner flavour crisp pairings: Roast Beef & Yorkshire Pudding, Roast Potato & Black Pepper, and Roast Turkey & Stuffing.
“Seabrook and Aunt Bessie’s are two iconic British brands and we’re really excited to introduce this flavourful collaboration,” said Claire Hooper marketing director at Calbee Group UK, owners of the Seabrook brand.
“Our partnership celebrates classic roast dinner flavours in a shareable size, perfect for snacking with friends and family this season.”
“We know sharing crisp lovers are looking for something new and different to tempt their taste buds, so this Seabrook x Aunt Bessie’s collaboration will allow us to capitalise on that trend within the snack category.”
Seabrook x Aunt Bessie’s thick crinkle-cut sharing crisps are available in 120g sharing bags at B&M, Home Bargains and other major retailers across the UK.