Bad Baker - Berry & Dark Chocolate product reviews

Never been a huge fan of berries in general, except strawberries, but I have found that cranberries are quite tolerable when dried and used in baking, so this was a flavour I was pretty sure I would fine at least tasty, if not more. Oh boy, was I right! It was love at first bite - so glad I took on a pack of these to review.

The cookie itself has a wonderful semi-soft texture that holds together well - so, there is a minimal risk of crumbs - but is soft and chewy in the mouth, which is perfect for me at the moment. I drew the Joker in the pack when it comes to genes for teeth. The little chunks of chocolate and the small chopped cranberry-raisins were a delight - easy to chew on without getting stuck between teeth. Most of the time - it's inevitable that at least one morsel will make it into a gap and get wedged in, so that's not a flaw in the cookie at all, but worth keeping in mind if you have dentures or cavities.

The pack contains a dozen cookies, which in my humble opinion is nowhere near enough. I'd love to see these sold in bags of 24, or maybe in bags with 30 or so smaller cookies. That would be a bag of bite-sized bliss. The ratio of cookie:chocolate:cranberries is spot-on - the flavour profile was exactly balanced so that every bite gave you the whole flavour profile in one mouthful.

Overall, these are my newest craving, and if I have one complaint about them it is this - no matter how much I ask, nag and beg... none of my local supermarkets will get them into stock. No idea why - they won't give a reason other than "we already stock some of this range, why not pick another flavour instead?" I'm seriously considering trying to buy a bulk order direct from the amazing team at Bad Baker. Next time I see them at a food show, no-one had better stand close if they wear glasses - the sonic boom as I whip my credit card out might damage their lenses.

Chocolate chip cookies are my all-time favourite cookie so when I saw the Bad Baker cookies I wanted to try. I got the Berry and dark chocolate pack to try. I was not sure what to expect but eager to try.

The packaging it's distinctive being pink with a picture of a baker on the front. The name of the company, Bad Baker and the flavour, Berry and dark chocolate are bold and clear on the front. No mistaking what you pick up. On the back is the usual ingredient list, nutrition information and company information. One thing I did notice was that the tray is made from recycled plastic.

Over the years I had noticed Chocolate chip cookies get smaller and smaller and just not what they use to be so I was not sure what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised. The cookies were a good size and a really good thickness. They reminded me of homemade cookies. You could definitely tell it was a chocolate chip cookie and could even see some cranberries.

Next was the taste test. After the first bite, I knew I had found my new favourite cookie. There were just perfect amounts of chocolate and cranberry. The only negative thing I could find was that the recommended serve was 1 cookie. It's very hard to stop at just one.

Overall I love these cookies. I did let the others in the house try them too and they also loved them. I have since brought more packets. At $5 a packet, they are a bit more pricey than some cookies you can get but I do believe in this case you get much more biscuit. These will be a regular in my shopping trolley.

I completely forgot how cookies are usually packaged. They tend to come with an open-ended tray in a soft plastic/foil sleeve. As it is an open-ended tray, you really shouldn't tip the product upside down like I did, because if the cookie is crumbly, then you are going to end up with cookie crumbs everywhere when you finally go to pull the tray out. Luckily for me, this Berry and Dark Chocolate variety were the least crumbly out of these Bad Baker cookies.

These Bad Baker cookies are a great size. perhaps three to four times the volume of a Griffins Chocolate Chip cookie, you get a lot more bang for your buck, and a much more enjoyable biscuit-eating experience. This cookie is much lighter in colour, which is surprising considering it has dark chocolate (clearly the dough was sufficiently cooled before mixing in the chocolate), but what was truly surprising was the zing of its berry flavour. Because this product comes with actual cranberries inside. It doesn't look like crystallized fruit (unlike the Ginger and Dark Chocolate variety), instead, they appear to be dried cranberries, that create and delicious sharpness to the flavour that cuts right through that chunky cookie flavour.

Looking at the ingredient list (that was why I was holding the packet upside down in the first place), the berry flavour is comprised solely by cranberries, so it's interesting that it isn't named "Cranberry and Dark Chocolate" instead. Perhaps there is a stigma around Cranberries that I don't know about. Regardless, the flavour profile is very moreish, you are going to find yourself battling against yourself to try and stick to the "one cookie per serving" recommendation on the pack. As is the definition of moreish, you are always going to want just one more. And maybe another.

There was no mistaking that there was a berry in this biscuit because as soon as you open the packet you are met with a sweet berry aroma. It wasn't until I read the ingredients that I found out it was cranberries. Not really my berry of choice. But turning the packet over I saw made with butter, dried cranberries and chunks of premium dark chocolate.

The biscuits are huge solid and chunky. Definitely more than a mouth full and much better value then most brands available. Taking my first bite I was surprised at all of the flavours hitting together. I personally found the cranberries to be fighting with the chocolate and the biscuit as a hole. I was not expecting so much flavour in one bite and to be honest I could not tell if I liked it or not. I took a couple more bites and finished the biscuit and did not reach for another one straight away like the Double Chocolate Chip variety.

My daughter loved it and went back for a second and then my eldest joined in and said it was good, although the berry was a little too much. Where as my husband just said nope not his favourite at all - he thought the combination was a little weird and the chocolate and the berry did not mix well at all. I tried a second and then put them away in the fridge to ponder.

I am a little confused on their reasoning behind the berry they choose. Where as it has grown on me the more I have tried, its not something I personally would of selected. I do like the home baking feel of the biscuit and again I am perplexed why they would even need to say eat within 24 hours of opening - because it is very rare anything sweet lasts over 24 hours. Both girls took two biscuits to school and then had one for their afternoon snack today.

I do like, just like home baking when you start on the packet it is nice and gooey like you just pulled out of the oven and cooled and then over a couple of hours it starts to firm and the taste and texture changes as the time continues. Very clever. I had opened the packet with the expectation of leaving it for 24 hours to see how it would taste but unfortunately failed on that mission. Maybe next time I buy this brand but I don't think it will be this flavour.

I live on the road a lot so I need snacks that have lots of flavour and gimme a boost. I got some of these to review because they sounded pretty nice. I'm a sucker for berries and chocolate and nothing beats a bikkie for dunking in a hot mug of tea between stints of road building. The first one of these I tried without the dunk and it was pretty impressive. A really nice chewy biscuit without being all sticky. Trying one with a cuppa and it wasn't quite as amazing. The flavour was still all there but I dunked it too long and it got really soggy. Totally not a fan of soggy biscuit.

I managed to keep them hidden for 2 days from the bludgers on the crew who will grab anything that looks tasty if its not under lock and key but then one of them saw me trying to stash the last two away and grabbed them. He took a bite and got very excited. He demanded I tell him where to buy them and I had to say "dunno, honestly. But I'll be looking for them in every town we pass through." He didn't believe me but the truth is the truth eh.

Pretty impressive cookies and I'm now kicking myself I didn't ask for some of the others from the range. You can bet I'll be buying them when I find them thats for sure.

Six of us got together to try these biscuits. Five of the group had already tried a different variety in this range and had enjoyed them so were looking forward to repeating the exercise. When we first opened the bag, it was passed around so everyone could sniff the contents. That was certainly a promising start; even the oldest (and slightly fussy) person there was impressed and wanted to taste some.

The children liked the texture of the chocolate - as Mr Ten described it, delightfully gooey and yummy when it stuck to your teeth because you could enjoy it for a long time while you sucked it off again! I would have phrased it differently, but I know exactly what he meant. The biscuits themselves were not too hard so the whole thing melted in your mouth. Just the sort of after-school-in-November treat when the weather has delivered a particularly cold surprise after a week of warm weather.

The older members of the group thought the biscuits compared favourably with the home-made equivalent. They were thick and filling, and had none of that saccharin sweetness or metallic aftertaste that you get in some commercial products. Miss Eight liked the cranberries, although she did not know what they were - they were hard to identify. The berries were quite small and juicy, and almost as soft as the chocolate pieces, not like some dried fruit, and somehow she had not realised that cranberries were berries at all. She had expected something like blackberries or strawberries when she read the label. However, the combination tasted pretty good and she was quite happy to keep on sampling.

The adults were impressed by the amount of berries and chocolate pieces in the mix. The manufacturers had not stinted on them, and that only added to the taste. People also thought the product was quite healthy as it contained fruit and dark chocolate, both of which are good for you in moderation. Mr Ten thought they might be nice heated in the microwave till the chocolate was just starting to melt, and then served with a dollop of French vanilla ice-cream on top. He would then add some chocolate sprinkles or dried cranberries on top to make them look festive.

Once we had started suggesting ways to serve them, the ideas started coming in. One person thought they would be nice served cold on a small dessert plate with a helping of hot custard on top. Another thought they would be really good on top of an apple crumble in place of the usual topping. But Miss Eight said she was quite happy to eat them straight from the packet. Since she was hanging upside down from the climbing frame at the time, I was concerned that the biscuit might go down the wrong way - but this was her way of demonstrating just how much she was enjoying them.