Nibblish - Gently Baked Pineapple product reviews

I have two kids who enjoy fruit and one who is very fussy, just like their mother, so I'm always looking for ways to add some fruit to the diet. Add to that a serial snacker, if I can pop it in my bag for when we are out and about, that's a HUGE bonus. I love pineapple, but I often eat too much and end up with a slightly sore mouth as a result, so I was interested to see how these would go. Opening it up, there was just a slight hint of pineapple, nothing too strong but it smelled good. I was also very pleased to see that we could re-seal the package and keep it freash.

Each of the kids had a piece each, the fusspot declared that they didn't like it at all and promptly left the room. The younger two each had theirs but found that it didn't have a strong enough taste for them to really want more, but the 11 year old did try a second piece in the interest of 'giving it a fair go'. I ate a couple of pieces and had to agree with them, while there was enough flavour there to know that it was pineapple, the flavour just wasn't strong enough to feel like really diving into the packet. Texture wise they weren't too bad, sometimes you can get bits that stick between your teeth, but we didn't have this issue here. I can't see us buying this in the future as the flavour just wasn't strong enough.

Dried fruit is so versatile - it can be eaten like confectionery straight from the packet, included in cereal mixes or stir fries, or chopped into a cake mix. We were travelling over the course of a week so found this an ideal snack for the car as it did not go sticky as some sweets can. The aroma, when we first opened the packet, was a full-bodied fresh pineapple smell, just like the scent you get from the fresh fruit when you sniff it to check that it is ripe. We both love pineapple anyway so this was a good choice for us.

There are several other advantages to this product which make it preferable in some respects to the fresh equivalent. Because it is chewy, we took more time to eat it so it lasted longer. Besides, being dehydrated, it was quite filling so the 20g servings recommended on the packet are a generous estimate. And the natural sugar content was energising, preventing us from getting sleepy when driving on a hot day. In so many ways it was a great deal healthier than the lollies we might otherwise have purchased.

When we arrived in the South Island, we were tired and not really in the mood for socialising. However, our friends' parrots had other ideas. They are both highly sociable and talk non-stop, and, just like teenagers, are curious and always hungry. Marley, the larger of the two, spotted the packet as I removed it from my backpack, and was instantly my best friend. He climbed up my jeans, swung round on to my tee-shirt, and sashayed up to my shoulder. Then he bent down and started shouting "Hello! Hello! Want a beer?" over and over again - clearly wanting some of what was in the packet. I offered him a piece and he was my friend for life. It took him a while to eat it, but he was enjoying the experience so much that he stopped talking completely while he concentrated on his treat.

We did share the packet contents with human friends as well, and they all enjoyed the pieces just as much as Marley had - although none of them tried to climb on my shoulder; they were a lot more civilised about it. Nevertheless, every single person commented on the pineapple aroma which was still strong despite the packet's having been opened and closed again on numerous occasions. There was no hint of staleness either; the fruit pieces retained their full flavour and texture until the very last one had been eaten. The packet is resealable, and there is a long shelf life, so it would be a good product to keep in the store cupboard for future use.

This product looks adorable, yet I didn't actually know what it was exactly. Even when I read the front of the package, "gently baked pineapple" didn't really explain it to me. Was it a fruit puree? Or dried fruits like those dried apricots or banana chips? Even the back of the package doesn't help to answer what I would expect inside. It's one of the downsides to opaque packaging. There is nothing more helpful than either a clear window to show the product, or some kind of photo of the product so we can see beforehand because wow, I was not prepared for this.

I've probably talked it up too much now, but in my mind, I had an image of thin, yellow, dried pineapple rings. Maybe semicircles, you know, if you cut the ring in half. I opened the pack and enjoyed the strong pineapple aroma, and looked inside to find something that looked nothing like what I had in my mind. As the photo shows, the product actually looks like someone picked the pineapple off of a 5-day old Hawaiian pizza and put it in the package. Not appealing whatsoever.

However, the smell was amazing, so what the heck, let's give it a taste. For the most case, it appears as it Nibblish have dried pineapple chunks, rather than the pineapple rings, and they have browned and twisted up in the process of drying. There are a few other weird and wonderful shapes but must are kind-of triangle-shaped and about 3cm long. Unlike the dried apricots, these dried pineapple pieces are not sticky at all. I can quite happily pop one in my mouth and carry on typing without fear of sticking up my computer keyboard. Despite this outward dryness, they are still quite juicy inside, and that pineapple flavour is very potent.

It's a peculiar product because it tastes delicious, but it looks horrendous. Looking at the taste alone, this product is well worth trying, if you like a snack, but want something sweet. With the majority of the water removed from the product, it is left at about 57% of its weight being sugar, but there is no additional sugar added to the process, so it's still pretty healthy if you can keep to the portion size. I have unfortunately already eaten half of the packet now, so I had better stop writing this review and put the rest away for another time.