When its come to making sure our cupboards are stocked with essentials as well as a few treats here and there, I've been turning to independent businesses around the UK. So many have had no choice but to adapt or stop trading during the pandemic so rather than put our money into the big names we wanted to find highly recommended independents that we could support instead.
This post is rather treat heavy so it's absolutely perfect for birthdays, anniversaries or any celebrations you've had to miss. It features five independent businesses we've bought from over the last few months, four that ship across the UK and one that's local to Southampton and surrounding areas.
I'd love to know if you've already tried one of them and what you thought but for the moment, here's a rundown of our top five - it's totally worth it!
I''ve been recommended Dunk Cookies a few times but never managed to get an order in before because they sell out so quickly! The idea behind them is quite simple, you dunk buttery light, freshly baked cookies, crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside into spreadable dips tasting of everyone's favourite desserts.
A few Sundays ago my time finally came and last week the most colourful box arrived with our cookies and two dips inside. I ordered the Build Your Own Box (£14.00) which comes with one large bag of cookies, you can choose from vanilla or chocolate and two large dips that you can also choose from their monthly dip menu. We went with classic choc and triple choc brownie as they both seemed to be the most popular.
The dips are velvety smooth and taste delicious, I think I prefer the classic choc personally but Arran loves the triple choc brownie just as I knew he would. The cookies? Hands down the best cookies I've eaten in forever!
At the moment Dunk Cookies restock every Sunday at 10am but be quick, they sell out so fast!
Jackie, the woman behind The Whimsical Kitchen is a friend of mine and THE go-to woman for all things marshmallow. We've been buying her products for years and she's an absolute treat to follow on Instagram too. We're huge fans of her marshmallow filled Easter eggs (I'm eating mine as I write this post) and when she announced she had lots of eggshells leftover I couldn't wait to snap more up.
I ordered a Chocolate Caramel Marshmallow Egg (£11.95) which is Half Belgium Chocolate Marshmallow, Half Salted Caramel Marshmallow with a Caramel Centre and Gold bar crumb topped with Galaxy Caramel pieces and more Gold bar crumb and a Tease Me Baby Marshmallow Egg (£11.95) which is Half a Large Milk Chocolate egg filled with Malteasers Spread, Malteasers, Buttons then topped up with my Belgium Chocolate Marshmallow and finished with Malteasers Biscuits, Buttons, Malteasers and Chocolate vermicelli. How incredible do they sound?!
We've ordered Marshmallow Eggs the last two years and they're one of our favourite products but that's not all Jackie sells, you'll also find random bake boxes, fudge, old school cake and lots more.
Due to the current situation with Covid, website opening times are being announced on her Instagram, The Whimsical Kitchen so make sure you're following there so you don't miss out - she's been know to sell out in sixty seconds!
Instagram ADs do work as that's how I came across Bad Brownies! Arran is a brownie fiend and I wanted to get him something special for his lockdown birthday so I ordered one of Bad Brownies Bitesize Brownie Boxes (£14.50). The Bestsellers box features 12 bitesize brownies in the following flavours - Salted Caramel, Triple Chocolate, Peanut Butter and Ferrero Rocher. The amazingly gooey, fudgy and above all delicious chocolate brownies were incredible, I just wish they weren't bite-sized!
Arran wolfed down the Triple Chocolate which is their signature dark chocolate brownie packed full of white and milk chocolate chips and then coated with all three types of chocolate on top while I loved the Ferrero Rocher which are mixed hazelnut praline through the brownie with chopped, caramelised hazelnuts and finished with a super crunchy topping.
Other than the delicious brownies, the most impressive thing was the delivery time. I ordered our box ten days before Arran's birthday so they were here on time and they arrived within 24 hours! Safe to say the box didn't make it to his actual birthday!
Bad Brownies share all their flavours and more on their Instagram page, Bad Brownie Co and there's lots of information on their website regarding product and their vegan and gluten-free brownies (linked above) too. They fit through the letterbox so perfect way to show someone you're thinking of them.
Hoxton Bakehouse
This is somewhere I've loved for years, their cinnamon buns are renowned in the South and with bakehouses operating in Lymington, Southampton and Winchester they've launched home delivery so you can get their freshly baked bread and baked goods straight to your door at a safe social distance.
We couldn't resist putting an order in for fresh sourdough and cinnamon buns and I'll be placing another one this week in time for the weekend.
They're selling a really great selection of buns, cookies and bread plus flour and eggs - we all know how difficult it has been getting hold of flour!
Home delivery is available in Winchester, Southampton, Lymington, Basingstoke, Southsea/Portsmouth, Fareham, Romsey, Bishop Waltham and Christchurch so you can have fresh bread delivered to your door without having to go to the shop. The minimum order is £15 but that really won't be hard once you see what's on offer.
Doughnut Time
I had to include Doughnut Time because although they have a number of stores in London, they are still an independent business that has had to adapt over the last few months. We've had two of their DIY Home Kits now, both gifts from my sister and we've had so much fun with them, especially with Joshua.
I shared a post, Doughnut Time Home Kits - Are They Worth It? last week so if I've piqued your interest at all, be sure to read that post where I explain what's included and how they work.
If there's anything you would like to know that I haven't included, you can access each website within the headers where I've linked them. Each business also updates regularly on Instagram too.
The big question is? Which one has you most interested?
