A chocolate caramel truffle cake, a flapjack-topped cinnamon bun, and a reduced-sugar cake bar are among the sweet innovations recently unveiled by bakery brands.
Ranges have been expanded with new flavour variants, offering refreshing twists to familiar formats.
Get your teeth stuck into the round-up of bakery NPD from ten different companies below:
Praline & Hazelnut Swirl, Bridor
Bakery manufacturer Bridor has introduced a new gourmet pastry to its collection for coffee shops, bakery cafés and hotels, which has been developed after its research on 4,800 European consumers found 78% saying they enjoyed a hazelnut praline filling in pastries.
The new Praline & Hazelnut Swirls feature indulgent Viennese puff pastry with a generous filling, topped with crushed hazelnuts for added visual appeal. They are available in a convenient ready-to-bake format (100g), and are supplied frozen in boxes of 62, requiring around 45 minutes of defrosting before baking for roughly 16 minutes at 170°C.
Pitch Blueberry, Brioche Pasquier
A new blueberry flavour has been added to lunchbox brioche brand Pitch’s range, bringing a fresh and fruity alternative” to the existing chocolate hazelnut and chocolate chips variants.
The NPD comprises blueberry filling – free of preservatives, artificial colours and hydrogenated fats – inside soft brioche rolls made with natural products including butter and eggs. They have been launched at around 450 Tesco stores (rsp: £1.85, pack of six).
Celebration cakes, Cutter & Squidge
London-based sweet treat specialist Cutter & Squidge has debuted a range of full-covered celebration cakes for nationwide delivery. The format was previously only available for customers in the capital, with months of refining recipes and developing specialist packaging helping ensure they arrive in perfect condition anywhere in the country.
The range includes three indulgent flavours:
- The Ultimate Chocolate Caramel Truffle Cake – chocolate sponge layered with truffle ganache and house-made salted caramel, finished with chocolate fudge buttercream and toppings
- White Chocolate & Hazelnut Praline Cake – vanilla and chocolate sponge with roasted hazelnut praline and white chocolate ganache, finished with gold-dusted hazelnuts
- Raspberry White Chocolate Cheesecake Cake –vanilla sponge, raspberry jam, and raspberry white chocolate cheesecake ganache, topped with cream cheese frosting and freeze-dried raspberries.
Cake are available to order via its website in small (rsp: £62.99, six-inch, serves up to 11) and medium (rsp: £89.99, eight-inch, serves up to 19).
Filled croissants and cinnamon bun, Delice De France
New filled croissants in flavours of lemon, berries, chocolate, and caramel as well as a flapjack-topped cinnamon bun have been added to the Delice Fresh delivery service for London-based foodservice operators by bakery supplier Delice De France.
These items join a glazed Pain aux Raisin with roasted almond flakes and an Almond Pain au Chocolat on a new Signature range, which is aimed at tapping into demand for viral pastries with visual appeal such as cube croissants. Also available via the Delice Fresh service, first launched last summer, are Delice De France’s bestselling Viennoiserie, bagels, baguettes, and loaves.
“The past year has demonstrated the critical need for retail-ready bakery products in the capital,” commented Arthur Magne, business development manager at Delice de France. “London-based outlets need to offer products that meet the latest social trends without the heavy lifting of on-site baking. With our revamped Delice Fresh range, we’re confident we have the best solution in the market.”
Reese’s Peanut Butter Cheesecake, English Cheesecake Company
A collaboration between American confectionery brand Reese’s and English Cheesecake Company has created the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cheesecake.
Available at Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, and Co-op stores nationwide, the new sweet treat (rsp: £3.99, two-pack) features a peanut butter cheesecake on a biscuit base, topped with a milk chocolate ganache and pieces of chopped Reese’s peanut butter cup.
The launch follows a string of successful additions to the brand’s Collaboration Collection, including the limited-edition Squashies Cheesecake Slices and the bestselling Vanilla & Biscoff Cheesecake.
Reduced sugar cake bars, Jungle Squad
Cake bars containing just 3.2g of sugar each – approximately 60% less than the average comparative product – has been launched by new challenger brand Jungle Squad. They are available in strawberry and lemon flavours (rsp: £1.90, five-pack) at Tesco stores nationwide, with packs including collectible trading cards, a free augmented reality app, and a dedicated YouTube series.
Behind the Jungle Squad brand is Imaginakery, a business on a mission to help parents provide their kids with lower sugar foods and “entertainment-led experiences”. It was founded by Manchester-based Mark Simester who stepped down after nine years as managing director of Soreen, having previously been MD at Warbutons – where he helped to launch Sandwich Thins and Giant Crumpets – and a total of 18 years with Nestlé, where he was marketing director and helped launch the KitKat Chunky.
“The children’s snack category is broken, and parents are being left to navigate it alone,” commented Simester, noting that Jungle Squad closed the gap between healthier options and “what children actually want”.
Mango Jaffa Cakes, McVitie’s
Pladis-owned snack brand McVitie’s has brought a “vibrant and refreshing twist” to its Jaffa Cakes line-up with the new Mango variant.
The cakes (rsp: £1.50, ten-pack) feature a layer of sweet mango flavoured jelly between the light sponge base and signature dark chocolate coating, and are available across major supermarkets.
“Jaffa Cakes Mango flavour is our way of keeping things fun, staying ahead of the flavour curve, and offering a playful new way to enjoy a British classic,” said Russell Smith, marketing manager at Pladis UK&I.
Jammy sponges, Mrs Crimble’s
New Gooey Strawberry Jammy Sponges have helped expand the portfolio of gluten-free bakery brand Mrs Crimble’s.
The golden sponges with an indulgent gooey centre (rsp: £2.75, five-pack) have been launched at Tesco stores today (27 April), with a Waitrose roll out following next month.
“Strawberry is consistently one of the most popular flavours in the cake category,” noted Katie Penn, Mrs Crimble’s brand manager at its manufacturer Ecotone UK. “The individually portioned pack, wrapped for convenience and ideal for on-the-go occasions, is squarely aligned with where snacking demand is heading.”
New tartlet flavours, Pidy
European patisserie specialist Pidy is helping operators bring colour to their menu with the addition of several new flavours to its Trendy tartlet cases range. These include Lemon, Raspberry, and Speculoos options, which join the existing sweet and chocolate variants.
The tartlets measure 4cm in diameter, making them ideal for individual portions, and are made with high-quality ingredients including free-range eggs. They boast an eight-month shelf life and can maintain quality for up to 48 hours once filled. Pidy has also introduced a new vegan version of its Sweet Trendy pastry case, made with vegetable fat.
Chocolate entremets, Symphonie Pasquier
A new layered dessert named Le Trio de Chocolats Entremets Half-Frame has been unveiled by frozen patisserie supplier Symphonie Pasquier. Adding to its entremets range, the new product comprises a sponge base with crunchy layer of dark chocolate, white chocolate mousse, milk chocolate mousse, and finished with a chocolate velvet decoration.
Billed as an easy to use, adaptable dessert, it can simply be plated with ice cream or cut it up and served with other entremets from the range. “As the finale to dinner, part of an afternoon tea, or for a banquet, our range of patisserie completes your customer’s experience and with our new larger, half frame entremets, flexibility is increased and cost per serve is decreased – caterers can simply thaw and serve with minimal preparation,” said Matt Grenter, foodservice sales manager at Symphonie Pasquier.
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