Conor Pope reviews Blueberry Muffins

Irish Flapjack & Muffin Co Magic Muffin 1.50 for 100g 15 per kg

Highs: This is an Irish-made muffin, and one which should be easy to come by in cafes and delis across the country. It is nice and moist, and tastes all right.

Lows: And while "all right" might sound like faint praise, PriceWatch fears that it might be overstating things a little. This muffin is a major disappointment. It looks more like a fairy cake for a start and when it is broken into pieces it's plain to see why - there's hardly any fruit in it at all. A quick look at the ingredient list reveals that what fruit there is isn't even fruit. Instead of blueberries we get "blueberry nuggets" which are made of blueberry juice, pectin and sucrose. Whatever they are made of, however, is largely irrelevant as they certainly don't taste of much.

Verdict: Very disappointing

Star rating: **

Tesco Berry Blast Yoghurt Muffin €1.59 for 150g €10.60 per kg

Highs: This a nice, plump muffin which has big pieces of fruit bursting out of it. It gets even better when broken into pieces. The real berries look great and the yoghurt lends it a surprisingly pleasant creaminess. The sugar balance is spot on, and it comes in an individual packet and one will certainly keep you going from breakfast through to lunch.

Lows: The yoghurt, while nice, lends it a slightly odd gloopiness. We would like to say for sure that this has more fruit than the competition - it certainly looks like it might have - but can't because of the mysterious packaging. While it tells us in an outsized font that the muffin contains "flour improvers" it doesn't bother to provide an ingredient list or a weight or any other useful info you might expect.

Verdict: Biggest and one of the best

Star rating: ****

Cuisine de France Blueberry muffin €1 for 102g €9.80 per kg

Highs: This should prove to be the easiest of the muffins to track down day or night, available as it is in big supermarket chains and 24-hour shops alike. It looks fruity and has a good moist texture. It also tastes fine, if a little unmemorable and is comparatively cheap.

Lows: If the muffin we tested is anything to go by, you'll need to be awfully careful where and when you open and eat it. It completely fell apart when it was stripped of its packaging. While first impressions of the fruit content are good, a look at the ingredient list reveals that it is made with only 7 per cent blueberries, which seems a little mean. Another problem with the berries is the taste. While they certainly add a lot of colour they don't actually seem to taste of anything at all.

Verdict: Low cost but low taste

Star rating: ***

M&S Blueberry Muffins €2.29 for 280g 8.17 per kg

Highs: These four muffins in a pack look, smell and taste very good indeed. This is hardly a surprise as there's 16 per cent fruit listed amongst the ingredients (M&S scores extra points for making its muffins with free-range eggs). They're not excessively sweet and the fruit tastes of blueberries, which, if the competition is anything to go by, is little short of miraculous. They're also the cheapest of the bunch.

Lows: The muffins are a little small - if you're hungry one might not be enough, two might be too many and eating the entire packet of four is also a realistic prospect, something which can't possibly be good for anyone. They are also a little sticky and will not be the easiest thing to track down.

Verdict: Tasty little morsels

Star rating: ****

Starbucks Blueberry Muffin €2.50 for 135g 18.51 per kg

Highs: Coming as it does from the heart of American coffee shop culture in Ireland, much was expected of this muffin and up to a point it met those expectations. It was fresh as the day it was baked - which was hopefully the day it was bought - and had an almost wholemeal healthy taste to it. It was sweet enough, with a light fluffy texture, and the blueberries looked real.

Lows: At least the ones we could find looked real but there weren't really that many blueberries to taste. It was gone too quickly, although whether this can be blamed on its size or PriceWatch's hunger while reviewing it was difficult to establish. It is expensive but the price can probably be justified by the fact that you can eat this in Starbucks or at your desk.

Verdict: Great, fresh tasting, dear muffin

Star rating: *****

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