Greggs Festive Bakes have become a staple Christmas treat since launching in 2009, but have really taken off in the past five years or so. The idea of Christmas dinner in a pastry gets everyone excited.
And last Christmas Greggs announced the introduction of its new Vegan Festive Bake, the newest addition to their vegan menu. Over the past couple of years more people have made the decision to become vegan. Statistics from the beginning of January show that at the start of the year around 1.6 million Brits were Vegan, approximately three per cent of the population, with even more planning on taking part in Veganuary.
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But I wanted to know how the two differ in taste. First was the Vegan Festive Bake. Now I’m not vegan so this would not be my first pick, but I was intrigued by what it would taste like. At first sight there are obvious differences, the pastry is a lighter colour and not quite as crispy, there was also no seasoning on top and less filling compared to its meaty companion.
Once you have bitten into the Christmassy treat, you get a strong taste of sage and onion stuffing, along with Quorn 'chicken' pieces, vegan 'bacon' and a sage and cranberry sauce.
As a life-long meat eater, I wasn’t sure what I was going to think of the vegan dish but I have to admit there were parts of this that I preferred more to the original, especially the strong stuffing taste - one of my favourites from the Christmas roast.
I then tried my old favourite, the traditional Festive Bake - now my mouth was really watering.
The original Festive Bake looks like a small slice of pastry heaven, the golden colour of the crispy puff pastry and the seasoning covering the top. On the first bite you can taste the obvious difference between this one and the vegan version as a strong meaty taste fills your mouth.
Filled to the brim, the bacon and chicken flavour makes you feel like you’re eating a full Christmas dinner. You then get an aftertaste of cranberry sauce and a slight hint of stuffing.
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While I am no Michelin star chef, I would have to say Greggs really know what they are doing when it comes to pastries. If I was asked which one was best, I wouldn’t be able to say. Both have strong qualities that make them just as good as the other, the vegan one is a stuffing fan’s own personal heaven while the original festive bake is a meat eater’s go to. All I can say is that they both tasted amazing and I will definitely be going back for more.
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