M&S is crowned this year’s best hot cross buns in Good Housekeeping’s annual Easter taste test

M&S’ hot cross buns have won first place in Good Housekeeping’s annual Easter taste test, beating Sainsbury’s, Lidl and Iceland to the top spot. 

The Good Housekeeping Institute tested 166 products from a selection of brands and grocers to unveil the best Easter eggs, hot cross buns and meat, seafood and centre pieces ahead of Easter Sunday.  

When it comes to buns, M&S reigned supreme, winning both in the traditional category as well as the gluten-free one, and rating runner up in the flavoured buns category as well. 

Cutter & Squidge’s £21.99 Billionaire Filled Easter Egg, and Abel & Cole’s £12.95 Cocoa Loco Marbled Chocolate Egg, jointly received the title of best milk chocolate Easter egg.

Meanwhile, Waitrose’s Whole Chicken With Garlic And Herbs got the coveted title of best roast, while Lidl was crowned the best budget option. 

Each of the product was shortlisted by an expert panel and then blind tested by a consumer panel to avoid brand bias. 

Testers based their rating on the items’ appearance, aroma, texture and their flavour. 

The Institute tested 36 hot cross buns in total, including 12 traditional, 18 flavoured, and gluten-free offerings.  

M&S impressed the panel with the ‘near perfect’ texture of their Luxury Fruited Hot Cross buns, which scored 86 out 100, the highest score on the list. 

They particularly loved the buns’ fluffy and lightly crispy glazed tops and the flavoursome vine fruit. 

Iceland’s buns, which cost £1 for a pack of four, came in second place, and also ranked highest for the best budget buy. 

Their rich spiced flavour, which the panel likened to German Christmas cookies, earned the Iceland offer a score of 80/100. 

Sainsbury’s took home the title for best flavoured hot cross buns with its £1.65 Taste the Difference Lemon Curd & White Chocolate hot cross buns, scoring 83 out of 100. 

Meanwhile, M&S’s £2 Banoffee Hot Cross Buns came second in this category, winning praise for its chewy toffee chunks and pronounced banana flavour. 

Lidl’s £1.19 Apple & Cinnamon hot cross buns were the top budget buy, scoring 74 out of 100.

M&S also topped the gluten-free bakes selection, with their £2.50 Gluten Free Fruited Hot Cross Buns, while  Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Free From Caramel and Chocolate Hot Cross Buns, which cost £2.50 for a pack of four, came in in second place with a score of 72 out of 100.

Who’s selling the tastiest hot cross buns this Easter? 

Lidl Apple & Cinnamon Hot Cross Buns, left, which costs £1.19 for a pack of four, won the Best budget flavoured hot cross bun.  Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Free From Caramel and Chocolate Hot Cross Buns, costing £2.50, were the runner up for the gluten-free hot cross buns category 

Hot cross buns

Number tested: 36 total (12 traditional, 18 flavoured, 6 gluten-free)

Best traditional hot cross bun

M&S Luxury Fruited Hot Cross Buns, £1.85 for 4pk

Score: 86/100

Runner-up AND best budget traditional hot cross bun

Iceland Hot Cross Buns, £1 for 4pk

Score: 80/100

Best flavoured hot cross buns

Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Lemon Curd & White Chocolate, £1.65 for 4pk

Score: 83/100

Iceland’s Luxury hot cross buns were the runner-up for best traditional buns, and the winner of the best budget traditional hot cross bun Iceland Hot Cross Buns

M&S’ Made Without buns, left, won both Best gluten-free and best budget gluten-free hot cross buns. Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Lemon Curd & White Chocolate, right, costing £1.65, won the best flavour category 

Runner-up flavoured hot cross bun

M&S Banoffee Hot Cross Buns, £2 for 4pk

Score: 82/100

Best budget flavoured hot cross bun

Lidl Apple & Cinnamon Hot Cross Buns, £1.19 for 4pk

Score: 74/100

Best gluten-free and best budget gluten-free hot cross buns

M&S Gluten Free Fruited Hot Cross Buns, £1.85 for 4pk

Score: 79/100

Runner-up gluten-free hot cross buns

Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Free From Caramel and Chocolate Hot Cross Buns, £2.50 for 4pk

Score: 72/100

There were joint winners in the coveted Easter Eggs category after the Institute Number tested 63 eggs in total.

This included 20 molk chocolate eggs, ten white chocolate eggs, 11 dark chocolate eggs, 11 vegan eggs and 11 eggs intended for children.

Cutter & Squidge’s £21.99 Billionaire Filled Easter Egg and Abel & Cole £12.95 Cocoa Loco Marbled Chocolate Egg both won the title of best milk chocolate Easter egg for 2023, with both scoring 82/100. 

Both were beloved by the panel for their thick chocolate shells and perfectly-executed mix of milk, white and dark chocolate. 

Morrison’s scored the highest in the white chocolate egg category with its £8 White & Blonde Chocolate Egg from their The Best line, with 82 out of 100. 

Aldi’s £2.99 Moser Roth Geometric Blonde Egg, £2.99 for 120g stood out as the best budget option, scoring 79 out of 100.

Waitrose’s £7 Orange Ribbon Easter Egg was the best overall dark chocolate egg, with a score of 85 out of 100. 

Morrisons came on top as the best budget option in the category for its £6 The Best Belgium Dark Chocolate & Raspberry Egg, which scored 79 out of 100. 

What are the best chocolate eggs to try this Easter?  

Cutter & Squidge’s £21.99 Billionaire Filled Easter Egg was the joint winner of the best Milk chocolate egg category 

Easter eggs

Number tested: 63 (Milk 20, White 10, Dark 11, Vegan 11, Kids 11), from a shortlist of 122

Joint best milk chocolate Easter egg

Cutter & Squidge Billionaire Filled Easter Egg, £21.99 for 500g

Score: 82/100

Joint best milk chocolate Easter egg

Abel & Cole Cocoa Loco Marbled Chocolate Egg, £12.95 for 225g

Morrisons’ £6 The Best Belgium Dark Chocolate & Raspberry Egg, left, won the Best budget dark chocolate Easter egg title. Abe and Cole Cocoa Loco Marbled egg, right, jointly won best milk chocolate Easter egg

Abel & Cole Cocoa Loco Giant Bakewell Cherry & Almond Egg, which costs £37.95, was crowned this year’s Best vegan Easter egg

Score: 82/100

Joint runner-up milk chocolate Easter egg

Love Cocoa Giant Luxury Milk Chocolate Easter Egg, £40 for 500g

Score: 80/100

Joint runner-up milk chocolate Easter egg

Betty’s Milk Chocolate Feuilletine Egg, £22 for 200g

Score: 80/100

Best budget milk chocolate Easter egg

Aldi Wildflower Egg, £5.59 for 200g

Morrisons was crowned best white chocolate Easter egg with its The Best White & Blonde Chocolate Egg, costing £6, left. Waitrose Orange Ribbon Easter Egg, right, which costs £7 for 163g, won the dark chocolate egg title 

Score: 77/100

Best white chocolate Easter egg

Morrisons The Best White & Blonde Chocolate Egg, £6 for 240g

Score: 82/100

Runner-up white chocolate Easter egg

Waitrose Raspberry Ribbon Easter Egg, £7 for 175g

Score: 81/100

Best budget white chocolate Easter egg

Aldi Moser Roth Geometric Blonde Egg, £2.99 for 120g

Score: 79/100

Chococo Dorset’s £13 Dinosaur Studded Egg was crowned the best children Easter egg of 2023 

Best dark chocolate Easter egg

Waitrose Orange Ribbon Easter Egg, £7 for 163g

Score: 85/100

Runner-up dark chocolate Easter egg

Asda Extra Special Peppermint & Cocoa Nib Dark Chocolate Egg, £7 for 400g

Score: 83/100

Best budget dark chocolate Easter egg

Morrisons The Best Belgium Dark Chocolate & Raspberry Egg, £6 for 240g

Score: 73/100.

ASDA’s £3 Milk Chocolate Egg Easter Special Delivery snatched the title of best budget pick for kids 

Best vegan Easter egg

Abel & Cole Cocoa Loco Giant Bakewell Cherry & Almond Egg, £37.95 for 1250g

Score: 78/100

Runner-up vegan Easter egg

Venchi Nougatine Egg, £39 for 570g

Score: 76/100

Best budget vegan Easter egg

ASDA Free From Lemon Cheesecake Easter Egg, £4.50 for 160g

Score: 70/100

Best kids Easter egg

Chococo Dorset Dinosaur Studded Egg, £13 for 175g

Score: 74/100

Joint runner-up kids Easter egg

Nomo Crispie Egg & Lolly, £3.50 for 92g

Score: 73/100

Joint runner-up kids Easter egg

Melt Maracca Filled Chocolate Eggs, £6.50 for 38g

Score: 73/100

Best budget kids Easter egg

ASDA Milk Chocolate Egg Easter Special Delivery, £3 for 100g

Score: 70/100

Abel and Cole’s £37.95 Cocoa Loco Giant Bakewell Cherry & Almond Egg was crowned the best vegan option of 2023, scoring 78 out of 100 thanks to its thick chocolate shell and its generous chunks of almonds and sour cherries. 

ASDA’s £4.50 Free From Lemon Cheesecake Easter Egg got the title for best budget vegan Easter egg, with 70 out 100.

When it comes to children, Chococo Dorset’s £13 Dinosaur Studded Egg delighted testers with the dinosaurs and fossils embedded in its shell. 

Asda’s £3 Milk Chocolate Egg Easter Special Delivery scored 70 out of 100, winning the best budget options for the little ones. 

No Easter would be complete without a generous Easter Dinner, and the taste test also included a ranking of the best meat, fish and vegan out there. 

Waitrose came out on top with its £6.90 Whole Chicken With Garlic And Herbs, which scored 85 out of 100. 

If you want to go for a traditional Good Friday supper Aldi’s £4.49 Specially Selected Cheese & Dill Salmon Wellington, scored an impressive 83 out of 100. 

Cook earned the top spot for veggie options with its £12 Portobello Mushroom Wellington, with a score of 77 out of 100. Meanwhile, ASDA’s £5.55 wellington won in the vegan stakes, with a score of 76 out of 100. 

Callum Black, Food & Drink Testing Manager at the Good Housekeeping Institute said: ‘We started preparing for the Easter taste test back in December, and I’m pleased to say the results prove you needn’t spend a lot for a feast to remember. 

‘With the cost-of-living crisis still driving our shopping habits, we’re proud to have included a budget option in every category.

When it comes to roast dinner centrepieces, our winners reflect the best of British produce, at a price point to suit all. 

‘And elsewhere we were delighted to see our top-rated Easter eggs had an ethical and sustainable focus — something we hope to see more of in future testing.’

Where can you get the best ingredients for your Easter roast?  

Waitrose’s £6.90 Whole Chicken With Garlic And Herbs won the best easter roast category 

Meat centrepieces

Number tested: 33

Best Easter roast

Waitrose Whole Chicken With Garlic And Herbs, £6.90 for 1.5kg

Score: 85/100

Runner-up Easter roast

Piper’s Farm Grass Fed Leg of Lamb, £44.50 for 2.5kg

Score: 82/100

Budget Easter roast

Lidl Roast in Bag Garlic & Herb Chicken, £4.99 for 1.5kg

Score: 76/100

Aldi’s £4.49 Specially Selected Cheese & Dill Salmon Wellington won Best Easter seafood centrepiece and best budget

ASDA’s Vegan Wellington, which costs £5.55 for 500g, was crowned best vegan main fo the year 

Seafood centrepieces

Number tested: 9

Best Easter seafood centrepiece and best budget

Aldi Specially Selected Cheese & Dill Salmon Wellington, £4.49 for 700g

Score: 83/100

Runner-up Easter seafood centrepiece

Abel & Cole Large Organic Salmon Fillet, £29.95

Score: 80/100

Veggie/vegan centrepieces (roasts)

Number tested: 9

Lidl’s £4.99 Roast in Bag Garlic & Herb Chicken won the best budget Easter roast category 

Best vegetarian Easter main

COOK Portobello Mushroom Wellington, £12 for 360g

Score: 77/100

Best vegan Easter main

ASDA Vegan Wellington, £5.55 for 500g

Score: 76/100

Runner-up meat-free main

Waitrose PlantLiving: Nut Roast, £5.50 for 300g

Score: 72/100

Best budget meat-free Easter main

Meatless Farm Chickenless Roast, £4.50 for 380g

Score: 70/100

COOK’s £12 Portobello Mushroom Wellington snatched the Best vegetarian Easter main title

Roast potatoes

Number tested: 8

Best roast potatoes

M&S Smashed Potatoes with Salsa Verde Drizzle, £4 for 700g

Score: 90/100

Yorkshire puddings

Number tested: 8

Best Yorkshire puddings

ASDA Extra Special Beef Dripping Yorkshire Puddings, £2.35 for 288g

Score: 88/100