Cake has been a necessity during this period of staying home, and while the local delivery choices have been slightly limited by our location on the very edge of Oxford, I’ve been enjoying the delights of nationwide delivery from vegan bakers far and wide. I questioned my intelligence as I placed an order of perishable goods at the start of a period of two-week long delays in Royal Mail, but the anticipation grew each day as I awaited my sample box from Vegan Daisy Bakes. For the very reasonable price of £13 including delivery, I’d ordered a ‘lucky dip’ mixed box of brownies, rocky roads, and cookies to try out.
Having been baked over a week and a half before arriving with me, through no fault of the baker’s, I felt reluctant to judge anything based on texture. That said, the first things we tucked into were the brownies, and I really enjoyed them on that front. A little soft in the middle, with a sugary crunch around the edges, they were wonderful to bite into. I’m a fan of a more gooey rather than cakey brownie, and I know that can be difficult for bakers to offer when their goodies are going to be shipped cross-country wrapped in cardboard, so Vegan Daisy Bakes nailed it. My chef’s choice brownies were biscoff, and triple chocolate. Both had a really rich, deep chocolatey flavour which I loved, and you could particularly tell that this was triple chocolate. The biscoff brownie had a crumbly biscuit topping, and a biscoff spread drizzle over the top. I could’ve done with a little more of that because I am obsessed with this flavour, and in the brownie it was quite subtle, but they were still delicious.
Next we tried the cookies – biscoff again, and white chocolate chunks. The cookies were quite firm, similar to a Maryland cookie in texture, but again I couldn’t comment on what they would’ve been like freshly baked. They did still have a slight softness in the middle so I wonder if they are usually a bit softer. I was expecting a slightly larger cookie, though they’re not unreasonably priced at this size if you buy them alone at a batch of three for £3. The chocolate cookie, similar to the brownies, is really packed with cocoa, so it tastes high quality and decadent, almost like a luxury hot chocolate in biscuit form. The biscoff cookie was again quite mild in flavour, and not too sickly sweet. If I place an order again in future I’ll definitely go for a batch of brownies, but I think I’m more of a cake person anyway!
Lastly we tried the rocky roads. These were definitely the most indulgent things in the sample box. Velvety dark chocolate encases marshmallows and biscuits – in one, oreos, in the other, party rings. Both flavours were absolutely packed with fillings. I loved the squishy texture of the marshmallow alongside the bite of the biscuit. You don’t get much of the flavour of the party rings as the chocolate is so rich, but the signature crunch is absolutely there, and I knew what it was instantly without having looked on the website. Although the same size as a brownie, which I had no trouble polishing off in one sitting, I felt on the edge of too full having eaten a whole one of these. They are so sweet and rich, and probably better than any non-vegan rocky road I’ve eaten because they’re happily not faffing about with any dried fruit (perhaps more traditional, but I hate it). The other rocky road flavour we received was oreo, and most of the vanilla filling had melted into the chocolate, making each bite possibly even more creamy and delicious.
When the package finally arrived, it was a real treat. The goodies have been packed with a lot of care, each item individually wrapped in completely recyclable and biodegradable packaging, with cute patterned paper inside. I also want to give a shout out to the great customer service Jess provided via Instagram when my parcel was delayed! So glad it arrived eventually, and wishing Vegan Daisy Bakes goes from strength to strength 🙂
Vegan Eats Oxford 
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