Hosts keeping the vanilla filling
A classic custard cream keeps the vanilla-flavoured centre. If you want a coating as well, check whether it is milk or dark chocolate: the coated custard creams described by Tesco and M&S use milk chocolate.
Who is choosing?
Guests looking for cocoa flavour
A Bourbon offers a chocolate-flavoured cream sandwich, but its cocoa-containing ingredients do not establish a cocoa-solids percentage. If a stated percentage matters, check a separately labelled dark-chocolate biscuit.
Hosts serving guests with allergies
Check each current packet before serving. The biscuit examples have different wheat, milk, soya and precautionary allergen information; a separately served chocolate bar needs its own check too.
What should you check?
Decide whether the cream filling, chocolate type or a stated cocoa percentage is essential before comparing pack sizes and labels.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning of dark | Check whether the biscuit contains cocoa-flavoured ingredients, milk chocolate or dark chocolate. Read cocoa percentages alongside the component they describe: Sainsbury's lists dark chocolate as 27% of its digestive and at least 35% cocoa solids in that chocolate. | I want to know whether I am choosing a chocolate-flavoured biscuit or one with a stated dark-chocolate component. |
| Filling and format | Compare vanilla-filled custard creams, chocolate-filled Bourbons and digestives without a cream centre. Tesco describes its coated custard creams as vanilla-filled biscuits covered in milk chocolate. | The vanilla centre matters at our tea table; a different biscuit would change what I serve. |
| Serving quantity | Compare pack weights and the number and size of biscuits you intend to serve. Tesco lists a 400 g classic custard-cream pack and a 162 g coated pack; those weights describe different products. | I need enough biscuits for the shared plate, rather than assuming similarly named packs hold the same amount. |
| Allergen information | Read the current ingredients and precautionary statements for each product, including any separate chocolate. Asda's standard custard creams list wheat and milk; its distinct free-from custard creams are labelled milk-free and gluten-free. | Someone at the table has an ingredient they must avoid, so the exact packet matters more than the biscuit name. |
| Storage after opening | Follow the chosen pack's directions. Sainsbury's advises keeping its custard creams in a cool, dry place and using an airtight container after opening for best quality. | If I open the biscuits before guests arrive, I want to store them as the packet directs. |
Common buying mistakes
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Assuming a dark-looking biscuit is high in cocoa
A Bourbon can contain cocoa powder without stating a cocoa-solids percentage. The coated custard creams described by Tesco and M&S use milk chocolate.
Read the chocolate type and ingredient statements on the exact pack; colour alone cannot tell you its cocoa content.
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Applying a chocolate percentage to the whole biscuit
Sainsbury's says dark chocolate makes up 27% of its dark-chocolate digestive and that the chocolate contains at least 35% cocoa solids. The latter figure does not describe the whole digestive.
Keep each percentage attached to the ingredient or component named beside it.
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Changing biscuits without checking what guests need
Replacing a vanilla custard cream with a Bourbon changes the filling; choosing a digestive removes the cream centre. Ingredients and allergy statements can differ as well.
Ask whether vanilla filling, dark chocolate or a particular ingredient restriction is the deciding requirement, then check the current packet.
Relevant brand examples
These product-line examples help distinguish biscuit formats; a brand name alone does not establish the chocolate type or ingredients of another product.
Tesco
Tesco lists both classic vanilla-filled custard creams and milk-chocolate-coated custard creams.
- The coated listing identifies milk chocolate as 52% of the biscuit and gives 27% minimum cocoa solids for that chocolate.
- The coated biscuit is not described as a dark-chocolate custard cream; neither percentage describes cocoa solids in the whole biscuit.
Sainsbury's
Sainsbury's lists classic custard creams and, separately, dark-chocolate digestives.
- Its digestive listing states 27% dark chocolate in the biscuit and at least 35% cocoa solids in that chocolate.
- A digestive is not a custard cream. Sainsbury's advises checking the current label because ingredients can change.
Crawford's
The Crawford's 300 g listing describes a sandwich biscuit with vanilla-flavoured cream filling.
- It provides a classic custard-cream example for hosts choosing the vanilla-filled format.
- That listing does not describe a dark-chocolate variety and identifies wheat and milk ingredients.
M&S
M&S describes vanilla-filled coated custard creams, extra-cream custard creams and a separate dark-chocolate bar.
- Its separately listed chocolate bar states at least 85% cocoa solids.
- The coated custard creams use milk chocolate, and the 85% product is a bar, not a biscuit. Check its allergy warnings if serving it alongside biscuits.
McVitie's
McVitie's product examples include classic custard creams and dark-chocolate digestives.
- The dark-chocolate digestive listing identifies a dark-chocolate component.
- A dark-chocolate digestive does not retain the custard-cream filling; the cited listing does not state a cocoa-solids minimum.
Asda
Asda lists standard custard creams and a distinct free-from custard-cream product.
- The free-from product is labelled milk-free and gluten-free.
- The standard product lists wheat and milk. Neither of these custard-cream examples establishes a dark-chocolate variety; check the chosen pack for guest suitability.
Joybuy biscuit options
These options cover dark-chocolate or cocoa-flavoured biscuit alternatives and a custard cream for keeping the familiar sandwich format. Choose by the biscuit and pack described, rather than treating every chocolate biscuit as a dark custard cream.
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McVitie's Digestives Dark Chocolate Twin Pack, 2 x 266g
A dark-chocolate digestive option in a twin pack for a tea table where a cream filling is not essential. These are digestives, not custard-cream sandwiches; check the packet for milk, soya and wheat if serving guests with allergies.
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McVitie's Digestives Dark Chocolate 400g
A 400 g dark-chocolate digestive pack for guests who prefer that biscuit format to a vanilla-filled sandwich. It is not a custard cream; the product information identifies milk, soya and wheat as allergens.
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Gullon Zero Dark Chocolate Ginger Oaties 285g
This oat-and-ginger biscuit changes both the flavour and format from a custard cream. Read the packet's maltitol warning before serving: it warns that excessive consumption may have a laxative effect.
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Schar Gluten Free Custard Creams 125g
A gluten-free custard-cream option when retaining the cream-sandwich format matters. This is not a chocolate biscuit; check the current packet against each guest's ingredient requirements.
Frequently asked questions
Is a Bourbon cream a dark-chocolate custard cream?
No. The Bourbon listing described by Tesco is for sandwich biscuits with chocolate-flavoured cream and lists cocoa powder; it does not establish a dark-chocolate coating or a cocoa-solids percentage. Choose it for that different flavour and filling, not for an assumed high-cocoa content.
What do cocoa percentages on biscuit packs measure?
Read the ingredient named beside each figure. Sainsbury's says dark chocolate is 27% of its digestive biscuit and that the chocolate contains at least 35% cocoa solids; neither statement says the whole biscuit is 35% cocoa.
How should I store biscuits opened before afternoon tea?
Follow the chosen packet's instructions. Sainsbury's says to keep its custard creams in a cool, dry place and, once opened, in an airtight container for best quality.
What should I check when serving guests with allergies?
Check the current ingredients and precautionary statements for every biscuit and any separately served chocolate. GOV.UK guidance says specified allergens used as ingredients in prepacked food must be clearly identified in the ingredients list; a product name or vegan designation alone is not enough to assess a guest's requirements.