A conventional custard-cream pack can be portioned for a small, occasional midnight snack, but it is not a single bar. Sainsbury’s gives nutrition values per biscuit for its 200g pack; by contrast, Marks & Spencer describes its 270g Giant custard cream as made for sharing. If an individually portioned bar is essential, check the exact product’s packaging and serving information before buying.
If you want just a biscuit or two, a pack with per-biscuit nutrition information lets you judge that serving. Sainsbury’s provides those values for its standard custard creams; a giant biscuit described as made for sharing serves a different purpose.
Marks & Spencer describes an Extra Cream version with more vanilla cream and a separate chocolate-coated Giant. Check the nutrition per 100g and the amount you intend to eat rather than treating either format as a small single bar.
Iceland Foods’ listings for McVitie’s Tasties and Crawford’s custard creams both state that they contain wheat and milk. Check the current label of the exact biscuit you plan to buy; another brand’s ingredient list is not a substitute.
Start with the serving you actually want, then compare biscuit format, label information and ingredients.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Serving size | Check whether the item is individually portioned or a pack. Sainsbury’s lists approximately 16 servings in its 200g pack and gives values per biscuit; Marks & Spencer calls its 270g Giant made for sharing. | I want to set aside a biscuit or two, rather than mistake one large biscuit for one small serving. |
| Filling and coating | Compare the stated filling and any chocolate coating. Marks & Spencer lists 40.2g sugars and 13.5g saturates per 100g for Extra Cream, versus 50.4g sugars and 15.5g saturates per 100g for its chocolate-coated Giant; these are values for different products, not equal-sized servings. | Extra vanilla cream or chocolate might be what I fancy, but I want to know which biscuit and serving size I’m choosing. |
| Ingredients | Read the current ingredient and highlighted allergen information for the exact product. Iceland Foods’ McVitie’s Tasties and Crawford’s listings both identify wheat and milk. | If I need to avoid wheat or milk, the packet I’m buying matters more than what another custard cream contains. |
| Late-night timing | Consider when you plan to eat it and whether it is a sugary snack. Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust’s CAMHS sleep advice recommends avoiding sugary snacks late at night. | If I’m eating close to bedtime, I want to take that advice into account rather than choose a biscuit for a supposed sleep benefit. |
Marks & Spencer’s Giant Outrageously Chocolatey Custard Cream weighs 270g and is described by the retailer as made for sharing. Its nutrition panel is given per 100g, not per giant biscuit.
If you want a small midnight snack, use a conventional pack’s per-biscuit information to decide how many to take out, then put the pack away.
Iceland Foods’ listings for McVitie’s Tasties and Crawford’s custard creams state that those products contain wheat and milk. That does not establish the ingredients of every variant.
Read the current packet’s ingredient and allergen statements for the exact product, particularly if you need to avoid either ingredient.
Sainsbury’s standard Custard Creams come in a 200g pack with nutrition information per biscuit.
Marks & Spencer describes an Extra Cream custard cream with more vanilla cream and a separate chocolate-coated Giant format.
Iceland Foods lists McVitie’s Tasties Custard Cream Biscuits as a 300g pack of filled sandwich biscuits.
Iceland Foods describes Crawford’s Custard Creams as sandwich biscuits with vanilla-flavoured cream in a 300g pack.
This 125g custard-cream pack is an option if you plan to take out your own serving. It is not an individually portioned bar.
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For a small midnight serving, take out the number of biscuits you intend to eat from this 125g pack. The product name identifies them as gluten free; check the current ingredient and allergen information for any other dietary requirements.
No. Marks & Spencer describes its 270g Giant Outrageously Chocolatey Custard Cream as made for sharing. The cited standard Sainsbury’s, McVitie’s and Crawford’s custard creams come in multi-biscuit packs; check a prospective bar’s packaging and stated serving if an individual portion is what you need.
Use the nutrition values for the stated serving and take out the number of biscuits you intend to eat. Sainsbury’s lists 59 kcal, 3.3g sugars and 1.2g saturates per biscuit in its standard 200g pack, which contains approximately 16 servings.
Consider the timing as well as the serving. Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust’s CAMHS sleep advice recommends avoiding sugary snacks late at night; custard creams should not be chosen for a supposed sleep benefit.
Some do: Iceland Foods’ listings for McVitie’s Tasties and Crawford’s custard creams state that both contain wheat and milk. Read the current ingredient and allergen information for the exact product you buy rather than applying those listings to every custard cream.