Easter hunt organisers
If biscuits will be offered alongside the hunt, choose the style guests want, then check how many portions the packs provide and where everyone will stop to eat.
Who is this choice for?
Hosts managing food allergies
Choose for each guest using the exact pack’s ingredients and precautionary allergen statements. A biscuit described as plain, or a product labelled Free From, is not automatically suitable for every allergy.
What to check before buying
Start with the biscuit style guests prefer, then check the particular packs for allergens and portions before deciding how to serve them during the hunt.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Biscuit style | Tesco describes its custard creams as vanilla-filled sandwich biscuits. Its plain digestives have no cream filling; the McVitie’s Digestives Creams Vanilla listing describes vanilla filling between digestive biscuits. Check the product name rather than treating these styles as interchangeable. | I’m choosing between a filled custard cream and a plain digestive for my guests. If they want a filling with digestive biscuits, I’ll look for that distinct style. |
| Allergens | Read the ingredients and precautionary statements on each actual pack. Tesco’s checked custard creams list a possible sesame presence, while its checked digestives list possible peanuts and nuts; those statements should not be transferred to another product. | When a guest has disclosed an allergy, I need to check the particular biscuits I intend to serve, including any Free From alternative. |
| Portions | Check the pack weight and biscuit count if one is given. For nutrition comparisons, use the same quantity basis, such as the products’ per-100g values, rather than assuming one biscuit is the same size across packs. | There need to be enough suitable biscuits for the people attending, not just enough packs by weight. |
| Serving and storage | Arrange a seated eating stop for young children. Better Lives Healthy Futures, an NHS-linked child health service, advises supervising them while they eat and not allowing them to walk or run with food. Follow each pack’s directions for storing opened biscuits. | I can keep the hunt and the eating break separate, then store any opened packs as their labels direct. |
Buying pitfalls
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Assuming a plain digestive suits every guest with an allergy
The checked McVitie’s Original digestive listing identifies wheat, while Tesco’s digestive listing includes a milk ingredient and precautionary information about peanuts and nuts. Plain describes the biscuit style, not its allergen suitability.
Ask guests about relevant allergies and check the current label of each pack before serving.
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Applying an older taste-test result to a different biscuit
Good Housekeeping Institute placed M&S Custard Creams first in its 2020 test of 10 products. The separately listed M&S Extra Cream Custard Creams have a different name and pack size; the historical result does not establish how that variant tastes.
Use the test only for the product and period it covered. Check the name, filling and ingredients of the pack being considered now.
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Comparing nutrition one biscuit at a time
Tesco’s checked digestive listing specifies a 14g biscuit. A per-biscuit figure for a custard cream is not a like-for-like comparison unless the serving weights are accounted for.
If nutrition affects the choice, compare the labels on a common basis, such as per 100g, and consider the portions you plan to serve.
Brands and biscuit styles
These brand references illustrate particular listed biscuits, rather than establishing what every product from a brand contains or which packs are currently available.
McVitie’s
The checked listings include Original Digestives and Digestives Creams Vanilla, giving a choice between an unfilled digestive and one with a vanilla-flavoured filling.
- The two named products make the filling difference clear.
- Check each product’s own allergen information; the listings do not have identical statements.
Crawford’s
Crawford’s Custard Creams are a vanilla-filled sandwich-biscuit option.
- The checked Tesco listing gives a typical count of 26 biscuits for its 300g pack, which can help with portion planning.
- Confirm current availability before planning around that particular pack.
Tesco
The checked own-label products include standard custard creams, plain digestives and separately labelled Free From custard creams.
- The product pages distinguish biscuit styles and provide ingredients and nutrition information.
- Use the current pack label for allergen decisions, particularly when switching between the standard and Free From products.
M&S
The separately listed M&S Extra Cream Custard Creams are described by Ocado as having a thicker vanilla-flavoured filling.
- The filling description helps distinguish this named variant from a standard custard cream.
- It should not be treated as the same product as the M&S Custard Creams in Good Housekeeping Institute’s 2020 taste test.
Sainsbury’s
A checked 200g Sainsbury’s Custard Creams listing provides another own-label example of the filled-biscuit style.
- Its product listing includes ingredients and per-biscuit nutrition information.
- Check availability and the current pack details before choosing it for the event.
Joybuy biscuit options
These options include custard creams, an Original digestive and digestive variants. The chocolate-coated biscuits offer a different style from the plain digestive at the centre of the choice.
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McVitie’s Digestives the Original 2 x 315g
An unfilled digestive option for guests who do not want a cream filling. The two-pack format contains two 315g packs; check the physical packs for ingredients and allergen statements before serving.
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Schar Gluten Free Custard Creams 125g
A 125g custard-cream option for guests who want a filled biscuit. If you are choosing it for a guest with an allergy or intolerance, check the exact pack’s ingredients and statements against their requirements rather than relying on the product name alone.
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Gullon Zero Sugar Free Original Digestives 400g
A 400g digestive variant for guests who prefer an unfilled biscuit. Check its nutrition and ingredient label for the particulars that matter to your group; the product information also cautions that excessive consumption may have a laxative effect.
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McVitie’s Digestives Milk Chocolate 400g
A 400g chocolate-coated digestive option if guests want chocolate rather than a plain biscuit or a vanilla-filled custard cream. Check the pack’s ingredient and allergen information before serving.
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McVitie’s Digestives Dark Chocolate Twin Pack 2 x 266g
A dark-chocolate-coated digestive in two 266g packs. It is a different choice from both a plain digestive and a custard cream; check the current pack for ingredients and allergen statements.
Frequently asked questions
Is a vanilla cream-filled digestive a custard cream?
No: the checked McVitie’s Digestives Creams Vanilla listing describes a filling between digestive biscuits, while Tesco describes its custard cream as a vanilla-filled sandwich biscuit. Choose according to which biscuit and filling guests want.
What allergen details should I check?
Read the ingredients and precautionary allergen statements on each actual pack against guests’ disclosed needs. Statements differ between products: Tesco’s checked custard creams list possible sesame presence, while its checked digestives list possible peanuts and nuts. A Free From name does not answer every allergen question.
When should children eat biscuits during the egg hunt?
Plan a stop where young children can sit and eat under supervision, rather than eating as they walk or run. That follows the eating-safety advice from Better Lives Healthy Futures, an NHS-linked child health service.
How should I keep packs after opening them?
Follow the directions on the particular pack. The checked Tesco custard creams and digestives call for cool, dry storage and an airtight container after opening.