PUMPKINS barely disappear from sight before we are all scouring the shops for Christmas sandwiches.
It seems the nation has a huge appetite for them – searches for "Christmas sandwiches" were up 1,000 per cent in the month leading up to November 8 when compared to last year.
Sainsbury's has rolled out a whopping 11 festive flavours and some budget retailers are selling turkey sandwiches for less than £2.
The pricier festive sarnies however could set you back more than £5.
But which makes the best festive lunch?
We asked mum-of-three Lynsey Hope, 42, from West Malling, Kent, to taste some of this year's turkey sarnies.
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Aldi Eat and Go Turkey Feast – £1.99
- Calories: 485
- Fat: 12.4g
- Sugar: 7g
- Salt: 2.10g
Looks like a meaty sandwich for less than £2 but a lot of the filling was pushed to the front to make it look full and the back of the sandwich was empty.
The turkey was a little dry and the malted bread wasn't as soft as others.
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But there was lots of turkey, more than many others, and this Aldi offering a good price.
- Taste: 6/10
- Value: 7/10
- Overall score: 6/10
M&S Turkey Feast – £3.90
- Calories: 514
- Fat: 20.3g
- Sugar: 12.1g
- Salt: 2.12g
The turkey in the M&S offering is thickly sliced and probably the best meat in all of the sandwiches."
The bacon was crispy and as you take a bite, it all holds together well – it's almost like taking a forkful of your Christmas roast.
The ingredients were high quality and it's a lovely lunch.
Given there is over 20g fat and 12g of sugar in this sandwich though, it's one of the worst for you, so best make it an occasional treat.
- Taste: 9/10
- Value: 7/10
- Overall score: 9/10
Sainsbury's Turkey Feast – £3
- Calories: 400
- Fat: 9.4g
- Sugar: 6.4g
- Salt: 1.70g
A tempting option from Sainsbury's.
This had plenty of turkey and was much better for you than other sarnies with over 100 calories less than M&S and less than half the fat.
It was well-filled, the turkey had a lovely flavour and there was just the right amount of a tangy cranberry chutney.
The stuffing flavour was quite potent, but it had a lovely festive taste.
- Taste: 8/10
- Value: 7/10
- Overall score: 7/10
Morrisons Turkey Lunch – £2.85
- Calories: 398
- Fat: 9.6g
- Sugar: 5.9g
- Salt: 1.77g
This looked a bit underwhelming but I was pleasantly surprised.
The stuffing packed a punch, the turkey was succulent and the streaky bacon had a nice, salty flavour.
The fruity cranberry chutney pulled it all together and it was easy to eat and filling.
A great effort from Morrisons, at a bargain price.
- Taste: 8/10
- Value: 9/10
- Overall score: 8/10
Waitrose Christmas Turkey, Stuffing and Bacon – £4.75
- Calories: 441
- Fat: 10.2g
- Sugar: 7.7g
- Salt: 2.16g
Not cheap at nearly a fiver, but this is a solid sandwich. It has distinct layers and the stuffing had an earthy, pleasant flavour.
"The bacon was tasty and it had a nice saltiness to it.
The turkey-stock mayo elevated the Waitrose treat, making it one of the best we tried. I'll be having a few before Christmas.
- Taste: 9/10
- Value: 7/10
- Overall score: 8/10
Lidl Turkey Feast – £1.99
- Calories: 457
- Fat: 13g
- Sugar: 12.2g
- Salt: 1.67g
A huge surprise here, this is a real winner from Lidl.
It's a copy of the Pret sandwich with lots of crumbly stuffing and a super sweet cranberry sauce.
The bonus – it's less than £2 and £1.71 cheaper than Pret's offering.
There was still plenty of meat, which was flavourful and succulent, and the bread was soft.
At this price, I'll be eating them all the way to Christmas.
- Taste: 10/10
- Value: 10/10
- Overall score: 10/10
Asda Festive Feast – £3.50
- Calories: 567
- Fat: 23g
- Sugar: 9.5g
- Salt: 3.3g
Big and sloppy, this festive sandwich was hard to eat and fell apart as you picked it up.
The sarnie, from Asda, was big and well-filled, but lacking in cranberry chutney or anything else to stop it from being too dry.
The gravy mayo flavour hardly come through at all.
The turkey was shredded rather than sliced.
A beast with 23g of fat and 567 calories. Not my favourite.
- Taste: 4/10
- Value: 4/10
- Overall score: 4/10
Tesco Turkey and Trimmings – £3
- Calories: 467
- Fat: 13.3g
- Sugar: 6.2g
- Salt: 1.91g
The turkey was flavourful and the filling was generous compared to some of the cheaper alternatives.
I loved the flavour of Tesco's herby stuffing.
The bread could be a little thicker and it did start to slop apart when you picked it up, but you could do worse for lunch than pay £3 for this turkey sarnie.
- Taste: 8/10
- Value: 7/10
- Overall score: 7/10
Costa Coffee Turkey Feast – £4.70
- Calories: 477
- Fat: 19g
- Sugar: 8.1g
- Salt: 1.70g
Malted bread with succulent turkey, maple cured bacon and sage and onion stuffing.
Loved the softness of the bread and there was a generous helping of the tangy cranberry sauce.
The Costa sarnie had quite a strong onion flavour from the stuffing which I liked, but may not be for everyone.
- Taste: 9/10
- Value: 7/10
- Overall score: 8/10
Starbucks Festive Feast Panini – £5.30
- Calories: 515
- Fat: 17g
- Sugar: 5.4g
- Salt: 1.80g
This Starbucks' panini is a heated ciabatta filled with all your favourite festive flavours.
I liked the oozy gravy, thick slices of meat, cheddar cheese and the cranberry sauce.
It is chicken again rather than turkey, but this keeps it moist and you get plenty of it.
It still felt very festive.
- Taste: 10/10
- Value: 7/10
- Overall score: 9/10
Pret's Christmas Lunch – £4.99
- Calories: 549
- Fat: 20g
- Sugar: 15g
- Salt: 2.13g
A returning favourite, Pret's Christmas Lunch sarnie is stuffed with succulent, melt in the mouth turkey, cranberry sauce, pork stuffing, spinach, and a squirt of mayo.
I loved the meat and adding the spinach made this feel fresher than all the others.
The stuffing on its own would have been a little dry – it was quite rustic looking, with almost a granola-like texture, thanks to the addition of crispy onions this year.
But the tangy cranberry sauce and mayo were added in just the right amount to make this sandwich a stand-out choice.
- Taste: 10/10
- Value: 8/10
- Overall score: 9/10
Greggs Christmas Lunch – £3.70
- Fat: 16g
- Sugar: 9.2g
- Salt: 2.3g
A solid baguette, served warm, but made with cheaper chicken and not turkey.
Greggs' sage and onion stuffing was nice and the onion gravy brought all the flavours together.
I liked the cranberry and onion relish and it was generous in size for the price but it was lacking in festive feel.
- Taste: 7/10
- Value: 8/10
- Overall score: 8/10
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