We’re no strangers to Pizza Express. It’s one those places we go to and know that there will be something suitable for all four of us.

A few weeks ago post-Christmas, we ventured into our local Pizza Express to sample their Winter specials. For me, Winter is all about comfort food. Delicious dishes that really warm you up and make you forget about the chilly weather outside – what better comfort food out there than Pizza?

From the Winter specials, Mr H chose the Pennette Formaggi as a starter. This is Pizza Express’ take on Macaroni & Cheese with a three cheese sauce, mozzarella and Gran Milano cheese. The dish is also available as a main dish with the option to add in nduja (spicy) sausage which he thought sounded great. Unfortunately, the waiter must have misheard our order as the dish turned up minus the sausage. Still, it was very tasty and definitely warmed his belly up ready for his Pizza.

There are currently two Romana pizzas on the Winter specials menu that were both previously on the Summer menu. The Barbacoa is topped with pulled beef that has been marinated in chilli, lime and garlic and a chipotle salsa. The Etna (named after the famous Italian volcano) is topped with sweet roquito peppers, salty pancetta and spicy nduja.

Mr H decided to go for the Barbacoa and so I had the Etna. Well, let me tell you that was a bit of a mistake. The Etna certainly lived up to its name – it was certainly very fiery!

I like spicy food but even Mr H who absolutely loves spicy food said that there was a big kick of spice after each mouthful!

The Romana pizza bases are stretched to make them thinner and crispier to bring out the flavours of the toppings. Mr H felt that the Barbacoa had too much cheese and this may have been the reason why his pizza base was soggy rather than crispy. However, the Etna base was crisp but we both still found it a little tricky to cut into the pizzas – even with the pizza cutter provided.

For our dessert, we both had the Chocolate Fondant. A moist chocolate cake with a soft melting centre, served with vanilla ice cream. Mr H lucked out on our last visit and I had been telling him all about this delicious dessert for months.

It was most definitely a welcome dish and a delicious way to end the meal.

Brighten up your January by popping into your local branch and try out these winter warming specials for yourself. Just make sure they go easy on the cheese.

*We were invited to sample the Winter Specials at Pizza Express in return for this post.

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