5 of the best EASTER EGGS

Easter eggs are traditionally packed with calories, sugar and saturated fat. a medium Cadbury’s egg contains 696 calories, 23.5g saturated fat and 73g sugar (around 16 teaspoons). there are some better alternatives. Noor al refae, a dietitian in Doncaster, Yorkshire, selected five of the best.

COCOA PLUS DARK PROTEIN CHOCOLATE EGG

150g, £7.98, cocoa.plus Per 100g: Calories, 568; saturated fat, 23.2g; sugar, 22.7g; salt, 0.01g This has 60 per cent less sugar than a regular milk chocolate egg — and hardly any salt (milk chocolate has around 0.24g salt per 100g). The chocolate contains cocoa mass, made from dried and fermented cocoa beans — which accounts for the higher than usual gut-friendly fibre content; you’ll get almost a tenth of your daily fibre in half an egg. Made with whey protein, this also has four times more protein than a regular chocolate egg. But it is high in saturated fat.

WYKE FARMS ORIGINAL CHEASTER EGG

250g, £15, wykefarms.com Per 100g: Calories, 413; saturated fat, 21.6g; sugar, 0.1g; salt, 1.78g Made from mature cheese, gram for gram this has almost 25 per cent fewer calories than milk chocolate eggs — and is lower in sugar. it has three-anda-half times as much protein as milk chocolate and is a good source of calcium; a 30g portion will give you over 30 per cent of your daily amount.

HOTEL CHOCOLAT HARD-BOILED SUPER MILK EGG

220g, £15, hotelchocolat.com Per 100g: Calories, 557g; saturated fat, 25.2g; sugar, 23.2g; salt, 0.1g The chocolate is blended with granola, cocoa nibs, dried fruit, almonds, pistachios and flax seeds. The nuts and seeds add vitamin e, which protects cells from damage, and bone-strengthening magnesium. half an egg will give you almost a sixth of your daily fibre and 60 per cent less sugar than a milk chocolate egg.

PLAMIL SO FREE WHITE CHOCOLATE ALTERNATIVE EGG

110g, £2.99, hollandandbarrett.com Per 100g: Calories, 638g; saturated fat, 29.2g; sugar, 26g; salt, 0.07g Free from dairy and gluten, this white chocolate egg could be a good option for those with intolerances. Gram for gram there’s less than half the added sugar you’d find in a milk chocolate egg — just over two teaspoonsful in half an egg. it’s low in salt, too.

MONTEZUMA’S ABSOLUTE BLACK 100% COCOA EGG

250g, £9.99, montezumas.co.uk Per 100g: Calories, 600; saturated fat, 32g; sugar, 0.3g, salt 0.02g The high percentage of dark chocolate here is a good source of antioxidants that have been shown to be beneficial to heart health. There’s no added sugar or salt, which is good. Like all the eggs the saturated fat content is high — but you are likely to stick to a smaller portion size with this egg because of its strong, dark flavour.