Apple crumble in a supermarket sandwich has foodies saying 'surely not?!'

Apple crumble is usually served in a bowl, usually warm, with lashings of custard.

If you’ve ever wished for a more portable version, then your dream is about to come true thanks to Sainsbury’s and one of their festive sandwiches.

The supermarket is putting the much-loved dessert between two slices of brioche this Christmas, and the arrival of its new apple crumble sandwich has already left food lovers wondering whether themed treats have gone too far.

What next, a peppermint panini or a tiramisu toastie?!

The festive sandwich, which launches in November, contains fresh apple slices, fruit compote, crème fraîche and crumbled biscuits, all encased in thick slices of brioche.

Surely custard instead of crème fraîche would have been an obvious choice?

Shoppers will be able to pick it up as a snack choice within the Sainsbury’s meal deal range, too, rather than it counting as your main sandwich option.

The apple crumble sandwich has appalled some and delighted others (Sainsbury's)

The reaction to the announcement has been mixed so far, although there are signs that some shoppers are intrigued rather than horrified.

One social-media post sharing the news was met with the blunt response: “Surely not!?” while others have pointed out that sweet sandwiches are hardly a new invention.

“Nothing new here, I’ve had jam or marmalade sandwiches all my life?” queried one.

“What, no custard?” added one outraged commenter.

“Don’t mock it until you tried it,” urged one open-minded consumer, while someone else insisted: “I see nothing wrong with it so long as you make a special treat of it, and not an every day meal.”

“It should be a Christmas pudding sandwich!” fumed one, while someone else suggested: “Just watch, they’ll make a mince pie sandwich next.”

You’ll give them ideas for next year…

The Observer’s food reviewer, Holly O’Neill, wasn’t sure: “I’m pro-fusion – and fun ideas – but sandwich and pudding is a combination I probably won’t rush to have again,” she confessed.

The idea sounds strange, but it is part of a growing supermarket trend.

Dessert sandwiches, sometimes referred to as ‘dessertwiches’, have become increasingly familiar in Britain after the popularity of Japanese fruit sandwiches, or furutsu sando.

It's not the first time shoppers have been treated to a sweet sandwich, following the viral strawberry M&S offering (M&S)

These traditionally combine fruit and whipped cream with soft milk bread.

Marks & Spencer was one of the retailers to bring the idea to the British high street with its strawberries and cream sandwich, launched ahead of Wimbledon in 2025.

Made with sweetened white bread, strawberries and cream, it attracted plenty of attention, and shoppers. M&S sold a whopping 75,000 in the first five days the sandwich was on shelves.

That success was enough to inspire another version this year: chocolate, strawberry and pistachio crème, served on cocoa-enriched bread. At £3.50, it took the idea further into dessert territory.

Tesco has also joined the trend, introducing a birthday cake-inspired sandwich to mark 30 years of Clubcard.

Its brioche contained strawberry jam, cream cheese and rainbow sprinkles, borrowing the flavours and appearance of a Victoria sponge.

Aldi, meanwhile, decided to have a little fun with the whole business.

The supermarket mocked up a carrot and crème sandwich and posted: “This is not just any sando… this is a Carrot and Creme Sando, 500,000 likes and we’ll make it happen.”

Stranger things have happened.