Farmhouse Fare is taking on Häagen-Dazs and Ben & Jerry's this winter with a cheeky new range of sponge desserts that come in ice-cream style tubs but are designed to be heated and eaten hot.

Lovetub puddings, which come in two flavours caramel and chocolate (rsp: £2.99 for a 300g tub), are chilled and feature packaging that enables the contents to be microwaved.

They were aimed at women aged 25-34, "who don't tend to eat traditional puddings, but do enjoy ice-cream", said Daniel Ovens, marketing manager at Daniels Group, which owns Farmhouse Fare.

"I think we will probably take consumers away from products like Gü, but also Ben & Jerry's and Häagen-Dazs," he said. "In the winter months, it doesn't feel quite right sitting in front of the TV with an ice cream when you could be snuggling up with a Lovetub."

Younger women under-indexed in traditional puddings, but over-indexed in dessert consumption, he added. "There is a great opportunity for desserts to be eaten away from the table on the sofa."

The puddings roll out from September 13 into Tesco, Sainsbury's, Waitrose, the Co-op and Ocado. Marketing support includes a six-month sponsorship of Sky Movies' Drama and Romance TV channel from October.

Farmhouse Fare had grown by over 25% in the past 12 months to more than £3m in value sales, added Ovens.