Yum Yum Wednesday – Trader Joe’s Part Duex #TraderJoes

Hi Everyone,

Well as you may have guessed it, I kind of have a thing for Trader Joe’s.  I remember back in my 20’s my Mom would take me there to go shopping.  I wasn’t much of a cook and I kind of got bored there.  Then one day a TJ’s opened up near my work.  It was the closest grocery store to me where I could pick up a few things for dinner.  Then the next thing I knew I became obsessed.  When we went to buy our house, the first thing I did was check to see if there was a TJ’s a close distance to where I was planning on living, sure enough 2 miles away.  I said ok, we can live out here.  🙂  Now that I have become a true foodie (that’s an understatement) I can’t live without Trader Joe’s.  I do 90% of my grocery shopping there.  So when your checking out my recipes, you can guarantee that at least one ingredient has come from Trader Joe’s. On my latest trip I found a few new items and some old ones that has come back this Fall season.  So let me share with you the latest and greatest from my favorite grocery store.

First up is Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Seed Brittle – If you’re a peanut brittle lover and love pumpkin you will love the Pumpkin Seed Brittle.  It’s the same texture, color as peanut brittle, but it has a wonderful pumpkin flavor.  It’s slightly sweet and a little salty too. It has the perfect balance of cinnamon and spices and is covered in a light dusting of sugar.  This would be great to serve on Thanksgiving as a little treat.  A little bit of this brittle goes a long way because of how sweet it is.  The package says it has 8 servings at 150 calories a serving. The sugar is 21 grams.  So have this as a treat and try not to eat the whole box in one siting.  That could be hard.

Trader Joe’s Power 7 Juice –  This juice is fantastic.  It is all natural and kind of tastes like grape Popsicle’s to me.  It’s made with pomegranate, cherry, black mulberry, red grapefruit, purple carrot, cranberry and blue berry juice.  Each serving is 8 oz and is 110 calories and 0 fat.  The sugar is 25 grams but it is all natural sugar.  I think this would be great in a smoothie, but I like to drink it with a big cup of ice.  It quenches my thirst.  I enjoy the juice and so does my family.  I just thought of this, but I bet it would be good made into popsicles.  Just saying…

Chocolate Coconut Almonds – Dear heavens this is so good. I love to have a few of these for my after lunch treat.  I keep a box of these at work.  If I have them at home I think I would eat the whole thing.  It’s milk chocolate, surrounded by coconut and has an almond in the middle.  They are really good.

Trader Joe’s Jalapeno Greek Yogurt Dip – I love this yogurt dip. It has the right amount of heat, it’s creamy and has simply wonderful flavors. Each serving is only 50 calories for 2 tablespoons. One thing about this dip is that you should eat it within a few days of opening it, otherwise it gets kind of watery. It goes great with carrots and other vegetables. I will be keeping this dip on my rotation. I highly recommend it.

Trader Joe’s Crispy Crunchy Mango Chips – I just saw these at TJ’s and the lady at the register said they are amazing, one of her new favorites. I was so excited to try one, so as soon as I got home from shopping I ripped open my package. She was right! These mango chips are crunchy, naturally sweet and darn good. However, the package is one serving at 290 calories, 11 grams of fat, 46 carbs and 39 grams of sugar. I just about crapped when I read that. I checked the ingredients out and it is made with mango and palm oil. It just goes to show how sweet the fruit really is. As much as I love it, this will also be a treat. I think it would be good crushed up on a salad.

Trader Joe’s Pita Crisps with Cranberries and Pumpkin Seeds – All I can say is that this is one of my all time favorite TJ items. They are crunchy, sweet and has the perfect pumpkin flavor with little bit of chewy cranberry. I happened to see these at the counter when checking out and I grabbed two bags. One thing is a bag is 5 servings at 9 pita chips in each serving. I could totally eat a whole bag in one sitting. These are dangerous, but delicious. They are great for dipping in pumpkin flavored dips.

Trader Joe’s Light Vanilla Ice Cream – This is one of the newest Trader Joe’s ice cream and I am pleasantly pleased with it. It’s creamy, great vanilla flavor and only 110 calories for a half a cup. No one in my house noticed that it was light. We love it and it’s a great bargain for the price.

Trader Joe’s Honey Crisp Apple Cider – When I was checking this out at TJ’s and two employees looked at me, smiled and said you will be back for more of that apple cider. Yeah, yeah I thought! They were right. The apple cider is sweet and refreshing and only contains one ingredient; honey crisp apples. I swear they added sugar and spices to it, but nope just apples. I love it and I bet it would be great cooked in pork.

Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Cranberry Crisps – This is one of my favorite items for the Fall season. I love these little crisps. they are crunchy, chewy, fabulous pumpkin flavor with hints of cinnamon. It goes great with a creamy cheese or smeared with peanut butter. I saw 3 boxes left on the shelves and I bought two of them. I could eat almost a whole box in one sitting if I allowed myself too. They would be perfect for your next holiday party. Stock up on them, they are low-calorie and mighty delish.

Trader Joe’s Hatch Valley Salsa – One of my newest favorite salsa’s. It is spicy, with a great kick of heat. If you only like mild salsa this is not one for you. The salsa is made with 4 ingredients, roasted hatch chili’s, tomatillos, lime juice and garlic salt. I love it and it goes great on top of my tacos and taco salad. There is so much you can do with it, just use your imagination and have fun!

The next two items I have not tried yet. I’ve been meaning too, but I just haven’t had a chance. So I would love your review of them.

Trader Joe’s Qunioa Cowboy Veggie Burgers – I bought these because I heard rave reviews from Trader Joe lovers like me. Give me your review on them if you have tried them.

Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Caramel Sauce – I bought this because I couldn’t resist. However, I am afraid to open it. I know I will love it. The bad thing is 2 tablespoons is a 140 calories. Meaning I can only use the smallest amount of drizzle that I can. I bet it would be good dipping in apples. If you have tried this caramel sauce, please tell me what you think.

Well that’s it for my adventure at Trader Joe’s. You can follow me on Instagram for some of the latest and greatest items I have found at my beloved grocery store.

Now don’t forget to give me your reviews and recommendations on items I should buy and try at Trader Joe’s or ones that I should stay away from.

Have a great day!

Toodles,

Jennifer