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Trader Joe's Pappa al Pomodoro

If I've had one complaint in 2019 about Trader Joe's, it is that I've tried too many snack related items. Not that I mind, I just look forward to the healthier options more. And only recently have some of those healthier options been hitting shelves. Like the recent Acai Bowl. Now that the weather is cooler, Trader Joe's Pappa al Pomodoro is a quick meal that keeps the calories in check.

Review and Taste

The first thing that might jump out at you in this picture is the breadstick. Perhaps you'll think there will be a bit of bread stuck in this box. However, there isn't. This is packaged the same way as Trader Joe's artichoke dip. You get 2 cute cylinders of soup in each box.

The bread comes into play once you heat this up. I opted for the microwave and the directions were more or less on point.

What stares back at you is a really rustic soup. And what I mean by that is that it is just thinner than a sauce. The tomatoes are chopped roughly and the bread is torn throughout the soup. The flavor here is pretty good for a premade soup.

Now, despite the color, this appears to be a dairy-free option. I made mine more filling with the addition of some bread to sop up the soup. But this soup is rustic enough to work in a bread bowl.

The flavors here are pretty fresh tasting with a good kick of red pepper flake at the end of each bite. There is some basil, but not enough to make me feel like I am sitting down with a jar of sauce. And when it comes to a tomato-based sauce, that is a fine line.

And despite the fact that I thought the soup wasn't terribly large, it did become filling once I brought my own bread to the party. So the portion size is quite reasonable.

Overall

For $3.69 you get two soups or two quick and tasty meals. Best of all, this isn't one of those sugar-laden items that I've gotten used to trying regularly. Hopefully, this is a sign of things to come in 2020. But on a side note, now that Halloween is over most stores are already well-stocked for Thanksgiving and even the holiday season already.

Would I buy this again? Yes, I would buy Trader Joe's Pappa al Pomodoro again. It made for a pleasant and warming lunch. But is totally doable as a dinner option as well.

Did you try it? Let me know what you think in the comments section!

Product Photos

The box of Trader Joe's Pappa al Pomodoro:

Calories and ingredients

Directions

Out of the package you get:

Trader Joe's Pappa al Pomodoro out of the box showing the cylinder of soup

After being cooked you get:

A fully cooked Trader Joe's Pappa al Pomodoro with 2 slices of bread

Want to see more items I've reviewed from Trader Joe's? Click on Thoughts & Reviews of Trader Joe's for a searchable list.

The Bottom Line

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Grasshopper Cocktail

My Grasshopper drink recipe is a delicious and easy cocktail recipe. Its mildly alcoholic that drinks like a mint chocolate dessert. Perfect for St. Patrick's Day, the holidays, or when a gentle mint drink is your last beverage of the day.

If there is one type of cocktail that is underappreciated, it's the nightcap. Traditionally, it's the last drink of the day. All too often, people drink for the sole purpose of getting drunk. This is one of those cocktails that you drink purely for flavor.

Origins of the Grasshopper Cocktail

According to Imbibe Magazine, the history of this cocktail is not lost to time and can in fact be traced to a single individual, Philibert Guichet Jr. who is said to have invented the drink for a cocktail competition around the year 1920. The history of this cocktail remains intact because the bar, Tujague's, is still open in the French Quarter of New Orleans and has been open for over 150 years.

Once you taste a cocktail like this, there is a reason this cocktail hasn't disappeared off of the menus.

Variations of the Grasshopper

Certain things are true of all Grasshopper ingredients: there is a dairy element, creme de cacao, and creme de menthe. However, you can play around with these to come up with the following variations on this classic cocktail:

If you want a dairy-free option make this a flying grasshopper by switching out the half and half with vodka.
If you want this to taste like a Girl Scout Thin Mint Cookie, then swap out the creme de menthe for peppermint schnapps.
If you want a frozen grasshopper use ice cream like mint or vanilla.

Tips for Make a Grasshopper Cocktail

Here are my top tips for making this:

Always use good quality ice
You can use the brown creme de cacao, but it will become a more brownish-green color.
Likewise, you can substitute peppermint schnapps for the green creme de menthe, but it won't retain its bright green hue.
For a dessert-like drink, use ice cream in place of the half and half
If you are looking to save calories you can use whole milk in place of half and half

Watch Me Make This (54 Seconds)

How to Make a Grasshopper Cocktail

Step 1: In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, add the creme de cacao.

1 ounce of creme de cacao next to a cocktail shaker and the original bottle

Step 2: Add Creme de Menthe

One ounce of creme de menthe next to the original bottle and cocktail shaker

Step 3: Shake!

A collage showing the creme de cacao mixed with the creme de menthe

Step 4: Add half and half. Swirl gently.

Collage showing how to swirl the half and half into the creme de menthe and creme de cacao

Step 5: Pour into a chilled cocktail glass, garnish with some mint leaves, and enjoy right away.

Two finished Grasshopper cocktails on a dark surface garnished with mint leaves.

Other Dessert Cocktails You Might Enjoy

I hope you enjoy this Grasshopper Cocktail Recipe below!

If you try this, would you mind hitting the "Rate" button? I'd love to know what you thought of it. If you modified the original recipe here, please let me know how it turned out. I love comments!

If you've tried this Grasshopper Cocktail Recipe or any other recipe on the blog, I'd love the hear what you thought about it in the comments below. I love hearing from you! You can also FOLLOW ME on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest to see what I'm up to.

Print Recipe

5 from 3 votes

Grasshopper Cocktail

Prep Time5

Total Time5

Course: Dessert, Drinks

Cuisine: American

Keyword: grasshopper cocktail, grasshopper drink

Servings:

Calories: 206kcal

Author: Brenda

Ingredients

1 ounce creme de cacao use clear, but if you have brown creme de cacao, please see my notes
1 ounce creme de menthe
1 once half and half
1 sprig mint leaves optional garnish

Instructions

In a cocktail shaker filled with ice add creme de cacao and creme de menthe. Shake to chill
Add in half and half. Swirl to combine.
Pour into a cocktail glass. Garnish. Serve immediately.

Video

Notes

Here are my top tips for making this:

Always use good quality ice
You can use the brown creme de cacao, but it will become a more brownish green color.
Likewise, you can substitute peppermint schnapps for the green creme de menthe, but it won't retain it's bright green hue.
For a dessert like drink, use ice cream in place of the half and half
If you are looking to save calories you can use whole milk in place of half and half

Nutrition

Trader Joe's Philly Cheesesteak Bao Buns

Food fusion here. Now, if you are from Philly, let me apologize on behalf of Trader Joe's. These do not do a good Philly Cheesesteak justice. But as far as bao go, the dough here is at least as good as the Pork Bao Buns. However, as a combination Trader Joe's Philly Cheesesteak Bao Buns just don't match the hype.

Taste

Don't get me wrong, I was excited to finally find them in my local store. And my local store since they have done an expansion, it's been a bit tough to find where everything is as they are now moving items around regularly. For my local New York people, you'll find me more often than not in Hartsdale.

So I went ahead and picked up 2 boxes of these. And for $2.99 for a package of 4 buns, it isn't a bad deal.

I mean who doesn't love Philly Cheesesteak? It's delish. And Bao, well that is a whole lot of awesome. Put them together and it should be amazing.

But unfortunately, it doesn't work as well. Not because of the bao, but because of the lackluster filling.

Now unlike the Pork Bao Buns, this is a better ratio of filling to dough. But where this Bao falls flat is the filling.

I know Philly Cheesesteaks are often made with shaved beef. But each bite had me wondering, "Where is the beef?" And worse yet the other aspects of what makes a Philly Cheesesteak so magical, be it the onions or peppers, were also chopped up pretty fine as well.

The ones in the picture look truly meaty. The ones I got looked a bit more like a dirty diapers when I bit into them. And then there was an odd kick of spice. I'm not sure if mine were overly heavy-handed with the black pepper but each one I had seemed to have a mild heat to it. And that was also unexpected.

Overall

So what this product wins in the hype, it lacks in execution. But not being one to waste decent enough food, I did polish off the two boxes. Making a quick meal that has a reasonable number of calories has been a priority.

Would I buy this again? I polished off the two boxes of Trader Joe's Philly Cheesesteak Bao Buns but I'm not sure I will be buying this one again. It was satisfactory without any wow.

Did you try it? Let me know what you think in the comments section!

Product Photos

The box of Trader Joe's Philly Cheesesteak Bao Buns:

Calories and ingredients

Directions

Cooking instructions for Trader Joe's Philly Cheesesteak Bao Buns

Out of the package you get:

Two uncooked bao from the box of Trader Joe's Philly Cheesesteak Bao Buns

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Trader Joe's Organic Tomato Mozzarella Piccolo Pizza

There is absolutely nothing like New York pizza. I'm not sure if it is the water or some other magical factor, but nothing comes close. Not even in a frozen pizza. However, there has been a bit of a shuffle in Trader Joe's frozen pizza aisle where certain items have been discontinued. So, when something gets discontinued something else takes its place and in this case, it is Trader Joe's Organic Tomato Mozzarella Piccolo Pizza.

Review & Taste

So one of my common complaints about Trader Joe's frozen pizzas is that the crust is pretty bland. That doesn't seem to be the case here. There does seem to be some flavor going on here.

Otherwise, this ate a whole lot like Trader Joe's Prosciutto, Arugula, and Burrata Flatbread. They were about the same thickness and the crusts seemed similar.

The key difference is the added tomato on top of this as opposed to the arugula and prosciutto topping on the flatbread.

In either case, this little pizza only takes 10-12 minutes on 425F. Quicker than delivery in most cases and depending on where you live might actually be better than local delivery. However, this never reaches quite the greatness of New York pizza.

So yes, this product is imported from Italy so it might be more reminiscent of something you'd get on a long vacation. However, since I've never had the opportunity to go to Italy, I'll leave that up to the comments section to decide on how authentic it is to Italian-style pizza.

For $2.99 it is certainly cheaper than a slice of pizza in New York as the starting price for a plain slice seems to however at or above $2 before you add any toppings.

But if you are like me and enjoy a quick meal with minimal mess, then this wasn't a bad item to reach for.

Overall

Would I buy this again? While I liked Trader Joe's Organic Tomato Mozzarella Piccolo Pizza, I like the Prosciutto flatbread better, but that is all a matter of preference too. If someone handed me a slice of this, I don't think I would turn it down either.

Did you try it? Let me know what you think in the comments section!

Product Photos

The box of Trader Joe's Organic Tomato Mozzarella Piccolo Pizza:

Calories and ingredients

How Trader Joe's describes this product:

Description on the side of the box of Trader Joe's Organic Tomato Mozzarella Piccolo Pizza

After being cooked you get:

An fully cooked Trader Joe's Organic Tomato Mozzarella Piccolo Pizza

Want to see more items I've reviewed from Trader Joe's? Click on Thoughts & Reviews of Trader Joe's for a searchable list.

The Bottom Line

Don't forget to share your thoughts by going to the "user review" at the bottom of the box (click on the number of stars you believe this product deserves) and leave a comment below.

You can also FOLLOW ME on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest to see what I'm up to.

Trader Joe's Nantucket Style Cranberry Pie

And just before Halloween happens, Thanksgiving has hit Trader Joe's. While there seem to be some new items, most of what is hitting shelves is a returning classic including Trader Joe's Nantucket Style Cranberry Pie.

Taste and review

Now, don't get me wrong, my absolute favorite Trader Joe's cranberry product hands down is their Cranberry Orange Relish that shows up in the refrigerated aisle along with the seasonal items that only last through the short holiday season.

However, I think this product is a bit misleading. When I think of pie I tend to think of a flaky crust. But when you cut into this it tastes more like a cookie with lots of walnuts in it.

Things seem to get more confusing when you take this out of the box and are looking at the bottom of the pie and not the top. The cookie side faces up but gets flipped down when you put it onto a serving dish.

The cranberries are good but I almost feel like there was something that needed to be added between the crust and the cranberries to break it up a little bit further.

Cranberries can be pretty assertive on their own and there was quite a bit of them here. The crust is plenty sweet and the cranberry topping is tart enough without making you wince.

Nothing bad, but unexpected. If you have visitors with a nut allergy this might not strike you as the type of item that has nuts in it.

Overall

This isn't a bad dessert. It basically is a defrost and you are ready to serve the type of item. And especially around the holidays, it is a great item to keep in your freezer.

The cranberries were on the tart side but still had some texture. My pie wasn't quite as presentable as the one pictured, but it wasn't too ugly that I wouldn't take it out of the house either.

For $5.99 this is way cheaper than a bakery and less time-consuming than making it from scratch.

Would I buy this again? Trader Joe's Nantucket Style Cranberry Pie is usually an annual purchase.

Did you try it? Let me know what you think in the comments section!

Visual rundown

The box of Trader Joe's Nantucket Style Cranberry Pie:

Calories

Nutritional information for Trader Joe's Nantucket Style Cranberry Pie

Ingredients and directions

Ingredients and how to prepare Trader Joe's Nantucket Style Cranberry Pie

Out of the package you get:

Trader Joe's Nantucket Style Cranberry Pie out of the box showing the pie is actually upside down when removed

After being flipped over you get:

A flipped over Trader Joe's Nantucket Style Cranberry Pie showing off the cranberry topping

Want to see more items I've reviewed from Trader Joe's? Click on Thoughts & Reviews of Trader Joe's for a searchable list.

The Bottom Line

Don't forget to share your thoughts by going to the "user review" at the bottom of the box (click on the number of stars you believe this product deserves) and leave a comment below.

You can also FOLLOW ME on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest to see what I'm up to.