Trader Joe's blog and cooking.
The pros: Trader Joe’s Matcha Almond Beverage is new to shelves. This is a half way point between a the canned matcha beverage and a matcha latte in terms of sweetness.
The cons: If you are not a matcha fan, then this is probably a flavor you can skip.
The verdict: …
The pros: Trader Joe’s Blueberry Lavender Flavored Almond Beverage is a new seasonal gluten-free, vegan, dairy free, kosher, shelf stable almond beverage flavor that has nuances of both blueberry and lavender that are very subtle.
The cons: There is a direct correlation between how much blueberry flavor you are expecting and how happy you will likely be with this product.
The verdict: …
The pros: Trader Joe’s Restaurant Style White Corn Tortilla Chips are sturdy and flavorful chips that are well priced.
The cons: While they may say restaurant style, they will still never match the just out of the deep fryer variety that is served in most restaurants.
The verdict: …
The pros: Trader Joe’s Falafel Mix is a new mix that is vegan and gluten free and very easy to prepare.
The cons: You won’t be able to make this instantly as the box requires you to wait 30-60 minutes before cooking. You can’t skip this step.
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The pros: Trader Joe’s Scandinavian Swimmers are available all year round. There have been other gummies available like Scandinavian Tidings and Gummy Xs & Os. These are also a different set of flavors than the seasonal variety.
The cons: These are pretty addicting.
The verdict: …
The pros: Trader Joe’s Nutritional Yeast is relatively new and has the vegan community excited. This item is well priced for the size that you get.
The cons: If you have never had this or have no idea what to do with it, you might not end up liking it.
The verdict: …
The pros: Trader Joe’s Wasabi Mayonnaise is perfect for those who love Japanese inspired flavors.
The cons: This might not be for everyone. Spice junkies might not think this brings enough heat.
The verdict: …
The pros: Trader Joe’s Organic Quinoa and Rice Hot Cereal is a new item that is mixed in with all the other decadent flavors of the holiday season. This was ready in about 2 minutes.
The cons: You’ll want to add your own mix ins to this. It’s extremely bland on its own.
The verdict: …
The pros: Trader Joe’s Cocoa Almond Cashew Beverage is a fantastic substitute for those who can have nuts but are dairy free, soy free, gluten-free or vegan. It’s also darn good if you also want to change. This is ultra pasteurized so it is shelf stable.
The cons: Not as smooth as chocolate milk, but this isn’t a milk product. Price. This is more expensive that buying Trader Joe’s Almond Beverage by the half gallon.
The verdict: …
The pros: Trader Joe’s Almond Nog is soy free, gluten free, diary free, vegan, kosher, and seasonal. Best of all, it does a very good job of replicating the flavors that you might expect in a regular egg nog.
The cons: Why is there not a recipe on this carton to make this boozy egg nog? Isn’t that what egg nog is supposed to be about? It’s also not quite as thick as a regular nog.
The verdict: …
The pros: Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Spice Caramel Corn is a sweet and well spiced caramel corn that will make most pumpkin spice lovers happy.
The cons: Product did not look much like what came out of the bag.
The verdict:
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The pros: Trader Joe’s Gluten Free Egg Fettuccine Pasta is excellent. Fresh pasta is always better than boxed, but this was the closest substitute for “real” pasta I’ve ever tried.
The cons: Price. Gluten free products seem to command a premium. With any pasta product, I disagree with the serving sizes. I think two servings is the realistic size expectations
The verdict: …
The pros: Trader Joe’s Spud Crunchies are a new and fun product that seems to be a hybrid of a french fry and a potato chip.
The cons: This bag cannot be resealed, therefore it almost begs you to eat all four servings.
The verdict: …
The pros: Trader Joe’s Gluten Free Pumpkin Pancake Mix is a good quality mix for those who can’t have gluten. Other than a mild textural difference, I probably would not have guessed that these are gluten free.
The cons: There is a price premium as compared to the non gluten free variety. No directions available for waffles.
The verdict: …
The pros: Trader Joe’s Gluten Free Pumpkin Bread and Muffin Baking Mix is a perfectly good option for those who can’t have gluten. Only subtle differences between this and the regular variety of Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Bread mix.
The cons: This item is priced higher than the non-gluten free variety. The first ingredient listed is sugar.
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The pros: Trader Joe’s Organic White Truffle Potato Chips are thin potato chips that are packed with flavor of truffle. Yes, truffle is actually on the ingredient list.
The cons: If you aren’t into the earthy flavor that truffles bring then you should avoid this one. This bag is only 6 ounces.
The verdict:
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The pros: Trader Joe’s Ghosts and Bats are a fun seasonal potato chip like snack. These are also gluten free.
The cons: Seasonal. These remind me of a combination of my favorite chips. I do wish they could add some more flavoring here.
The verdict: …
The pros: Trader Joe’s Ts and Js Sour Gummies come in a resealable bag and are essentially Trader Joe’s answer to Sour Patch Kids. These are gluten free.
The cons: They aren’t an exact copy of Sour Patch kids, but are very addicting making the resealable bag almost unnecessary. These are shaped in the letters T and J which means they are probably more coated in the sour sugar (which might not be a bad thing).
The verdict: …
The pros: Trader Joe’s Gluten Free Chicken Breast Nuggets are perfect with those who cannot have gluten which won’t have you feeling deprived of the experience of chicken nuggets.
The cons: These aren’t quite a perfect clone of the regular chicken nugget, but they come close enough.
The verdict: …
The pros: Trader Joe’s Crunchy Nutty Rice Bites might remind you of a more adult flavored Rice Krispies treat, just better. Gluten free and kosher if that is a priority for you. Bag can be resealed so you don’t feel obligated to eat the whole thing.
The cons: Nothing really jumps out.
The verdict: …
Every now and again, I have someone who reaches out to me with a suggestion (or two or like a dozen) of things I haven’t tried yet. While I may not get to it right away, I do love it when readers reach out to me with a suggestion. So tonight’s review goes out to Btandjt on Instagram for suggesting Simply Lite Dark Chocolate Bar. Thanks for the great suggestion!
The pros: Simply Lite Dark Chocolate Bar tastes every bit dark chocolate without being very bitter, but some how doesn’t taste artificial in any meaningful way.
The cons: This bar came with a warning label. No really. It might help you lose weight in one way or another. In fact, the warning label on this chocolate may remind you of this famous SNL sketch (80 second video).
The verdict: …
The pros: Trader Joe’s Gluten Free Cheese Pizza with Cauliflower Crust is an improvement over Trader Joe’s Cauliflower Pizza Crust.
The cons: You still won’t confuse this for “real” pizza. You can expect two realistic servings from this pizza.
The verdict: …
The pros: Trader Joe’s Vanilla Coconut Beverage is vegan, gluten-free, and soy free. Also there is an unsweetened variety. Pretty long shelf life compared to dairy.
The cons: This item only comes in a half-gallon size. Quite a bit of saturated fat in each serving.
The verdict: …
The pros: Trader Joe’s Stone Ground White Grits are creamy and well done if you follow the directions listed on the bag. The bag is resealable
The cons: These are the real deal, so they can’t be rushed. There are currently no quick grits or frozen grits available at Trader Joe’s.
The verdict: …
