The Fearless Flyer should land on Monday. In the meanwhile, I'm gearing up for my fall/winter body with all the goodies on shelves. Aside from the usual pumpkin offerings, it seems they have been branching off even more.
Taste
Among the things that ended up in my cart in the last 24 hours have included: Caramel Cookie Crunch and Pistachio gelato, a new Autumnal Harvest Soup, new organic Turkey Bites, Corn on the Cob Popping Corn, Chocolate Salted Caramel Mug Mix, Vanilla Bean infused Maple Syrup, Cheesy Spaghetti Squash Casserole, El Salvador small-lot coffee, Hot Cocoa Dunkers Cookies, and Harvest Spaghetti Squash Spirals. My cart was screaming "Di-a-bee-tus."
I did manage to pick up a few items that have some nutritional value to them while I was there too. All were in the produce section: fresh carrot spirals, butternut squash spirals, and pre-cut spaghetti squash that can be microwaved. It seems like they are taking advantage of some of the spiralized veggie crazes and I'm cool with that too.
So if you want to chime in and let me know which items you want to see first, I'm happy to make the sacrifice :). No seriously. I really want to hear which ones you want to read about first.
But in the meanwhile, behold new granola that is autumn flavored. There are spiced pumpkin seeds in this, so while the name doesn't hit as such, they are there. Trader Joe snuck them into an unsuspecting bag. They added some peanuts to round out the nuttiness here.
Not too long ago I tried Trader Joe's Peanut Butter Protein Granola. I really liked it. It was peanut buttery, filling, snackable, and really well done. Something I could sit and munch on the whole bag.
So expectations are high on this one. But this is a very different product altogether.
As savory as the peanut butter is, this item leans on the sweet side. There are large chunks of dried apple in each bite. Some chunks of dried apples are quite large. So if you aren't into dried fruit, this might not be your thing.
Likewise, there is a good amount of caramel holding this together. There is a strong splash of vanilla to round out the flavors here. I ate mine right out of the bag, but there is an interesting recipe on the side suggesting you could eat this as a warm cereal. On my to-do list of ways to enjoy this.
Overall
Now, if you are looking to avoid sugars, this is not an item to reach for. If you want that sweetened cereal taste, then this is pretty solid. The seeds and nuts are not as forward as other granolas.
But trying this it was obvious that this was trying to be something different and uniquely seasonal. To which it is. While it won't be available all year long, it isn't a bad item to try, but it is one of those flavors I would probably enjoy just once a year.
For $3.49 this is priced in line with the other granolas on shelves. This isn't my favorite granola. It's on you might find yourself picking at it regardless.
Would I buy this again? While I like Trader Joe's Caramel Apple Flavored Granola, I still prefer Trader Joe's Peanut Butter Protein Granola Better.
Product photos
The bag of Trader Joe's Caramel Apple Flavored Granola:
The nutritional information:
The ingredients:
How to prepare:
Out of the package you get:
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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Trader Joe's Caramel Apple Flavored Granola
Product Name: Trader Joe's Caramel Apple Flavored Granola
Product Description: Sweet and tart granola that contains apple slices, peanuts, and pumpkin spiced pumpkin seeds.
Price: $3.49
Summary
This caramel apple flavored granola is sweet but manages to sneak pumpkin seeds into the mix along with peanuts. It is a nice change to a regular go to nut granola flavor. Also be prepared for this to be as sweet as others are nutty or savory.
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Taste
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Value
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Worthy of Repurchasing
Pros
- Trader Joe's Caramel Apple Flavored Granola is new and has a pleasant amount of sweet when most granolas tend to be more savory.
Cons
- This is seasonal and not everyone might appreciate the caramel sweetness here.
- Mine had some huge chunks of apple in them which was a bit too much at times.
I think this would be great in parfaits with pumpkin spiced yogurt. Or maybe even crumb topping for baked apples.
Hey Alek! I love the suggestions. I didn't even think of baked apples. Great ideas. Thanks so very much for stopping by!
Yea.....I don't think I will be buying this item. Too much sugar and I prefer the PB one too. As to your question about which products I'd like to see you review first I would love to see a review on the salted caramel mug cake, the turkey bites, the pistachio gelato and the corn cob thingy. Are the turkey bites in the meat area or is it a frozen product?
Hey Dag! Thanks so much for letting me know what your preference is. The turkey bites are actually a jerky which have fruit in them. Thanks as always for taking the time out of your day to stop by and share.
For some reason i really dislike dried apples- yet love fresh apples- so i’ll pass here. The suggestion to serve warm is a good one. (i’ve always loved hot grape nuts cereal in the winter)
Would love to see a review of the harvest soup, and also the chopped spaghetti squash- which I thought was odd because isn’t the point of spaghetti squash the long noodle like strands...?
Hey Ttrockwood! Thanks for letting me know which you want to see. The spaghetti squash is prechopped. It needs a few minutes in the microwave and then you can separate it like it was fresh out of the oven. Or at least that is what the bag tells me. But it might be a major time saver because roasting one of those takes at least 45 minutes. Thanks so much for stopping by!