Trader Joe’s

There's a Trader Joe's 5 minutes from my house, so I do a lot of my regular grocery shopping there. I won't bore you with the mundane items that are always on my list....produce, milk, yogurt, eggs, etc.

Here's some of the specialty items that I get occasionally

Fancy cheeses: By far, the best price around on interesting imported cheeses.
Marinated fresh meats: If you eat meat, I recommend the Balsamic Rosemary Beef Tips, the Shawarma Chicken, and the Carne Asada. All are good on the grill.
Simmer/Stir-fry Sauces: For a quick, easy meal, I like the General Tao's Stir Fry Sauce, Green Curry Simmer Sauce, and Red Curry Simmer Sauce.
Gluten Free Sandwich Bread: My husband need gluten-free bread...none of it is GOOD, but this brand is less bad than others.
Organic Corn Chip Dippers: Like big Fritos...they are a tasty snack.
Frozen Asparagus Risotto: Another quick and easy meal...I throw some chicken in and make it a main course.

That's all I can think of right now.

EDIT: OH. WAIT. Wine. Chianti Classico Riserva and Primitivo Epicuro are my favorite red wines. Like $7-8 a bottle and better than a lot of more expensive wines that I have had.

Pumpkin biscotti, pumpkin oatmeal, Joe’s pumpkin cheerios(forgot the name). Are you sensing the theme? Once a year, and I’m so excited. It’s almost time!

corinasue1143 wrote: »

Pumpkin biscotti, pumpkin oatmeal, Joe’s pumpkin cheerios(forgot the name). Are you sensing the theme? Once a year, and I’m so excited. It’s almost time!

So....you do or do not like pumpkin???

corinasue1143 wrote: »

Pumpkin biscotti, pumpkin oatmeal, Joe’s pumpkin cheerios(forgot the name). Are you sensing the theme? Once a year, and I’m so excited. It’s almost time!

I do give Trader Joe's some credit here...most (not all) of their pumpkin products actually do contain pumpkin. Not just the "pumpkin spice" flavor that dominates the fall season.

*cracks knuckles*

This is not going to be the "healthiest" of lists

Always Have on Hand:

Mini chocolate chip cookies
Schoolhouse cookies
Mini milk chocolate peanut butter cups
Bamba puffed peanut and corn snacks dipped in dark chocolate
Low Sodium turkey slices

When I Buy Bananas and Feel Like I Should Buy More Items:

White cheddar puffed corn
Everything But The Bagel crackers
Fruit Jellies
Chocolate covered espresso beans (I don't like the beans part...I just like the portion controlled chocolate)

Trader Joe's has sugar-free, salt-free, just peanuts peanut butter that is about half the price of most stores. They have both creamy and crunchy. Sure, you have to stir it but it's quite good. (Don't ask me about the time I used an electric mixer with one skinny dough hook directly in the jar and forgot to hold the jar tightly). It really does work if you hold tight, though.)

Hatch green salsa chili is tasty, affordable, and low sodium. There is also a no-salt-added store brand red salsa but I don't care for it much. It's quite mild and a little too sweet for me.

Their corn and black bean salsa is very good.

If we weren't watching our calories we would be buying the chocolate covered cherries or blueberries and other treats that live above the low freezer section. They are as good as Harry and David's, and cheaper. Not cheap, but cheaper.

Oh, yes, the 21-Seasoning-Salute in the spice aisle. Get that. Get lots of that. (No salt added.) Also the Hatch Chili spice jar. It isn't hot, and it's hard to say why, but anything I put it on is a little enhanced.

I've enjoyed their soups in the aseptic packaging, especially the red pepper soup. That was before I was sodium-conscious, though. And I know I sound obsessive about it, but really I'm improving. Trust me.

I found a store brand high-fiber cereal the last time I was at TJ's that I like okay. It's reasonable carbs, only mildly sweet, and (duh) high fiber. It's not a flavor explosion or anything, but I like it pretty well, and it's a change from generic O's. I think it's just called High Fiber Cereal.

The nutritional yeast is a good value.

Sometimes they have tea blends. Winter Wake Up Tea, and such. Seasonally.

I'll try anything weird that fits my nutritional needs and isn't too expensive, and they just have lots and lots of unusual stuff. There isn't one close to me, so it's a real treat for me to go.

Hah! I walked in the other day to see what was new and groaned when I saw all the pumpkin stuff.
Me no likey.

Their "Pound Plus" dark Belgian chocolate bar. I break it up and put it in a container. One square per day keeps depression away!

glassyo wrote: »

SuzySunshine99 wrote: »

glassyo wrote: »

Hah! I walked in the other day to see what was new and groaned when I saw all the pumpkin stuff.
Me no likey.

Why do you hate America?

I'm indifferent on pumpkin stuff, but I look forward to the Christmas/winter stuff...peppermint bark, those European biscuits, and the vanilla/cinnamon tea that they only have in winter.

Ok, the crust from a pumpkin pie when you scrape off the pumpkin but can't get it all...I'll eat that

I'm not a mint person AT ALL either but damned if I don't get two tins a year of those European Biscuits (the belgian cookies, right?).

That tea sounds really good! I'll have to look for it now.

Yeah, the Belgian cookies...I think it's at Costco where they call them European biscuits. So good.

I just looked up the tea to give you the formal name, and they may have discontinued it?!?! It's called Vanilla and Cinnamon Black Tea and has a picture of a lemur on the box. I'll be mad if I can't get it, but that is the thing with Trader Joe's...they have so many different suppliers that products come and go on a regular basis. I try not to get too attached to anything there.

I live 3 blocks away from Trader Joe's, so I also go there for >50% of my groceries. I used to hate the idea of lots of pre-made/processed stuff (to be fair, I love cooking from scratch), but now I realize how snobby that was and appreciate all of the opportunities TJ's provides for creativity! Plus my job has become more demanding over the past few years, making long, drawn-out meal preps less feasible. For me, I have found I absolutely cannot take any of the snack foods (I'm talking dark PB cups, pink and white cookies, chocolate-covered-fill-in-the-blanks, etc.) from TJs home during a normal grocery run -- I will grab them to bring to parties or if I am having company over, but they are just too tempting and delicious and I feel like I need to white-knuckle if I keep that stuff in the house. That being said, I LOVE having stuff from there in my freezer and ready to go, with a lot of combinations at my fingertips!

Some of my go-to's are:

Chimichurri rice with sliced chicken sausage, add frozen petite peas, add a dash of roasted red pepper soup (from the rectangular boxes), and a dash of half and half. I like to freeze individual portions of the soups, since I don't usually eat it fast enough.

Mushroom or asparagus risotto with any protein added (love shrimp, meatballs, sausages, or chicken tenderloins here), plus some greens on the side (I love the broccolini for flavor and price!)

Frozen teriyaki chicken, add broccoli, carrots, or the fresh stir fry mixes (I haven't loved the frozen ones) and some of the frozen jasmine rice on the side. The rice isn't super cost-effective, but it's a game changer with this meal and others for avoiding takeout. I also love the orange chicken (who doesn't?!), but I haven't found it very helpful to my calorie goals, especially since it is so dang tasty and it's hard to limit myself to one portion.

Frozen potstickers (any kind, cook them in a pan or steam), fresh green onions, bok choy, and miso broth (in the rectangular carton).

Ancient grains oatmeal with any fruit (frozen or fresh, I prefer blueberries), then add a dollop of Greek yogurt and a drizzle of maple butter.

I love the kalamata artisan bread (toasted! buttered!) as a side for basically anything, but I have a hard time limiting myself to a single serving. Same with the crumpets...so good!

Frozen turkey meatballs added to basically any starch/veg combination -- not the absolute healthiest, but great for a fast meal that hits the macros.

Three words: Gum Drop Grapes. These are going out of season, but try them while you can!

I am seconding (third-ing??) the other recommendations of the marinated meats. I love the rosemary steak tips on a salad with pears, red onion, feta, and some balsamic dressing, or the shawarma chicken with veggie kebabs and tzatziki, plus the garlic naan from the freezer section....yum!!!

Brushetta topping (in the refrigerated section next to the hummus) on pasta with some grilled chicken and the shredded Parmesan. This cheese has great flavor and good bang for your buck, but I have found it goes bad pretty fast, so I freeze it in smaller portions.

Right now, I am also obsessed with the following breakfast when I am planning a bigger workout or a day of yard work: 30g each of pumpkin and protein pancake mix, about 70g of canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling), add water to these ingredients and...make pancakes, then top with thawed wild blueberries from the freezer section, 30g pumpkin butter, 70g of coconut Greek yogurt, and a sprinkle of dried coconut. I usually have this with two maple chicken breakfast sausages on the side. This is a super decadent weekend breakfast with a decent amount of protein (which I sometimes struggle with) for ~575 calories and about 27 g protein.

I also do a lot of traveling for work, so some of the pre-prepped salads have been key for me to stay on track and not spending money at restaurants. I really like the legume and spinach salad, and I often add chicken to it to make it for two meals. Also for salads, whether I am on the road or at home, I really like adding about 70g of the frozen quinoa/rice mix (3 pack in a purple box) to any salad to give it a little more staying power. I also like grabbing a bottle of the cold brew concentrate (I prefer the French roast for $1 more) to keep me from buying coffee from Starbucks or whatever while I'm on the road.

The TJ's pumpkin bread mix is the best. I add a can of pumpkin to the box mix in lieu of the oil, eggs, etc. and the macros improve. But I can't make it often because I can't stay away from it.

And why have I never considered adding protein to the asparagus risotto?

The closest Trader Joe's to me is roughly 45-50 minutes away so I very rarely get there, but I do enjoy their corn and black bean salsa and their turkey jerky.

My town really needs one, and it's not like it wouldn't do well. The population of our tri-city area is probably 70,000-80,000. Very odd that we just recently got Fresh Thyme - I much prefer Trader Joe's though. Fresh Thyme is too expensive for me.

LOL, some will laugh at this but Green Beans. They are fantastic there. Nice bags of prepped fresh green beans that are lovely. For like 2.99 per 2 lb. bag. I've struggled to find fresh looking green beans anywhere else around here but there.

Also, like their Soyotash (succotash made with edamame). Their fudgesicles are great as well. One of the few places that carries P'Tit Basque cheese as well. My wife is allergic to cow dairy and P'Tit Basque is a nice sheep cheese that works well for Mozzarella. They also have Manchego there at a decent price. Also like a lot of their non-dairy dips.

My daughter eats mostly vegan (with the exception of very rare seafood). TDs is great for those with gluten, dairy allergies or those that want to eat more plant based. Lots of stuff in the freezer geared toward vegans. Healthy options that aren't $7.99 per box, like they are in other grocery stores. You have to spend some time there to get to know things. My daughter didn't like it the first couple of times. Now, she shops there like at least once a week. She's a converted Whole Foods shopper. She also loves their produce now.

glassyo wrote: »

Aside from the food, I must have the ambiance They have good taste in music and the workers are all really helpful and nice and they're good about returns and I THINK I HEARD SOME STORES ARE BRINGING BACK THE SAMPLE AREA!!!!!!!

Some Trader Joe's have sample areas? Thank God mine never has. Nothing clogs up an already small and crowded space like a cattle call to a free bite of food.

Mine got rid of the little kid carts during Covid...I hope those stay gone. Always fun to have kids ramming a little cart into your shins when you are trying to do grocery shopping.

I totally don't get grocery stores trying to make some sort of "experience" other than purchasing food. My other grocery store, a Mariano's, has a wine bar and after work and on weekends people hang out there and drink wine. When it's busy, people spill into the nearby aisles. If you're getting sloshed on chardonnay in the cereal aisle, you got a problem.

We don't live close to TJ's (my wallet thanks me already!) but some of the things we try to pick up when we go include the fruit strips (my kid will polish off 2-3 in a sitting if we let him), the Barebells brand plant-based protein bars (vegan candy bars, essentially), dried hatch chili flakes, peri-peri sauce, BBQ seasoning, black bean salsa - the list goes on.