It’s time for one of my favorite posts of the month, where I get to share about all my fun Trader Joe’s food finds! Per usual, before I go into detail about the new items I got this month, I need to give you all an update about some of the goodies from my Trader Joe’s Food Finds – February 2021 post.
Dark Chocolate Mini Heart Cookies – These were so good! Trader Joe’s definitely knows what’s up when it comes to seasonal cookies. These ones were adorably festive with their heart shape and pink sprinkles, but super chocolatey as well! They weren’t dry, crumbly, or disappointing in any way. I’ll definitely grab them again next February!
Magnifisauce – This was one of the most exciting items we tried last month. Y’all…this sauce is SO good! We had it on turkey burgers and fries, and it really did remind us of the secret sauce from In-N-Out. Stay tuned for a fun recipe we created using the Magnifisauce! Hint: It’s a dupe for an item on In-N-Out’s secret menu 🙂
Breaded Fried Ravioli – You need these in your freezer. Stat. They’re so easy to heat up (they only took about 5 minutes on the stove). We loved dipping them in marinara sauce and having them as an appetizer before dinner, or paired with a salad for lunch. They retained their crispy texture, the flavor was tasty, the cheese was perfectly melty, and I already bought another bag to have on hand in our freezer!
Sparkling Lemon & Strawberry Apple Cider Vinegar Beverage – Ugh, I wanted to like this item so badly. I like other sparkling beverages from Trader Joe’s and apple cider vinegar is supposed to be great for your digestion, but I just couldn’t do it! At first, it tasted like strawberry lemonade, but the aftertaste was straight apple cider vinegar. It was way too strong for me to even take more than a few sips. Bleh!
Bacon Cheddar Cheese – Two thumbs up from the Peiffer household for this yummy cheese! It has definitely been added to our rotation for charcuterie boards. I also want to try it melted on top of burgers…I have a feeling that will be next-level tasty!
Strawberry Yogurt O’s – I’m on the fence about this cereal. The strawberry pieces were delicious, but I felt as a whole that the cereal was a little bland for me. I preferred eating it dry as a snack as opposed to in a bowl with milk for breakfast. With that being said, Gary enjoyed it and I bought another box the last time I was at the store, so that has to say something? I think I prefer the Mango O’s that typically come out in the spring, though!
Pop-Up Sponges – Gary wishes that he took a video of my reaction when I opened these sponges up and ran one under water. It expanded so quickly and my mind was blown. Ha! In all seriousness though, the two of us have probably commented at least a dozen times over the last month how much we like the new sponge. It’s durable, doesn’t get super nasty and discolored when you wash a greasy pan, and we love that it’s better for the environment. I will say that if you do have caked-on food on your dishes, you might still need some sort of scraping mechanism. But for everyday dishes and most pots and pans, it’s great!
It’s time to move on to my March finds!
Trader Joe’s didn’t really have a theme with new items this month. In the fall they go pumpkin crazy, in the winter everything is peppermint, and in the spring and summer things get fruity, but we’re kind of in-between seasons right now. As I was shopping I felt like I wasn’t going to have enough new stuff to share in a post, but then I got home and realized I had 7 new items. I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again, I must just blackout in that store! Granted, some of these are just new to me, but it seemed like most of them are new to the store as well. Let’s take a look!
Good bread is the way to my heart. I love getting freshly made french bread at the grocery store in the evening, but hate how inconvenient it is to have to stop by at a specific time for those loaves. Trader Joe’s might just be changing the game with these Mini French Baguettes ($3.99). They are small, which means you don’t have to eat an enormous loaf before it goes stale. And, they come in the freezer section, which means you can pull one out whenever you feel like it! I’m excited to try these with my favorite Sour Cream Spinach Dip (I raved about this dip in my Trader Joe’s Food Finds – January 2021 post in case you missed it!)
I’ve been following a lot of food blogs that rave about all things grass fed. I’ve definitely had grass fed beef, but for some strange reason, I never really associated butter with grass fed cows. Anyway, this New Zealand Salted Butter ($3.29) is made with milk from grass fed cows. It’s new to Trader Joe’s this month, so I figured it was a great time to see what the buzz was about. We haven’t opened it yet, but I’ll be sure to post an update in my Trader Joe’s Food Finds post next month to let you know if it was a yay or a nay!
Am I the only one who is a total sucker for all of the fun items that Trader Joe’s puts in the bins by the checkout stands? Gary makes fun of me for having no self control, but I’ve seriously found some of my favorite items there. These Dark Chocolate Covered Honey Grahams with Sea Salt ($3.99) were the ultimate impulse buy and I’m not sad about it one bit! I’m pretty sure these were opened within an hour of being home from the store. We both loved them! If you like the flavor combo of chocolate and sea salt, these are the perfect item for you. They’re great for when you just need a little something sweet, and they’re rich enough to prevent you from eating the whole bag at once.
Gary and I have never really explored Thai food. However, when I stayed with my friend’s aunt in St. Louis (over 5 years ago), she made us a delicious peanut noodle dish that I remember to this day. I’ve been trying to convince Gary that peanut noodles are yummy, and figured these Peanut Satay Thai Noodles ($2.49) might do the trick before I put in a ton of effort to make a recipe from scratch. Well, that was a fail. We tried these the other day and I was definitely not a fan. For starters, it looked super unappetizing (like, we’re talking noodles mixed with baby poop). The taste didn’t make up for the looks, either. I honestly could only eat a few bites. Gary finished the rest, but he said “I don’t hate it, but I definitely don’t love it.” Not a rave review from the Peiffer household!
Trader Joe’s food packaging really just gets me. It’s kind of a problem. I was originally over in the dairy section grabbing some vanilla yogurt for smoothies, but then these fun single-serving Greek Yogurts ($0.99) stood out to me with their fun colors and flavors! When I was unpacking the groceries at home, even Gary commented that he was excited to try them. They make me feel like summer is right around the corner. We haven’t tried these yet, but I’ll be sure to post an update about them in my Trader Joe’s Food Finds post next month.
I saw these Chile Spiced Pineapple ($3.69) on Instagram and added them to my list immediately. The concept sounded so fun and summery, and I’m a big fan of sweet and spicy together. I’ll say this – I definitely like them, and I’ll finish the bag I got, but I don’t think this will become a regular item for me. It really requires being in a specific mood for them since they have such a specific flavor. My dad got the Chile Spiced Mangoes from his store and said they’re really good, so I might have to try those next!
To this day, I still rave about the pretzel rolls that were served at our wedding. I have a real soft spot for doughy pretzel goodness. These Pretzel Bagels ($2.49) were in our apartment for less than three hours before I just had to open the bag to try one. As Gary likes to remind me, I’m not good at delayed gratification. These pretzel bagels are so tasty toasted with butter! Trust me, I know that sounds super basic. I originally envisioned making pizza pretzel bagels and pretzel bagel sandwiches with them, but I just didn’t make it that far. Maybe next time, because you know I’ll definitely be getting these again!
Alright, that’s all I have for this post! Have you gotten anything new at Trader Joe’s lately? Please share with me! 🙂
xoxo
Jennifer