Actually it does have an apple taste thanks to bits of dried honey crisp apples throughout the granola. This granola isn’t quite the big clumps kind as some other granola’s that Trader Joe’s has such as the almond butter granola. Actually I am a fan of big “clumpy” granola with chunks sometimes I take out to just snack on. However I liked this too as it’s got that fruity apple taste. The taste of this granola gets a win from those apple bits.
Ingredients include rolled oats, cane sugar, dried honeycrisp apple, honey, molasses, and a subtle hint of fall spices (cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, clove….) The spices are very subtle, more like a back note to the apple taste of this granola, not the overwhelming kind.
This Apple Granola one of their “Limited” fall items, meaning we will see it for a few months. So if you want to try this grab it while you can, and maybe stock up on a few bags if you tried it and liked it. I probably will. Both my wife and I really liked this very tasty granola.
$3.99 for a 12 oz bag.
I would buy it again.
“Our latest fall-forward, seasonal cereal shines the spotlight on an autumnal all-star: the heavenly Honeycrisp apple! Heralded for its crunch and concentration of flavor, it’s a natural companion to snacks and cereals of all sorts—snacks and cereals such as the sweet, seasonally-spiced clusters inside each bag of Trader Joe’s Honeycrisp Apple Granola!” – TJ’s
“A savory, focaccia like bread with light chewy texture, studded with briney black and Kalamata olives”
This bread is a bit unusual and one of Trader Joe’s more “gourmet” breads on offer. I think it’s worth trying especially if you are an olive fan.
This is a French style FOUGASSE, a bread typically associated with the South of France. Kind of a cousin to Focaccia. Trader Joe’s Olive Fougasse has both Kalamata and Black Olives. It’s loaded up with olives and has a great olive flavor. I love olives and I really liked this bread. FOUGASSE can be shaped in many ways, some quite artistic (see link for images of different Fougasse breads)…..
We baked it up as directed.Like a few breads Trader Joe’s sells, this one comes slightly underbaked, so you can get “fresh baked bread”. It’s needs to finish baking for just about 5 minutes so just pop it into hot oven (or air fryer?) for about 5 minutes. It will smell heavenly when you take it out. Its crusty, soft and chewy inside, Herby and Olive-y. My wife and I really enjoyed eating this with a pasta dish.
This would be great with many things, including I think goind with your cheese board, charcuterie board or butter board.
If you see a Fougasse in a bakery they would probably be selling them for 6-8 bucks. Trader Joe’s price is $3.49 (12 oz)
Ing. include flour, water, sea salt, yeast and herbs. It has No preservatives. Use within a day or two after buying or freeze it. I would buy it again.
First they came out with the CRISPY SHALLOTS which I like a lot. Now they’ve come out with something similar but it’s CRISPY GARLIC.
This new product is a winner. Possibly even better. For me, a must try. Crispy slivers of garlic toasted until nutty. A great topping, or ingredient. Lasts a long time so a great item you can keep in the pantry for whenever you need it. This is a super Asian (or Italian or anything) garnish.
Trader Joe’s says: “Trader Joe’s Crispy Garlic ably demonstrates, when sliced thin and fried to a glorious golden brown, garlic’s gifts easily extend into the textural realm, too. We tried plenty of options before finding this iteration of Crispy Garlic, which is brought to us by an expert supplier in Thailand. Only their Crispy Garlic was able to capture that flavorful-but-not-bitter, nicely-fried-but-not-tough, crunchy-but-still-melt-in-your-mouth quality that our tasting panel adored. We think you’ll adore it, too. Trader Joe’s Crispy Garlic is excellent as a topping on stir-fries, salads, and scrambled eggs; pizzas, pastas, and pad Thai; or even burgers, baked potatoes, and bánh mi. It can be mixed into homemade cheesy dips and casseroles, sprinkled over noodle dishes or roasted veggies, or even just enjoyed over a bowl of freshly made rice.” – Trader Joe’s
Tru’ dat. The little thin crisps of garlic are so just so flavorful and tasty. We tried it, and instantly fell in love with this stuff. We tried even eating them as is just out of the bag. Intense but tasty!
Think little thin chips of fresh garlic, cooked till golden brown, super crunchy and crispy. The garlic flavor is a bit milder and mellowed from the frying. As they say it’s cooked just right, before the point of bitterness.
Toss these chips on just about anything. We’ve been trying it out on just about everything we can think of to put it on and whatever we tried seemed to work. Noodles. Salad. Add some on top of plain Rice!
Here I put some on top of cottage cheese on top of a toasted slice of their Sourdough Sliced bread and added some spices, and the combo was super yummy.
You can crush them up with your fingers to get smaller bits too (I crushed them up over buttered corn. Yum!)
$3.29 (4 oz) I am just guessing it was probably about a pound of garlic before. Its got just 3 simple ingredients, garlic, oil and salt. It’s not greasy at all. Just crispy. Keep it tightly sealed in the foil pouch and it should stay that way for a long time.
This is one of the worthwhile Fall Items that’s “pumpkin”. I gave it a good review previously and will repeat again here, that I loved this for making excellent French Toast.
$4.99; LIMITED SEASONAL ITEM
PS; I also saw this new bread “Sliced Apple Cinnamon Sourdough” but have not had a chance to try it yet. It’s a Fearless Flyer item. Looks interesting!.
I saw this at Trader Joe’s when I was looking for some regular bread good for sandwiches. I never tried this bread before so I got it to try and review. I was thinking about making something like a grilled cheese or tuna melt sandwich and just wanted a square sliced bread. As far as sourdough bread goes, I think most people seem to be interested in Trader Joe’s round loaf sourdough breads. Which I love. Still sometimes I want a regular type of square sandwich bread to have around for say, making regular toast or sandwiches.
This ain’t Wonder bread. I would say this is about as good an upgrade for that type of bread as you could get. This is not some squishy Wonderbread loaf. It’s soft of course but has a dense structure. Is this “real sourdough” bread? Well, I’d think of this not as an actual sourdough bread but as a “sourdough style” square sliced bread, for sandwiches, etc. Like a “Pullman” bread.
I took a slice of this and toasted it and was quite pleased – this makes a great slice of toast. Sturdy with a perfect texture. For me, this was pretty much created to become Toast. It can make the best “English style toast” with a perfect bite of crust and crumb textures. A nice, sturdy slice of toast, aching to be buttered. Optionally topped with whatever you like. MARMALADE for sure!
Besides toast of course this will be fantastic to make any kind of grilled sandwich, say a grilled cheese, or anything. What about maybe SARDINES ON TOAST? Yeah baby.
If you try this and make a piece of toast with this bread you will not be sorry. If you don’t want it toasted, I would still suggest perhaps at least warming it slightly, as all bread benefits from being warm.
(sliced sourdough toasted and topped with cottage cheese, garlic chips and spices.)
GRILLED CHEESE idea using this bread? I am thinking for the cheese, slice up some Unexpected Cheddar, put that on the bread and spread a very thin layer of TJ’s Pumpkin Butter on the top slice plus (optional) very very thin slices of apple. Grill this on low-medium heat with a tablespoon of butter until golden brown, flip over, and serve when ready with your favorite pickles.
90 calories per slice
Storing: I keep mine in freezer. Very easy to take out a slice.
“The galette is a treasured tradition among French bakers, dating back over a thousand years to the time of the Norman Dynasty…Inspired by a beloved regional variation of galette known as Broyés du Poitou, Trader Joe’s French Galettes Butter Cookies are made especially for us by an esteemed French bakery near the historic city of Nantes. They use a traditional recipe that includes French cultured butter to produce a satisfyingly crisp exterior, and crumbly, wonderfully melt-in-your-mouth interior…. they make a great companion to a bowl of ice cream or platter of fresh cut fruit. And since each box contains twelve Cookies, they’re great for sharing when you’ve got folks over for dinner—if you haven’t already eaten them all yourself, of course.” – Trader Joe’s
Three of us tried these new Trader Joe’s GALLETTES/French butter cookies which are made for them by an “esteemed French bakery” in Nantes, Brittany (a place famous for butter).
Here’s my honest review – SO GOOD! I just loved these. Very buttery. Very French, just a classic.
They are of course loaded with butter with a hint of sweetness. Think French “shortbread”. Grownup cookie.
Ingredients are short, sweet and simple; they include flour, cultured butter, starter, sugar, eggs, salt. Like you would make them. Simple. Natural. No preservatives.
We enjoyed these after dinner with tea, and they were great with tea. Of course they will be equally delicious with coffee, or milk, or just by themselves. Maybe with a little of your favorite jam. Or as Trader Joe’s suggest, pair these with ice cream (Mon Dieu!)
There are 12 cookies in the package wrapped to stay fresh in pairs of 4 cookies. Calorie wise, 2 Cookies have 180 calories (or 90 cals each)
Again, just classic and elegant. These will impress anyone you have over.
I’d say these are a Must Try especially at $3.49 (almost 8 oz)
Trader Joe’s website doesn’t mention “seasonal” or “limited” so hopefully these will stay around! My fingers are crossed they do as these are Keepers.
“Moist, flavorful pumpkin spice cake with cream cheese frosting”
It’s FALL and Trader Joe’s is of course coming out with all the pumpkin items; This one is a very good MINI SHEET CAKE with a cream cheese frosting on top of a moist cake with the typical pumpkin spices. The cream cheese frosting is good even though found it to be a bit on the too sweet side. Even the frosting has a slight taste of the pumpkin spices. The cake was quite tasty, moist and flavorful. The spices were well balanced; not overpowering as they can be sometimes. This has just the right amount.
We loved the cake with coffee and tea, which balanced out it’s sweetness.
Trader Joe’s says : “You’ll fall for the moist, spongy crumb, flavored by pumpkin purée and warm spices, including cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. A rich, cream-cheese frosting is piped on top, lending an upscale bakery vibe and providing a classic flavor-pairing for the Pumpkin Spice profile.”
I like most of the mini sheet cakes and this one is quite good. My favorite will always be the Chocolate Ganache one but this one is a Fall Limited Edition one, which I think you and your family will like during TJ’s “pumpkin season”.
This is a great Fall item. I would buy it again.
$5.99/18 Oz (up about 50 cents since the last time i got sheet cake)
“Perfect for hummus and dips and for sandwiches. Heat and enjoy!”
I love great pita bread. For the past few years, Trader Joe’s long running item “pita bread original pockets” have been OK to me in a pinch however those are far from what I would call great pita (not too mention they used to give you 6 and now its just 4! Shrinkflation in action)
This “original pita bread” ($1.59) Trader Joe’s is large and thin. So thin that they are not sturdy enough to count on to make a pocket and hold the food without the bread falling apart as you eat it.
Which brings us to this BALADI pita bread. With the NEW pocket bread/pita imported from Egypt, the pita choice at Trader Joe’s improved quite a bit. Trust me, you want to try this wonderful new Egyptian bread. These BALADI are great pita breads that can make pocket sandwiches.
With the new Egyptian Baladi sourdough pocket bread Trader Joe’s finally has an excellent, authentic pita bread which is sturdy enough to split open and make a pocket that will hold what you put in it. Say using these to make a falafal sandwich (they sell falafel frozen). This Baladi bread is delicious -made by an Egyptian bakery for Trader Joe’s., so the real McCoy Arabic bread. Baked then frozen, so as close to fresh as we can get.
Trader Joe’s says this:
“We now offer Trader Joe’s Baladi Egyptian Sourdough Pocket Bread in our freezers. Made for us by a supplier in Egypt, these versatile (vegan) Baladi Pocket Breads take only a matter of minutes… to heat… before they’re puffed up, toasty, and ready to eat. Once heated, they have a tasty, slightly tangy Sourdough tinge to their flavor profile, and are ideal for stuffing with your favorite fillings. We’re partial to going with a classic combo of Falafel, chopped cucumbers, and our Garlic Spread-Dip, though they’re equally excellent when stuffed with our Gyros or Shawarma Chicken Thighs, too. And, of course, you can just serve them for dipping in hummus or tahini, as they do in Egypt.”
Here is my honest review of Baladi Pocket Bread. I give these a Rave. These are EXCELLENT.
I was impressed at how good these are, so tasty and satisfying. They were even delicious just eaten simply with butter on them. Versatile. Between this new Baladi pocket bread and TJ’s Lavash flatbread I am super happy to have these Middle Eastern bread options at TJ’s.
Nice light whole wheat flavor. Natural ingredients. No preservatives. They come frozen in a resealable bag, with 5 breads inside the package and cost just $2.29. They are soft, fluffy inside yet sturdy enough for a pocket, or to use to scoop up any dip like hummus or what have you, pick up foods, hold up to falafel, or use for any sandwich, or even I think used as the base for mini pizza (see below).
Match these with your favorite hummus for sure!
HEATING: I took them out for about 10 minutes, left them out on the counter to defrost a bit (optional). I heated them, trying two ways; in the oven and on top of the stove in a covered pan. About 4-5 minutes. Both methods worked fine. In a pinch you could nuke them from frozen, but I think they will still benefit from a few seconds over the burners turning and flipping for the best texture like they just came out fresh from the oven they were baked in.
PS – I did try them for the base for pizza. Came out quite tasty! I’d say it kind of worked for a pizza base, if you are OK with the knife and fork kind of pizza. Next time I may split one open and just use the half for a thinner base, and see if I can get more of a bake on the bottom and get it more crisped up. Worth trying for easy pizza.
UPDATE – (Aug/Sept ’25) Unfortunately Trader Joe’s Sold Out of all the stock of these quickly as these seemed to have gone Viral on social media soon after they first appeared. Trader Joe’s staff looked it up for me and said, they are waiting for new stock to arrive, Late Fall or Early winter. They expected it sooner but that it was likely held up due to tariffs(!)
UPDATE 2 – MID OCT 2025 – HURRAY! THESE ARE FINALLY BACK!!
“First, there’s that its stone baked, with a wheat flour crust, which our supplier imports all the way from Italy. Next, there’s the impressive array of toppings piled high on every pie: zesty tomato sauce; a savory trio of mozzarella, Parmesan, and Romano cheeses; sweet roasted bell peppers and onions; savory crumbles of Italian sausage; and finally, delightfully spicy slices of uncured pepperoni.”
Apparently Trader Joe’s / Trader Giotto) Pizza Parlanno is said to be quite a customer and crew member favorite. The proof of which it’s been around for 15 years.
I hadn’t tried this yet so finally got around to trying it for a review.
My honest review is: Both my wife and I really enjoyed this pizza. We both gave this a big thumbs up.
It’s a kind of “half and half” pepperoni / sausage- one side sausage and roasted peppers and the other side pepperoni.
The favorite of the two sides for us both was the sausage side, having much more flavors from lots of different things. It has crumbled bits of (cooked) sausage plus roasted red bell pepper, green pepper, roasted onions, plus the tomato sauce and the cheese. The small pieces of uncased pork sausage was good. I can really taste fennel seeds, which for me makes it really taste Italian. I loved the roasted red and green bell peppers.
Personally I am not a huge pepperoni pizza eater as I usually find pepperoni too greasy and oily but here the uncured pepperoni on this was tasty, thin and not at all greasy. Didn’t curl up either. Stayed flat.
The (imported) crust on the Pizza Parlanno is on the thin side. More crunchy than chewy, it kind of reminded me of the “bar pizza” style though its not that thin. The crust held up and didn’t bend under the toppings. I make my own dough on occasion so am quite picky. I would prefer a crust a bit thicker with more chew however the crust is not bad and pretty crispy.
I baked the pizza quite well as I read that you should get this well browned and really take Trader Joe’s suggested time of “bake for 10 minutes” with a huge grain of salt. Every oven is a bit different but 10 minutes as they list is probably not enough time to go from frozen to ready so plan to give it a bit longer, an extra two minutes at least, if not more. I did more like 14-25 minutes in total? I just watched it closely towards the end and let it it get just to the point where it’s really browned which is how I like pizza.
Originally I thought the pizza looked like it might be a little big for two people. Ha! I thought my wife and I might not eat the whole pizza at one go. That we might leave a slice or two for the next day. But guess what? I was wrong . I was so good, the two of us ended up devouring the whole thing. Along with an arugula salad. We said, it’s never going to be as good as right now fresh out of the oven.
COOKING: Pre-heat your oven to 450. If you own a pizza steel or stone put that in. Depending on your oven it may take 15-25 minutes to get to temp. When oven is ready, slide the pizza onto the steel or stone. If you don’t have those, just put on a baking sheet and put that on the center or top rack. I put foil underneath the pizza, for easy clean up. Bake the pizza until it looks very well browned. They say 10-12 minutes at 450 but I think it will be more like 12-15 minutes depending on your oven). Take it out and let it cool for about 2 minutes before cutting. I cut ours into 4.
Figured at 4 slices to the pizza this states, 330 calories per slice.
This pizza makes a very easy snack or meal in about 15 minutes, all for about the price of what you might pay for a pepperoni slice at a pizza joint. For just over five bucks, you can not go wrong with this pizza, if you like sausage, etc.
I gotta say, pretty amazing for $5.50.
I would buy this again.
Trader Giotto’s PIzza Parlanno $5.49 (18.2 oz)
Toppings: Italian sausage, uncured pepperoni, roasted bell peppers, and roasted onions. Crust: Stone-baked wheat flour crust. Sauce: A savory sauce, described as not spicy or sweet. Cheeses: Mozzarella, Parmesan, and Romano. Customer Favorite: A popular item at Trader Joe’s, often praised for its flavor and topping variety.
Here’s what Trader Joe’s says about this new snack mix, ITALIAN APERITIVO MEDLEY:
“This is a Snack Mix that is gastronomically designed by our supplier in Bari, Italy to satisfy your cravings for a savory crunch. The diverse combination of textures, shapes, and flavors includes rosemary Focacce (squares), traditional Taralli (loops), and black olive Trecce (nuggets). The presence of extra virgin olive oil and white wine in the recipes promotes flavor profiles that are more complex than your average crackers—but similarly pleasing to enjoy with your favorite TJ’s cheese.”
My review? All I have to say is that once I opened up the bag, I couldn’t stop eating them. The bag went pretty quickly. They are that good! Addictive?
This cracker medley is just SO savory and delicious.
All of these five or six different, crunchy crackers / snacks are tasty. I especially love the twisted and small nubbin ones (trecce), both of which are flavored with rosemary or black olives. The round circles are little Italian biscuits I know as “tarralucci” (or here, “taralli) often served with wine or drinks. The square “focacce” one are perfect as a cracker base for cheese or what have you.
These say, Limited Time! Knowing that these are not going to be around all the time, I am going to load up on as many bags of these fantastically tasty crackers/snacks, as I can carry on my next visit to TJ’s. Especially as they are a very reasonable $2.29. And the ingredient list is quite normal, natural, not filled with additives or chemicals. We like that.
I give these crackers a huge Thumbs Up. You should grab a package (or two) while you can and check them out.
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