“It is believed that crispbread can be traced back to the Vikings, who stored it on ships for long journeys across sea.”
PRODUCT OF NORWAY
These crispbreads are Norwegian. Crispbreads are eaten all over Scandinavia.I really like both kinds of Trader Joe’s crispbreads, the original “Seeds and Whole Grain CRISPBREAD” which I reviewed before.
This is one of those rare Gluten Free products where the GF version is just as good, if not even better, than the original one, which has gluten (whole wheat).
In the GF version of the excellent crispbread, there are sunflower seeds, oats, sesame, flax, rice bran and other things.Though I am not Gluten Free, I wanted to try the GF version of the terrific Norwegian crispbreads Trader Joe’s has. The ingredients are similar, mostly seeds, however the regular version has some wheat in it. Both versions are very hearty and very crunchy and are great as a cracker ,or as the base for an open faced Scandinavian style sandwich. I love either of these crackerbreads just spread with butter. Or with some cheese on top. Or by itself with for example some soup.
The GF version is terrific, some might say even better than the original one. I does cost a bit more. I don’t have to get the Gluten Free version of the crispbread but the GF is so good I would buy it regardless.
Its excellent, really tasty. A little similar in taste and texture to the original one, but this GF version of course does not contain any wheat. This version is made from sunflower seeds, oats, sesame seeds, flax seeds, rice bran and a few other ingredients. Healthy!
I love these style of breads and this gluten free one is also really good. The Gluten Free crispbread cost a bit more than the other ones. These go for $4.29, as compared to the regular Seeds and Grains Crispbread ($2.99).
This is a single estate EVOO from of all places…Australia! I think I did a little double take when I saw the sign above saying “Australian Extra Virgin Olive Oil”. I’m not sure I’ve ever heard an Aussie olive oil before, so I had to give it a try. And you know what? It’s good. Very good. Definately “fruity and smooth”.
Trader Joe’s has this to say about it….
“Made with Early Harvest olives grown on a single estate, which are then cold pressed to preserve even more flavor, this extra special EVOO can be used in all the same kitchen contexts you’d employ for an everyday olive oil, like sautéeing or roasting. To take full advantage of its smooth and fruity profile, and nutty, delicately tannic finish, however, we find it truly excels when enjoyed as a base for a salad dressing, or when dunked with hunks of crusty bread.”
I love mochi generally – specially I mean the soft confections one can find in an Asian bakery or grocery store. Those a pillowy, soft very chewy sweet confections made from sweet sticky rice and that have something on the inside, for example sweet red bean paste. Trader Joe’s sells something frozen which are mochi with ice cream on the inside, frozen. They are really good.
But this new item is a small bite size treat which is a little like that but different. These have a thin layer of something like mochi and an interior of “boba” like tapioca in the center. They are each wrapped individually.
“You can think of this candy version as a deconstructed bubble beverage, where the center of each piece is precisely that pearl (aka tapioca ball) that usually lives at the bottom of your Boba cup. Each individual, caramelized- brown-sugar flavored pearl is surrounded by a creamy coating, then given a classic Japanese rice-wrapper treatment.”
If these sound good, give them a try and see what you think.
I found them OK but didn’t love it. My wife at first thought the were just OK however she kept eating them. Lo and behold she decided she liked them after all (she finished the bag).
When I saw this new Small Lot coffee I first did what I always do, try to smell it. One can usually get an idea of it’s smell by giving the bag a gentle squeeze near the round airvalve. I gave this one a whiff and thought it smelled good. Promising.
When I tasted the brewed coffee though, while I liked it a bit, there was something about it I just didn’t like. Frankly one reason being I am currently entranced (love) by another TJ’s coffee at present and have been since I first tasted it. Their excellent Organic BOLIVIAN BLEND. That may be one of the best coffees I think I ever have gotten there.
This new Small Lot coffee is from Ethopia, so African. African coffee are are unique and different than Latin coffees.
They are frequently referred to as being “wine-y” and having a bit more pronounced profile with a bright acidity it them. I have tasted and really liked many African coffees. Let’s face it when it comes to coffee – Ethiopia is The Source. The Beginning. Historically thought of as the locus, the Origin of Coffee, period. Coffee and coffee culture to is said to have begun there many centuries ago. Ethiopia and Coffee are linked in a way perhaps like no other place in the world.
If you like African coffee you might like this; It does has a typical “winey” profile which many African coffees exhibit and some people really like. I do sometimes but I didn’t love this coffee. I will give it a few more chances to win me over. But again one reason is at the moment my taste buds are really tuned in to “my new coffee” that Bolivian Blend coffee.
If you’ve never had an African coffee, you might want to taste this and see what you think for yourself. However I would first recommend another African coffee there. Trader Joe’s other Ethopian coffee, the Fair Trade Organic Ethiopian Blend Coffee…. which has gotten many good reviews from a number of sites and one that I do like a lot.
Or try the “best of both worlds” – a coffee which is a blend of African & Latin coffee (Afro-Latin Blend BUUNNI Azmari coffee) That one is another excellent coffee at Trader Joe’s and one that is on my top coffee list there.
“Kosher for Passover. Light and crispy with a mild flavor”
(seasonal item)
I like how Trader Joe’s puts a nice spin on matzos by saying they have a “mild flavor”. Let’s face it, matzos are at best bland so yes one could say a “mild flavor”. I find them almost tasteless on their own. But put some butter on them and then we’ll talk!
I tasted these Trader Joe’s matzo and they tasted like well matzo. In my time I’ve eaten plenty of matzos, and I am pretty Meh on them but especially with a premium butter all over them they make a good butter delivery system. While as a “cracker” or for a “base for hearty toppings” they remain rather bland, I have always found matzos to be best as a vehicle to put things on like a huge spoon of sweet delicious charoses (a sweet yummy mix of chopped apples, nuts and honey) or maybe made into a Matzobrei … as with addition of butter, eggs and some good jam and fried up they are pretty good.
Price wise this box of Matzo seems to be going for about half the price where I’ve just seen them in a supermarket and at Zabar’s. There they are at least $5 / box so this price is a plus.
If you are in the market for some matzo for your Seder, grab a box, and give these a try.
This is a recent, new addition in the area with the fresh salmon. Trader Joe’s has come up with a pre-seasoned ready to cook version with spices already added to their popular fresh Atlantic Norwegian farmed salmon. The fish marinates in the package and get imbued with the flavors. OK so what’s “blackened” mean anyway you ask? Well “blackened fish” is a preparation and seasoning trend that came out of New Orleans years ago, where it was made famous by the late N.O. chef Paul Prudhomme. The spice blend gives food a dark burnished or “blackened” color when cooked. Years ago it was a huge cooking trend especially as Prudhomme’s famous “Blackened Redfish”
The typical spice blend for blackening is a mix of thyme, oregano, paprika, cayenne, onion powder, garlic powder, sugar, salt and pepper.”
Trader Joe’s says this:
“Over the years, we’ve received many requests from our customers for pre-seasoned salmon, to make it even easier to go from the fridge to the dinner table. That’s precisely why we’re introducing Trader Joe’s Blackened Salmon to our fresh meat and seafood section.
These boneless, skin-on fillets come ready to cook with a mélange of savory (and slightly spicy) seasonings, including garlic, onion, smoked paprika, chipotle peppers, and demerara sugar all over it. As the fish cooks in an pan, oven, broiler, or especially the air fryer, this layer of seasonings creates a flavorful texturally satisfying Blackened outer crust.” https://www.traderjoes.com/home/products/pdp/blackened-salmon-seasoned-boneless-fillet-078215
It all sounded interesting to me and decided to check out these Blackened Salmon fillets to review.
As they say one can broil, pan fry or bake it as per the package and mention it works especially well cooked in your air fryer! (I don’t have one so can’t say)
I cooked the salmon pan frying it skin side down in a hot cast iron pan for 3-4 minutes, then put it under the broiler. Doing it this way can get the skin a bit crispy. I only gave it another 2 minutes on the top side under the broiler. As these fillets were on the thin side I was very careful not to overcook it. Personally I hate overcooked fish. My cook on fish is always to do it “just until it flakes”. In salmon’s case I like to still end up seeing the tiniest bit of pink. My wife sometimes makes me put her piece back for another minute, which to me is over cooked but I do hers as she likes.
So how did this “Blackened” salmon taste? Very good actually, the two of us found this seasoned salmon to quite tasty. I didn’t think they put a ton of seasoning on the fish so it wasn’t overdone with the spices and had just enough seasoning to add some nice flavor but not overpower the salmon.
I served the salmon with pieces of lemon and to go with it, some buttery mashed potatoes and a salad. This combination made a perfect yummy dinner that we both really enjoyed. In fact I could have easily eaten another piece of salmon! It was that tasty.
Trader Joe’s charges a bit more (of course) for the pre-seasoned salmon. $10.99 a pound whereas the regular fresh Atlantic Norwegian salmon goes for $9.99. I could not help thinking is it worth my paying an extra dollar per pound for a few spices? Literally all they do with this was sprinkle a tiny bit of seasoning and we know this added cost is for this additional “labor” as well as a little bit of spices (1 gram?).
I like this “blackened salmon” but I bet the reality is I will probably save a buck or so and buy the regular salmon as usual and add my own seasonings – which I normally do anyway. I can try to approximate their mix of “thyme, oregano, paprika, cayenne, onion powder, garlic powder, sugar, salt and pepper” and let it marinate with the spices for a hour or so before I cook it.
Certainly some people will prefer the slightly easier route of having it already seasoned which is why TJ’s came out with this in the first place. In any case I’d say this seasoned salmon is worth trying so check it out.
So Trader Joe’s used to carry “whole wheat couscous” , a nice whole grain which a lot of people loved, including yours truly.
A while back they discontinued it! It’s been off the shelves for a year or more. However its come back reincarnated this time as Organic Couscous.
The old whole wheat couscous came as a 500 gram (17 oz.) package and cost $1.99. With this organic version the sign says 12 oz. for the same price as before, $1.99. More Shrinkage? Yes, I know its now Organic. On a side note, a TJ’s Captain told me a some point they took some products off the shelves in order to eventually replace them with an organic version, like this case with couscous. The Captain said he thought Trader Joe’s will try to make all of their products Organic in the future, kind of like Whole Foods?
In any case I’m happy to see the couscous back. I love it as its one of the easiest and fastest grains to prepare. Add the grain to boiling salted water (or stock), with some butter, turn it off and let it sit for 5 minutes, fluff it up and serve as a side dish.
“It can be prepared a number of different ways, including in the microwave, but if you ask us, our favorite method is to bring a cup of your favorite broth, combined with two tablespoons of butter, to a boil, remove it from heat, then stir in one cup of this Organic Couscous, cover, and let sit. After only five minutes, you should have a hearty, fork-fluffable side that’s ideal for serving alongside grilled salmon, Shawarma Chicken Thighs, or any other protein you’d prefer.”
Well it took 20 years but Trader Joe’s decided to finally raise the price of one of it’s most popular products, and the internet became abuzz with this new.
Trader Joe’s raised the price for BANANAS. They raised the price 20%. For the last 20 years Trader Joe’s has sold bananas individually at 19 cents each.
They’ve stayed 19 cents for 20 years!
However Trader Joe’s decided to raise the price of bananas from 19 cents to 23 cents (regular bananas) with Organic bananas, which were 25 cents for the same amount of time, now costing 29 cents each. Yes, this price increase looks small but this does work out to about a 20 per cent price hike. Inflation is supposedly down to 3 or 4%. So its a noticeable jump as most people who buy say 5 bananas at a time will be at least 20 cents more for them.
One more sign of inflation. As if we needed another one, right?
One Trader Joe’s spokesman said due to inflation they have finally had to raise the prices due to cost increases. Street vendors in New York City sell them usually 4 for $1 (25 cents each) Trader Joe’s used to undersell the guys on the street but now they are about the same price. I may buy them from them now, we’ll see.
Trying this for the first time, left me impressed. It is quite good. A very tasty English cheese. Here I find the addition of the onion/chives enhance the cheese, they don’t overpower it.
This is the kind of cheese you might find at an English pub. A semi soft cheese. Neither hard nor soft, its a bit softer than regular cheddar. Speaking of which this is fairly different than regular Cheddar cheese; as a “Gloucester cheese” is its own thing.
I first tasted it on its own, then on some plain crackers and found the flavor really lovely in both cases. Just very tasty. I think this would be great on a cheese plate or cheese board.
Equally nice is the way this cheese melted, which was very easily, as its not very hard to begin with. So this will be great to melt on things and cook with. I put it on a taco and it melted easily and was delicious especially when I let it get little brown. It would be great of course mixed into scrambled eggs. Would this make a great Welsh Rarebit? I think yes, so I intend to try that sometime.
This cheese is going for $10.99/lb, my hunk coming out to about $5. It is an Imported premium cheese, so that is not bad.
Many people wonder how to use Trader Joe’s Soy Chorizo, so here’s one idea that I use it for quite frequently. I cook up potatoes and onions and add the Soy Chorizo to it for a very tasty (vegetarian) version of the famous Mexican dish “Papa con Chorizo” (potatoes with chorizo).
Here’s my recipe . We substitute Trader Joe’s soy chorizo for real pork chorizo making this dish vegetarian. Some people may not even know that its vegetarian when they taste it. In fact, though I’m not vegetarian I like this quite a bit as its a bit healthier. I make this dish about every other week as an easy dish which is good to have on hand in the fridge as it can make a few things. This is especially good as a filling for quesadillas, tacos or burritos, it works really well with eggs too mixed into it. You can make up a whole package of the Soy Chorizo to have on hand for the week.
INGREDIENTS
Trader Joe’s SOY CHORIZO
Trader Joe’s TACO SEASONING (optional)
Potatoes (waxy potatoes are best, like Red potatoes, Yukon Gold or similar) 1 pound
Onion (medium – diced)
Fresh garlic (optional, chopped)
(optional – fresh cilantro)
I usually make this for about 2 people/portions. Adjust amounts as needed
RECIPE – Soy Chorizo with Potatoes
Boil about a pound of potatoes cut in half in lightly salted water. Cook for about 12 minutes or so or just until done, meaning when a knife goes in pretty easily.
Drain and rinse them with cold water until they are cool enough to touch. Cut the potatoes up into bite size pieces.
In a cast iron or non-stick skillet, sauté an medium size onion (diced) in about a tablespoon of olive oil for a few minutes (add a few cloves of fresh chopped garlic too if you like). Toss in the diced potatoes. Let potatoes and onions sauté together on medium heat until the potatoes take a little bit of color which may take about 10 minutes or so, stirring gently every 3 minutes. Sprinkle on some Taco Seasoning (optional) if you like. If you are not using it, just add a sprinkle of salt and pepper.
Next add your Soy Chorizo. Lower the heat. Gently mix in and combine the Soy Chorizo into the onion and potatoes. How much chorizo to use is up to you. I usually add about 1/2 the tube for about about a pound of potatoes but you can add more or less as you see fit.
Saute the mixture on low heat for about 5 minutes or so and it’s ready. If you like cilantro, sprinkle on a big handle of it, chopped up, which brightens the dish really nicely.
Optional: Eggs work great with this mixture. If you want them at the end just mix in 3 beaten eggs and let the eggs cook slowly until done. Serve immediately with warm tortillas or make quesadillas with this as your stuffing.
PAPAS CON CHORIZO is a tasty mixture which is great for tacos or burittos and my favorite, cheese quesadillas. To make those,use flour tortillas, (or corn if you like) and sprinkle some grated cheese on the tortilla in a lightly oiled pan. Top with the potato mix, fold in half and cook for a few minutes on each side until the cheese is melted. For even cheesier ones, also put a little grated cheese under the tacos and let them get golden brown and a little crusty. These are really my favorite. And if you want to use corn tortillas instead, those will also be great with this filling.
Besides tacos or tortillas, mix this potato mixture into scrambled eggs for a great dish.
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