Trader Joe’s Rants & Raves (mostly raves, a few rants)

Possibly this is the healthiest bread at Trader Joe’s –

WHOLE GRAINS & SEEDS. NO PRESERVATIVES. MADE IN DENMARK

Ingredients: Water, sourdough from whole grain rye flour, rye flour, flaxseed, wheat flour, wholegrain rye flour, sunflower seeds, rye flakes, wheat bran…..

1 slice = 120 Calories, 4 gr Protein, and 10 gr of whole grains

Trader Joe’s EUROPEAN GRAINS & SEEDS BREAD is a European / Scandinavian style bread that Trader Joe’s introduced not too long ago. Here’s what they have to say about it :

“Our Danish bakery partner starts with a hearty sourdough rye Bread base, bolstering it with flax seed, sunflower seeds, rye flakes, and wheat bran before baking it to a deep brown hue. The resulting loaves are classically European—moist, toothsome, and somewhat dense, with a slightly sweet, delightfully nutty quality in each thin slice.”

https://www.traderjoes.com/home/products/pdp/european-grains-seeds-bread-078717

I’m a big fan of these types of dense, hearty loaves of bread, seen all over Europe plus every Scandinavian country. I love these kinds of breads that have lots of whole grains. These type of breads are usually square loaves, sliced on the thin side as they are dense. Hearty, and delicious.

Wonder Bread this ain’t!

Here in the U.S., we don’t see these kinds of breads often enough, so over the years whenever I’ve seen this type of bread somewhere I will generally buy it. Especially pumpernickel breads which I really like.

I was so happy to find Trader Joe’s came out with this style of European bread, which are of course super healthy, compared to most any other breads. Is it any good?

Yes, this bread is good. Trader Joe’s new “European Grains And Seeds Bread” is deliciously nutty, tasty and full of seeds. It is baked for for them in Denmark by a Danish bakery, with the thin slices have a nice, nutty taste from sourdough wholegrain rye and whole wheat flours plus a lot of seeds.

So healthy. I am going to guess this is probably the healthiest bread you can buy at Trader Joe’s.

PERFECT FOR OPEN FACED SANDWICHES

https://www.saveur.com/smorrebrod-eggs-shrimp-dill-recipe/

How to enjoy European Grains and Seeds Bread: What this kind of bread is great for, is making things like open face sandwiches. Probably not so great for your average (thick) sandwich. It may not hold up. You could try thin sandwiches with two slices but really, think I would think about doing Scandinavian style open face sandwiches.

Of course you can just simply spread a slice with (softened) butter, cream cheese, cottage cheese, any cheese you love, jam, ham, or whatever you like. One way I love to enjoy this bread is to spread a slice with butter and top it with thin slices of cucumber or radish and a few grains of sea salt.

Smørrebrød (Danish Open-faced Sandwiches)

You can eat as is, or warm or toast it a bit. As usual with breads, warming it up even a little bit always improves the flavor. But you don’t have to, its fine at room temp.

While I love how this bread tastes there is one area I think they could improve it. The slices tend to break apart if you are not careful with it, as there are so many seeds in it which make it less solid. Which just means you have to be a little gentle with it. So if using butter for example, I let the butter get a bit softened enough to spread easily, least you rip your slice. Sometimes I cut the slices into half or quarters as its easier to handle. Toasting it makes it a bit more firm so try toasting this too. I do really like it just a little toasted.

I made an simple open faced sardine sandwich on this bread and enjoyed it a lot ; it matched great with the fish. SO GOOD!. Try it with your favorite cheese too.

TJ’s says: “When it comes to toppings and fillings, the thin-yet-sturdy slices of European Grains & Seeds Bread are ready for near-infinite riffing: try topping a slice with a pat of Cultured Salted Butter and a swoosh of berry preserves; sliced Cave Aged Le Gruyère and Rosemary Ham, or ripe avocado and a spoonful of Crunchy Chili Onion. Enjoy a slice as the base of an open-faced sandwich topped with Whipped Cream Cheese, Smoked Salmon Pieces, and plenty of fresh dill. If it’s soft & chewy you’re seeking, use un-toasted slices of European Grains & Seeds Bread to scaffold scoops of tuna salad—and don’t forget the pickle on the side!”

Will this last as a TJ’s product? I hope so. Like all new products, if they see it is selling well they will keep it. However if not enough people buy this, then it may go bye-bye unfortunately. So if you try and like this, keep buying it. I sure will.

I think it’s even gotten a little popular. A few times I have found this sold out, but it seemed to get restocked after a few days.

$3.49 (about 1 lb)

I would buy it again.

Update: Just FYI I did see it recently (5/12/25)