“Cookies and Cream ice cream sandwiched between rich chocolate chunk cookies”
I like the original version of these: “Vanilla Ice cream sandwiched between Chocolate Chip cookies.
My neighbor tried this newer version: Cookies N Cream which are a new flavor riff on the original Sublime Ice Cream Sandwich (Chocolate Chip cookies around vanilla ice cream rolled in chocolate chips).
My neighbor wasn’t crazy about these Cookies and Cream sandwiches after she tried one. So she offered the rest of them to me. My wife and I tried them and we really understood why our neighbor wasn’t crazy about the new flavor.
First off – I find this way too sweet. What I would call “kid level” sweetness. Way too sweet from the two similar sweet things going on, with both the cookie and the ice cream. IMO this one doesnt’ work. The combo of cookies and creme ice cream and gooey chocolate outer cookies actually just became more cookies and cream as you chew it. So double Cookies And Cream. Too much.
Whereas if it had vanilla ice cream then there would be a contrast between the outer dark chocolate gooey cookie and the inside of the ice cream sandwich.
The original version of these is better I think with vanilla ice cream and chocolate chip cookies and rolled in chocolate chips. There you get more distinct flavors and textures.
Not too mention the soft outside cookie of the sandwich just kind of melted in my fingers as I ate it. It was messy to eat. My call is get the original one which is good. This one is a Miss for me. I think I would like it if it had vanilla ice cream in the middle. Then as you bite it you would get cookies and cream.
Get the original flavor, with vanilla ice cream and chocolate chip cookies, which is wonderful.
Trader Joe’s Salted Caramel Mochi, Ice Cream wrapped in a layer of sweet chewy mochi (sticky rice).
Here’s what they say about it: “Each bite starts with the sweet, tooth-sinking sensations of the outer Mochi layer, which quickly gives way to the rich, full-flavored, and buttery-sweet Salted Caramel ice cream within.”
Here’s my honest review. Basically, I love most anything made with Mochi (sticky rice). I love that chewy texture. I’ve really liked most of the Trader Joe’s mochi ice cream combos they have come out with. I think one in particular is a knockout: the BLACK SESAME MOCHI ICE CREAM. I find that one to just be terrific and a bit of an unusual flavor, we don’t see too often in the U.S.
The Green Tea mochi ice cream is also good as well as the Strawberry flavor and the Mango…. So they quite a few flavors of these mochi ice creams. I think with now this Salted Caramel one, they have or had six flavor combos.
This new new Salted Caramel flavor got some buzz on the internet about how great it was. So I wanted to try it and see how it stacks up against all the other ones. Here’s my honest review.
I have to measure it against the other ones. I thought it was OK however I wasn’t terribly impressed with the salted caramel flavor, which lets face it, unlike say a fruit flavor, is a bit harder to compare to the real thing. I mean you know instantly if mango mochi tastes like mango. I think its harder for “salted caramel” which is the natural flavor combo of caramelized sugar plua butter with a bit of salt).
I wanted a second opinion, so I asked my wife to taste it too. She basically had the same reaction and said it was “just OK”. So we both found it just ok. We didn’t think the salted caramel mochi was as good as some of the other flavors, especially say compared to the (great) black sesame mochi, which we both loved as well as many of the fruit ones, like mango.
The outside wrapper is brown and pretty sticky. Usually the wrappers made from white sticky rice look white. So I assume there must be caramel in that as well as the ice cream as per the ingredients on the label. the combo of the white salted caramel ice cream inside and the brown mochi wrapper are a bit Meh and Underwhelming where as I really like many of the fruit ones (mango) and the standout (black sesame) And by the way, I do not see “butter” in the ingredient list. But I do see “miso” listed (??) which I imagine is part of the “salted” flavor?
So I didn’t hate this but I didn’t love it either. Again its OK but I would not buy this again. I would way prefer to buy my favorite, Black Sesame version, which if you havent tried it, I would recommend. Or Mango. Maybe Green Tea.
Of course this is IMHO. Some on Instagram do give this new flavor, high praise reviews of its a “must try”, “addictive” “gotta have it” – so your call.
As per TJ’s let all mochi ice cream treats defrost a bit before eating them to get the full flavor and texture profiles.
These ready to cook meatballs from Trader Joe’s are a fairly recent item, sold fresh in the meat section. I wanted to try them for while and finally got around to trying these. Trader Joe’s has this to say:
“…Our supplier’s recipe starts with a base of tender, ground 100% Angus Beef, to which they add a bit of panko breadcrumbs…along with onion and garlic purée, a blend of aromatic herbs like basil and oregano, as well as grated Parmesan and Romano cheeses”
Cooking: The box has instructions for cooking the meatballs in the oven (at 400 for 15-20 minutes) as well as for Air Fryer (at 400 for 10-15 mins)
There are 12 meatballs in the package which is (24 oz or 1 1/2 lbs) Now it’s $9.99. Yes it went up but still not a terrible deal.
I find it odd they don’t say anything about what I would call the traditional grandma way: Brown them up, then simmer in a pot of tomato sauce. You can just put them into the sauce without browning, which is the way my mom used to make meatballs. Yes it its a little more work to brown them, but I do like the flavor you get with browning. Plus you can get that tasty “fond” left in the bottom of the pan which will add a lot of flavor once you deglaze that and add that into your meat sauce.
Sauce: You could use TJ’s very decent $1.99 jar of tomato basil MARINARA sauce (24 oz). Or for a bigger batch get two jars. Again, I would suggest the traditional brown and simmer method but thats your call if you want to bake these or Air Fry them and add sauce later depending on how you are serving the meatballs.
If you want something really special for your sauce you could level up and use that $5 jar of TJ’s superb CARO SUGO sauce!
To cook them I did it the traditional Grandma way: browning them in olive oil on all sides, deglaze the pan, and then simmered in sauce for 15-29 minutes or so. We served them in the classic way of: Spaghetti and Meatballs. These are great for that of course.
We used it to make “Spaghetti and Meatballs” for dinner, eat about 3 meatballs each and had enough left for another meal for later in the week out of the one package.
REVIEW: I would say these were pretty good. Of course I could not compare these to “Grandma’s homemade meatballs” but these were not bad at all. These were pretty tasty served up as spaghetti and meatballs. Flavor wise we did think they could have used a bit more of everything (garlic, seasonings, cheese…) Now I do make meatballs from scratch, which are great, but honestly I have not made meatballs in a LONG TIME! So I would call these the next best thing to home made and pretty easy. They had a good meatball texture, being neither too soft nor too firm. You can fix these up easily for more flavor.
FIXING THEM UP: You can easily improve these by adding a few things such as, Dried Herbs, Garlic. Cheese… I wish these had way more cheese but you can fix that by grating on a ton of Pecorino or Parmesan when you serve them. Fresh basil would be a knockout punch. The sauce you serve them with will help of course.
These would work for making “meat sauce” (break them up). Use them for making Heros or Subs like in the picture (Meatball Sub). Or match with any kind of pasta. I read somewhere that someone even used these to make “Italian Wedding Soup” (he made them into smaller meatballs). So get creative. Overall, pretty tasty even if they will not fool Grandma.
$9.99 (24 oz / 12 meatballs) – (I think they used to be $8 when they came out a year or so back?)
You could spend about $13 total to make a spaghetti and meatball dinner which would easily feed 4 people. These beef meatballs, a pound of spaghetti, plus a jar of marinara . That works out to about $3 bucks per person which is not terrible for a super tasty meal. Meatball subs? Maybe a few bucks more for the hero rolls.
“MEDIUM ROAST – With notes of milk chocolate and stone fruits”
100% Arabica. Whole Beans. Organic.
NEW ITEM
“You’re likely familiar with our rotating roster of limited-edition Small Lot Coffees—carefully sourced, single-origin offerings that tend to be available only in small quantities, and only for a short time.”
This is not a Small Lot however Trader Joe’s says this coffee captures the spirit of their Small Lot coffees. They managed to find enough supply to have this on a regular basis. Trader Joe’s has this new coffee from Chiapas, Mexico.
Chiapas is the southern most part of Mexico and has the Sierra Madre mountains. These beans are grown high up there between 4,000 and 6,000 feet. This coffee is “grown by a collective of nearly 2,000 small farmers.”
“… thanks to our longstanding relationships with some exceptional growers, we’ve been able to secure a supply of Trader Joe’s Organic Mexico Chiapas Whole Bean Coffee large enough to offer every day. It captures the spirit of our Small Lot releases—high-quality, single-origin craftsmanship—only this time, it’s here to stay.”
This is an excellent coffee.
I really really liked this. High quality indeed. These beans smelled great upon opening the bag. Ground up fresh the coffee smells even better.
ROAST – You can never count on when TJ’s says Light or Medium. This bag says “Medium Roast”. However to me it’s clearly darker than Medium. I might say a dark medium or a light dark roast? As you can see the beans are just a tiny bit shiny. Whatever they call it the roast is perfect for these beans.
This made a wonderfully flavorful cup of coffee, which they describe as “with notes of milk chocolate and stone fruit”. I made it in my MOKA POT. I even got a bit of crema. It should work for any brewing method. Delicious.
I would not mind having another bag at all. This coffee is a keeper!
I’ve thought about posting something like this for awhile, instead of a review. The issue: Wasting money. Wasting food. Argh !!! I’m sure you are with me. I just hate discovering produce wasn’t used fast enough and is basically garbage now. I hate to throw out food. I’m sure you feel the same. With everything costing more and more, frankly now it seems more important than ever.
We all know all too well, the horrible feeling of looking in a bag of greens or something only to find something black and melted and looking like it’s ready for the garbage. Some things go faster than other. Pre-washed soft little greens for one.
Say washed, ready to eat Mixed Greens at Trader Joe’s. I’ve found those really don’t last long. Great for 3, 4 days. They go bad pretty fast. Faster than almost anything else I buy at Trader Joe’s as the little mixed lettuces are very delicate. After four days, I will usually find a few rotten pieces deep in the middle.
So how do you keep your veggies and stuff from going bad for as long as possible?
Every vegetable and package presents a different challenge. A lot of stuff at Trader Joe’s is packaged in plastic. Most? Way too much plastic and of course Plastic doesn’t “breathe”. Moisture is both the friend and enemy with veggies. Just enough is good to keep them as fresh as possible. But if no air, it will rot faster.
My so called hack is a mix of air (holes) and paper towels to try to regulate the moisture in the bag.
AIR FLOW. What I usually do is I make holes if there aren’t any already. Even if there are (bagged carrots for example) I may add some more holes. What I do is a combination of things to regulate the moisture. Sometimes adding a paper towel in the bag to absorb moisture (and provide it slowly). On occasion both the two together, poking lots of holes and a paper towel in the bag. It’s tricky as you don’t want stuff to dry up, but not have too much moisture either.
For example take that bag of ARUGULA – which I buy frequently. The first thing I do before I put the bag in the fridge is take a sharp pointy knife – and STAB IT all over to make a lot of holes. Seriously stab it. Not two or three holes. I stab the bag maybe 10 times on each side. A lot of little holes to make it more breathable. I might slit open the bag and put a paper towel in along the side.
Mixed greens? Air holes and paper towels in the bag. Close up with a clothes pin or similar.
GREEN ONIONS – Same thing. Air holes all over.
Once you open a bag, which I usually do with scissors, i use clips or clothes pins to seal shut.
With green onions, sometimes I will remove them all from the bag and wrap a paper towel around the bottom which is barely moistened with a few drops of water to keep those root ends moist. A wonderful Cantonese chef I watch alot of cooking videos of, recommends standing green onions upright in the fridge, in a plastic bag with the roots wrapped in barely moist paper towels. That does work but I usually have them horizontal.
What about say a package of PERSIAN CUCUMBERS? They have cardboard on the bottom which is breathable, so better. The plastic wrapping them, I pierce all over and make (more) air holes. Keep loosely covered.
What about Trader Joe’s plastic square boxes of parsley or cilantro? I stab the plastic box like crazy to make holes in them and take a paper towel and wrap up the whole bunch of parsley in the paper towel. Maybe add a few drops of water to keep it moist – barely. Freshen every few days.
Another thing I do, is when things start to look no longer perfect is I will cook the greens when they get past prime time (a bit not garbage). Lets say I have half a bag of arugula left over, It looks a little past it’s prime but not too bad. Not great for a salad but not ready to toss in the garbage. So I cook it. I remove any really bad leaves, give it a quick rinse, and toss it in a pan with oil and garlic. Sauté it for a few minutes till wilted. Arugula is great to cook with too. Or if I’m cooking something, throw it in at the end for 1 minute or so till its wilted / cooked.
I really like this very versatile dressing. Sold in the refrigerated section near salad stuff. Sure this a “salad dressing” but it is also more than that.
Trader Joe’s has this to say about it: “When is a salad dressing more than a salad dressing? How about when it’s also a great dip, condiment, marinade, sauce…”
Salad dressing, a marinade, a glaze, a condiment, even a dipping sauce for your dumplings!
It can be used for all those and maybe more. This is really versatile and useful to have in your fridge. It is of course peanut-y and a typical Asian style mix of sweet and savory. We tried it as a salad dressing. Very yummy. After we poured some over mixed lettuce and arugula my wife said “I think this would also be great on noodles“… Yes! Toss some into your noodles. Or grilled chicken (use for a marinade and a glaze). Or Salmon. Or Shrimp. Or Baked Tofu. Or an omelet. A dipping sauce for dumplings. Cole slaw. Grilled vegetables…. you name it.
It is a bit sweet (from agave syrup) and of course very peanut-y. Has the tiniest amount of spice listed as the last ingredient but I can’t really detect any level of “spicy” here. If you want that, just add your favorite spicy stuff. You can even top with some crushed peanuts (this is smooth) for added texture. I really like this!
You will find it good on or with so many things. The cousin of this, also very good is TJ’s TOASTED SESAME DRESSING.
It lists 120 Cal per 2 tbls
$3.99 bottle (12 oz)
Great with chicken. Marinate some boneless breast or thighs in a bit of this sauce for 1/2 hour. Grill or broil them. Brush on some sauce in the last minute cooking to get a wonderful glaze. Serve with more sauce.
Here’s what Traders has to say: “After the runaway success of our Chili & Lime Flavored Rolled Corn Tortilla Chips, including their record-breakingly early entry into the Trader Joe’s Product Hall of Fame, we knew that they needed a companion within the snacks section. Where their Chile Lime cousins are tangy and hot, these Ranch Rolled Tortilla Chips are creamy, herby, and well-rounded. They get their bold, yet markedly mellow flavor via a suite of savory seasonings and spices, including buttermilk, garlic powder, onion powder, and parsley.”
The wonderful Chili Lime Rolled Corn Tortilla Chips are among Trader Joe’s most popular snack items they have come out with. Me, I am crazy for them. I adore them. I love spicy. The Chili Lime chips have crazy strong flavors and are quite spicy.
But they are not for everyone. Especially those sensitive to spice or strong flavors. My wife does like some level of spicy but she really doesn’t like the Chili Lime rolled chips at all. She says they are just too strongly flavored and way too spicy ( I”m not complaining as I don’t have to share mine 😉
So as popular as the spicy ones are I imagine Trader Joe’s figured there are people like her who find them too strongly flavorerd. Which must be why they figured lets come out with another version of the Rolled Tortilla Chips. Which is this one. Not spicy. Mild. Ranch Flavor flavor.
My wife likes these more mellow Ranch ones! I will have to share…..
TJ’s gave this variation a buttermilk ranch flavor that includes dried onion, parsley and other seasoning.
On the internet you get that this one is another hit. Some people really like this version. and say things like “the bag didn’t even make it all the way home. i ate the whole thing”!
Not as bold as the original OG Chili Lime these have a mild flavor of course so may appeal to more people, my wife being one. The are great on their own or equally great with a dip or guacamole. I liked them dipped into some DILL CREAM CHEESE SPREAD. They are good with cheese too.
I love the original spicy one a bit more as it’s so zingy spicy and unique but I do like this new RANCH one too, and you may end up buying both kinds!
I would buy it again.
$2.99/9 Oz
On a side note though it doesn’t say Gluten Free, I kind of think they may be? Just corn, no wheat that I can see in the ingredients
Trader Joe’s Kettle Cooked Olive Oil Potato Chips are a popular, crunchy potato chip snack.
INGREDIENTS : Potatoes. Olive Oil. Sea Salt
These are made from only three ingredients: Potatoes, Olive Oil, and Sea Salt. Even though we are not big eaters of potato chips, we found these to be incredibly tasty. Even addictive!
I would call these “gourmet” potato chips. The olive oil imparts great flavor.
The flavor profile of these is very simple and pure, as there is no other flavor added, just potatoes with a touch of salt, with the fruity flavor of the olive oil coming through. All of which makes these taste better than most standard chips.
These have amazing crunch. Like most chips described as “kettle cooked” these chips are cut thicker than regular potato chips such as “Lays” and the like. These have a great texture. Crunchy and delicious. These could probably hold up to most dips.
Now we did find these to be just the tiniest bit on the greasy side, so be aware of that. However since this is olive oil I imagine this is part of the appeal. Another plus is that some people want things made with “non-seed” oils. So this fits that bill, though the words “healthy potato chips” are an oxymoron!
As far as calories goes, the bag says 16 chips have about 140 calories.
I’ve never written a “review” of fruit before so this is a first for me. Why now?
I was at Trader Joe’s, looking for the new Ranch flavor rolled tortilla chips and could not find any on the shelves. So I asked one of the employees if they had any in back. He went and found what he said were the “last two bags”.
I was thankful, of course, and we started talking a little bit and he asked if I had every tried “Dekopan”. He said you have to try it. I drew a blank. I had no idea what that was. He walked me over to where oranges were. He pointed out a large weird looking bumpy skin, giant mandarin orange with a bumpy top knot. He said they’re expensive but actually worth it. It’s a “premium” fruit. Very seasonal, only available for around 3 months. A TJ employee cult favorite which they wait for all year.
So I had to get one to try. How is it? Well it perhaps actually is The best orange/mandarin I ever ate.
It is Huge. A pound each? So juicy and sweet. So easy to peel, it just slipped out of its skin. Smells fantastic. No seeds! I can see what a Trader Joe’s Cult Favorite.
Also probably at $2.49 each, the most expensive orange I ever bought. Yikes. Still, at other stores they might be even more expensive than that.
But its huge and really really good and a rare treat.
So even if just once, I would also say, “you’ve got to try this” while you can as it’s seasonal (around Jan-April) only available for about 3 months.
When my wife and I tried it after dinner we were both so impressed with the taste and while expensive, very special indeed. Just so delicious and a treat for a dessert. A way healthier dessert than the cake we had. By the way, its so huge it was shared by us both.
I got one for $2.49 weeks ago. Just saw them now weeks later I saw them bagged (about 5?) for maybe $6, way less per orange. Probably end of season and they need to get rid of them.
GOOGLE: Trader Joe’s Sumo Citrus (Dekopon) is a highly anticipated seasonal fruit available roughly January through April. Known for being very large, seedless, incredibly sweet, and easy to peel, these premium mandarins feature a distinct top-knot bump.
Key Details About Trader Joe’s Sumo Citrus:
Seasonality: Typically available in the winter and early spring, specifically January to April.
Taste & Texture: Extremely sweet (high Brix count) and juicy, with a texture closer to a tangerine than a standard orange.
Appearance: Distinctive, bumpy, thick rind with a “top knot” bump, making them easy to peel.
Price: Known to be expensive, with individual fruit priced around $2.49 and bags sold for roughly $5.49–$5.99, but still cheaper than at many other retailers.
Origins: Originally developed in Japan in the 1970s, now grown in California’s Central Valley.
“This awesomely herbaceous spread was designed expressly with bagels and lox in mind—we find the notes of Dill are particularly suited to bringing out the best in smoked salmon or Steelhead Trout. That said, it also happens to be great when simply enjoyed with crackers or charcuterie, and a mixed-in spoonful will add all kinds of depth to a pan of soft, scrambled eggs.” – trader joe’s
The internets seem to have gotten a bit abuzz about this new Trader Joe’s spread. I loved the last one I tried (whipped feta spread). So I got this newer one to try out for review.
I opened it up and tried a small taste of it. Is this dip any good? Yeah Baby! Here’ my honest review.
Yes, yes, yes! I love it. I found this just SO good! Very dill-y and herbaceous, and I am a fan of dill. If you like it, you will also love this. Corny but yes this is “dill-icious” as they have named it.
Trader Joe’s say it was designed to match with smoked fish. For sure! They suggest spreading it for a “shmear” on a bagel, then top with some smoked salmon, or smoked trout or what have you. Certainly this will be wonderful for matching with any kind of smoked fish.
It is good for other things too of course. I liked it just as a dip with veggies: sticks of carrots and cucumbers, radishes, peppers. Anything.
It also tasted great simply spread on a few crackers I tried it with. I then spread it on TJ’s yummy Euro Grains Bread which I topped with slices of cucumber. This combo was excellent. Try it on that wonderful bread or crispbread.
Trader Joe’s Rants & Raves (mostly raves, a few rants) 
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