Trader Joe’s HONEYCRISP APPLE GRANOLA, review (Fall Item)


LIMITED FALL ITEM

Does it taste really like apples? Yes actually it does, thanks to little bits of dried honeycrisp apples all throughout the granola. This granola not the clumpy kind; it is loose like cereal, not with the large clumps as some other granola’s that Trader Joe’s has such as the almond butter granola. Personally I am a fan of big “clumpy” granola with chunks that I can take out and sometimes just snack on. However I liked this too as it’s got that great apple fruity taste. I mean the taste of this granola is really a winner 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….) Very, very subtle, more like a backnote 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

https://www.traderjoes.com/home/products/pdp/honeycrisp-apple-granola-076757

Trader Joe’s OLIVE FOUGASSE Artisan Style Bread


“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)…..

https://shorturl.at/4Q0dR

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.

NEW @ Trader Joe’s, CRISPY GARLIC


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

https://www.traderjoes.com/home/products/pdp/crispy-garlic-078302

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.

I would buy it again

Trader Joe’s SOURDOUGH SLICED BREAD sandwich loaf


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.

$3.49 (24 oz)

I would buy this again

Trader Joe’s FRENCH GALETTES BUTTER COOKIES


RAVE

PRODUCT OF FRANCE

“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

https://www.traderjoes.com/home/products/pdp/french-galettes-butter-cookies-078527

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.

Trader Joe’s MINI CINNAMON BROOMS


It’s FALL, so you know Trader Joe’s has all the Fall Pumpkin Stuff out now, including the famous Cinnamon Brooms. These mini ones were 99 cents, for years and years. This year? They are now $1.29 folks!! The smallies will make a room smell lovely. The big broom, your house!

Trader Joe’s has VENUS FLY TRAP plants!


“Good for chomping flies and taking names” ! $5.99. Looked super healthy too. I guess they’ve been eating well?

Great science / nature project for the kids?!

Trader Joe’s MINI CAN FOLIAGE PLANTS


Trader Joe’s say this about these “mini can foliage plants” that have come out for Fall now :

“Here, designs from some of our favorite canned products ever to grace our grocery shelves, including items from both the past and present, have been re-imagined as holders for a variety of beautiful, (and, we mention with appreciation, quite low-maintenance) tropical plants.”

https://www.traderjoes.com/home/products/pdp/mini-can-foliage-082987

These new Trader Joe’s plants in cans, seem to gotten a lot of attention all over Social Media. I am going to bet that almost every dorm room now has one of these in them! Granted these are cute because they are not not in a little pot, but in Trader Joe’s cans, with labels for actual TJ’s products like the canned corn.

So yes, I totally get these look cute and kind of cool and OK, I like the recycling take added to design philosophy. Frankly though I have a feeling they are not actually in recycled cans, I think they were produced just for this use. I know that that tomato paste comes in a very skinny little can, not this size can, which is way bigger which leads me to assume these cans were made just for this purpose.

Frankly though I had a few reservations when I saw them at my local (NYC) Trader Joe’s.

First, the price?! Whaaaaa?! 4.99!? Five bucks for one of these just seemed a little steep when I saw them. When I search their website I saw a few kinds of plant varieties. But at my TJ’s (UWS NYC) there were only these one kind a fern species. The ones I saw appeared to be not in great shape, at all. The ones I saw looked like they would die in about a week after you took them home. They were already dying.

I would not buy the ones I saw (the ferns) again which are not even shown as you can see in the top picture I got right off TJ’s website which shows other plants – which all look robust. And better varieties of plants some worth five bucks.

I did see healthy plants for that exact same $4.99. Those looked way healthier and more robust looking plants Also labeled “mini foliage in pot”. Those will last if you take care of them. Not sure if those ferns could be rescued.

This guy on Instagram got much luckier to find good little cans of plants that had more of the varieties as they are shown on TJ’s website. Perhaps you will in your area.

Still as cute as you think the (frankly over priced) plants in those little metal labeled cans are, in general those plants will live longer if you eventually re-pot them into a bigger pot with hopefully some drainage holes at the bottom (or at the very least be careful not to over or under water these) If you find more robust varieties in these cans, you might get lucky.

(update: a reader Commented below that depending on the exact plant variety you find, it might be well worth $5 – but repot them)

By the way, these looked very healthy!! Some has been feeding them flies?

Trader Joe’s Baladi Egyptian Sourdough Pocket Bread (PITA BREAD)


RAVE

(price increased, now $2.49)

“Perfect for hummus and dips and for sandwiches. Heat and enjoy!” (frozen)

I love good pita bread. For the past few years, the pita at Trader Joe’s, their long running item “pita bread original pockets” have been OK in a pinch but are far from what I would call good 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 big, and very thin. So thin these are not sturdy enough to count on to make a pocket Hold the food without falling apart as you eat it.

With the NEW pocket bread/pita called BALADI – This has all changed. Trust me. You want these. They are far better pita bread! Finally we can buy some GOOD pita bread at TJ’s.

With the new Egyptian Baladi sourdough pocket bread Trader Joe’s finally has an excellent and authentic pita which is sturdy enough to split open and make a pocket that will hold ingredients, say for a falafal sandwich. And it’s Delicious. The BALADI SOURDOUGH POCKET BREADS are made by an Egyptian bakery for Trader Joe’s. So the real McCoy. These say “Product of Egypt”. Baked, then frozen, so as close to fresh as possible.

Trader Joe’s says: “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.”

https://www.traderjoes.com/home/products/pdp/baladi-egyptian-sourdough-pocket-bread-078015

Here is my honest review of Baladi Pocket Bread.

I give these a Wow. These are EXCELLENT. I was so impressed at how good these are. I found this pita 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.

180 calories per bread. 7g protein

Baladi Pocket Bread (5 breads, 14 oz) $2.29 (under 50 cents each!)

You will love these as much as I did.

I would buy them again.

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.

How to make real aish baladi pita bread

https://www.mycookingjourney.com/aish-baladi-egyptian-flatbread-vegan-flatbread/

“This is so good, it’s home. This might actually make me cry,” says TikToker @foozydoes after tasting TJ’s new Egyptian Aish-Beladi.

@foozydoes

I was finally able to get my hands on the viral Aish Baladi or Egyptian Sourdough Pocket Bread from #traderjoes and it did NOT disappoint 🥰 #baladi #bread #egyptian #traderjoesfoodreviews

♬ original sound – Fawziah Qadir

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!!

Trader Joe’s ROMANO CAESAR Salad Dressing


Trader Joe’s Romano Caesar Dressing is a vegetarian take on the classic Caeser. This does not contain anchovies but has got a lot of other other ingredients like Romano cheese, olive oil, garlic and spices plus mustard, Worcestershire, lemon and capers, to compensate and provide Umani.

You can use it as well as a marinade for chicken, fish or most anything. About $3 for a 12 oz bottle.

My very picky wife liked this dressing and she doesn’t like a lot of TJ’s dressings.

Want to use this to make a Caesar Salad? Get some Romaine, tear or cut up in to pieces. Add some CROUTONS. Pour on some dressing. Toss. Done! Unless you want options of adding perhaps some lightly cooked eggs or maybe some chicken to make it into a full meal.

I would buy this again.

PS – there’s nothing preventing one to add a few smashed anchovies to this to make it into a classic Caesar dressing.

160 calories per 2 tbls.

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