Trader Joe's Fearless Flyer - May

So, it's been awhile!  I'm much more consistent over at my other blog, though the content is completely unrelated to Trader Joe's...so, not necessarily helpful (although good :)). 

A note to say that TJ's Fearless Flyer is out for May!  You can find a copy at your local Trader Joe's store or online here (just select your state).

A friend who works at TJ's just told us how a woman came in and said that, to her, the Fearless Flyer is like porn...  Maybe I should have her post a few entries here. 

Hope you are also enjoying your Trader Joe's shopping - I know I continue to!

Passing along a post...

from Beth at Recipes, Deals etc.  Thanks Beth! 

She reviewed Trader Joe's Multi-grain Pancake Mix.  I can confirm the fact that this mix is great!  Before I started making my own whole wheat pancakes from scratch we bought this stuff and it is good.

Especially paired with their 100% real maple syrup...

You can find her review of the pancake mix here.

Trader Joe's Fruit - Ends & Pieces

I feel almost bad (but not really) that we happened upon these at our store.  I've been hoping, dreaming that maybe one day we would get the "ends & pieces" of Trader Joe's fruit bars.

Low and behold, I happened to go down that specific aisle and there they were!  I bought 8 packs...now wondering if I should have gotten more or, better yet, bought all that was available.

These, basically, are what they say...the ends and pieces they cut off of the fruit leathers/all fruit bars that they sell.  I talked about them in this post.  Evee thinks that they are candy and they really are that delicious...all while being 100% fruit and goodness for you.

The "ends & pieces" are sold for 1/3 of the price of the other "fruit leathers" and i think taste just as good or better.  The only downside is that they come few and far between, which obviously makes sense but is sad none the less.

If you happen to come across them at your own store, my only words to you are this: STOCK UP!

Easy Trader Joe's Meal - Recipe

A friend just passed along this recipe from the demo station at Trader Joe's.  It is SO simple, cheap, and really easy.

Use a package of Trader Joe's refrigerated pizza dough or make your own pizza dough.  We bought their garlic and herb one...it's amazing and is $.99.  Yup, $1!

Stretch that out to a square or rectangular...not too thin, but with a lot of room to spread toppings.  Put a layer of cheese.  I used Trader Joe's Mozzarella cheese.  I thought it was a good choice.

I had made BBQ chicken in the crockpot.  You can also buy TJ's own pulled BBQ chicken for $4.99/lb.  It was really simple to make in the crockpot though.  Just bought their chicken breasts for $2.99/lb and a bottle of TJ's BBQ sauce.  Put it together on high for about 2 hours.  Stirred it around and it shredded super easily.  So delicious.  You could also add onions right into the crockpot.  I forgot and caramelized some on the stove in olive oil instead.

Add the BBQ chicken and onions on top of the cheese and roll the whole thing up.

Bake it for approximately 20 minutes at 400 degrees (or until slightly brown on top). 

It makes a good amount of food, is delicious and doesn't take much time at all.  Our friends have tried a couple of vegetarian varieties that have also been delicious.  Really, you could put whatever kind of toppings you'd like.  It's like a Stromboli. 

Happy shopping and enjoy!

Wonderful Fruit

I love summer fruit!  I am thrilled that different fruit is starting to come with the changing of the seasons.

This past week at our local Trader Joe's I picked up 4 pounds of strawberries for $7.99 ($2/lb.).  They were gone in 3 days.  The pictures don't do them justice!

I also grabbed a cantaloupe and am just waiting for it to fully ripen as well as the normal bananas we always get. 

(Mango was actually on sale for $1 each at our local Whole Foods this week...yum.)

I'm thrilled about summer coming.  It gets me excited to see some cheaper prices on fruit we love and miss over the winter months.  It makes me happy thinking about farmer's markets and gardening again.

Trader Joe's Culinary Compendium

This Trader Joe's goody recently came through our mailbox.  In their own words, it's

"A concise collection of our culinary creations (and more curiosities) crammed into this handy almost pocket-sized guide."

It's volume #3...I was trying to remember if I've received one before, but then realized that this is the most recent "fearless flyer".  If you would like to view your own copy, you can do so here.  Or just go to your local store to pick up a paper copy.

Some fun finds...

• Buttermilk biscuits ($2.69 for 16 ounces) - page #4.  This is a simple find, I know, but one I didn't realize they had in stores.  I recently saw a breakfast recipe using biscuit dough but didn't think I could get it from TJ's.
• Organic Baby Spring Mix ($2.69 for 5 ounce bag) - page #9.  This is a summer favorite.  
• Sesame Soba Noodle Bowl with Asian Vegetables (8 ounce bowl for $2.99) - page #11.  Something we might not get for awhile, but was interesting to make note of...sounds very tasty and perfect for a lunch or dinner on your own.

There are many other things - juices, pre-made items, snacks, etc.  These are just a few things that stuck out at me while looking over the booklet.

Another fact that many Trader Joe's fans probably know, but some may not, is also written on the cover...

"In order to be adorned with the Trader Joe's name, a culinary creation must contain only the finest quality, natural ingredients.  Our name assures that there are NO artificial flavors, colors or preservatives; No genetically modified ingredients; and NO added trans fats.  Trader Joe's - what a name."

I leave it at that.  Happy shopping!

I'm always happy to see other reviews on Trader Joe's Products.  I am much braver with Trader Joe's products and ingredients, since it's very hard to go wrong.  Especially with the simple fact that if you do get something that you just don't like you can always take it back (amazing!).  But, still, there is a lot to chose from! 

Here are reviews from this past week...oddly, mostly from the same site, but still helpful...

• Frozen Chicken Enchiladas 
• Tofu - TJ's is in the "middle of the pack" section
• Another cheap wine review - always happy to pass those along since we are still to get wine at our particular one (although there are rumors of it coming!)
• French Macarons

New Trader Joe's Openings

Looks like 2 new openings for Trader Joe's

Portland, Maine

and in Chelsea - NYC (the article is older so it is certain now)

Trader Joe's - A Breakfast Cereal Option

A breakfast staple at our house (for Clint) is this granola with vanilla yogurt.  This granola is filled with almonds, raisins, dried cranberries, blueberries and raspberries, cashews, walnuts and granola clusters.  It's got lots of goodness packed inside.

You can find it in the cereal aisle of Trader Joe's.  $3.59 for a 16 oz. box. 

Trader Joe's Trek Mix Granola

Nickel Chef & St. Patty's Day

Trader Joe's recently sent an e-mail sharing a recipe for an Irish Feast including an Authentic Irish Soda Bread recipe passed down from generations. You can find the page with all of the information here. 

And, if you remember the link to the "Nickle Chef" I shared awhile back on recipes with roasted peppers, you can now see the finalist recipes here and vote for them here. 

I do love Trader Joe's roasted peppers so I'm looking forward to trying some of these recipes out!!!

Easy Trader Joe's Meal

We had the best Trader Joe's meal.  Clint and I both said that it felt like an Australian meal.  And, it was really easy.

I bought the new fish nuggets.  These have been at the demo station a couple of times, which was nice since I'd planned to get some anyway.  They are really good!  Lightly breaded Alaskan Pollock.  Definitely worth giving a try!  These are $3.99 for 16 ounces and are in the frozen section.

Beyond that we had their wonderful frozen green beans ($1.99/bag), steamed carrots ($.89 for a pound), and mashed potatoes (with butter, milk and garlic).  It was a really simple meal and SO good.  Oh, and put it with Trader Joe's tarter sauce (or their cocktail sauce is really good as well!). 

Oh, and one more thing I should not leave out.  We had was sauteed mushrooms and onions (saute with butter, garlic and soy sauce).  I can't even tell you how amazing these are!  Clint makes them and they are worth every bite!  

Appetizer using Trader Joe's ingredients

This is a super easy appetizer/dip.  I love it and could (and do!) eat it as a meal.

It's a simple dip that a friend taught me in college.  Here it is with Trader Joe's ingredients...

1st layer - 1 pkg of cream cheese ($1.50)
2nd layer - 1 can Trader Joe's chicken chili ($1.99)
Put chopped onions on top of the chili
3rd layer - mozzarella cheese ($1.75 for half of the package)

Put it in the oven at 350 degrees until cheese is melted and lightly brown.  Serve with tortilla chips!

 

  

 

Trader Joe's - Sipping Chocolate

Passing on a review from Beth at Recipes, Deals, etc. 

She tried Trader Joe's sipping chocolate, something we have yet to try but I've heard is great...check it out here!  It sounds very yummy!

More meals to come next week as well as reviews...Have a great weekend!

Trader Joe's Recipe to try

Here are 2 recipes that I've just seen on the Trader Joe's site that I hope to try sometime in the next 2 weeks.

They are recipes from the "Winners of the 2009 HiiP (Highly Innovative Ingredient Pairing) Sandwich Face-Off".

Lamb Wraps

Rome-wich (a good vegetarian option)


Hopefully they are good!  Both seem simple and both have 5 ingredients which is wonderful!  I'll let you know how they turn out...  If you try them before I do, please let me know!

Tonight we stopped at a grocery store because I needed to pick up some apple juice for something (a lot of apple juice).  We went to the cheapest store that was closest to where we were.

It reminded me why I strive to only shop at Trader Joe's (and sometimes Whole Foods and Target)...it's not frustrating!  The whole atmosphere seemed annoyed.  I can't explain it other than that.  There were lots of little things I noticed that added to that general feeling.

A few weeks ago I happened to go to Trader Joe's on a weekend.  Monday mornings happen to be our regular shopping time which is wonderful, truly great.  Anyway, it was busy and a bit hard to navigate, though do-able. 

I got up to the long line (relatively, based on my normal Monday morning line) to check out.  Every lane was open, but they were still longer lines.  But instead of people being frustrated people were fine.  Cashiers were still friendly.  A woman 2 people up from me was turned to the people behind her telling them that it was still worth coming, even though it was busy, because the employees really knew there stuff. 

Atmosphere makes such a difference.  Happy employees make happy customers.  Customer service that actually cares about people and truly wants to help customers makes a great difference. 

Easy Recipe with Trader Joe's Ingredients

I hesitate to share this recipe because it wasn't our favorite, but I believe there is potential in this dish (and it's really easy) so I wanted to share it anyway.

It's a chili casserole.  This dish could easily be vegetarian or with beef or chicken (depending on the chili you use). 

We used...  Trader Joe's salsa. box of cornbread, chicken chili and black beans

 

 

  

Mix the beans, chili, and salsa together.  Set aside.

  

 Make the cornbread and break up/crumble.

 

Assemble by putting a layer of cornbread, then the chili mix and then another layer of cornbread (the rest of it).  Add shredded cheddar cheese on top.

Here is what I would change...  The Trader Joe's cornbread is amazingly good, but very sweet.  In our opinion it did not go well with the rest of the dish.  If I made this dish again I would use my own scratch recipe for the cornbread.  

Also, the cheese got a bit funny on top of the cornbread.  I would probably put it under the second layer of cornbread instead of on top.

If you give it a try with the changes, let me know what you think!

Trader Joe's Recall

Taken from http://www.recalls.gov/recent.html

As an FYI to Trader Joe's fans :)

"Trader Joe's Company of Monrovia, California is voluntarily recalling Trader Joe's Chocolate Chip Chewy Coated Granola Bars, UPC 82818, Use by Dates/Lot Codes 16JUL10H2 and 17JUL10H1, manufactured by Bloomfield Bakery, a subsidiary of Ralcorp Holdings, Inc. because it has the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis and arthritis.

The product involved in this recall was distributed at Trader Joe's stores nationally and comes in a 7.4 oz box marked with Use by/Lot Codes 16JUL10H2 and 17JUL10H1 on the top of the box and stamped individually on the side of each granola bar. Production of the product has been suspended while FDA and Bloomfield Bakery continue their investigation.

Customers who have purchased Trader Joe's Chocolate Chip Chewy Coated Granola Bars, Use by/Lot Codes 16JUL10H2 and 17JUL10H1 are urged to return them to any Trader Joe's for a full refund. Customers with questions may contact Trader Joe's Customer Relations Monday through Friday, 6am to 6pm PST at (626) 599-3817."

Trader Joe's Cheese

Another great find at Trader Joe's is their cheese.  They have a lot of variety within the cheese section and a delicious options to choose from!  If you haven't explored this section of the store yet, you are missing out. 

We've tried a variety depending on what the circumstances have been.  We've enjoyed their brie with crackers while sipping wine (all at a great price), but today I'm mentioning the "everyday" cheeses that we buy on a very regular basis. 

One of our favorites is the New Zealand Sharp Cheddar Cheese.  We've been getting this for weeks now since this Trader Joe's opened up by us.  It is really good, but I will say it also has a very pungent flavor.  More recently I've switched over to the Wisconsin Cheddar that is also sharp, but isn't as intense.  Both are $4.99/lb. 

For the most part I just buy block cheese and we shred it ourselves.  But, sometimes you need or want shredded cheese.  One that we've gotten for pasta dishes is this 12 oz. package of shredded cheese for $3.69.  You could also use it for some of the cheese in the hot spinach dip recipe I shared a couple of weeks ago. 

Trader Joe's Orange Chicken

Tonight we tried the Trader Joe's Orange Chicken.  It's in the frozen section for $4.99.  This item was at the top of the list for top rated Trader Joe's items.  

I have to say, we really enjoyed this dish.  It was easy to prepare and had great flavor to it.  You put it in the oven, heat up a sauce and mix the 2 together.  We served it with their jasmine brown rice and their frozen green beans (a constant favorite in this home).  For an easy meal at home, this is a great one to try!

The chicken was real, which is always nice to bite in to.  The sauce was flavorful.  The chicken had a nice crunch to it and is lightly breaded.

It tasted like Chinese take out (well, better than a lot of Orange Chicken Chinese take out I've tried).  Yet, it's only $4.99 for the bag, which could feed 3 adults.  For the meal, with rice and beans, you are looking at approximately $5.50.

Fearless Flyer - February

Trader Joe's February "Fearless Flyer" is out!  You can get it at your local store or check it out online here. 

Enjoy!