Trader Joes Faves/recipe ideas

[Hands&Fire Pottery]

When you shop at Trader Joes, what are your favorites and what do you make with them?

We love the handmade flour tortillas, refried black beans, and three cheese mix in quesadillas.

I think their frozen meatballs are pretty good for a quickie spaghetti dinner. We love the frozen veggies, naan bread, and pie crusts too. I think their fresh naan and sesame bagels are very yummy too. The pound plus milk chocolate bar is pretty amazing.

[va703]

Oh, I miss Trader Joes! I used to live about 5 min from one, now we're a good 2 hours away....there are a few things I go back and get when I'm nearby. I love their olive oil (good price, too), their pasta sauces, they have great curry simmer sauces that I use with chicken/veggies over rice, , I love their Joe Joe cookies (!), several of their breads, their frozen enchiladas and burritos....I can't think of what else, I'm sure they've changed since I shopped there regularly.

[Weecycled Woolies]

It's funny you mention this. I just picked up a Trader Joes cookbook at the library yesterday. "Cooking with all things Trader Joe's" by Deana Gunn and Wona Miniati. There are a lot of really good recipes in here. It's a really thick book too.

[thinkingahead]

I don't think I could live without TJ's. I have a couple of quickies:

Punjab spinach sauce + frozen spinach + tofu or can of garbanzos + rice (I get the brown rice medley)

Smoothies: vanilla rice milk and frozen tropical fruit; mango lassi= mango, plain yogurt, milk, and a little sugar

We get most of our staples there- olive oil, pb, joe's o's, crackers, dairy, eggs, rice, pasta, tomato sauce/paste, organic canned beans, frozen fruit/veggies, oats, mini wheat bagels, bread, morningstar farms, most everything but fresh fruit/veggies (although I do get organic kiwis for ds).

[ittybittycoconuts]

frozen orange chicken tastes just like panda express $5

frozen terriyaki chicken $5, mxed with frozen harvest hodgepodge vegie mix $2

all the sauces ive tried are great terriyaki, pasta you name it

artichoke dip $3, again frozen just as good as the appetizers ive had at restaurants.

15 bean soup mix is $1.50

rice cakes are cheap $1

fruit bars I get them because they make me smile. theyre called "this apple walked in to a bar" or strawberry, fig, blueberry $1.69 for 6

eggs are usually priced good

[becken]

I LOVE their orange chicken! It's "all natural" and doesn't have weird artificial flavors/colors, but it manages to taste just like Panda Express! It is yummy!

I get organic ketchup there (no HFCS), coconut milk, tofu, the valencia PB with flax seeds, the pb sandwich crackers and pb filled pretzels for Dd's snacks. I steer clear of their produce, though. The bananas are sold PER BANANA, and besides, they are always weirdly bruised inside, no matter how great they look on the outside.

[Nickel+3]

I trader joes.... this was what we ALWAYS bought

Belgian Chocolate pudding (fridgerated)
blue corn tortillas
frozen sweat potato fries
15 bean soup
pasta sauce
granola mix
TJ's BBQ sauce


and my all time favorite.... their Peanut Butter Cups... I would literally eat 5-7 a day

[Guardandolaluna]

I miss TJ's We just moved and there isn't one near us for hours!

My kids used to love when I cut the italian meatloaf into squares and served over spaghetti while watching spongebob. They called it spongebob spaghetti and squares lol

Also, I loved their Choc croissants.

[ittybittycoconuts]

Mmmmmmm I love pb must give them a try. Great thread! Gonna have to remember this for the next trip.

[momof4kidz]

I like their penne pasta and simmer sauce. I simmer the chicken in the sauce and add the pasta. Yum! Now you've got me wanting to go there darnit! Oh well their prices are great. Sometimes cheaper than Giant Eagle!