great finds at trader joe's

[El Diablo]

All,

I've recommended Gorgonzola Gnocchi and Fettucine Alfredo before. But both are pretty bad for you, so I don't usually get them. Just got Mushroom Fettucine, which was really, really good and far better for you. Frozen, just heat up in the skillet for a few minutes. I still can't believe this actually turns out decent tasting pasta, but it does! Anyway, definite thumbs up on the Mushroom Fettucine.

[Waterfall]

I recommend the Garlic Mashed Potatoes. The potatoes and garlic come chopped up in the bag. Just microwave until tender and mash in a bowl with milk, grated cheese, and butter. Makes about 3-4 servings. Much like the Garlic French Fries they have at TJs they really go heavy on the garlic. The taste was a little too strong for my liking but that can easily be compensated for by removing some of the clove pieces before you mash.

[WhoIam]

I just found out there's one of these down the street from me in Henderson. It's really small and I imagine other locations are bigger. Are any of the TJ's beers worth buying? So far I've tried:
2006 Strong Ale--actually brewed by Ommegang, 9% abv, 750ml bottle, $5. This is an abbey-style double. There's nothing objectionable about this beer, but it's a well-below-average example of the style. Next time I'll just pay $10 and get the real deal.

TJ's Winterfest--$5/six-pack, double-bock, 7.5% abv. Again, not terrible but not that great. I'd probably drink this often if I were still in college as it packs a punch for the price and is better than most American lagers.

[nyc999]

This thread inspired me to shop at TJ's for the first time tonight. I was immensely disappointed to find the location near my house didn't sell alcohol.

[cbloom]

WTF I just noticed some posts in here saying their bread is no good.

The "Whole Wheat Honey Bread" is like the best regular sliced bread ever.

They have several different cinnamon swirl or cinnamon-raisin breads. All of them are amazing. The best I think is the un-sliced "cinammon twirl" or something like that.

They carry the "Il Fornaio" breads which are excellent; the ciabatta and the par-baked loaves are the best IMHO.

[WhoIam]

To correct my previous post, the beer was brewed by Unibroue, not Ommegang.

[kylephilly]

I work corporate, all of their nuts/trail mix is reasonable and healthy as a great snack.. just keep portion sizes low as nuts are high in calories.

[astroglide]

killer update: the ethnic rice packages at trader joe's are amazing. did vegetable jambalaya yesterday, lentil rice bryani today. they're in 9oz packages. tear off a corner, microwave for 1.5 minutes, eat. you're supposed to microwave them upright, so i prop them up in the corner away from the rotating tray. completely delicious, all seem to be around 400c or less. natural ingredients, great spicing. i'm going to buy billions of these things.

[DonkeyKongSr]

Recently had the frozen spinach artichoke dip and it's pretty damn good. Grab a bag of pita chips and you are set.

[Avalanche333]

Bumping this because I came across these the other day.



Seriously, like crack. Like if Oreos and Thin Mints had a child, but better. Only 1.99 too at my Trader Joes, which was good.