Trader Joe's Gnocchi

The first thing that jumps out at me about Trader Joe's Gnocchi is the value: it's only two bucks...and it's imported from Italy. We're talking four servings of authentic Italian gnocchi for $1.99. And it did indeed provide two separate meals for two adults in our case. That's pretty mind-blowing in terms of cost-effectiveness and affordability.

The second thing that jumps out at me about this product is its shelf stable status. No refrigeration required. This bag of gnocchi wasn't even purchased on our last Trader Joe's run—it's from quite a few months ago. The "best by" date is in December of this year. It would have stayed good for the better part of a year. I didn't even know that was possible. You could buy a dozen of these and have them on hand in your pantry to prepare for months and months after you purchase them. That's ultra-convenient.

Just boil for two minutes. Drain. Simmer in your favorite pasta sauce for two more minutes. We decided to bake ours in the oven in a non-TJ's tomato sauce along with some beef sausage, mozzarella, and parmesan cheeses. Came out great.

We added some Trader Joe's Aglio Olio Seasoning as well as some Trader Joe's 21 Seasoning Salute. The whole thing tasted wonderful. The gnocchi is potato-based, so there is a faint potato flavor to it. There's also a hint of sourness from the lactic acid which is added as a natural preservative. It blends quite well with the cheeses, sauce, and sausage.

I'm sure it's not quite as impressive as fresh-made stuff from an Italian restaurant, but the texture of this product is possibly the best gnocchi mouthfeel I've experienced to date. It's "pillowy," just the way good gnocchi is supposed to be. I'd also call it soft, fluffy, and slightly chewy.

If you were lacking the extra ingredients or wanted to keep things uber-simple, these would be fine simmered in some butter or olive oil with just a dusting of sage or your favorite Italian seasoning blend. You could toss them in soup in lieu of croutons or dumplings. I'd even throw them on a salad if I had a bunch of greens begging for carbs of some kind.

Sonia and I would both definitely buy Trader Joe's Gnocchi again. Found with the other pasta products. Product of Italy. Eight out of ten stars from the beautiful wifey. Seven and a half stars from me, losing a couple points because they're not exactly a flavor extravaganza on their own. They do need a bit of help. Also, some folks may find the sour lactic acid flavor off-putting. Still, the value is outstanding.

Bottom line: 7.75 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Salted Almond Honey Granola

Cereal is another one of those categories on this blog that probably makes me sound like a Debbie Downer more often than not. It's not that Trader Joe's cereals are particularly bad, it's just that we've seen so many that it takes something incredibly special to really wow us. The most recent cereal to do that was the outstanding Homestyle Cherry Pistachio Pecan Granola just a couple months back. While Sonia and I are not quite as enthusiastic about Trader Joe's Salted Almond Honey Granola, we'll definitely give this one a thumbs up and a positive recommendation—particularly if that cherry pistachio stuff isn't available for some reason.

This cereal has lots of big almond slices. In the video review, I called them "slabs" of almond. I have to say they were pretty generous with the nuts in this case. They're excellent quality and there are plenty of 'em.

The granola is nice. There are very few of those obnoxiously large boulders of granola that you have to use a pick axe to get apart like we've seen a few times in the past. Bonus: there are corn flakes in the mix. Some are floating free and some are fused to the little chunks of granola. There's also rice flour in there. Not sure where that comes into play to be honest. Maybe they're flakes of corn and rice..? At any rate, the flavor is more complex than most granolas that only employ oats. This one has oats, corn, and rice. Yum.

The cereal is pleasantly sweet, but not overly so. It tastes vaguely like honey because there is some actual honey in the ingredients list. If I have one complaint, it's that I'd want honey as the primary sweetener in the granola rather than cane sugar. Nothing against good old cane sugar, but this cereal would be more aptly named Trader Joe's Salted Almond Cane Sugar Granola...with a touch of honey.

Nitpick much? Yes. Yes, I do.

Overall, it's a nice neutral, hearty, grainy flavor with an appropriate amount of sweetness. Sonia and I would both buy it again. Kosher. $3.99 for the resealable 12 oz bag. We'll both go with eight out of ten stars on Trader Joe's Salted Almond Honey Granola.

Bottom line: 8 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Ranch Rolled Corn Tortilla Chips

After trying Trader Joe's Original Rolled Corn Tortilla Chips—the ones with chili lime flavor, we knew we had to check out this latest addition to the lineup: Trader Joe's Ranch Flavored Rolled Corn Tortilla Chips.

Right up front, the taste is ranchtastic. And if you've ever enjoyed a certain blue-bagged ranch tortilla chip from a certain major snack company, you'll immediately recognize where TJ's is going here. These taste very similar to Cool Ranch Doritos. There's that familiar tangy, savory, slightly cheesy ranch seasoning that coats your mouth and makes it really hard to stop reaching back into the bag.

But here, there's a little something extra going on. The seasoning blend is superb. There's onion, garlic, black pepper, and parsley all hanging out together, giving these chips a little more depth than just your standard ranch powder. The garlic and onion give them that savory punch, while the black pepper adds a tiny bit of bite. The parsley is a nice touch too, giving the flavor a little bit of freshness in the middle of all that salty snack goodness. These definitely aren't bland ranch chips.

We're aware that Takis has a ranch flavored offering, too, but neither of us have tried Buckin' Ranch Takis. I've heard mixed reviews about that product. Seems like Takis' wheelhouse is spicy stuff, but some folks say they do ranch pretty well, too.

To be quite honest, Sonia and I usually prefer our tortilla chips in the classic flat triangle shape. There's something about the regular tortilla chip that just works. It's lighter, easier to eat, and most importantly: it makes a much better vehicle for dipping.

The rolled shape is fun, but it also makes them feel a little denser and crunchier than a typical tortilla chip. There's a lot of chip packed into every bite. If you're eating handful after handful, that extra density starts to become noticeable. I thought it was my imagination at first, but I kinda feel like these are a tad thicker and harder than their chili lime counterparts.

In the end, the ranch flavor is spot on, the seasoning blend is delicious, and they absolutely hit the spot if you're craving Cool Ranch Doritos while cruising the aisles at Trader Joe's. Sonia and I both prefer crispy, wispy tortilla chips over something this dense, and we'd probably grab the chili lime offering again before this one—but if you're a ranch chip fan, these are absolutely worth a try. Trader Joe's Ranch Rolled Corn Tortilla Chips are fun, flavorful, and a decent addition to Trader Joe's snack aisle. $2.99. Kosher. Gluten free. Seven and a half stars a piece from Sonia and me.

Bottom line: 7.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Root Beer Float Bars

Sonia and I are 100% in agreement that Trader Joe's Root Beer Float Bars are a better summer buy than the recently-reviewed Trader Joe's Root Beer Float Pieces. These are cold. They provide more refreshment. Their taste is closer to that of an actual root beer float. The candy pieces melt in the heat. They're a tad too sweet. They don't taste quite enough like root beer.

The only point I'll give to the root beer pieces that I can't give to these popsicles is the novel presence of popping candies. The cookie chunks fizz like real soda. I kinda wish they'd put Pop Rocks or whatever we're calling them in these fun frozen treats. Sonia disagrees. She hates fun.

Just kidding. She's a girl and girls just wanna have fun, after all. I guess we just differ on what constitutes fun occasionally. For example, I love roller coasters. I think they're a blast and a half. Sonia? Not so much. She'll get on a kiddie coaster once in a while but she's terrified of the big rides. Okay, now I'm getting off track.

Back to the popsicles. I mean, these aren't just popsicles. They're also ice cream bars. They're the best of both worlds. Vanilla ice cream on a stick surrounded by frozen root beer. That's a fun idea. That idea's so summery, it should be illegal to keep these in your freezer and consume them in any season but summer. That's why TJ's takes them away come fall time. The root beer pieces go away around then, too, but they don't seem as summery to me.

Usually I'm cursing at Trader Joe for making half his inventory seasonal, but with these, it makes sense. There's a nice balance of sweet, earthy root beer and creamy vanilla bliss. The first bite kinda tastes more like root beer but once you get further down the bar, it seems like there's a plethora of vanilla ice cream.

$3.79 for six bars. Kosher. Found in the frozen section, duh. We'd buy these again next summer for sure—or maybe even on our next TJ run. But there's probably too many other new treats to try to make room in our freezer bags for these. I dunno. We'll see. Eight and a half stars from the beautiful wifey for Trader Joe's Root Beer Float Bars. I'll go with eight out of ten on this one.

Bottom line: 8.25 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Root Beer Float Pieces

There's just something about a root beer float that screams summertime. You've got the earthy bite of the root beer, the sweet vanilla cream, and the fizz of the soda. They all come together for such a great flavor that's cold and refreshing. And why root beer? I mean, cola floats work just fine. I think it's the way the root beer and ice cream interact to create such a fluffy head of foam. Can a solid piece of candy possibly capture the magic of a real root beer float?

Trader Joe's Root Beer Float Pieces will run you $3.79, and I must admit they're fun and unique. They've got a vanilla cream sandwich cookie for a base which is covered in a root beer flavored confectionery coating. Plot twist: there are Pop Rocks to add fizz, just like actual root beer. Okay, it's "popping candy." But we all know who made popping candy famous.

The vanilla cream in the center is cloyingly sweet. And it's topped with cookie which is topped with more sweet candy. It's a bit over the top in terms of sugary sweetness if you ask me. Part of the brilliance of a root beer float is the balance of flavors. There's definitely some root beer taste in these candies, but the cookie part of the equation overshadows it by a good margin.

Sonia and I like Trader Joe's Root Beer Float Bars popsicles significantly better than these dry candies. Their flavor is much closer to that of a traditional root beer float and the refreshment factor is head and shoulders higher than these sticky sweet candy pieces. These root beer bites definitely have their fanbase—plenty of rave reviews out there if you go looking for them. We'll put 'em solidly in "not bad" territory. The beautiful wifey gives Trader Joe's Root Beer Float Pieces seven and a half out of ten stars. I'll throw out seven out of ten.

Bottom line: 7.25 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Flakes & Strawberries Cereal

It's true that some TJ's products can vary from batch to batch, but my goodness, if our box of Trader Joe's Flakes & Strawberries Cereal was anywhere close to average, then they seriously need to change the photo on the cover of the package. It's straight up misleading to show a bowl of flakes with about eight or nine freeze dried strawberry slices sitting right on top when in reality there are only two or three per bowl, on average.

Sonia's first bowl had none. Zip. Zero. Nada. Zilch. We dug through the bag and manually added some strawberries we found on down the way. Even if you divvy up the berries so there's one in each of your first bites, there are still way more bites with nothing but flakes left over at the end.

In fairness, the flakes aren't bad in and of themselves. They have a nice crunch. They don't get soggy too quickly. We like the wheat and rice blend. They're lightly sweet. Not bad, not bad.

But if we wanted plain flakes, we'd have purchased plain cereal. We're hunting for strawberries here. Enter: Trader Joe's Freeze Dried Strawberries to save the day. I think the price went up on the berries since we published that review, but it's still a very decent product—along with its blueberry counterpart.

The freeze dried strawberries product appears to be the exact same commodity that we find sparsely distributed throughout the cereal. They're thin slices of brittle strawberry, mostly good quality. Same color. Same texture. Same good sweet-tart flavor.

After adding a whole bunch of the extra strawberry pieces, the cereal went from zero to hero. We easily finished our bowls, and a couple days later, the bag. Of course, you could always add fresh strawberries. That would work, too. I mean, you can always dress things up to suit your taste, but when the title of the product advertises strawberries, we're expecting a decent amount of strawberries to already be in the cereal.

$2.99 for the 11.7 oz box. Kosher. Product of Canada. Sonia would like to point out that although we're being a tad critical of this product, it's still better than Special K with Red Berries. Fair enough. Still, we probably wouldn't pick up Trader Joe's Flakes & Strawberries Cereal again for lack of freeze dried berries. Six and a half stars from Sonia. Five and a half stars from me.

Bottom line: 6 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Red, White & Blue Cookie Bites

Decades ago, my father was a tour guide at Independence Hall in Philadelphia. He often remembered the bicentennial year—just a few years before I was born—in 1976. He recalled it as a year-long celebration that saw a huge rise in tourism in Philly. People seemed more interested in US history and the birth of our nation. There were reenactments, parties, fireworks displays, and festivities of all kinds. A few times he'd remarked to me as a child: "Well, you'll be around for the 250th anniversary of our country." And here I am.

We won't be attending any major Fourth of July events this year, but 7/4/26 has been a date planted in my psyche for a very long time now. As far as festivities go, Sonia and I will keep things simple but fun. I mean, we have napkins and plates with red, white, and blue stars. And thanks to Trader Joe's, we have these super duper patriotic cookie bites.

Those of you who've been reading for a while now understand it takes a really special cookie to get a glowing review on this blog. That's not what's going to happen here, unfortunately, but hey I'm down with the fun red, white, and blue theme and there's at least some uniqueness going on here, so let's get down to brass tacks, shall we?

Trader Joe's Red, White & Blue Cookie Bites are tiny balls of crunchy vanilla cookie surrounded by fruit-flavored candy coatings. The red flavor tastes like cherry and the tub is mostly that red flavor for some reason. I think it represents courage, valor, and sacrifice. Or maybe it just stands for cherry. I like the flavor okay, but there is a bit of that cough syrup vibe.

The blue flavor is blueberry-esque. I like it a tad better than its crimson counterpart. Also justice, vigilance, and perseverance are admirable qualities. Go USA.

The white flavor tastes like lemon to me. It's the best of all and there were like five in the entire gigantic tub. Apparently Trader Joe doesn't believe in purity and innocence. I'm kidding. Or am I?

It's going to be hot this Fourth of July, and the candy coating on these cookie bites is going to melt if you take them to a barbecue or outdoor party or something. So...I wish we had like some Trader Joe's Bomb Pops or some other frozen America-themed treat to review today, but I guess you can always do something indoors...in the air conditioning...and hope these vaguely snackable cookies stay solid long enough to try one of each flavor before you say "meh" and hand the tub to the kids.

Should I even score this one? I mean they're not bad. It's just...they're not great either. Someone commented on our YouTube channel "This guy should not be allowed to review cookies." Maybe that's true. I am terribly jaded when it comes to cookies. We've literally reviewed over a hundred types of Trader Joe's brand cookies. Maybe I should refrain from posting negative cookie reviews because normal folks seem to be fond of every cookie that TJ's puts out. Leave your own personal score for these cookies in the comments. Let's just do it that way.

Five bucks for the ten ounce tub. Kosher. Personally, I wouldn't buy Trader Joe's Red, White & Blue Cookie Bites again. Have a great Fourth of July weekend, everybody. Stay safe out there.

Bottom line: America turns 250 years old this weekend and these are red, white, and blue cookie bites.

Trader Joe's Smoked Steelhead Trout

Looks like we've got another product of Norway here. Apparently Erling Haaland and his teammates have been importing tons of food from their homeland during the World Cup. If only someone had told him about Trader Joe's. He and his Nordic football buddies could have tried this steelhead trout with Trader Joe's Lefse Norwegian Potato Flatbread. I'm sure that combo would have been stellar.

We actually kind of forgot we had Trader Joe's Smoked Steelhead Trout in the back of the fridge and remembered it just in the nick of time. We rediscovered the package on its best by date and quickly downed the entire thing so we didn't risk spoilage. So...no video review on this one, but here are a couple pics and our thoughts:

$5.49 gets you 4 oz of kosher Norwegian steelhead trout. It's a thick slab of smoked fish fillet, very rosy, resembling salmon. There is "color added" according to the ingredients. TJ usually throws us a bone and lets us in on the secret—they're pretty good at not using weird chemicals or dyes and you'll note something along the lines of "turmeric for color" but alas, no such luck with this product. Your guess is as good as mine as to where that pink-orange hue comes from.

Although I've only had legitimate sashimi a couple times in my life, I can confirm the claim on traderjoes.com that the texture of this product is indeed sashimi-esque. It's very much like a slab of raw fish in terms of firmness and mouthfeel, although this one has been smoked. In that sense, it's not unlike smoked salmon lox. In fact, our favorite way to enjoy it was served on toasted sourdough with some cream cheese and Trader Joe's Everything But the Bagel Seasoning.

Flavor-wise, it's a much milder taste than salmon. Sonia and I both love salmon because we like fish that tastes like fish, but every once in a while something a tad more delicate is in order. This is perfect if you don't like fishy fish. The smoke flavor is very apparent, though I wouldn't call it overpowering. It's savory, salty, and satisfying.

Although we wish it were packed in olive oil, Sonia and I both love Trader Joe's canned smoked trout product at least as much as this one. Still, this kosher fish fillet is a great buy if you're looking for a lunchy alternative to lox or salmon. We'll both throw out eight and a half stars for Trader Joe's Smoked Steelhead Trout.

Bottom line: 8.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Whipped Strawberry Cream Cheese

We've already reviewed this product on video, so I guess it's time to get a written review up here on the blog. It's a whipped cream cheese with strawberry flavor, found in the refrigerated section of TJ's, and it'll run you $2.79. Most name brand cream cheese costs significantly more than that, so we're already looking at a pretty decent value.

The texture is fairly standard as far as whipped cream cheeses tend to go. Trader Joe's Whipped Strawberry Cream Cheese is light and fluffy and super easy to spread. We had ours with Trader Joe's Strawberry Brioche Style Liège Waffles. I kind of expected both products to be tasty but not necessarily bursting with strawberry flavor.

Lo and behold, I was right. That's really my only complaint about this product. It could be more strawberry-ish. If it's too difficult to load the product up with strawberry bits or strawberry puree, one would think freeze-dried strawberry would do the trick. Far from strawberry overload, the strawberry waffle/strawberry cream cheese combo yielded a perfectly adequate level of strawberry scrumptiousness.

Of course, we did try the cream cheese with plain sourdough toast. It's nice. It gets a thumbs up. But there's only a whisper of the fruit flavor.

The sweetness level is pleasant and restrained. Some fruit-flavored cream cheeses lean heavily into the dessert category, but this one manages to stay firmly in breakfast-spread territory. It's creamy, mildly tangy, and just sweet enough to keep things interesting without tasting artificial or candy-like. In that sense, Trader Joe's got the balance right. I just wish they'd turned the strawberry dial up a notch or two.

As it stands, the texture is on point and the flavor is there, but you'll probably find yourself searching for strawberry more than savoring it. Still, for less than three bucks, it's an easy way to add a little something extra to your morning toast, bagel, waffle, or whatever carb delivery system happens to be on the menu. Kosher. Found in the refrigerated section. Eight out of ten stars from Sonia on Trader Joe's Whipped Strawberry Cream Cheese Spread. I'll go with seven out of ten.

Bottom line: 7.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Hot Honey Popcorn

Hot honey. So hot right now. Sometimes Trader Joe calls it Spicy Honey. Whatever butters your biscuit—or in this case, popcorn.

And this popcorn is indeed buttery. It's almost reminiscent of movie theater popcorn. It's bright yellow like butter. Yet it's sweet like kettle corn. Plus, there's a whisper of spicy heat.

Those of you who know Sonia and me probably know we're looking for more than a whisper when it comes to spice. We don't want masochistic mouth-searing heat just for heat's sake. We want a flavorful peppery punch. There is some cayenne listed in the ingredients, but it's pretty low. Too low by our standards. If the name of your product puts "hot" in the headline, then you gotta at least clear our sinuses a bit. Them's the rules.

We thought about adding some of the aforementioned Trader Joe's Spicy Honey but decided against it due to the obvious mess it would create. We could always sprinkle the popcorn with sriracha powder or extra cayenne pepper, but we just decided to enjoy it as is despite us pining for more picante piquancy.

If you're looking for sweet, buttery kettle corn with a hint of heat, look no further. Although, I must say I wish the popcorn tasted a bit more like actual honey. It does contain some "honey powder" but sugar is much higher on the list. Again, maybe actual honey might have rendered such a sticky snack that no amount of Wet Ones could ever sate the sappy syrup from your skin. Maybe if honey powder were higher on the list..?

In the end it's a decent snack even if it doesn't taste just like spicy honey. We've already polished off the majority of the bag. Three bucks. Kosher. Kind of addictive but could be more so if it truly lived up to its name. Eight out of ten stars from the beautiful wifey. Seven and a half stars from me. Would buy again.

Bottom line: 7.75 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Almond Flour Tortillas

Trader Joe's Almond Flour Tortillas will run you $3.69 for 6 gluten free, vegan, and kosher tortillas. Of course, Trader Joe's Corn Tortillas are also gluten free, vegan, and kosher, and they're the way to go if you're looking for an old-school experience that's probably more authentic in terms of Mexican cuisine. Watch out for the mold on those corn tortillas, though. They don't last long once they're opened.

We found these almond flour tortillas were quite edible past their best by date. No mold. No additional stiffness, though I must point out that they're somewhat stiff to begin with. I think that's just the nature of the almond flour. There's a slight rigidness to these tortillas that you don't really have with corn tortillas or even wheat flour tortillas. It's a tad off-putting to me.

Sonia didn't seem to mind the texture much. She happily ate them with her salsa de queso. We made a few other things with them after the salsa de queso was gone. They're perfectly adequate for any kind of taco.

Flavor-wise, there might be a hint of nuttiness, but you really wouldn't guess they were made with almonds in a blind taste test. They do approximate the flavor of traditional flour tortillas pretty well. The beautiful wifey is definitely a fan of the flavor here, and when it comes to tortillas, she knows her stuff.

I just can't envision many situations that would call for almond flour tortillas. As mentioned above, if you're avoiding gluten, I'd stick to corn tortillas, but that's just me—and these are significantly more expensive. I suppose some folks might have sensitivities to both wheat gluten and corn. I'll let the beautiful wifey score this one since she's the expert. She gives Trader Joe's Almond Flour Tortillas seven and a half out of ten stars.

Bottom line: 7.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Corn Tortillas

Corn, water, and lime. That's it. Those are the ingredients in Trader Joe's 100% Corn Tortillas. That's this product's biggest strength and its biggest weakness.

What do I mean by that? Well, I love seeing a short ingredients list. It means there's nothing unhealthy or weird going on. Products like that usually taste clean, fresh, and pure. This product is no different. These tortillas have a great corn flavor and a great texture...provided you eat them pretty fast.

We ate a few of these tortillas shortly after getting them home from our latest Trader Joe's run. Sonia's a pro at microwaving tortillas for a few seconds between layers of damp paper towels and serving them with her Mexican meals. We had some turkey tacos with these little maize mats, black beans, shredded cheese, lettuce, and sour cream, and they were perfectly delicious.

We stored the remainder all zipped up in our cool, dry pantry. We opened them back up exactly on the best by date printed on the bag less than a week later to eat with our salsa de queso, and there was already visible greenish mold on more than half of the remaining tortillas. Even the ones untainted by mold had a stiff, nearly inedible texture by that point. We were able to resuscitate just two of them by heating them up for a spell, and even then, they weren't half as good as the ones we ate straightaway. Hear more of our thoughts by watching our video review on YouTube.

We checked online to see if others noticed how quickly this product spoils, and yes, there are plenty of other people saying the same thing. This is a decent product, but don't wait to eat them and don't trust the "best by" that's printed on them. Plus, you can get more bang for your buck buying a 30 pack of Guerrero or La Banderita, which are both good as well, for less than a dollar more than this product.

$1.69 for 12 tortillas. Gluten free. Vegan. Kosher. Found near the other breads, pitas, and flatbreads. Would buy again but only to eat basically on the same day we purchase them. Seven out of ten stars from Sonia and me for Trader Joe's 100% Corn Tortillas.

Bottom line: 7 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Garlic Butter Nut Mix

Following in the fine tradition of Trader Joe's other great nut mixes in cans like Nuts About Elote, Nuts About Rosemary, and Trader Joe's Maple Spiced Nut Mix, here we have Trader Joe's Nuts About Garlic...er, Trader Joe's Garlic Butter Nut Mix. It's the same standard packaging. Same price: $6.99.

This one features "crunchy coated cashews." They're cashews...but they're extra crunchy and brittle. I kinda like the soft creaminess of cashews and I kinda miss it here, to be honest. The crunchy thing works for other nuts, but super dry, crunchy cashews is a bit weird to me.

There are way too many "bread chips" in this mix, too. Seems like a way to cheap-out a bit to put a bunch of crunchy, crusty wheat crisps in a premium nut mix. Sonia seemed to be more fond of them than I was, however. She calls them "Lego breads" meaning they're just about the right size for a Lego minifig. So true.

The almonds are fine. The pecans are fine, as well, but in our can at least, they're tragically underrepresented. The garlic butter essence is fairly evenly distributed across all of the elements.

The overall flavor is salty and savory like you might expect. It's buttery, sure. There's a "butter and garlic seasoning" mentioned on the ingredients, but it's not half as garlicky as I would have liked. They could ratchet that garlic flavor way up. After all, Trader Joe is shining the spotlight on garlic in the title of the product.

That said, it's a very decent flavor overall. I've got plenty of complaints and suggestions, but I'll easily plow through the can with a bit of help from the beautiful wifey. It's really not a bad taste nor a bad value. Kosher. Seven bucks for a can of nuts this size is pretty standard these days. I'd even consider buying it again. I just really wish there were more garlic. Sonia agrees.

Bottom line: 7 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Earl Grey Blondie Bars

I had very low expectations going into this one. Although nothing to complain about, I think Trader Joe's Brookie, with its nearly identical packaging and presentation, is a tad overrated. And I really wanted to like the Black Sesame Mochi, but its excessively earthy undertones overshadowed the sweetness of the ice cream by my estimation.

So I was skeptical, at best, of a blondie bar flaunting black tea as its primary flavor. I mean, I have nothing against Earl Grey. I like a London Fog once in a while. I'll even drink it plain if I just need an afternoon pick-me-up and don't want to add unnecessary calories. But I simply don't think of Earl Grey tea as a dessert flavor. Not by a long shot.

Trader Joe's Earl Grey Blondie Bars proved me wrong. There is, indeed, an earthy, slightly bitter essence at the core of these blondies, but it compliments the sweet vanilla caramel cookie flavors of the dessert quite well. The Earl Grey black tea adds richness and complexity without stealing the show.

They were perfect straight out of the plastic box, but Sonia discovered they're even better dunked in a piping hot mug of Earl Grey. The tea enhances the flavors and the liquid makes the soft texture even better. We plowed through the box very quickly making sure it was fairly divided equally between the two of us.

$3.49 for eight blondie bars, found in the baked goods section. Limited time release. Kosher. Would buy again. Sonia gives this product eight and a half out of ten stars. I'll follow suit with eight and a half as well for Trader Joe's Earl Grey Blondie Bars.

Bottom line: 8.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Vanilla Cold Foam Creamer

With Trader Joe's Vanilla Cold Foam, $4.49 gets you 85 servings of yummy, convenient vanilla creamer. You read that right. Not eight and a half servings. Eighty-five servings. One tablespoon each.

It's like cold, creamy candy in a can. It's got a nice sweet, milky vanilla flavor, and the foam is nice and thick. It's a little syrupy and quite sugary. I mean, in theory, you're using it to sweeten and cream up your black coffee or something along those lines. One little tablespoon of this stuff is going to do your java wonders.

We had it with Trader Joe's Vanilla Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate. This cold foam provided the majority of the vanilla flavor by my reckoning. Sonia was a much bigger fan of that cold brew than I was. But we can both agree on this stuff. It's very tasty.

The ingredients are pretty good, too, using actual skim milk, cane sugar, and cream. I mean there are stabilizers and propellants in there, but the foam itself isn't made of unpronounceable chemicals. Only ten calories per serving!

Honestly, the value proposition here is kind of absurd when you stop and think about it. A little can like this doesn't look like much sitting in the fridge, but it lasts forever unless you're absolutely drowning every cup of coffee you make in foam. And unlike some store-bought creamers that disappear beneath the flavor of the coffee, this stuff actually announces itself. You taste the vanilla, you feel the creamy texture, and it gives homemade iced coffee a legit coffee shop vibe with almost zero effort.

The beautiful wifey will go with eight and a half out of ten stars for Trader Joe's Vanilla Cold Foam Creamer. I'll go with eight out of ten on this one. We'd both buy this product again. Kosher. Keep refrigerated.

Bottom line: 8.25 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Vanilla Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate

Sonia is definitely more the coffee person in our house, and she most definitely appreciated Trader Joe's Vanilla Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate more than I did. I don't have any major problems with it other than I think it's a bit stingy with the vanilla flavor. The beautiful wifey thinks it's just about right in terms of the boldness of the coffee and the balance of vanilla.

Of course, you have to dilute the coffee. It wants two parts water or milk or milk alternative and just one part concentrate. And most folks will want to add sweetener of some kind. We used Trader Joe's Vanilla Cold Foam (review upcoming) and we also tried it with plain old brown sugar. It worked either way.

The concentrate itself was smooth and surprisingly mellow for such a dark-looking brew. No weird aftertaste, no burnt bitterness, just a solid cup of cold coffee that tasted decent and perked us right up. Sonia especially liked how easy it was to customize depending on her mood and caffeine needs.

See also Trader Joe's Maple Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate

Trader Joe's Pumpkin Spice Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate

Trader Joe's French Roast Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate

Trader Joe's Coconut Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate

and Trader Joe's Original Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate

$8.99 for the bottle. It's kosher, shelf-stable until opened, refrigerate afterwards. Makes eight 12 oz cups of coffee. Sonia would definitely buy it again. I'll throw out seven out of ten stars for Trader Joe's Vanilla Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate. Sonia gives it eight and a half out of ten. You should pay more attention to her score since she's way more into java.

Sonia's score: 8.5 out of 10.

Nathan's score: 7 out of 10.