Trader Joe's Stollen Crisps

Since I haven't spotted any other beloved German holiday treats such as Lebkuchen or Pfeffernüsse at my local Trader Joe's lately, today we're looking at the Stollen Crisps, which were available last year but eluded our sights in terms of a review.

Always busy this time of year trying to get around to all the seasonal products TJ's has to offer and we never manage to cover everything. But isn't that how life in general goes around the holidays? So much to do and a few things inevitably slip through the cracks. I don't know how you folks with big families do it. Anyhoo, let's get started with the review before we're staring down the barrel of 500 words for a simple looksee at what is essentially a box of fancy crackers.

My biggest problem with this line of "crisps" from TJ's is never the taste.

See: Trader Joe's Strawberry Jalapeño Crisps

Trader Joe's Pumpkin Cranberry Crisps

and Trader Joe's Fig & Olive Crisps.

They've always been unique and interesting flavors. My problem is the texture—they tend to be overly hard, to the point that they hurt my teeth after just a few bites. This problem can be mitigated by soft spreads, cheeses, and/or dips. Let's see if the stollen are any different.

Honestly, this product seems slightly less rigid than the previous selections mentioned above. Is it just my imagination? Have my teeth been strengthened by that enamel repair toothpaste I've been using? Your guess is as good as mine. They're still crunchy and crispy to a fault, but not quite as extreme by my reckoning.

There's a lovely grape and citrus smell that wafts from the bag after opening. They taste like fruitcake dusted with powdered sugar—like orange and lemon zest underneath raisins and sweet buttermilk bread. It's a very nice flavor indeed. There's a surprising amount of fruit in the crackers. Each piece contains at least four or five cross sections of raisin. That might be one of the reasons this offering seems a tad softer than its predecessors.

They recommend eating these with Brie or Gouda but I'm not really a highbrow cheese guy. If we had some kind of chevre on hand, I'd grab that, but unfortunately it's going to be Philadelphia to the rescue once again. But hey, it works. It's a delicious combination in my humble opinion.

The citrus element really makes this product memorable. Some might say it's too sweet with visible amounts of sugar on the crisps, but hey, it's the holiday season and it's time to celebrate.

$4.29 for the box. Product of Canada. There's something delightfully festive and Christmassy about this item, and I'd definitely buy it again. Sonia and I will go with 8 out of 10 stars for Trader Joe's Stollen Crisps.

Bottom line: 8 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Crunchy Pops

Today, I'm gonna check out Trader Joe's Crunchy Pops. I really like snacks made with alternative grains and flours and ingredients. The only thing that makes me a little nervous is "pea." Yeah. I like peas okay but not necessarily in my crunchy snacks. I'm a little leery of pea protein in anything, be it any kind of smoothie or shake or protein bar so I'm not sure how it's going to work out here. I think the potato and corn will hopefully offset any weird pea flavor that I might not like.

Upon opening the bag, it smells faintly of peas and corn. They're bigger than I thought they'd be. They're very salty. Very crunchy. Hollow. 

They're like Chex but bigger and more rigid, more robust. You can taste the grainy flavors of potato, peas, and corn. The pea flavor doesn't turn me off at all. It's a pleasant flavor but I don't know if it would be the number one thing I'd reach for over potato chips or tortilla chips.

I wish they were dusted with some kind of flavor like barbecue sauce or something spicy. Even a cheddar cheese flavor would be interesting. A viewer on YouTube suggested sour cream and onion would work, and I totally agree.

$2.49 for the bag. Kosher. I don't know why they wouldn't be gluten free, but they're not listed as such. Maybe they were processed on the same equipment as wheat products or something like that. 

Would I buy them again? I don't think I would in this current format. If you like the taste of potatoes, corn, and peas and don't mind very salty snacks, you'd probably like these. The texture is excellent if you like firm, crunchy, crispy snacks. I like salty snacks a lot, but I feel like the saltiness overshadows everything else in this case.

I give Trader Joe's Crunchy Pops 7 out of 10 stars. Sonia will go with 7.5 out of 10.

Bottom line: 7.25 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Belgian Cookie Trio

Shoot, is it already time for Christmas cookies again? I guess you could have these at Thanksgiving, too. You're gonna need some dessert after that Turkey Day dinner.

This product was around last year, and it's back again for 2024. This rectangular box will run you about six bucks and it has two individually wrapped cookie trays. 

You get three types of authentic Belgian cookies: almond butter thins in milk chocolate, waffle cookies dipped in dark chocolate, and butter biscuits in dark chocolate.

They're crispy. Crunchy. Sweet. But not too sweet. 

I like the milk chocolate kind better than the dark chocolate ones. The almonds are a nice touch. Those cookies are nice and buttery. I like the texture of the waffle cookies a lot.

I wish the package were resealable somehow. Still pretty tasty, festive, and fun. Might buy again. Product of Belgium. I give Trader Joe's Belgian Cookie Trio seven out of ten stars. Sonia gives them seven and a half out of ten.

Check out our short video to see these cookies in action. There's no talking in this one. It's just beautiful chocolate-covered Belgian desserts and smooth jazz.

Have a great weekend. 

Bottom line: 7.25 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Strawberry Yogurt Flavored Almonds

It would probably be more honest and accurate to call these "almonds coated with strawberry flavored sugar" because, let's face it: that stuff ain't yogurt. If you read carefully, you'll note that it's a "yogurt flavored coating" made of palm kernel oil and miscellaneous powders—one of which is, admittedly, "yogurt powder."

Meh. It works. The almonds taste enough like strawberry. Sonia thinks the balance of flavors is just about perfect. There's enough sweet strawberry taste to make these feel like a dessert but not so much that it overshadows the natural nuttiness of the almonds. There is a bit of that almond butter and jelly effect, which I expected of course, but I'm still not sure how I feel about it.

The beautiful wifey raved about these things from first bite. She says she could eat the whole bag by herself in a single day. In reality, I know she won't because she's disciplined like that. Fortunately, the bag is resealable.

$3.99 for the eight serving bag. Kosher. Eight and a half out of ten stars from Sonia for Trader Joe's Strawberry Yogurt Flavored Almonds, who would definitely repurchase. I'll go with eight out of ten. They're definitely satisfying and snackable, but I don't necessarily think they're a cut above all the other myriad nuts coated with sweet stuff out there from Trader Joe's or anywhere else.

Bottom line: 8.25 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Milk Chocolate Bar with Corn Flakes

So apparently this is Trader Joe's store brand take on Ritter Sport Knusperflakes. The original is milk chocolate with corn cereal inside just like this candy bar, except Ritter Sport is a German chocolatier while this product hails from Belgium.

Long ago, seemingly in another lifetime, it was posited that the authors of this blog were merely Belgian world domination puppets. That legacy lives on with this chunk of chocolate. Not only is it fairly tasty and unique and will get our seal of approval and recommendation, but it's also packaged attractively and priced fairly at $2.99.

Isn't three bucks a little steep for a chocolate bar, you ask? Not really. Especially when you consider this is over six ounces of chocolate that came from half way around the world. Have you purchased any individual candy bars lately? I know I haven't outside of Trader Joe's. Those things are like a buck fifty and you get a third the amount of chocolate that's in this Belgian bad boy.

Still, candy isn't really my thing anymore and I'm far from a chocoholic so I can't see myself buying this regularly. But as chocolate goes, it gets a solid thumbs up from the beautiful wifey and me. Seven and a half stars out of ten on Trader Joe's Milk Chocolate Bar with Corn Flakes.

We did yet another video. This one features me rambling on for a whopping 58 seconds. Subscribe for a chance to win even more microdoses of my majestic mug and charming charisma. It's free!

Bottom line: 7.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Mango Sticky Rice Crisps

I realize we're a little late to the party with these mango sticky rice crisps, but we've had a bag sitting in the pantry waiting for review for a month or two now, so better late than never, right? They're still a long ways before their expiration date, and they've been sealed up the whole time. I assume this review will be relevant for summer 2025 and beyond...or will TJ's discontinue the item?

Hard to say. Speaking of "hard," these circular snacks are somewhat hard to chew. The rice is fine. It's crispy and brittle just like you'd assume from a rice "crisp" or a rice cake. But the mango is dried and it's pretty tough. Fortunately, most of the pieces are very small. They're like pebble-sized pieces of mango infused into discs that are roughly quarter-sized in terms of diameter and about a quarter inch thick.

The flavor is amazing. It's very similar to real mango sticky rice. The sweetness level is just about perfect and there's plenty of mango taste. There's even real mung beans and coconut milk in the mix. No complaints there.

Unfortunately, half the pleasure of mango sticky rice is the soft, creamy texture. It can be somewhat chewy, but there's nothing tough or leathery in the original dish. I feel like a jerk being critical of such a delicious snack, but I just wish there were some way to soften those mango pieces a bit. I'd almost prefer a refrigerated version that used fresh mango instead of dried mango.

Still, if you have mandibles of steel or a really great dental plan, I won't tell you not to buy these because they taste great. I'll go with something like 7 out of 10 because the flavor would get a 9 and the texture'd be more like a 5.

Sonia gives Trader Joe's Mango Sticky Rice Crisps seven out of ten as well, but she's not quite as thrilled with the taste as I am. $3.29 for the resealable 4.5 oz bag. Product of Thailand.

Bottom line: 7 out of 10.

Trader Joe's S'mores Ice Cream

I'm no expert when it comes to this classic camping favorite, but it seems pretty obvious to me that the key to a good s'more is a balance of flavors. You need two squares of graham cracker for the "bread," one large toasted marshmallow, and one square slab of chocolate centered above the lower graham cracker, preferably just a bit gooey and slightly melted from the warmth of the marshmallow. The equation should be very close to equal parts chocolate : marshmallow : graham cracker.

And that's precisely why this s'mores ice cream flavor was never going to be stellar. Two thirds of the pint would need to be chocolate and marshmallow for it to have the authentic taste of s'mores. You and I both know these gimmicky ice cream flavors seldom if ever have enough mix-ins.

Before I actually read the label on the container, I assumed the base would be chocolate. I think it was a step in the right direction to decide on graham cracker instead. It's a unique ice cream flavor, and it works, just in and of itself. There are thin swaths of white marshmallow here and there, but there's just not enough of it. The chocolate "swirls" are even fewer and farther between. "Swirls" might be too generous a word. "Flecks" or "splotches" might be more accurate.

The few bites that had equal parts graham cracker, marshmallow, and chocolate were fairly tasty, but even then they lacked the complex texture of a real smore. Obviously, they could have remedied that by including real graham cracker bits, chocolate chips, or marshmallow creme rather than just ice cream and flavored "swirls."

If you're simply craving something sweet and creamy and don't overanalyze the product as I'm clearly doing here, you probably won't be let down too badly. We'll have no problems finishing this pint by any means. Would we buy it again? No. There are lots of other delicious ice cream flavors at Trader Joe's that we'd reach for again before this one. The Horchata Ice Cream, in particular, comes to mind.

But hey, each to his own. Let us know your thoughts in the comments down below. $3.79 for the pint. Seven out of ten stars from Sonia and me on Trader Joe's S'mores Ice Cream.

Bottom line: 7 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Spooky Bats & Cats Sour Gummy Candies

Let's get this Halloween month kicked off right with a seasonally-appropriate set of spooky gummy candies. Not to be confused with Trader Joe's Halloween Gummies, these felines and flittermice are sour snacks. We've got green, purple, and orange bat and cat shapes here, as opposed to skeletons, skulls, and pumpkins.

Ever since the departure of Trader Joe's delicious sour T's and J's, we've been pining for a replacement. There's been a contender or two for sure, but nothing has taken the title from those discontinued sour citrus legends. These gummies have their work cut out for them.

And once again, they're okay. Not stellar. But not bad. What I like here: these gluten-free and kosher gummy candies are all natural, colored with fruit and vegetable juices—as are many of Trader Joe's candies—and they contain no animal gelatin. They come in a resealable plastic bag for freshness. They're soft and chewy and covered in a generous amount of sour sugar.

They are indeed somewhat tart, but they're not super sour. I think each of the three colors in the bag represents a different flavor. Only the orange flavor really appealed to me. The other two are okay. I guess I might find them more interesting if I knew what they were supposed to be. The orange flavor might be, you know, orange. The purple ones don't taste much like grape to me but that might have been what they were going for. The green ones? I'm thinking sour apple...but they're definitely not the best sour apple candy I've tasted.

In the end, they're a fun treat with decent ingredients. Kids would probably love 'em. I don't think we'll have any problems finishing the bag, but Sonia and I probably wouldn't pick this particular product up again unless we had children coming around for some reason. $3.49 for the 14 oz bag. We'll go with seven out of ten stars on Trader Joe's Spooky Bats & Cats Sour Gummy Candies.

Bottom line: 7 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Peach Raspberry Crisp

Peach crisp? With raspberry, you say? I thought we were doing fall stuff this week. Ah, well, there are still a few stragglers from summer slipping through for review. This product is undoubtedly on its way out for the season, but it was still available this past weekend, so...here goes.

At first, I started poking around at the cobbler with my fork wondering where all the fruit was. It seemed mostly just bready crumble and whatnot. But once you get down to the bottom, there's not only some fruit, there are entire peach slices. Yes, there's a raspberry jelly—like a purplish glaze throughout, but I thought the entire thing was fairly peach forward. I mean, there must be an entire can of peaches in light syrup poured into this pan. Of course I don't know if they used canned peaches here. The ingredients just say "peaches," but since they're drowned in all manner of sugar and stuff, they remind me of slices that come canned in that sweet thin sauce.

Sonia thought the overall flavor was more raspberry-ish, despite the raspberries not being as obviously represented in terms of whole fruits floating around in the mixture. I guess raspberries can have a fairly pungent taste that could theoretically overpower peach in a cobbler like this. At any rate, you can taste both fruits and the whole mess is sweet, fruity, and there's plenty of crunch from the wheat and oat based crumble.

It's even better served hot. And it's better still when served hot with vanilla ice cream on top. Or so we assume. We really didn't try it a la mode because we didn't have any ice cream on hand when we tried it. Oh well, there's always next year.

It's an enjoyable dessert that hits that sweet tooth sweet spot nicely and doesn't feel too over-the-top sugary. I mean oats, berries, and peaches are downright healthy, right? It's practically diet food...as long as you don't glance at the added sugars.

$5.49 for the four serving box, found with the baked goods. We might buy Trader Joe's Peach Raspberry Crisp again. We'll both go with eight out of ten stars on this one.

Bottom line: 8 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Pumpkin Spice Mini Sheet Cake

And NOW it's time for the pumpkin spice parade to proceed. Sheet cake with cream cheese icing and some pumpkin puree, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger doesn't sound too outlandish to me. Sounds like a downright delicious fall flavor, in fact.

And it is. Remember that vanilla bean sheet cake? Of course you do. There's also a lemon one we haven't tried yet. Anyway, it was pretty tasty thanks to the generous amounts of sweet vanilla icing on top. We've got just about that same amount of cream cheese-based frosting here and a very similar soft, moist texture.

The pumpkin spices are nicely blended, not too strong and not too subtle. The pumpkin puree gives the cake a distinctly squash-ish vibe underneath the indulgent dessert flavors. It works the same way pumpkin pie works, but you know, more bready than that, like a classic pumpkin roll except flat instead of cylindrical and swirly. The cream cheese frosting is sweet and tangy, buttery and velvety. There's a generous amount of it on the cake. I thought Sonia would say there's too much, but she raved about it. She and I agree that the overall effect is satisfying, scrumptious, and distinctly autumnal.

$5.49 for the six serving dessert, found with the other baked goods. We would buy Trader Joe's Pumpkin Spice Mini Sheet Cake again. Eight out of ten stars from me. Perfect ten from Sonia?? I didn't see that coming. Wow.

Bottom line: 9 out of 10.

Trader Joe's All Butter Apple Shortbread Cookies

I'm not sure if it's always been this way since I've only lived in this region for five years or so, but seasons here in the Upper Midwest seem to change from summer to winter in fairly short order, practically skipping over the fall season. Things go from too hot to too cold virtually overnight some time in mid-October. Leaves start changing on some of the trees while it's still warm enough for swimming. Others wait until there's snow on the ground.

For this Pennsylvania boy, it's a bit disorienting. I'm used to autumns that creep up on you week over week, month over month. Usually by this time in mid-September, there's a crispness to the air that signals that it's time for warm cinnamony apple flavors and pumpkin spice desserts. Don't get me wrong, I like it here. The climate is just a little different than what I'm used to. And don't even get me started on the weather in Los Angeles. If there are only three seasons here in the Midwest, there's only one and a half in Southern California.

Even though my sleeveless tank top tells me that it's way too early for this apple shortbread treat, it is indeed that time again—time for the first new fall food review of 2024. If you're new here, please note that most of the "new" autumn products at Trader Joe's are actually seasonal items returning from previous years and the vast majority of them have already been reviewed on this blog. You can find them by thumbing through the Blog Archive in the right side bar or by using the Search This Blog bar near the top of the page.

First thoughts? The box is a lot smaller than I thought it would be. It was $3.49 for less than five ounces. These better be some darn good cookies...

...and they're just okay. In our humble opinions, these cookies don't hold a candle to last year's all butter shortbread cookies with raspberry filling. These cookies are harder, crunchier by comparison—not nearly as buttery. Instead of a gelatinous, syrupy fruit filling, they have actual pieces of dried apple baked into them. While I like the idea of flavoring these morsels with real apple bits, there's just not enough apple flavor to make these cookies super memorable.

I can't imagine anybody disliking these cookies to the point of not being able to finish the box, but there have been many more interesting shortbread confections at Trader Joe's throughout the years. We probably would not buy Trader Joe's All Butter Apple Shortbread Cookies again. Seven out of ten stars from Sonia. Six out of ten stars from me.

Bottom line: 6.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Celebration Cake & Baking Mix

It's time to watch my lovely wife bake stuff again! Join us as we mix, heat, eat, and review Trader Joe's Celebration Cake Baking Mix. What are we celebrating, you ask? Another day of life and living...or something like that. And our 15th anniversary isn't too far off, so we'll just go with that.

Sonia doesn't have a big upright mixer so she had to beat the butter for the frosting mix by hand. It took a while. Don't worry, I edited it so there's not like one ten minute long shot of poor Sonia pressing butter down in her bowl over and over and over.

This baking mix requires milk, oil, a couple sticks of butter, and two eggs. The whole process takes about a half hour and the finished product is nice to look at and pretty yummy, too, although we wish there were more sprinkles in the batter.

If you're into birthday cake flavored stuff, also check out: Trader Joe's Celebration Cake Gelato.

We'd buy Trader Joe's Celebration Cake Baking Mix again for a special occasion. $4.99 for the ten serving box.

Bottom line: 7.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Oven Dried Red & Yellow Bell Pepper Crisps

In the tradition of other crispy, crunchy veggie snacks that Trader Joe's has offered throughout the years, bell peppers are getting their day in the sun...er, their day in the oven, as it were. If you don't know what I'm talking about, see:

Trader Joe's Contemplates Inner Peas

Trader Joe's Kale Chips

Trader Joe's Crispy Crunchy Broccoli Florets

Trader Joe's Beet Chips

Trader Joe's Parsnip Chips

Trader Joe's Crispy Crunchy Okra

Your guess is as good as mine as to whether any of those snacktastic veggies are still available at TJ's or not...

As a standalone snack, these oven dried dealies are definitely not my favorite, despite a general fondness for bell peppers of all colors. They're oddly bitter, crusty, and papery.

Crumbled on top of stuff, however, they're pretty neat. $1.99 for the resealable bag. Product of Turkey. Sonia and I will go with six out of ten stars.

Bottom line: 6 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Green Olive Flats

When I first found out Latinos eat "lengua," I was like, "Oh, is it a beef patty shaped like a tongue or something..?" Then I found out it's, you know, like actual cow tongue. So when I saw that these were "lingue crackers," I was like, "Oh no! Please tell me the Italians don't eat crackers made of dried cow tongue!" And sure enough, they don't. These crackers are named after the Italian word for "tongue" simply because of their shape. Phew.

And they're pretty good, you know? They're nothing to write home about in and of themselves, but by that same token, these are the first crackers I've ever tried with olives baked into them. No, wait. Scratch that. These are the second crackers I've tried with olives baked into them. But these are significantly better in my honest opinion.

They're salty and savory with just enough briny olive flavor to keep it interesting. Fancy folks might pair them with expensive creamy cheeses like Brie and exotic charcuterie stuff, but I can confirm they pair well with lowbrow toppings like cheddar or cream cheese. 

We also experimented with Swiss, havarti, and feta, and there's really no wrong answer when it comes to what cheese you should pair these crispy crackers with. They also go great with olives, surprise, surprise—Trader Joe's Garlic & Jalapeño Stuffed Olives worked pretty well.

There's a pleasant crunchiness to these crackers. They might be slightly brittle, but I'd say they're neither too soft nor too hard. They don't shatter the way some other crackers do, and they're thinner than other comparable wheat flats.

$2.99 for 5 servings, which come in a resealable plastic box. Imported from Italy. We would buy Trader Joe's Green Olive Flats Italian Lingue Crackers again. Sonia gives them nine out of ten stars, stating "These are some of the best crackers TJ's has ever put out." I don't disagree. I'll go with eight out of ten.

Bottom line: 8.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Bacon & Eggs Sweet Gummy Candies

Today, we're looking at a traditional German treat: bacon and egg gummies, bursting with real pork fat and chicken egg flavor! Okay, I'm just kidding. They're fruit flavored. But they really are from Deutschland. Why we're importing gummy candy from Central Europe, I'm not quite sure, but traderjoes.com says the bacon pieces are cherry and the egg pieces are mango. That's just weird, but you know what? It works...kinda.

And not only is there no pork or eggs in the product, there's no gelatin either. We've seen dessert products from Trader Joe's in the past that proudly declared "pork gelatin" in the ingredients, which caused me a significant amount of distress. There's a bit of milk powder in them, so we can't call them vegan, but I'll take a touch of dairy over pig bones any day of the week.

There's a stretchy, squishy, almost sponginess to these gummy candies that makes them fun to chew. They're very smooth and slippery, and they taste unique. Both are bright, sweet-tart, almost citrusy flavors. There's a mild aftertaste, but it's not too overbearing.

I wish these were a single buck instead of two bucks, but somebody's gotta pay for all that marine diesel that ferried these puppies across the Atlantic. Would we buy Trader Joe's Bacon & Eggs Gummies again? I don't think either Sonia or I would really seek them out, but if we found ourselves in the checkout line at TJ's with a hankering for something sweet, I wouldn't completely dismiss the possibility. Eight out of ten stars from Sonia, who would really like to try a super sour version of these candies. Seven out of ten from Nathan, who says "Hey at least they're better than the Peas & Carrots Gummy Candy."

Bottom line: 7.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Rainbow's End Trail Mix Bars

We've really had excellent luck with Trader Joe's products this month. We've only had one or two products that weren't very good or great. After a while, I feel weird giving positive scores to everything and I start to look for a product I can write a negative review about just to break things up a bit. I thought, "Rainbow themed granola trail mix bars? How good could they possibly be?" and I yoinked this product out of the pantry hoping to shaft it and prove to everyone once and for all that we don't work for Trader Joe's and are super duper objective and have all kinds of nasty things to say, at least once in a while.

But dangit if these aren't freaking delicious snack bars. They're kinda like KIND bars but way better tasting and they have little generic M&M things all through them. They're probably not as healthy as KIND bars, but hey, you only live once.

As evidenced by our picture of the product, some of the M&M dealies are smashed up on the outside of the bars. I like them that way. It's like the chocolate is more evenly distributed and they're somehow easier to chew. 

There's plenty of nut flavor from the peanuts and almonds, and the whole conglomeration is held together by agave syrup and a thin layer of dark chocolate. Daddy likey...though milk chocolate would have done just fine if not better.

Looks like you can buy these individually for 99¢ or you can pick up a box of 5 for $4.99. You'd think they could throw you a bone and knock a nickel or a dime off the price if you buy the whole box, but whatevs. Still a decent product. 

Kosher. Would buy again. Apparently TJ's sells a non-bar form of the mix in a bag, and the rainbow reference is a nod to the pathway that connects the human world to Asgard, home of the Norse gods. Buckle up for Ragnarök, kids.

Eight out of ten stars from Sonia and me for Trader Joe's Rainbow's End Trail Mix Bars.

Bottom line: 8 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Pistachios

Four bucks for a bag of pistachios is a great price. Those things have always been expensive. Throw in the facts that these are already shelled, covered in dark chocolate, and come in a resealable bag and you've got yourself a pretty good deal, value-wise.

And the product tastes great, too. If anything, there's a little too much candy and not enough nut in the equation. As you can see in the photo, there's more dark chocolate than pistachio. The ingredients list testifies the same. Hmmm. Maybe they should have called these Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Bites with Pistachio Nut Centers.

Still, there's enough pistachio in there that it's detectable. It almost balances out the chocolate. Both Sonia and I were wanting more nut flavor, but we both agree the dark chocolate works here. Milk chocolate or white chocolate wouldn't have blended quite as well with the pistachios, which were, admittedly, very high quality.

Would we buy Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Pistachios again? Yeah, probably. We could always mix in some plain pistachios to help balance out the nut to chocolate ratio. Let's go with seven out of ten stars from me and eight out of ten from the beautiful wifey.

Bottom line: 7.5 out of 10.