Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Coconut Mango Bites

Finally, folks, here we go. This may not be a good thing to admit, but it's been a while since I've spotted something new at Trader Joe's that I was even remotely excited about. Instead, most of our purchases recently have been the same old usual thing....the same dinner-time staple....the same frozen lunches...the same this and the same that. While all these are legitimately good products, once you've had them a few times, well, they're not that exciting any more. It even got to the point where, for a lunch mix-up, I went ahead and bought myself some Chef-in-a-can recently. Desperate times, desperate measures.

But then, there's these, Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Coconut Mango Bites. More than cheap prices and a slew of healthy products, it's these kinda things that keep TJ's up and running. Take a combo that sounds just zany enough that it just might work, and put it in sight of someone like me who not only hasn't found a dark chocolate combo he hasn't liked, but has a healthy affinity for almost anything mango-related, and oh yeah, we're in business. Provided that they taste good, of course.

And yup, these choco-coconutted mango confections are pretty good. I'm sure, given the main ingredients, one can make the argument that they taste down right tropical. It's turning to fall in Pittsburgh and there's a legitimate chance we won't see the sun 'til late April, so I fully appreciate that. Really, I'd say these candy bites taste like a good Mounds bar, except a tinge or three sweeter in the filling. Inside each bite, if I had to guess, the orangey middle is probably composed of 70% coconut and 30% mango, and it's all kinda mixed up. If the mango elements were too strong or sweet, it'd throw everything off, but it's all kept in check by the dark chocolate coating. Each bite is about two nibbles big so there's plenty to chew on for some satisfaction, although I have a gut feeling these won't be lasting long around the house.

Sandy already had the bag ripped open when I came home from work. "These are gooood," she said. I could tell by her look and her tone there wasn't much more she'd need to say about them. After I had my first bite or two, yeah, that's a perfectly adequate way to describe 'em. Not perfect, but goooood indeed.

Bottom line: Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Coconut Mango Bites: 8.5 out of 10 Golden Spoons
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Trader Joe's Wasabi Roasted Seaweed Snack

At times, I've gone out for sushi just because I had a craving for wasabi. And sushi was the only socially-acceptable thing I could think of to eat with it. I don't mess with those ginger leaves, I just put a nice little dollop of wasabi on each slice of my spicy tuna roll and go to town, using chopsticks, of course.

I realize I could buy wasabi, keep it in my fridge, and try it on everything from ham sandwiches to pizza, but somehow I think most of those experiments would fail. It might succeed on certain Asian-inspired dishes, but having it in my fridge would take some of the specialness away from it. Wasabi peas are fun, exotic snacks to munch on from time to time (I'm pretty sure the first time I saw them was at Trader Joe's) but the novelty wears off quickly and I tire of their taste after just one bag or so.

Enter Trader Joe's Wasabi Roasted Seaweed Snack. Many moons ago, we reviewed Trader Joe's Original Roasted Seaweed Snack. This stuff is basically the same thing—but wasabified. And they didn't skimp on the wasabi. These snack sheets of seaweed have a nice, sinus-clearing kick. Wrap up some rice for a delicious and unique (yet simple and cheap) meal. They're vegan and they're gluten-free. They're salty and they're spicy. With or without something wrapped up inside them, they make a wonderful break from the norm.

At 60 calories per package they won't wreck your diet, either. And I'm willing to bet wasabi raises your metabolism, too. Sonia isn't a huge fan of wasabi. It's a far cry from the Mexican chile-based spices she's used to. The plain seaweed snack got 4 stars from each of us. Sonia will knock this version half a star down, and I'll bump it half a star up. But it will still wind up with the same score:

Bottom line: 8 out of 10.

Gum's The Word Sugar Free Gum

Okay, I'll admit it, I was fooled. This looks like a Trader Joe's product, is packaged like a Trader Joe's product, and has the classic value of a Trader Joe's product (24 pieces for 99 cents? Nice!). Indeed, the only place I have ever seen this sold is at a Trader Joe's, right by the checkout, in fact. However, Gum's The Word is not labelled as a Trader Joe's product, so....I'm guessing it's not really a Trader Joe's product. Fortunately there's a precedent or two...or three...for these kinda situations on the blog, and since a) these are sold at Trader Joe's b) I can chew enough gum to give Violet Beauregarde a run for her money and c) I didn't notice this wasn't a TJ's product 'til literally about 30 seconds ago, well, I'm reviewing it and you can't do anything about it. Them's the rules.

And, well, I'm kinda glad it isn't a TJ's product, because it isn't all that great. The chief issues with the chewy chomping Chiclet wannabes is, they start off so incredibly minty that my sinuses would be cleared (which I kinda like) but within literally two minutes there's no flavor left at all (which I don't like at all). Seriously, goes from actually too much peppermint to none at all in no time flat with no happy medium. It's kinda like a sprinter who exerts too much effort from the start line to save anything for the finish line. There's another colloquialism or two I could use, but this is a family website. At least it's about the right consistency that would incline me to keep chewing if any it had more flavor that lasted any respectable amount of time. Other than that and the aforementioned value, meh. There's also a spearmint incarnation, which I doubt I'd like much better, as peppermint is usually higher up in the flavor hierarchy for me.

Sandy isn't as generally gung ho about gum as I am. She chews it occasionally on road trips but that's about it. "Meh, it's gum, and that's about it," she said. Yeah, at the end of the day, that's pretty much all that can be said. It's gum at a good price, with a cool package design and a name that tangentially reminds me of one of the most annoying Family Guy episodes ever. That doesn't mean it tastes great.

Bottom line: Gum's The Word Sugar Free Gum: 5 out of 10 Golden Spoons
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Hey you, don't forget to help support me in my Bike MS event for a chance to toss in your two cents on our blog! Every $5 you give puts one entry in a drawing for you to nominate something for me to review, and if you drop me a few lines about it, I'll get it included in my review! Contest ends on 9/22 with the winner being announced on Facebook on 9/24. To give, hit up this link and click on "Donate to Participant" under the thermometer-type thing. Thanks, and here's to world free of multiple sclerosis!