Trader Joe's Mochi rice nuggets: The joy of eating mochi comes down to its distinct chewy texture and its faintly sweet flavor, accentuated by even sweeter fillings like red bean and black sesame. So what happens when you take mochi, fry it so it's crispy, and season it so it becomes a savory snack? Trader Joe's is attempting to answer that question with their mochi nugget crackers. The nuggets are slightly larger than a piece of Capt'n Crunch and are on the salty side, with a golden sheen similar to corn cereal. Each crac... (read more) 2.5/5.0
crackers traderjoes mochi rice nuggets 2.5
Trader Joe's Peppermint Pretzel Slims: A festive take on yogurt pretzels, these flat pretzels have a white "coating" (essentially palm oil mixed with milk solids) and crushed candy cane on top. Together, they compose a crunchy minty snack that's pretty well balanced and avoids tasting like a breath mint. High in saturated fat, with a low serving size (4 pretzels). 2.5/5.0
traderjoes peppermint pretzel slims 2.5
Trader Joe's Pink & Whites Cookies: Trader Joe's continues its quest to cover all bases, taking familiar cookies and adding just enough of a twist to keep them fresh. These tweaks involve amplifying the flavor of a classic (like their vanilla-concentrated Nila wafer knock offs) or giving new form to an otherwise ordinary snack (like their cat-shaped cookies). The appropriately named Pink & Whites, shortbread cookies with pink-and-white yogurt coating and colorful sprinkles, are essentially frosted animal cookies shaped as fl... (read more) 2.5/5.0
cookies traderjoes yogurt pink whites 2.5
Trader Joe's Rice Bites with Quinoa & Cranberries: To be honest, I'm not a big fan of quinoa, and dried cranberries are probably my least favorite dried fruit. So why exactly did I purchase these grain + fruit bites from Trader Joe's? I blame it on my curiosity for this growing food trend of bite-sized squares, in both chewy and crunchy varieties, that appeal to health-minded consumers yet are not actually so healthy from a pure calorie and sugar-intake perspective. Trader Joe's take is simply not good. It has a cloying, artifical sweetn... (read more) 2.5/5.0
traderjoes rice bites quinoa cranberries 2.5
Trader Joe’s Peanut Butter protein granola: These clusters are more like cereal than granola, with a peanut butter flavor that leans more savory than sweet. There are some halved roasted peanuts mixed in too. I don’t really like that it falls in this no-mans-land as neither a sweet nor salty snack. And size wise, it’s impractical to eat as a cereal, yet not as substantial as eating a granola bar. A fairly forgettable snack from Trader Joe’s. 2.5/5.0
peanutbutter traderjoes peanut butter protein granola 2.5
Trader Joe’s Spicy Cheese Crunchies: Similar in shape, size, and consistency to crunchy Cheetos, these spicy cheese crunches from Trader Joe's have a strong hot-sauce flavor that tastes most prominently of chili and vinegar. It reminds me a bit of their bottled Chipotle Pepper hot sauce, which I enjoy adding a few drops of on scrambled eggs, but is not something I really want to eat by the handful. Overall, it's just so-so. 2.5/5.0
traderjoes spicy cheese crunchies 2.5