Just about everyone I know loves shopping at Trader Joe's.. It's like Whole Foods for half the price and twice the flare. :) Real people can actually afford to shop there on a daily bases... and some of the products are actually cheaper than your local Piggly Wiggly {believe it or not}!
We finally have a Trader Joe's within a close driving distance {1hr, 15min}, so yesterday the hubs stopped by on his way home from the airport and picked us up some goodies. He told me to send him a list, of course I said - 3 buck Chuck. Because frankly, thanks all I really know to buy there. But I know they have tons of great stuff, so I did some research and found lots of cool items. Also, many thanks to this article from CBS news, I found the top 6 things to buy at Trader Joe's are {in no particular order} chocolate, flowers, toilet paper, trail mix & nuts, cheese and maple syrup. Random, huh? But - they are the best quality items at the lowest cost.
Since we're pretty stocked on TP and I wasn't sure cheese would make it home... I requested wine, chocolate and Mango Passion Granola cereal.
Doing some research, I came across this blog... and maybe it's just me, but I have never {ever} read a blog written by a guy {unless it's fraternity blog, which then - my husband would be a culprit}, but I was intrigued... he's pretty funny, and was exceptionally amused by his love of this granola.
As for chocolate, according to taste test done by SeriousEats.com Trader Joe's brand chocolate chips beat out both Nestle and Hershey's to take the crown. I'll have to let you know how they turn out in my next batch of cookies.
Next, in my research I learned a great deal about "3 buck Chuck"... The best, the worst and some other fun drinks you can make with it. This article is a great read if you have time.
I had him pick up 3 bottles of Cabernet {said to be juicy and jammy} and 3 bottles of Pinot Grigio {think Asian pear & kiwi}. Since we can down a bottle by ourselves on any given night of the week, I decided having a couple bottles laying around wasn't such a bad idea. I will say, if you're in the market for a fun Stock the Bar shower gift, a case of 3 buck chuck would be awesome - because they will actually drink it. How many of you still have bottles of wine in your wine chiller from your wedding or engagement party. Yes, that would be me - raising my hand. Now, we got a fair amount of wine during our engagement year at various parties and what not... but, I feel like it's a waste to pull out a $25 bottle of wine on a Monday night to go with shrimp stir-fry. Don't you? Maybe this year our goal should be to find a special occasion to drink each bottle - and re-stock with 3-buck Chuck? Sounds like a plan to me. Anyways... back to the blog.
What are your favorite items to buy at Trader Joe's? Please do share!
Suzanna actually introduced me to these preciously packaged, perfectly portioned little baggies of trail mix. If you have portion-control/moderation issue like me, then you can definitely come to appreciate a snack-size option! One big bag contains approximately 10 mini-bags...perfect for a mid-day or on-the-go snack! Find them in the trail-mix/dried fruit aisle:)
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