Trader Joe's

5 Fabulous Finds From Trader Joe’s: Matcha Green Tea Ice Cream, Ube Tea Cookies, Chicken Soup Dumplings, Strawberry Soda and Zinc Oxide Mineral Sunscreen

May 28th, 2021 by Karen 6 Comments

Frozen Chicken Soup Dumplings

Goodness gracious, the last time I went to Trader Joe’s I got two boxes of these Chicken Soup Dumplings, and the next time I go I’m getting three. Maybe even four! They’re that good. Connor and I, man…we gobble them up so fast!

Have you ever been to dim sum and ordered soup dumplings? Those tasty little ground meatballs with their savory broth encapsulated in a chewy pouch… Like a delicious soupy dumpling in a sleeping bag, if you will! You bite into the dumpling, and the glorious broth gushes into your mouth. Mmmm!

These frozen ones take two minutes to cook in the microwave, and you get six total.

These are Connor’s new favorite thing to eat at lunch and mine too. We eat them with edamame and rice!

There’s a pork and ginger version too, which I haven’t tried yet because I’m not a huge fan of ginger in savory dishes, but for the sake of adventure, I may try it for fun. Will let you know!

Matcha Green Tea Ice Cream

The Ube Ice Cream at Trader Joe’s takes me back to my childhood! Ube is a purple yam, and ube ice cream is a common treat in Filipino culture. I grew up eating it. It tastes a little like vanilla, but this isn’t about TJ’s Ube Ice Cream… It’s about the Matcha Green Tea Ice Cream, which, like the Ube flavor, is SO YUMMY.

It’s a rich, creamy green tea with the subtle grassiness of matcha. It might not be enough flavor if you like strong matcha notes, but I think it’s just right, and I’m not sharing it with anybody in this house. 😁

In fact, last night I was in an eat-my-feelings kind of mood, so I opened both pints, and I dug my spoon back-and-forth between the two flavors while standing inside my kitchen. GIRL, I couldn’t even be bothered to put it in a bowl and go sit down somewhere, LOL!

Zinc Oxide Mineral Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 30 Spray

This zinc oxide mineral spray sunscreen has a pretty high percentage of the active ingredient, which is 15% zinc oxide. I read about it in the new Fearless Flyer, which claims that the sunscreen “dries clear.” HMMM!

It’s SPF 30, water resistant for 80 minutes, and the formula also has aloe, grapefruit oil and vitamin E. The bottle says “fragrance-free,” but when put some on my arms the other day (while I was in the TJ’s parking lot, haha! I couldn’t wait), my bloodhound nose got a whiff of grapefruit, which I don’t mind at all because it’s very, very subtle.

As to the whole “dries clear” claim, there seems to be a caveat. There is a purple cast at first, but after 10 minutes it pretty much disappears.

I’ve yet to test this out by being in the sun for a good length of time (right now my go to is Sun Bum SPF 70 lotion), but I will this weekend and let you know what’s up.

So far there’s lots of pros!

Strawberry Juice Beverage

I’m not a soda drinker, not really. On the rare occasion, I’ll have a Coke, but most of the time soda’s way too sweet for me. This Trader Joe’s strawberry sparkling drink is absolutely perfect, though!

It has just the right amount of strawberry sweetness without tasting like a sugar bomb exploded in my mouth. I love the bubbles, the color, and I love that one can is only 60 cal.

Ube Tea Cookies

OK, so, these Ube Tea cookies are not as purple as they are on the box. (I’m not OK with that.) They’re also teeny, tiny, like the size of a quarter, which I guess is good because you can stuff more into your mouth?!

I like these, but they’re not gonna keep me up at night or anything like the TJ’s Chocolate Stars, which, oh, my god, sometimes haunt me at night!

The issue for me is the ube flavor gets overwhelmed by the powdered sugar. Plus, I kind of wanted them to be more purple. I’m having a hard time letting that one go.

Still, I wouldn’t say no to a handful of these with a hot cup of Earl Grey with some milk. It’s a decently yummy afternoon snack.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. TGIF!!!! Happy Memorial Day Weekend! 😺

Latest Trader Joe’s Finds: Grapefruit Body Butter, Croissant Bread, Gluten-Free Treats and More

March 30th, 2021 by Karen 6 Comments

trader joes grapefruit body butter — YES

Girlfriend, I had to do it. Grapefruit. Body butter. FOUR NINETY-NINE! I no longer even pretend to have any self-restraint when it comes to a new Trader Joe’s body butter. Sampling their myriad of “flavors” over the past few years has taught me that TJ’s Body Butters generally do me right, and this new Grapefruit one is one of my favorites to date.

Coincidentally, I’ve been having grapefruit with my breakfast every morning lately, and this cream smells legit. It’s light and fresh and lingers for a few hours before fading away, so it’s not all up in my nostrils into the evening.

Like the other TJ’s Body Butters I’ve tried, this one’s thick and creamy, like an actual stick of room-temperature Salted Kerrygold (THE BEST); you can cut it with a butter knife, so it’s more balm-y and less fluffy whipped cream, and it’s moisturizing enough to get crusty heels to bow down.

FYI, it contains coconut oil and shea butter, so if your skin likes both or either of those, you have that to look forward to!

Also, I really like that the lid flips up because the jar is easy to open and close with slippery fingers.

I’m currently wearing Grapefruit underneath Chanel Paris-Riviera (otherwise known as “orange explosion!”), and I smell pretty darned good, if I do say so myself.

Warning: the following Trader Joe’s photos should’ve been taken, ya know…before I went to town on all the food, but hey, this is real life, and apparently we’re REALLY HUNGRY at my house.

Part of me really wants to not tell you about the following bread because I want more for me, because my addiction to it is that serious, but we’re friends, and friends don’t let friends sleep on hella good baked delights!

Grab thee a Joe’s Cinnamon Croissant Loaf ASAP. This hybrid of sliced cinnamon bread and flaky croissant is heavenly. I eat it every morning with the big ol’ grapefruit.

Here’s the deal: you need to toast it first in order for it to be all it can be. Warming it up seems to make the layers of croissant even more delicate and melty, and enhances the cinnamon flavor.

You could put some butter on it, I suppose, but I just keep it plain so I can shove it into my mouth with coffee that much faster.

Also, in gluten-free news, El Hub has celiac, and he LOVES the Trader Joe’s Gluten-Free Coffee Cake Muffins. He usually thinks that most store-bought gluten-free baked goods are either too grainy or crumbly or oily, but he says these are fan-friggin-tastic.

They’re made with sour cream, which I suspect is the magic ingredient responsible for their tender crumb. He says they taste exactly like a regular coffee cake. Highly recommended from the resident GF person in our house!

Connor and I have been snacking on the Mini Orange Cranberry Tea Scones. These are lovely when you need a little something to tide you over with your afternoon beverage…

Apparently, the theme for today day is CARBS. Ha!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

To Me, From Me

November 13th, 2019 by Karen 17 Comments

trader joes 12 days of beauty — You guys, I had to do it!

LOOK WHAT I FOUND AT TJ’s!

This 12 Days of Beauty gift box is $20, and it comes with 12 beauty minis exclusive to Trader Joe’s. Everything it comes with is listed on the back (and reproduced below), so it’s not a super-hard-to-figure-out surprise…but if you don’t wanna know what it comes with (SPOILER ALERT), look away meow.

I’m serious, look away!

This is your last warning…

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Crazy Clips for the Win!

July 16th, 2019 by Karen 10 Comments

Question for ya: Have you arrived at that point in life when you don’t care if the world sees the weird things you do to bend your hair to your will? Although I’m not quite the lady at the supermarket with the giant pink curlers in her hair yet (because she don’t give an eff what people say when she’s buying frozen breakfast burritos!), I’m almost there. I’ve taken to wearing these long hair clips when I’m chillin’ at home, or driving in my car, or taking a walk around the neighborhood. I use ’em on wet hair, along with half a pound of flexible hairspray to smooth and flatten out my roots (which are getting progressively more wiry and untamed with each and every new gray hair) as they air dry. El Hub says I look a little crazy, but I’m like, “Hey, man, you gotta do what you’ve gotta do.”

Trader Joe’s alert!

Speaking of the shameless things we do in the name of beauty, I was waiting in line at TJ’s last week when I noticed the woman in front of me had four bottles of this lotion in her cart — and absolutely nothing else. No food, no Joe-Joe’s cookies, NOTHING. Of course, then I asked her to watch my wagon so I could run to the beauty section and grab a bottle of my own.

They’re only $3.99! For a big 16-oz. bottle! I may or may not have done a victory dance in the middle of aisle. 🙂

trader joes midsummer nights cream — A dreamy cream for $3.99

I have lizard lady skin, but a few pumps of this lotion makes my legs look and feel smooth and moisturized without making my skin feel slick or greasy. Even my heels are happy!

trader joes midsummer nights cream ingredients — It’s cruelty-free, too.

Heads up: Even though the label says it’s unscented, I think it smells a little like a kale, spinach and apple green smoothie…which I don’t mind at all.

This is IT

And that wasn’t the only new thing I tried last weekend. I also took this It Cosmetics foundation for a spin.

it cosmetics color correcting full coverage cream tan — I wear the shade called “Tan,” which is the closest to MAC NC42.

The foundations in the It Cosmetics line are famous for doing a little bit of everything and then some, and their CC+ Color Correcting Full Coverage Cream lives up to that multitasking rep. The It crew packed seven products into one tube — a full-coverage foundation, a physical sunscreen with SPF 50, a brightening color corrector, a hydrating anti-aging serum, a pore-less finish primer, a dark-spot concealer and a moisturizing day cream. Plus, a tiny bit goes a long way.

it cosmetics color correcting full coverage cream tan before after — I applied about half a pump and sheered it out with the It Cosmetics No. 22 Brush, which I dampened with MAC Fix+.

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Current Trader Joe’s Obsessions…

January 8th, 2019 by Karen 10 Comments

My meal mantra for this week is “eat your vegetables,” but woman cannot survive on rabbit food alone, so I had to sneak some chocolate and cheese onto this list, ha ha!

Just Beets: These dehydrated beets can kindasorta take the place of chips on my plate when I’m eating a sandwich…

I actually like beets, and I think these taste really good. They’re a little sweet and a little salty. They’re also CRUNCHY and surprisingly filling.
Crispy Crunchy Broccoli Florets: These crunchy fried broccoli florets are dangerously delicious and addictive.
Seasoned Kale Chips Dressed With Cashew butter Tahini: I’m still not all aboard the kale train yet, but I actually don’t mind these gluten-free kale chips.

They’re crispy, which hits the spot sometimes, amirite? And they taste a little cheesy, too.
Oven-Baked Cheese Bites: Mm… Crunchy medallions of cheesy nirvana…

These baked cheesy bits are gluten-free and protein rich, and they have a strong, sharp flavor that tastes like a mix of cheddar and Parmesan to me.

Five or six of ’em, and I’m a happy camper.
Mini Milk Chocolate Bars: There are five individually wrapped bars per box, and the creamy, smooth chocolate melts on your tongue.

I don’t know how they squeezed so much chocolate flavor into these bars, but however they did it, they definitely don’t just taste like sugar and butter. If you like Lindt truffles, you’ll probably like these. They also come in a dark chocolate version, which I haven’t tried yet because dark chocolate tastes like punishment to me.
Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies: Ever since El Hub was diagnosed with Celiac disease last fall, I’ve tried to keep an open mind about gluten-free baking…

I mean, I’ve tried…but to be honest, most gluten-free stuff just depresses me, especially the gluten-free bread, UGH. But some of the gluten-free cookies I’ve tried aren’t half bad, like these.

They’re crispity, crunchity buttery cookies have a very satisfying snap, and the chocolate is droolingly flavorful.
Fresh Mozzarella Cheese Sticks: When you want bougie cheese sticks that taste more special than basic string cheese, these are pretty good. Sometimes I chop a couple of them up with some cherry tomatoes and drizzle balsamic vinegar on top.

Mmm…
Frozen Cheese Pizza with a Cauliflower Crust: This actually tastes like REAL cheese pizza to me! IT’S INCREDIBLE. When I have this, I don’t ever feel like it tastes “less than” flour pizza. Both the cheese they use and the red pizza sauce are so good on their own that I don’t even feel like I have to doctor them up with anything. Bonus: It’s gluten-free!