Trader Joe’s New Finds February 2021

Trader Joe’s is pretty much killing it this year so far with all the new items they’ve introduced to the shelves! It’s hard to keep up with taste testing everything, but I certainly try my best.

In this post, I’m reviewing as many new-to-the-store items I could get my hands on in February 2021, as well as a new items that are in the store regularly that I haven’t tried yet.

Aussie-Style Chocolate Cookies

• New to Store
• Verdict: New Top 10 Favorite

I’m going to kick this off with my absolute favorite new item I tried in February! These Aussie-style Chocolate Crème Sandwich Cookies are modeled after the Australian Tim Tam cookie. I’ve had Tim Tams before, but it’s been a while. These are SO good! Who needs a Tim Tam? (Sorry Aussies).

The cookie is crisp, the chocolate is creamy, and the overall flavor just hit it out of the park for me. I may or may not have grabbed three boxes of these so far. These will be a repeat buy. I hope they aren’t seasonal!

Blood Orange Cake

• New to Store
• Verdict: Delicious!

Blood orange anything is generally a winning flavor for me, and this cake did not disappoint! Last spring, I bought the Meyer Lemon Cake and was so impressed. I figured this would be similar to that but with an orange flavor. My husband actually prefers the blood orange over the lemon! The jury is still out for me on that, simply because I love my lemon stuff so much, but this Blood Orange cake is a top contender.

The cake came out very moist and the color of the cake is spot on with the box. It’s a beautiful sight! I didn’t have a loaf pan to bake my cake in (I shattered that last year and haven’t replaced it), so I used an 8×8 baking dish and reduced the cooking time a bit. It came out perfect. I’m sure these would also make great cupcakes!

Crispy Peanut Butter Milk Chocolate Peanuts

• New to Store
• Verdict: Really good!

Trader Joe’s is trying to turn me into a peanut butter fan with all their treats! Previously, the only peanut butter-flavored treats I enjoyed were the Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups (if you haven’t tried those yet, you need to!). These little morsels are filled with creamy, salty peanut butter and crispy rice that aren’t too sweet. That balances out the sweeter milk chocolate nicely.

And if you’re wondering, they do look exactly like they do on the bag. Little milk chocolate peanuts!

Dark Chocolate Drizzled Plantain Chips

• New to Store
• Verdict: I’m a fan

Plantains are something I’ve recently been trying a lot more, so I was pretty curious to try these chips. This is another winning treat for me! The plantain chips have a salty/savory taste to them, and balance well when paired with dark chocolate (milk chocolate would be too sweet). I can pop a couple of these in my mouth and be satisfied with my treat!

Vanilla Fudge Chip Ice Cream

• New to Me
• Verdict: Will definitely buy again

If I’m ever given a choice between ice cream and cake, cookies, or pie, ice cream will always win. I’m usually a big fan of the Trader Joe’s ice creams as they are very creamy and have fantastic flavor. If you’re looking for a little something more than plain vanilla (which is honestly one of my favorite ice creams from Trader Joe’s), the fudge chips add some extra tasty morsels and texture to your bites. This will be a repeat for me.

Caramel Sauce

• New to Me
• Verdict: Excellent stuff

Caramel Sauce – where you been all my Trader Joe’s loving life?! This Fleur de Sel Caramel Sauce is quite possibly the best caramel sauce I’ve ever had. With the Fleur de Sel, there is a nice salty element to balance out the sweetness of the caramel. My husband wanted caramel sauce to drizzle on vanilla ice cream, and I was happy that Trader Joe’s provided such a great option for us.

Mexican Cauliflower Rice

• New to Store
• Verdict: Pleasantly surprised

The new Mexican-Style Riced Cauliflower really surprised me! First off, I’ve tried so many different variations of cauliflower rice and just hated them. I had just about given up when this product came out and thought I would give the good old cauli rice one last go.

The flavors in the rice mix are really good, and when it says spicy, it really is spicy! My spice tolerance is pretty high though so it’s perfect for me.

This makes a great addition to any burrito bowl, or it can just be a side dish as well. I may even consider stuffing enchiladas with it in the future to minimize carb intake (in place of rice).

Battered Fish Nuggets

• New to Me
• Verdict: Decent substitution for other breaded fish

When Trader Joe’s was out of my favorite breaded fish to use to make fish tacos, I substituted these Fish Nuggets in.

The nuggets were nice and light and had good flavor. However, I found that the breading on the outside didn’t get crispy as easily as some of the other frozen breaded fish (I tried both the air fryer and the oven). I’ll probably stick to the other breaded fish fillets if they are in stock, but would buy again for my fish taco adventures in a pinch.

P.S. Pair the Southwest Salad kit with these fish nuggets for a super easy fish taco combo.

Jalapeno Sauce

• New to Me
• Verdict: A new pantry staple!

Not new to the store, but new to me and my oh my, why did I wait so long to try it?! It’s creamy, has a kick to it, and definitely has a distinct jalapeno flavor to it. I’ve used it in burrito bowls, on nachos, on taco salads, and on a variety of tacos. It’s so good!

EBTB Potato Chips

• New to Store
• Verdict: Good if you like garlic

Do we really need Everything But the Bagel Seasoning on another product? Probably not, but they did it anyway!

The EBTB potato chips kind of had mixed reviews from others online, but ultimately, my husband and I liked them. The EBTB seasoning kind of falls by the wayside…or more like, falls to the bottom of the bag, so the chips are really garlicky without a ton of seasoning coating them. We both really like garlic-forward foods though, and would consider them a win for us.

These would be an excellent snack to put out on a summer BBQ table with burgers and hot dogs!

Calabrian Chili Tomato Dumpling Soup

• New to Store (Seasonal?)
• Verdict: Absolutely delicious!

This Calabrian Chili Tomato Dumpling Soup was delicious! I heated it up had it along side a grilled cheese (made on the TJ’s brioche bread with melted Havarti) and it made the perfect lunch.

The Calabrian Chilis kicks up the traditional tomato soup with pepper flavors, and I didn’t mind the dumplings either (although the soup would be just as good without them).

I’m pretty sure this is a seasonal item (hopefully it’s not a one-time deal) since I haven’t seen it in my store since. Hopefully, it comes back next year!

Gyro Slices

• New to Me
• Verdict: Yes, yes and yes…more please!

So, we finally got around to trying the gyro slices, and man, have we been missing out! The meat is pre-cooked and super easy to heat up in a pan which makes it an easy weeknight dinner main ingredient.

My only gripe is that I wish there were a couple more strips of meat in the box. We had enough for two slices per “gyro” which in my opinion was just not enough meat. I would double up next time I make these (and there will be a next time!)

Pro Tip: Get a can of the Trader Joe’s Dolmas (the traditional ones with rice, not quinoa) to serve along side your gyro pitas/sandwiches.

Wild Smoked Sockeye Salmon

• New to Me
• Verdict: Perfect for Lox and Bagels!

I really love smoked salmon, especially for breakfast with bagels and cream cheese. A lot of times, the smoked salmon is cold smoked and while I enjoy that too, I love a good hot smoked salmon. It breaks apart differently, and also has a different flavor profile and texture.

I actually used this salmon in low carb cheese rolls with the Parmesan Folio wraps, chive & onion cream cheese, and some capers. It was a great low carb appetizer!

Romano Caesar Dressing

• New to Me
• Verdict: One of the best bottled Caesar’s I’ve had

I definitely recommend this if you are a Caesar fan. It has a more traditional Caesar taste versus a creamy-style dressing, and has really great flavor.

I used this dressing on flatbread wraps with Trader Joe’s pre-cooked chicken breast slices, Romaine lettuce, and parmesan cheese, which made a super easy lunch for me.

Yellow Curry Sauce

• New to Me
• Verdict: So-so

My all-time favorite Thai dish is yellow curry. However, I am really picky about my yellow curries and have really only found one or two Thai restaurants that make it just the way I like it. I finally worked up the courage to make my own veggie curry at home, since I’ve been missing my takeout Thai food lately, and picked up Trader Joe’s yellow curry sauce to try out.

My verdict: I think it’s good, but it’s just not quite what I’m looking for in a yellow curry sauce. It could definitely use more seasoning. I think if I were to try it again, I would probably simmer the curry sauce separately, add in some chili flakes (because it needs heat), and maybe some salt or other savory spices to make it less sweet.

Have you ever tried this yellow curry? Perhaps I need to cook it with meat to allow it to take on more flavors?

Meikakuna Japanese Whisky

• New to Me
• Verdict: I already need more! (aka it’s good, and I drank it fast)

I’ve been eyeing this Meikakuna whiskey (or whisky) at Trader Joe’s for several visits now, and finally had extra room in my grocery budget for a little splurge. I’ve just recently been opening myself up to drinking more whiskey and am really getting into trying different brands and styles.

Note: I am not a whiskey expert and have no idea how to properly describe whiskey tasting…yet….

I suppose I could compare this to my favorite “everyday” whiskey (no, I do not actually drink whiskey every day…) – Jameson Caskmates Stout Edition. The Jameson is slightly sweet and really smooth. The Meikakuna Japanese whiskey takes on harsher qualities, and doesn’t go down as easily (I recommend a nice big ice cube); however, I still really enjoyed sipping on the this whiskey and would buy it again.

That’s it for all the new items I tried in February 2021! Did you get a chance to try any of these items yet?

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