Trader Joe’s Wine: Grower’s Reserve Zinfandel 2009

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Trader Joe's Zinfandel

Trader Joe's Zinfandel

A wine moment with Delaina…the sipping continues….

I believe I have mentioned that I for the most part love Zinfandels. I am seduced by their smooth flavor and enchanted by their complexity. Don’t get me wrong you will often read me saying the same thing about other red wines but I have never met a Zinfandel I did not love.

Here is a wonderful example of a great zin: Trader Joe’s  Grower’s Reserve Zinfandel 2009. I was very impressed by this $5.99 Zin. I shared this bottle with a friend, as we worked on a project and we were both impressed. The wine came from ASV Wines in San Martin, California. I have never heard of that vineyard, but will tell you I won’t soon forget it.

Funny….I have not even told you the best part.

Beyond this wine being one of the most enjoyable with all of the right things- smoothness, complexity, and under $6 – it is also organic. Yep! you read that right- organic. I could not believe it. Another value bonus from Trader Joe’s

So the label talks about the wine’s flavor as a mixture of berry and plum with a hint of pepper.  I always look for reds that are described with berry, plum and sometime cherry tones, but as I rule I stay away from peppery. I just find that my taste buds will latch on to the peppery and taste nothing else. This usually puts me at odds with many Chilian wines. Never mind,  the point that I am trying to get across,  is that I could not taste the pepper, or maybe more to the point if there was a hint of pepper it only enhanced the berry and plum flavors.

Trader Joe's Delish Zinfandel, 2009

Trader Joe's Delish Zinfandel, 2009

So just in case you were not sure…I highly recommend the Trader Joe’s Grower’s Reserve Zinfandel. I would serve it with anything or just sip it by itself because it is a very drinkable wine. I hope you enjoy this wine at least as much as I have enjoyed talking about it.

Cheers!

Delaina

Trader Joe’s Mediterranean Hummus

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Trader Joe's Hummus

Trader Joe's Hummus

As you read in a previous post,  (click here)we like to snack on hummus and veggies.

Well, we have discovered a great new hummus at Trader Joe’s.

Well, to be completely truthful, we were shopping at Trader Joe’s and I was reaching for the hummus that we usually purchase, and well…. I grabbed the wrong one.

Ahh but sometime life takes these turns for the best, right? So we did not notice this slip until we were having some guests over and I brought out the hummus. It was only then did I realize that I bought a completely different package.

So, as luck would have it, as our guests were here, this hummus was just fantastic! What was the difference? Well, this Mediterranean hummus has perhaps a bit more garlic, and also has a wonderful garnish on the top of pine nuts, olive oil and herbs.

In our excitement, I forgot to take a photo before I stirred the hummus all together. Oops!

We served this yummy hummus with the usually veggies and some soft flatbreads as well.

The flat breads were also new-to us and they were like soft pita bread without a pocket- OR think of these breads as a light and thick tortilla. YUM!  We think these would make an excellent bread for a rolled sandwich (wrap) or fold over and serve with cream cheese and spinach inside?

Trader Joe's Flatbread

Trader Joe's Flatbread

All in the entire spread was wonderfully tasty and full of great Mediterranean flavors.

If you liked this post, please take a minute and leave a comment. Even if it is just to say hello, we love to hear from all our readers. Also let us know what you thought of this hummus or the flat breads.

Vita Mix: Blueberry Banana Almond Smoothie

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Making smoothie drinks at home is easy with a Vita Mix and items from Trader Joe’s.

Maybe it is the heat, or maybe it  is the end of another semester in graduate school and we are looking to try something new, but WOW  we  are making a lot of blender drinks (or smoothies) in our Vita Mix.

Click HERE to Get FREE shipping on your Vitamix

This week, the blueberries were calling to us, as was the heat, so in an effort to enjoy those yummy blueberries and keep cool, we used the remains of the blueberries in a smoothie.  In addition to those SuperBlues blueberries, we had other great ingredients from Trader Joe’s to select from: Bananas, Raw Almonds, Honey and Vanilla Yogurt.  How to choose….

Blueberry Almond Banana Smoothie

Blueberry Almond Banana Smoothie


So you can see that selecting the items is the hard part, making a Smoothie is actually easy with the Vita Mix. You simply add the ingredients and then let the strength and power of the motor make short work of blending everything into a smooth and creamy drink.

This drink was super easy and just delicious!

What you need:

  • 2 Cups cold water
  • 1 ripe banana
  • ½ cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)
  • ¼ cup raw almonds
  • Honey to taste

How to:

Blend the water and the almonds together on High to make a smooth almond-milk. Then add the fruits and honey if using. Blend on High again until smooth. Taste and add more honey if you need to- depends on how sweet your banana is, right?

This will make about 3 cups of rich, fruity smoothie.

Variations:

  • Strawberries
  • Mango
  • Yogurt
  • Maple Syrup

There are so many variations possible- these are just a few of our favorites. Please feel free to share your favorite fruit smoothie combinations below.

We just love making drinks and soups in the Vita Mix.   When you add the fact that Trader Joe’s has a wonderful selection of produce, nuts and frozen items for sale, you can see there are a zillion items to make.  In fact,  we hope to share many more adventures in blending with you soon.

Have you checked out the Vita-Mix yet?  This super blender might be just what you need to reach your health goals. Take a look today

Click HERE to Get FREE shipping on your Vitamix

If you liked this post, please take a minute and leave a comment. Even if it is just to say hello, we love to hear from all our readers.

This item is Wheat Free/ Raw

SuperBlues Blueberries Now At Trader Joe’s

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SuperBlues Blueberries

SuperBlues Blueberries

Summer arrived for me at Trader Joe’s today in the form of SuperBlues blueberries

I can remember picking blueberries as a child at my Grandmother’s house in Massachusetts. She had rather a lot of bushes and I remember them as being very tall as a child (I would love to go see them now!).

Anyway in the mornings, we would get up, get dressed and practically race into the kitchen to get handed a coffee cup. This was our morning “blueberry pail” and we would take our cup out for a morning adventure of collecting blueberries right from the bushes.

We would hunt around in those bushes for the biggest blueberries that we could find and leave those smaller ones to pick in the next day or so. When we returned to the house, we would rinse them off and use them on top of our cornflakes. Then my brother and I would have a contest to see who had picked the biggest blueberries.

Well, I was a kid again last week when we were shopping at Trader Joe’s. There at the sample counter (of course) were the biggest blueberries I have seen in a long time. The package said SuperBlues and that was an excellent description.

These blueberries were HUGE (I am not sure if you can tell in the photo, but some were as big around as a nickel!) and full of flavor. Trader Joe’s sampled the SuperBlues with some vanilla yogurt- simple and delicious.

SuperBlue Blueberries in oatmeal

SuperBlue Blueberries for Breakfast

We served them up at home on our oatmeal for breakfast. Boy they really took me back to picking and eating blueberries at my Grandmother’s house (although I was missing the cornflakes!).

So if you see these SuperBlues at your Trader Joe’s store, pick up a packages and enjoy a taste of summer.