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Trader Joe’s Chocolate Truffle Filled Figs

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There are so many new holiday products in Trader Joe’s right now, that we feel a bit like a kid in …. well a candy shop! But I guess that is how I feel when I shop at Trader Joe’s on many occasions as there are so many wonderful products to choose from.  Today we wanted to tell you about this product as you might easily pass it up:

9 Rabitos Royal~ Chocolate Truffle Filled Figs!

Chocolate covered FigsWe usually enjoy figs during the holidays ~ either fresh in a sauce or as an appetizer but certainly dried figs also make there way under the tree for some tasty gift-giving too.  So when we saw this package we instantly thought we are going to try these and see if they will make a nice gift.

The short answer is YES!!

These are absolutely delish! And a great mixture of flavors. First a nice-sized fig is stuffed with a smooth chocolaty truffle center (with a hint of brandy I might add) Then the whole truffle is covered in a thin layer of chocolate which melts in your mouth~ as well as on your fingers ~ YUM!

I tried to cut one in half for a photo… but Yikes~ the fig protested ~ and became utterly un-photogenic fast! So our advice is to pop the whole fig in your mouth and just savor all the flavors as they appear.

One Chocolate Covered Fig

Another cool thing? Each fig is individually wrapped for freshness and that  might make it easier to take a fig or two for a gourmet lunch box treat… OK that is my plan….. You could always add them to a cookie assortment too…

Have you tried these 9 Rabitos Royale ~ Chocolate Truffle Filled Figs yet?? What did you think??

Thanksgiving 2010: Made Easier at Trader Joe’s

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I wanted to call your attention to a nifty little Thanksgiving helper that we picked up at Trader Joe’s.  It was out in front of the store and at the checkout area. Called Trader Joe’s Food Pilgrimager~ cute name, right~ I took it home to really check it out.  BUT then I completely forgot about it for a day until the thing showed up again in the mailbox.. eeks! So today I really sat down with coffee to check it out!

The Trader Joe’s Food Pilgrimager is a short and sweet newsletter that showcases all the good stuff for Thanksgiving at Trader Joe’s.

Trader Joe's Food Pilgrimager

So if you are hosting a Thanksgiving meal this year, you might want to pick up a copy (and your Trader Joe’s turkey) before they are all gone.

What I liked best was the introduction to all kinds of items that were new, or new to me that would be great for Thanksgiving. For example, in the top 10 list on page two they highlight #1 Dried Cranberries and #2 Candied Pecans . Now I have seen and purchased both those items, but suddenly I was thinking… add some lettuce and cherry tomatoes and that would be a fantastic (and EASY ) salad for Thanksgiving with chewy dried cranberries and crunchy/sweet candied pecans….

Another interesting thing that I did not realize is that Trader Joe’s sells 3 kinds of Cranberry sauce!  I am not sure that I would have noticed that if I was just roaming up the isles (sipping my coffee sample….)

Whats more? Trader Joe’s is selling a 1/2 Turkey, fully cooked! WOW If we were going to cook this year THAT is they way I would go~ how easy would that make Thanksgiving day to just warm up the turkey?  OR in the freezer department a they are selling a turkey breast and cornbread stuffing combo (just heat and eat!) So many great ideas this year!!

So hopefully I have motivated you to check out the Trader Joe’s Food Pilgrimager and not just leave it laying around for days like I did.   Hopefully you will find some great ideas for your Thanksgiving table.

Meatless Monday:Garlic Chickpea Pasta

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I was searching around the internet this morning for something unusual to make for Meatless Monday dinner tonight. OK ~I was also secretly searching for a recipe that I could cook from all the ingredients I already had in the house too….  And…. success! I found a great-sounding and great-tasting recipe…Pasta with Chickpeas and Garlic sauce! This recipe uses a can of garbanzo beans, pasta, garlic, tomatoes and Parmesan cheese to make what sounds like a rich and garlicky combination. While I did not have all the ingredients mentioned (I have most), and I am sure that the addition of those extra ingredients would make it even better!

Sauce for Pasta

Here is a video from the website that I found this recipe at if you would like to watch:

Pasta with Chickpeas and Garlic Sauce

What you need:

  • Olive Oil, Salt and Pepper
  • 2 Cloves Garlic, Smashed
  • 1 Can Chickpeas
  • 1 Cup Vegetable Broth
  • 1/2 bag your favorite pasta (we used whole wheat spirals)
  • Tomatoes (we chopped up 2 Roma Tomatoes)
  • 2 Cloves Garlic, Minced
  • 1Tbs. Lemon Juice
  • 3 Tbs. Parmesan Cheese

How to:

1. In a small saucepan, heat garlic in olive oil and saute for a minute. Add drained chickpeas and 1 cup vegetable stock and allow sauce to simmer for 15 minutes.

2. While sauce is cooking,  cook and drain your noodles.

3.  Carefully puree sauce in a blender or food processor until smooth~ you might have to do this in batches depending on the size of your processor.

4. In a bowl combine sauce, tomatoes, chopped garlic, lemon juice and pasta. Toss gently and sprinke with Parmesan cheese.

We are planning to  serve this pasta dish with a salad and maybe some garlic bread ~  It sounds like it will be sorta like hummus!   We are planning to have a bit leftover and I am betting that this will taste even better tomorrow for lunch as all that garlic flavor develops!

Here is a video if you want to watch and see how easy this recipe is and the full list of ingredients ~ Including the ones that I did not have! HA

http://www.myrecipes.com/quick-and-easy/dinner-tonight/how-to-cook-pasta-with-chickpeas-garlic-sauce-10000001684855/

Let us know what you though of this recipe? What additions did you make? (Peas… Asparagus tips….)

Easy Taco Salad

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Last post I was telling you about our recent fantastic salsa discovery, Trader Joe’s Roasted Tomato Salsa. We were taking a moment to check out all the yummy salsas that Trader Joe’s carries when we found that one. We were specifically looking for a salsa that would taste great on a Taco Salad.

Taco SaladWe both enjoy taco salads~ they are quick and easy to make and are flexible, without food rules (at least in our minds) so you can add what you have on hand to the basics and have a tasty meal.

That is what we usually do. We start out with the salad basics, add beans or a meat of some kind, and then start adding the optional ingredients to sort of round out the salad.

Some of the optional ingredients we add include: broken taco chips, black olives, green onions, grated cheese, cold leftover veggies or rice~ you can add whatever you like ~ that is the beauty of this kind of salad.

For this salad, we browned a package of Trader Joe’s ground turkey with a spoonful of Trader Joe’s Taco Seasoning and used that as the point to build the rest of the salad.

We had lettuce, cherry tomatoes and an avocation to add some flavors as well. For a change we created Salsa Mayo by adding a scoop of Trader Joe’s Organic Mayonnaise to 2 scoops of our tasty new Roasted Tomato Salsa. We could have added it to some Sour Cream… but I forgot to purchase Sour Cream when we were shopping ….gr…

What is your favorite ingredient in Taco Salads?