I often get texts and Instagram messages from people that look something like this; "Hey! I'm on my way to Trader Joe's. What do I buy???" Trader Joe's has such cool products, but often its difficult to tell the healthy items from the junk ones! I try to stick to buying fresh fruits and vegetables with a few exciting items that only they stock. Also I love finding their new limited edition and seasonal items and often stock up when I find something my family loves.
I was especially impressed to learn that Trader Joe's products NEVER contain ingredients that I don't bring into my home EVER, like artificial colors, flavors and MSG. I also hope that the following board is true and that all their products do not contain GMO ingredients as well.
Here are some of my favorite Trader Joe products. I have divided them by categories to try to make it easy to navigate (even though the store is SO not intuitively categorized, in my own opinion).
Note: Not all products contained on this list are vegan, kosher certified or organic. Please do your own research regarding these certifications.
Nut Butters:
Trader Joe's Creamy Almond Butter: I use this for baking a lot, especially when I make my baked oatmeal recipes (click for recipe) that call for A LOT of almond butter at once!
Trader Joe's Peanut Butter: My daughter loves this peanut butter and spreads it on a banana daily for breakfast.
Trader Joe's Sunflower Seed Spread: Perfect for allergy- free baking
Frozen Vegetables:
Organic Riced Caulfilower (Frozen): I use 2 bags of this at once as an easy side dish during the weeknight. Because there's always days that go unplanned for me with my kids and sometimes cleaning and grating that fresh cauliflower is just NOT happening....
Organic Broccoli Florets (Frozen): I use a LOT of frozen veggies for quick stirfries and in soups, so these florets are worth keeping on hand.
Organic Peas: I freaking love peas, so I buy tons of these.
Trader Joe's Zucchini Spirals (frozen) : Talk about dinner in 5 minutes, all the cleaning and spiralizing has been predone for you, so just saute and season!
Snacks:
Just a Handful of Olives: I stash these in my car and take them on the go for car and flight travel. I love finding a good savory snack and this is definitely it!
Sacha Inchi Seeds: I love adding these high protein seeds to my salads for an extra protein boost and yummy salty crunch.
Just a Handful of Go Raw Trail Mix: The perfect size for an on the go snack.
Trader Joe's Roasted Seaweed Snack (original and wasabi): I'm obsessed with seaweed snacks when I'm on the go. They satisfy that salty/ spicy craving I sometimes have!
Organic Brown Rice Marshmallow Treats: Not a health food, but an easy sell for kids to take to school instead of junkier artificial options. Two other kid friendly school safe snack options are Trader Joe's Organic Fruit Strips (49 cents) and Trader Joe's Apple Raspberry Dried Fruit Bars (many other flavors too).
Trader Joe's Organic Chia Bar: I keep one of these in my purse at all times! It is a gluten free, low carb and low sugar bar option, which is all but IMPOSSIBLE combination to find in supermarkets! Stock up on these!
Breakfast:
Organic Silver Dollar Pancakes: Over the summer my kids grew addicted to these Aunt Jemima mini pancakes that my mom used to keep around the house. If they are going to eat frozen pancakes in the morning, I absolutely MUST make sure they are organic, so these pancakes are the perfect compromise. Kids love them and if they eat it with a fruit and some nut butter, its not that bad.
Organic Cinnamon Spice Instant Oatmeal (13 grams sugar): Again, there are many kids that love those instant oatmeal packs and take them on the go, I like that these are organic. For lower sugar options, Trader Joe's also has Strawberry Raspberry Oatmeal (5 grams sugar) and Trader Joe's Tart Cherry, Chia and Pumpkin Seed Oatmeal (cup)
Trade Joe's Sprouted Multigrain Bread: While Trader Joe's does stock Ezekiel, this is a more kid friendly toast option.
Trader Joe's Organic Corn Flakes: Of course you can have this as a regular breakfast cereal in the morning, but I also use it as breading for various proteins. Also, kids love the same taste but cooler look of Organic Purple Maize Flakes, which is basically purple corn flakes.
Dairy Case:
Organic Cream Top Plain Whole Milk Yogurt (100% Grassfed) My family eats dairy and I always try my best to source as much Organic, full fat and grass fed dairy as possible. This is the best option for yogurt.
Organic Sour Cream
Trader Joe's Fresh Mozzarella Cheese Sticks: Once my kids tasted these, they would NEVER eat a regular processed cheese stick again (Thank God!!!)
Oils:
Trader Joe's Spanish Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil Spray: These inexpensive sprays are organic, contain no propellants and are very inexpensive. Dump your PAM ASAP!
Trader Joe's Organic Sunflower Oil: I use this oil for a lot of DIY beauty products, including face washes and hand sanitizers.
Trader Giotto 100% Italian Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Trader Joe's Vitamin E Oil:This is also for my DIY personal care items like hand sanitizers and soaps.
Other Random Things:
Trader Joe's Raw Shelled Hemp Seeds
Artichoke Antipasto
Traditional Kettle Style Tofu
I'm sure you all have your favorite products and I'd LOVE to add new ones to my list! Send me a comment or a message on instagram @buddhabowlsandburpees, so I can add even more amazing products to this list!