Trader Joe's Organic Margarita Mix

Guess we better sneak this review in before the end of the summer. Cold margaritas go hand in hand with hot weather. If you're at TJ's buying Apple Cider Donuts already, you're jumping the gun in my humble opinion. But hey, whatever floats your boat.

Just because your kids are going back to school doesn't make it fall yet. For it to be fall and truly feel like fall, it has to be (1) AFTER Labor Day and (2) COOL outside. Astronomically, fall doesn't start until September 22nd. If the calendar still says "August" and heat indices are routinely reaching for a hundred degrees, that puts us squarely in margarita season, my friends. So grab a glass and a couple of ice cubes and let's have a drink together.

This product is certified organic. It is the fifth margarita product we've tried from Trader Joe's, but it's the very first one we've tried that's organic. For the sake of historical record, we'll link to the other margarita reviews we've done.

Trader Joe's (not organic) Margarita Mixer

Trader Joe's Mango Margarita Mixer

Trader Joe's Lime Margarita

Trader Joe's Everything but the Bartender Margarita

This product is sweet, but not quite as candy sweet as the recently-reviewed EbtB Margarita in a can. There's little to no syrupy aftertaste here. It's an organic margarita that finishes surprisingly clean on the palate.

Instructions say to add 2 parts mix with 1 part tequila, though that can be modified to suit your taste. I've seen virgin margarita recipes involving orange juice or flavored sparkling water that would go well with this product if you're looking for something non-alcoholic. The mix is quite thick and heavy by itself, so you'll want to dilute it with something.

$3.99 for the 32 oz plastic bottle. Organic. Would buy again. All in all, it's a tasty product with great ingredients. I'll throw out eight out of ten stars for Trader Joe's Organic Margarita Mix. The beautiful wifey will follow suit.

Bottom line: 8 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Cheese & Green Chile Tamales

My mother-in-law is quite the tamale connoisseur, and these are about the only store-bought tamales that she fully endorses. The three main ingredients are corn masa, Monterey Jack cheese, and green chiles. It's not a fancy dish by any means, but it's a nice simple Mexican meal that's uber-convenient and not too pricey.

The corn, cheese, and chiles appear in the perfect ratio. There's not too much or too little of any one thing. We've always just microwaved ours, and the textures come out great, although we might wind up zapping ours a full minute or two more than the packaging suggests.

The product isn't over-seasoned or spiced up at all. There's a bit of salt and a faint hint of lime, but that's about all you can taste aside from corn flour, cheese, and green chile. There's a very mild spiciness from the chiles. It's a decent flavor on its own, but we might throw some hot sauce or salsa on the tamales if we're craving something a little more potent.

$3.79 for two tamales, found in the frozen section. This product has been around Trader Joe's for quite a while, though it's undergone a repackaging or two throughout the years. We've purchased this product numerous times, but this is the first occasion we've ever gotten around to reviewing it. Better late than never, I guess. Eight out of ten stars from me for Trader Joe's Cheese & Green Chile Tamales. Sonia will go with eight and a half out of ten.

Bottom line: 8.25 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Japanese Soufflé Cheesecakes

It was only a week or so ago, Sonia and I found ourselves watching something on YouTube about Americans losing weight when they move to Japan—the name of the channel escapes me at the moment. There were several reasons they mentioned, but the main one was that Japanese desserts have so much less sugar in them than American desserts. When an American tastes the average Japanese "sweet" it just doesn't appeal to them at first, but over time, their palates adjust and Japanese sweets eventually taste normal and American desserts are just over-the-top sugary.

This is probably a good example of the phenomenon. It's imported from Japan at a price point of just $3.49 for two of the fluffy cakes. It's much more airy and less dense than the typical cheesecake you'd find here in the US. It's also a good bit less sweet.

At 150 calories per cake, these soufflé cheesecakes are significantly less indulgent than most American desserts. It was a bit off-putting to me at first. When I see the word "cheesecake," I want something rich and heavy. To be fair, the word "soufflé" suggests something a little lighter.

By the end of my cake, the relatively understated flavor had grown on me. The cream cheese, milk, lemon, and tapioca provided a more subtle dessert flavor than I'm used to, but it's not inferior by any means. The product went great with strawberries, just as the serving suggestion on the packaging indicated.

Sonia loved hers from first bite. She would buy this again in a heartbeat. I'd happily eat it again, and I might dress it up with some different berries or even a dollop of whipped cream.

Available for a limited time only. Just a hunch, but this will probably be unavailable by the time TJ's fall stuff rolls in next month. Found in the frozen section—simply thaw for three hours in the fridge to prepare. Eight and a half out of ten stars from Sonia. I'll go with seven and a half for Trader Joe's Japanese Soufflé Cheesecakes.

Bottom line: 8 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Old Fashioned

Neither Sonia nor I had ever tried an Old Fashioned prior to picking up this product. Sonia, in particular, had always wanted to try one. The drink originated in the late 19th century, with bar patrons requesting that drinks be prepared "the old fashioned way."

I'm not sure how they prepared drinks "the new way" by 1880s standards, but folks were apparently craving nothing but whiskey, bitters, sugar, and water. That's basically what we have here. It's a mixed drink, but it's still nice and simple.

We've got a quality American bourbon, lightly buttery and sweet, balanced out by orange bitters in the background. On ice, with an orange slice and maybe a cherry or two, the drink is still whiskey forward, but it's not as harsh as drinking straight liquor. It has all the niceties of a fancy cocktail while still packing a punch in the spirits department.

The 750 mL bottle is 35% alcohol by volume, and it's got some classy, timeless artwork on the label. Sonia's a graphic designer, and she absolutely loves the packaging on this product. It's quite convenient having everything pre-mixed and ready to pour.

At $19.99 for the fifth, it's a pretty decent bargain, too. We'd both buy again. Eight out of ten stars from me for Trader Joe's Old Fashioned. Sonia will go with eight and a half out of ten.

Bottom line: 8.25 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Chocolate & Peanut Butter Lover's Nut Mix

Well, this product was released around Valentine's Day and for some strange reason is still around. It's an unusual mix of nuts, cookies, pretzels, and mini peanut butter cups. At first, neither Sonia nor I were particularly enamored with it. It seemed dry and kind of boring.

But over time, it grew on both of us. I think for me it was the uniqueness of the elements and the plethora of almonds and cashews in the bag. For Sonia, it was the absence of "milk chocolate gems" which seem to make an appearance in nearly all of Trader Joe's snack mixes that put this blend over the top into winning territory for her. Let's break it down ingredient by ingredient, as we've done in the past.

First up, Trader Joe's Tiniest Chocolate Chip Cookies. They're probably the most unnecessary element in the mix. At least at one point, TJ's sold these by themselves in a resealable bag. They got a 6.5 out of 10 on this blog. So...they're just kinda "meh." Plus, this is a chocolate and peanut butter lover's mix, not a chocolate chip cookie lover's mix.

Next, let's look at the pretzel sticks. Also somewhat pointless, but some type of pretzels generally get thrown into every trek mix/trail mix/nut mix/snack mix in existence. They add crunch and saltiness, but again, do they really have a place in a chocolate and peanut butter mix?

Mini Milk Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups. Okay, now we're talking. With plenty of milk chocolate and peanut butter in every little cup, these things are great. They make up for the humdrum cookies and pretzel sticks. In fact, if there were too many of these guys in the mix, it might be a bit too much chocolate and peanut butter.

Almonds. Whole almonds, roasted, covered in sea salt. Very nice. I guess you have to love almonds in addition to chocolate and peanut butter. Fortunately, both the beautiful wifey and I do.

Cocoa dusted dark chocolate almonds. More almonds, but with a twist this time. They have a layer of dark chocolate on them. A bit of dark chocolate in the mix is interesting. It provides a slightly richer flavor and a bit more complexity to the overall taste of the snack.

Cashews. It's getting pretty nutty in here now. Gotta love cashew halves. They just bring even more rich, nut-tacular flavor.

Finally, peanuts. Wait. There are no peanuts in a peanut butter lover's mix? Version 2.0 should totally have peanuts. If I were the mix master, I would lose the little cookies and throw in peanuts, for sure.

$5.49 for the 12 oz resealable bag. Kosher. In the end, the lack of peanuts and inclusion of a couple of superfluous elements will put me in the "not bad" territory. I'll spring for seven and a half stars out of ten on Trader Joe's Chocolate & Peanut Butter Lover's Nut Mix. Sonia will go with a full star more than me: eight and a half out of ten stars.

Bottom line: 8 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Italian-Style Wedding Soup

When I do reviews like these, I'm always torn over how to handle my prep for the post. On one hand, I can do a bunch of research and learn as much as possible about a particular offering, maybe read another review or two about the product at hand, particularly ones written by folks who are familiar with the dish, find out the history of the item and get a nice brief but broad education before I sample the food and share my thoughts.

On the other hand, I can just dive in with no expectations and no preconceived ideas about what something is or is not supposed to be. I think I sound a little smarter when I go the former route, but I might be a tad more honest if I go the latter route.

All that to say, I know nothing about Italian wedding soup and have never had it to the best of my knowledge, and I've decided to go the no-prep route on this fine occasion. The first thing that jumps out at me: this Italian wedding soup hails from Canada rather than Italy. That's fine. I'm sure there are plenty of Italian-Canadians that have carried on their proud soup tradition in the great white north just the same as grandma used to make in the old country.

The soup: it's a typical chicken broth with teeny tiny round pasta balls, carrot bits, beef meatballs, and little green flakey things I assume are parsley. The heartiest and most flavorsome of the elements are, of course, the meatballs. They're nice and soft, and their flavor is pleasant, but they're still not the most pungent meatballs I've ever had. They have egg whites, sheep's milk, and Romano cheese in them, but they don't taste quite as robust as their ingredients might make them sound.

The carrots and acini di pepe are even less potent, but they do add a nice selection of textures to the overall mouthfeel. The parsley adds some additional visual appeal and does...you know, whatever parsley is supposed to do.

So, I mean, this isn't the greatest soup I've had from Trader Joe's, but it's not the worst, either. It's vaguely like many chicken noodle soups I've tried in terms of overall taste and comfort food value, but with small beef meatballs instead of chicken.

In the end, I would turn to an Italian and ask, "Did those Canucks do your soup justice?" Because I honestly don't know myself. It's decent soup, but I would not seek it out again.

$4.99 for the 22 oz glass jar. Refrigerate after opening. It has come to my attention that this soup is not necessarily served at actual Italian nuptials. Go figure. The "wedding" part has something to do with a marriage of flavors or something silly like that. 

Six and a half stars out of ten from me for Trader Joe's Italian-Style Wedding Soup. Sonia's had Italian wedding soup from Progresso at least once. She liked it a bit more than this selection, flavor-wise, but notes that it has significantly more sodium than this soup from TJ's. Sonia will go with seven out of ten stars.

Bottom line: 6.75 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Spicy Mango Habanero Guacamole

Well, shoot. If mango can work with pico de gallo, who's to say it can't work in guacamole? Avocado, mango, onion, jalapeño, bell pepper, and habanero pepper. That doesn't sound half bad.

And it isn't. It's actually surprisingly delicious. The mango gives the whole thing a bright, sweet zip. The rest? It's like regular guac minus the tomato. I've never been a huge fan of raw tomato, so it's a step in the right direction as far as I'm concerned.

Sonia's a tomato-lover, but even she loves the refreshing uniqueness of this dip. It's great on chips. Isn't all guacamole great on tortilla chips? It's just as good if not better on fish tacos. We imagine it would work with shrimp tacos, chicken tacos, and probably even classic ground beef tacos—but we can tell you from experience that white fish, beans, and cheese in corn tortillas blend beautifully with mango guac.

We polished off the tub on the same day we opened it. At 35 calories per serving, we really don't feel too bad about doing that. We have no major complaints other than the word "spicy" in the title. I mean, it does contain jalapeños and habaneros, but they're well-tempered by the other ingredients and there's not much more than a faint residual heat, at least by our standards.

Would we buy it again? You betcha. $3.49 for the 10 oz tub. Kosher. Found in the refrigerated section. Eight and a half out of ten stars from me for Trader Joe's Spicy Mango Habanero Guacamole. The beautiful wifey will spring for nine stars.

Bottom line: 8.75 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Uncured Turkey Bacon

The texture of this turkey bacon is the star of the show here. It might be the best textured bacon I've ever had. It's "meatier" than your typical turkey bacon, it's thick, and it's decidedly not greasy.

You can still get the bacon nice and crispy if that's the way you like it. I don't like my bacon super charred or overly crispy. I like it just a tad chewy and somewhat soft. This product is perfect for that.

I wish I could be just as positive about the taste. Unfortunately, it's a little on the bland side. I've had turkey bacon that's delicious and succulent, but this one is lacking in that department by my reckoning. Sonia agrees, though she's not as displeased as I am. There's very little in the way of "hardwood smoked" flavor, too.

We're fans of Jennie-O turkey bacon. That brand uses white and dark meat in their product, while this one only uses turkey thighs. I'm on record more than once stating that I greatly prefer white meat poultry over dark meat, so that could be at least part of the problem.

Still, if you're making an egg sandwich or a BLT or something along those lines, you've got cheese or mayo and multiple other ingredients picking up the slack that might be left by not-so-flavorful turkey bacon, and there's nothing offensive about the taste either, so we won't shaft it too badly in the score department. Plus, it's got that amazing texture...

$3.99 for eight slices of bacon. Would buy again. We'll go with seven and a half out of ten in the end.

Bottom line: 7.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Crunchy Chili Onion Sprinkle Seasoning Blend

At least one of our YouTube viewers mentioned this product in a couple comments, and we finally got around to trying it. So glad we did. Thanks, Jane Doe. I wish we could go back in time and add this to our big discussion about our favorite TJ's seasonings. We like the original Chili Onion Crunch product quite a bit, but this one surpasses it in the flavor department by a good margin.

The original condiment is certainly a bit crunchier than this one, although there is a distinct crunch element here as well, in the form of crispy fried onion pieces. I was never super enthused about the oiliness of the original topping, and we definitely don't have anything like that here. It's dry as a bone. That's a good thing IMO. I think it actually makes this product more versatile.

Flavor-wise, this blend is absolutely delicious. It's robust, zesty, and spicy—but not too spicy. It's a heat that you feel in your chest at least as much as your mouth. It tastes like sea salt, onion, garlic, chili, and pepper all mixed together.

It has a bit of brown sugar in the mix, too, so it's slightly sweet. I don't know if I've ever had szechuan pepper before, but that's one of the many elements in this mix, and it very well may be the magic ingredient. I'm not sure. 

This may be my new favorite seasoning from Trader Joe's. Nay. This may be my favorite seasoning blend, period.

$1.99 for the 2.64 oz shaker. Kosher. Nine and a half out of ten from me for Trader Joe's Crunchy Chili Onion Sprinkle Seasoning Blend. The beautiful wifey will go with nine out of ten stars.

Bottom line: 9.25 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Strawberry Mochi

It seemed like for a long time, Trader Joe's mainly just carried Mikawaya brand mochi. In fact, Mikawaya mochi was the first ever non-Trader Joe's brand product that we reviewed on this blog. It was also the first ever dessert item we reviewed on this blog, a full 15 years ago this month.

Slowly, TJ's rolled out their own line of mochi with specialty flavors like mango and pumpkin pie. Mikawaya brand suffered from a few recalls of their products throughout the years and eventually, Trader Joe's just started offering their own classic flavors like vanilla and, of course, strawberry. 

This is the fist time we've tried Trader Joe's own strawberry, but we've had Mikawaya's version from TJ's many times throughout the years. Internet rumors suggest Bubbie's Ice Cream is Joe's supplier for their own line of mochi.

Well, shoot, these strawberry mochi are delicious...but maybe not quite as delicious as the Mikawaya strawberry..? The rice shell seems much stiffer on these for some reason. I guess we did experience something similar with the vanilla flavor we reviewed in 2019.

Odd that these and a few other flavors would be so stiff and starchy while products like Trader Joe's Blood Orange Mochi have both stellar taste and texture. It seems to bother Sonia a bit more than it bothers me. Pro tip: let the mochi thaw more than the five minutes suggested on the box.

$4.99 for six mochi. Kosher. Gluten free. Found in the frozen dessert section. Would probably opt for one of the newfangled gimmicky flavors or Mikawaya brand before purchasing this exact product again. Seven stars out of ten from me. Five out of ten from Sonia.

Nathan's score: 7 out of 10.

Sonia's score: 5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Okonomiyaki

Sonia and I both love most Japanese food: sushi, tempura, yakitori, ramen, you name it... Trader Joe's Karaage wasn't what we were expecting or hoping for, but we're grateful to TJ's for introducing us to it, and we're eager to try other versions of it.

Okonomiyaki? Never heard of that one, either. But we'll gladly try it. It's a Japanese vegetable pancake. Apparently "okonomi" means "as you like it" or "your preference." I imagine there are a few Burger Kings in Japan and they have an ad campaign that goes something like "At K of the B, you can have it okonomi." Sorry, sorry. Bad joke. <ahem>

Anyway, this particular version of okonomiyaki contains cabbage, onion, wheat flour, and yam—and it comes with a sweet soy sauce and dried skipjack tuna flakes as toppings. Interesting. We'll air fry this product at 360°F for about five or six minutes on each side. Folks online said to add Kewpie brand mayo for an authentic Japanese experience. Fortunately, Sonia loves Kewpie mayo and has a bottle on hand for just such an occasion.

The verdict? We like the taste and texture a lot. It's savory and succulent. The texture reminded me of a crab cake in a way. Sonia likened the product to a latke but with cabbage and onion rather than potato.

They actually give you enough sauce and tuna flakes in the package. The Kewpie mayo wasn't a bad pairing, but Sonia and I both prefer the product without it. It's plenty wet with the okonomi sauce alone—plus the product itself is quite moist even after a good 10-12 minutes in the air fryer.

$4.99 for the 10 oz package, found in the frozen section. Would buy again. Eight out of ten stars from me for Trader Joe's Okonomiyaki Japanese Vegetable Pancake. Sonia will go with nine out of ten.

Bottom line: 8.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Sparkling Tea & Lemonade and Trader Joe's Sparkling Matcha Lemonade

Some of you youngsters may be unaware, but there was a famous golfer in the 1960s named Arnold Palmer that popularized mixing iced tea and lemonade. At some point, they just started calling the mixture by his name and even folks like me who never watched golf and are way too young to remember him in his heyday would occasionally order "an Arnold Palmer" at restaurants and such. Folks that grew up in the 80s and 90s might remember him from ESPN and Pennzoil commercials. He was still a household name even if you didn't pay much attention to golf. But yeah. Lemonade and iced tea = Arnold Palmer.

I mean, it is an outstanding combo. Now matcha and lemonade? That seems a little weird to me, but hey, I'm game for a sip or two. I'll try just about anything once. Sonia is a little more into matcha and green tea than I am, and she thinks matcha lemonade sounds pretty enticing.

<tries product, shoots video>

Shockingly, the beautiful wifey likes the black tea and lemonade combo a little more than she likes the matcha tea and lemonade combo. I like them both about the same, to be honest. Neither are particularly syrupy or sugary. I mean, they're a tad sweet, but they're also a tad tart and tea-ish. The carbonation is a nice addition. That's one thing a traditional Arnold Palmer never had: fizz. I always enjoy fizz.

Refreshing? Yes. A bit of caffeine in the tea part of the beverage? I would think so. Excessive sugar? Nope. Just 80 calories per 12 oz can.

I think I like sparkling juice beverages better than these tea and lemonade dealies in the end. Sonia thinks they have their place. She'd consider a repurchase, particularly of Trader Joe's Sparkling Tea & Lemonade.

$1.99 for each individual can. Not sure if they sell a 4-pack or not. Trader Joe's Sparkling Matcha Lemonade is showing "not available" on traderjoes.com as of the time of writing this post, but its counterpart is alive and well. I'll go with seven stars a piece for both tea and lemonade beverages. Sonia will throw out seven and a half stars for the matcha drink and an even eight for the black tea version. Our scores are still close enough that we'll just average out the points.

Bottom line: Trader Joe's Sparkling Matcha Lemonade: 7.25 out of 10.

Bottom line: Trader Joe's Sparkling Tea & Lemonade: 7.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Tom Yum Seasoned Snack Mix

I've had Tom Yum soup from a legit Thai restaurant exactly once in my life. It was a vegetarian version, while traditional Tom Yum is usually served with shrimp. I remember it being somewhat spicy. There were lots of veggies and tofu swimming around in a thick, flavorful Thai soup. It was delicious. I've tried plenty of other Thai curry dishes, too, and in general, I'm a big fan.

If you'd have told me that there was a dry snack mix that flaunts all the complexity and richness of real Thai soup, I'd have told you that it wasn't possible. And if you'd have told me that said snack mix was even spicier than your typical restaurant Thai curry, I'd have said "I gotta try this snack mix!"

And in my opinion, this mix comes dangerously close to capturing the sweet, spicy taste of Thai Tom Yum. Of course, the format is totally different than a bowl of soup, but the flavors are all there: lemongrass, chili powder, lime juice, garlic, coconut, paprika, soy sauce, and shallots. 

The main chunks in the mix are cashews, fava beans, sticky rice, and peas. Of course, they're all dried and crunchy, in the manner of your typical snack mix or trail mix.

Please note: there are dried red peppers in the mix that are VERY spicy. I got one in my very first handful. Fortunately, I recognized the little bugger as something extremely hot and took the tiniest nibble of it. I may have falsely attributed a higher level of spice to the rest of the mix since my mouth was on fire after sampling the red pepper. 

I will admit, this mix would be terrible for taking on an actual hike since it makes you so thirsty and the risk of throwing one of those peppers in your mouth whole would stand to ruin your entire day. Perhaps it's for the best that there are only a few of them scattered throughout the bag.

All things considered, Sonia enjoys the mix too and thinks it's a good approximation of Tom Yum soup. She thinks it's something she wouldn't be in the mood for very often, however. Me? I think I found my new favorite snack mix of all time. I might not eat it every day, but I'd definitely like to have some on hand in the pantry on a full-time basis.

$3.49 for the 5.29 oz resealable bag. Product of Thailand. Would buy again. Nine out of ten stars from me for Trader Joe's Tom Yum Seasoned Snack Mix. Sonia will go with eight out of ten.

Bottom line: 8.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's S'mores Bars

Truth be told, I didn't do a lot of overnight camping as a kid. I went to day camps for various sports and crafts. I went out to friends' places—people that lived on farms or acreages—and we'd occasionally have a bonfire or a campfire of sorts. And of course there were church camps and family camps, but I was usually just a daytime guest.

Even still, someone would inevitably break out the s'mores. At block party barbecues and school field days, at least one person had to throw marshmallows on a smoldering charcoal grill even if there wasn't an open flame. Once they had browned just enough, you'd tuck them in between two Honey Maid graham crackers right next to a little square of Hershey's chocolate. The heat from the marshmallow would melt the chocolate just enough to make it gooey. I always managed to get some on my clothing. But other than dark brown chocolate stains on khaki shorts, it was pure bliss downing a fresh-made s'more on a hot summer evening.

Since then, we've seen a few offerings from Trader Joe's with the moniker "s'mores" slapped on them. Not a single one has done the name justice. And this product is no different, unfortunately.

Trader Joe's Campfire S'mores Bar

Trader Joe's S'mores Frozen Sandwiches

Trader Joe's S'mashing S'mores

Trader Joe's S'mores Ice Cream

We've got a run-of-the-mill, store-bought, pre-packaged brownie as the base for these "s'mores." There's a very thin layer of marshmallow creme at the top and an equally thin layer of honey graham on the bottom. Had they beefed up the top and bottom layers, we might have been looking at a decent score on this product, but as it is, too much rides on the brownie portion of the dessert, and it's just not special enough to warrant all the calories and sugar here.

We tried them at room temperature, simply removed from the freezer and thawed for three hours. We also threw them in the air fryer as per the instructions. I liked the room temperature version just as well as the air fried one, but Sonia preferred them warmed up. Alas, in the end, we both had the same overall sentiment towards the product.

$4.99 for six bars. Kosher. Found in the frozen section. Neither Sonia nor I would buy Trader Joe's S'mores Bars again. Six out of ten stars from me. Six out of ten from the beautiful wifey as well.

Bottom line: 6 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Strawberry Fields Gummy Candy

Well, the title of this product is clearly a reference to the famous Beatles song. Strawberry fields forever, indeed. Do these gummy candies taste like a field of strawberries? Sorta.

You get a nice whiff of sweet strawberry upon tearing open the plastic bag. It's not overwhelming, but it is distinctly strawberry-ish. You'll note that the ingredients list makes no mention of "strawberries" or "strawberry puree" or anything like that. The closest we'll get is "natural flavors." Shoot. That could be just about anything. I think they need to pass a law that forces companies to list said "natural flavors." I mean bugs could be considered "natural flavors," right? I'm not saying that's what they used here, but I mean...who really knows?

Flavor-wise, they're similar to the way they smell. They taste like a sugary strawberry candy. Both Sonia and I want them to taste more like actual strawberry. I guess we wanted something that was made with strawberry puree or something like that. I mean, the Strawberry Doodle Cookies had strawberry puree in them, and we loved those...

There are two distinct shapes/sizes of the candy. They both taste more or less the same, but I feel like the larger pieces are a tad softer and squishier than their tiny counterparts. The texture on these candies is well above par, particularly those big strawberries.

Sonia is always pining for good sour candy. She wishes there were a truly sour version of these gummies. I mean, there is a faint tartness in them in the same way real strawberries can be somewhat tart, but by and large, these are simply sweet and sugary.

$2.29 for the non-resealable 7.05 oz bag. Product of France. Summer seasonal product. They're not bad, but we probably wouldn't buy again if they come back next year. Seven out of ten stars from both Sonia and me for Trader Joe's Strawberry Fields Gummy Candy.

Bottom line: 7 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Organic Tart Cherry Fruit Spread

Remember that Red Tart Cherry Juice? Didn't you ever wanna just dunk your toast in that stuff to give it that sweet-tart cherry flavor? I know I did. But then I'd reconsider after contemplating how soggy my toast would get.

Now I can have that sweet-tart cherry flavor on my toast without the wet mess with Trader Joe's Organic Tart Cherry Fruit Spread. Dang this stuff is good. It's sweet and tart and very thick.

It's not chunky, however. There aren't any cherry pieces in the spread. It's quite smooth. It works that way. It coats everything you spread it on with a dense layer of sour cherry goodness.

We tried it on those Liège waffles we reviewed earlier in the week, and it was scrumptious. We got the whole thing on camera and you can watch us try it for the first time. Since then, we've had it on regular toast and it's superb that way, too. Sonia likes to have it on bread alongside sunflower butter almost like peanut butter and jelly. I was skeptical at first, but I must admit, it's a weirdly good combo.

The ingredients list is nice and short. We're talking top-shelf in terms of quality. Add this one to the long list of winning condiments and sauces we've found at TJ's over the last 15 years.

$4.29 for the 15 oz jar. Certified organic. Would definitely buy again. I'll give Trader Joe's Organic Tart Cherry Fruit Spread eight and a half out of ten stars. Sonia will go with nine out of ten stars.

Bottom line: 8.75 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Brioche Style Liège Waffles

These waffles are individually wrapped in cellophane. I didn't see that coming. I figured they'd all be sitting in a plastic tray. They're fairly soft and moist and I guess the individual wrapping is meant to keep them that way.

You can eat them straight from the wrapper in the manner of a cookie, or you can remove them from their packaging, toss them into the toaster, add a bit of syrup or what have you, and eat them like miniature waffles. We've tried them both ways and both are pretty tasty. 

Of course the convenience factor is a little higher when you're just snacking on them out of the little baggie, but the indulgence factor is higher when you heat them and add some fixins. We're eager to try them with some vanilla ice cream on top.

They're a tad sticky. I guess it's the "pearl sugar" on them. They're also a bit oily and buttery, too, even before adding any toppings—they do indeed contain both egg and butter. They're nice and sweet, dense and slightly chewy.

The waffles are shelf stable for a couple months. They do come with a "best by" sticker despite being individually wrapped. They'd probably just get a little stale if you let them hang around too long, but for most of you, that won't be a problem.

$3.99 for six waffles, imported from Belgium. Pretty good value. Would probably buy again. Sonia will go with eight out of ten stars for Trader Joe's Brioche Style Liège Waffles with Pearl Sugar. I'll throw out seven and a half stars.

Bottom line: 7.75 out of 10.