Day 334- Pumpkin Spiced Pumpkin Seeds

Confession:  I bought this product because I thought it was the most over the top, jumped the shark, ridiculous PUMPKIN PRODUCT that Trader Joe’s could possibly make.  If there is ONE THING in the world that DOES NOT NEED pumpkin spice, it is PUMPKIN SEEDS!  I thought, “Get real, Trader Joe’s!  You have taken it tooooo far this time with your pumpkin obsession!”.

Huh?  Why put PUMPKIN SPICE on PUMPKIN SEEDS?

Here is what the bag looks like

I packed up this ridiculous bag of Pumpkin Spiced Pumpkin Seeds and brought it with me to Omaha, Nebraska, where we were heading for the Thanksgiving holiday and to celebrate my dad’s birthday.  Then I enlisted several family members to be guest reviewers!!  Here is what everyone thought:

Me:  I actually like these better than I expected.  I like regular pumpkin seeds but thought the concept of putting “pumpkin spice” on them would do nothing but ruin them.  Luckily, it turns out the “pumpkin spice” just sort of tastes like a sugar coating.  They are sort of nice!  I think one bag per pumpkin season might be enough, but they aren’t something that you should purposely avoid.  I would give them a 3.75. 

Annette (my sister) – “I wasn’t if I was going to like them when I heard the name “Pumpkin Spiced Pumpkin Seeds”.  But I don’t taste pumpkin spice.  I do taste something sugary, I am not sure what.  Probably just SUGAR.  Sugary sugar!  They are very, very yummy!  I would top a salad with these or just eat them as a snack.  I wish they had a little bit more salt. They have a coating like you find on a sugar coated almond.  I would give these a 4.5.”

Mid bite - Annette taste testing Pumpkin Spiced Pumpkin Seeds.

 Zach (partner of my nephew Jordan) – “I like ‘em.  I normally – with pumpkin seeds I prefer them to be more savory than sweet.  But these are obviously sweet - they have a distinctive kind of sugary crust on them.   As far as pumpkin spice is concerned, it is not particularly overwhelming.  I think it is kind of absent mostly.  They remind me of Bavarian spiced nuts.  Overall, I think these are pretty good.  I would personally give these a 2.75.” 

Zach, co-host of the gathering and a pretty hard scorer.

Trevor (my nephew, he wasn’t excited to try these because he doesn’t like pumpkin spice) – “They are alright.  Nothing to write home about.  I don’t really taste pumpkin spice.  I dunno…  I am trying to decide what I taste…  hmmm…  They are kind of addictive but I am not sure why!  They are alright.  But I am not a big SEED guy, so…  They are not BAD, but they are just not that GOOD.  I give them a 2.5.”

Dang - Trevor is a tough grader, too!

Elizabeth (partner of my nephew Trevor) and Hadley (their 5 month old daughter, who didn’t actually taste the pumpkin seeds cuz she doesn’t have any teeth yet…) – “They are good.  They taste like coated sunflower seeds.  I do not taste pumpkin spice.  But I can’t tell you what it tastes like though…  I would give them a 4.”

Not a great photo of Elizabeth and baby Hadley was sleeping, shhhhh

Nate (my nephew) – (note:  Nate tried these without knowing what in the world he was eating, we didn’t tell him what they were) “These taste like those sugared peanuts that Grandma Mary used to make.  But they are not peanuts.  I think they are PUMPKIN SEEDS.  (I asked if he tasted any pumpkin SPICE)  Nope.  No pumpkin spice.  But they are not bad.  They have too much flavor to put on top of chicken or something, but I would eat them by themselves.  I would give them a 3.75.”

Nate is the king of funny faced photos

David – “I think it is great that these have the advantage of slight sugar but they do not give up the saltiness that you need for the nut-ness.  I like ‘em!  I am gonna give ‘em a 4.5.”

David likes 'em!  And isn't the Christmas tree behind him gorgeous???

Well, it is unanimous – Pumpkin Spiced Pumpkin Seeds DO NOT taste of pumpkin spice.  And all reviewers agreed, they are better for that.  I guess I am not the only one who thinks that the flavor of “pumpkin spice” is over used and over rated! 

I am not sure if you can still find these at TJ’s this season, since the shelves have morphed into a chocolate filled holiday wonderland.  But if they are gone this year and you see them next October, do not be scared off by the name – “pumpkin spice” is nowhere to be tasted.

Price – $2.99

Rating (average of all raters listed above) – 3.75

Day 333 - Montezuma's Chocolate Truffle Collection

Every holiday season, especially around Hanukkah and Christmas, Trader Joe’s has new, unique products.  They seem to have an inordinate amount of them this year.  One such product is MONTEZUMA’S CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE COLLECTION. 

I cannot be the only one who thinks this product name is a fail…  The one and only thing I think of when I hear “Montezuma’s” is…  Do I have to say it?  I mean, you are thinking it, too, right???  Ok, ok, ok – I think of MONTEZUMA’S REVENGE!!!

And it was because of that negative association with the name that I didn’t even want to taste any of these.  I was afraid one bite twould send me running to the bathroom.  So I let David eat them.  J

LOVELY truffles

This collection is billed as “innovative british chocolate” (all lowercase theirs, apparently spelling british without capitalizing it is innovative!).  The collection contains truffles that go by these lovely names:

·         Columbian Cappucino

·         American Idol

·         Sweet Summertime

·         Tiger Tiger

·         Eclipse

·         Secret Squirrel

·         Milking Maid

The box is gorgeous.  It has a lovely design, great colors, and is tied with a fat, black grosgrain ribbon.  Very classy!  All of the truffles are also beautiful and very well displayed.  And I love that they come with a little guide that has the names, descriptions, and photos of each truffle on it.

Here is what David, who normally adores chocolates, thought:  “I ate one that had white bits around the top and wasn’t too happy with it – it was too hard.  (I think he must have meant Columbian Cappuccino.)  They all seem too hard to me, they should be a bit more yielding.  This one (Tiger Tiger) has quite a nice truffle on the inside – a deep, dark, rich truffle.  This one is not so bad.  But they all could do with being a bit more yielding.  And a bit buttery-er would be nice.” 

(I asked him if he would give this item as a GIFT, as that is what it looks like it was intended for to me):  “It depends on who the gift recipient WAS and how I felt about them…  If they were the kind of person that loves pretty packages then I might give it to them and presume to think that because it looked so nice that they were enjoying the chocolates.  If it were someone who really appreciated chocolates I probably would not.”

Pretty cool logo, but the name....

I decided that I owed it to you, the readers, to taste one of these, even though I feared it might result in Montezuma’s Revenge…  So I ate a Columbian Cappuccino.  Surprisingly, I like these more than Mr. David Chocolate Lover!  The outside was hard, so when I bit it I lost a few bits.  Be warned – do not bite these over a white rug (especially if it is not your white rug!) cuz chocolate bits are going to falls.  But the truffle was nice.  And fancy.  Not to mention, pretty. 

I give bonus points to any truffles/chocolates that come with a KEY.
Seriously, it makes the whole experience so much more fun.

I checked out website of the chocolatier in the UK – company website here  I see you can buy the same box of truffles directly from them for 11.99 British, which when I convert it at today’s rates equals $18.22 US!!!  Yowsa, even after shipping these little chocolate balls to the USA, adding what must be a mark-up, and putting them on the shelves, Trader Joe’s STILL MANAGES to give us an amazing bargain at 8.99!!!!  Go Joe!!!

I did a bit of research to see how this all came down, and I see that this is Montezuma’s first foray into America.  They inked the deal in August 2015 with TJ’s and shipped 20,000 boxes of those truffles.  So if you want one, you best grab it soon.  article about Montezuma working with TJ's here

These truffles would make a fine gift.  But I really do think that they really should go back to the drawing board on the name. 

P.S. - TODAY IS MY DAD'S 80TH BIRTHDAY!!!!  HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD.  I LOVE YOU!

Dad holding me in 1966.  Neither of us look QUITE like this any more.  :)

Price – $8.99

Rating - 4

Day 332 - Sweet Bites

We bought this box of a dozen petite cakes before my sister and brother in law came to stay with us for a few days.  I thought it would be a nice dessert one evening.  Then it turned out we were so busy – it was go, go, go the whole time they were here – that we never cooked a proper meal and sat down long enough for dessert!

Even the box is pretty!  Find them in the frozen section

So when we were invited for a Sunday brunch I immediately thought, “BRING THE SWEET BITES!”.  And of course, because of the blog (and because of what an annoying brunch guest I can be…), I asked other guests to help me REVIEW them.  J

Hey- I could bring THESE to the brunch!  :)

The box contains 12 petite cakes, 4 of each variety.  The flavors are:

·         Chocolate and Coffee Opera Cake

·         Raspberry Macaron Aux Framboises Cake

·         Caramel and Chocolate Cake

As you will see, opinions were varied.  Tasters included my nephew Chris (who works at an ice cream shop), brother-in-law Greg (who drives a Prius), David (my partner, Greg’s brother, who also drives a Prius), Stan the Sausage Maker (this is not a hold-over moniker from his frat days, he actual makes fancy sausages), and Doug (from New Mexico, where he can hike to gorgeous locations and look at amazing scenery while eating lunch).

I displayed them on this super pretty plate

Here is how it went down: 

David (ate 2 cakes):  “I think this box is a good mix of cakes.  I like the SMALLNESS.  I like the light, fluffiness of the mousse at the heart of them.  I liked the crunchiness at the bottom of whatever the gelatin topped one is (editor’s note:  that is the Caramel and Chocolate Cake).  I like the balance of the chocolate and coffee one.  I haven’t had the raspberry one yet, but I will!  I give these a 4.”

Doug:  (ate a white cake – Raspberry Macaron Aux Framboises Cake) “I am guessing that was RASPBERRY CREAM.  I am a liberal scorer – I would give it a 4.  I believe in grade creep!  The cream taste was very light and fluffy – not too heavy.  It was complimented by a little bit of fruit and the crust.  It was quite nice!  It was light and I like light things!”

Oops - snapped you with your eyes closed, sorry Doug!  But at least you got a yummy cake out of it.  

Chris (age 17) (ate a cake with gelatin on top – Caramel and Chocolate Cake): “ I think this is a very nice blend of flavors…  the way the cheesecake sort of flavor mixes with the crunchiness at the bottom.  The gelatin adds a nice TEXTURE to the mouth.  It is very interesting.  I would give it a 3.75.”  I asked him, “What is the flavor?” to which he replied, “I have absolutely no idea…”. 

Chris - ate the whole cake and still couldn't identify the flavor.

Greg (Chris’ Dad):  (He ate the same cake as Chris, so I asked him if HE could identify the flavor) “It kind of tastes like a flan.  A bit eggy, caramel-y, with some chocolate notes.  I agree with Chris – the added little delicate crunchiness is a reallllly nice feature.  It is sort of like Rice Krispies!  A think layer of Rice Krispies on it.  I would give it a 4.5!” (Editor’s note:  at the Trader Joe’s dinner party earlier this year Greg was a notoriously hard scorer, so his 4.5 would equal a 5 in most people’s scales J .)

Greg mid-bite - he liked this cake!

Stan (ate a Chocolate and Coffee Opera Cake):  “I think the coffee cream is very nice – it has a good coffee flavor.  The CHOCOLATE leaves a lot to be desired.  It doesn’t taste like chocolate to me.  These are good for dieters.  If you are counting calories and can eat only one, these are a good size.  I would give them a 3.5.”

Stan checking out the cake.  

I myself did not eat a cake, since I was stuffed from Eggs Benedict, a caramel roll, and fruit salad.  But I trust the other reviewer’s opinions.  I think that overall these make really sweet little desserts.  They look beautiful all laid out on a plate.  They would be fun to serve if you were pretending to be fancy and busting out a lovely tea pot and china tea cups and playing “tea time”. 

Nice variety of cakes at a reasonable price

Price – $6.99 (which works out to about .60 cents per petite cake)

Rating – 4 (average of 5 scores)

Day 331 - Cherry Cider

16 years ago today David and I took the plunge.  We had been together for what felt like an eternity already, and the whole wedding part was more party and formality than anything else, but this Thanksgiving season I am sure thankful to have him in my life.  Here is the picture from our surprise wedding invitations - "Susan and David are finally taking the plunge".  Fun times!

Snapped the shot on the first attempt - thank goodness!!  Taking the plunge was never so fun.

But enough anniversary celebrating, you are here for a REVIEW.  Here goes!

I bought this Cherry Cider in an attempt at fairness.  I felt bad that I was so heavily favoring the Honey Crisp Apple Cider (a-maaaa-zing!  reviewed here).  I thought I should spread the juice love out a bit, so in a moment of weakness I forego the Honey Crisp for this Cherry Cider.

 

Found on the juice shelves (not refrigerated)

Big mistake.

It tastes like COUGH SYRUP.  In fact, it SMELLS like cough syrup.  So I get the cough syrup scent before I even get a dribble of this juice in my mouth.  I.  hate.  Cough.  Syrup.  I would rather cough than drink cough syrup.  (Unless I have one of those horrible coughs where you have hacked soooo much that every muscle in your back hurts…  If I have THAT kind of cough, I will consider taking a tiny spoonful of cough syrup…)  So imagine, me, a woman who hates even a spoonful of cough syrup, being confronted by a juice glass full.  Ewwww.

I feel I should point out – I like CHERRY STUFF.  So don’t think that I am dismissing this cider simply because it is the same FLAVOR of many cough syrups.  No, cherry itself is tasty.  But this not only tastes of CHERRY, it tastes of CHERRY COUGH SYRUP.  It doesn’t have the consistency of cough syrup, thankfully.  But it has the scent and taste of it.  L 

David’s opinion:  "I don’t like it.  It is too sweet.  It tastes very cherry-ish, and maybe that is the way a cherry cider ought to taste.  But to me it is like drinking the juice at the bottom of a can of cherry pie filler.  I give it a 1.5."

 A sleepy David being forced to drink some cherry cider for a taste test.  Poor guy.

The only reason I am now drinking this juice is to try and get the bit 2 quart container out of our fridge.  I even tried heating it up one afternoon because I was jonesin’ so much for my hot Honey Crisp Apple Cider.  I thought surely it would be better warm.  Nope.  It was HOT cough syrup in a pretty mug.  Yuck. 

The color is also a little off-putting.  It is not red, but it is not pink.  There is a hint of brown to it, making me suspect prune juice.  If I wanted brown juice, I would buy prune juice.  If I want cherry, make it red please (this is probably years of drinking juice tainted with food coloring talking…).  For complete and accurate reporting I just checked the label – no prune juice here, folks. 

Save your money - invest in another juice instead.

The label says it is “cherry flavored juice blend from concentrates with other natural ingredients.  100% juice, no artificial flavors or preservatives”.  There you go – it is healthy, but not tasty. 

I have since gotten more of my favorite cider.  I couldn’t wait to finish the cherry crap to open the honey crisp bottle, so I now have TWO open large bottles of cider in the refrigerator.  Sigh.  Maybe I will pour this cherry stuff down the drain.  I don’t feel like I can return it after having already forced myself to drink half the bottle.

Oh well, you win some, you lose some.  For us, this one is a lose.  I give it a 2.

Price – $3.99

Rating – 1.75 (average of 2 raters)

Day 330 - Toblerone (candy bar)

Damn autocorrect...  Anyway - TAPPY HHANKSGIVING from us to you!!

Hope your Thanksgiving holiday is full of joy, food, and thankfulness.

Now, onto the REVIEW!

This is what it looks like.

Here’s the deal:  you know Toblerone.  It is a famous candy bar.  It is Swiss.  It is in a weirdly shaped box (that is hard to wrap as a gift).  It tastes good.  It is expensive.

Only here’s the tricky part:  at Trader Joe’s, it is NOT expensive!

I know, right??!!!!

Here is it at Trader Joe's - same candy bar you will find everywhere else but for a fraction of the cost

I buy Toblerones once or twice a year as gifts for our niece and nephews (who used to live in Germany).  This is how I know they are difficult to wrap – I have wrapped my share of Toblerones.  I like to not put them in another box before I wrap them – I present them to the kids in all of their triangle shaped glory, only slightly masked by shiny wrapping paper.  It makes me smile – it is the gift that cannot be hidden by mere paper.

So this item is something that you would buy at TJ’s based on price alone.  it is the same candy bar you are going to get at Safeway, Rite Aid, or Target.  Same candy, different price.  BETTER PRICE at TJ’s.

And here is the big twist – because of Toblerone I recently learned that Trader Joe’s ACCEPTS COUPONS!

Bizaare!!!! 

I had never even considered the idea.  Prior to this project I used coupons at other stores when I could.  In fact, I am still clipping coupons out of the Sunday Washington Post (even though I end up throwing most of them away after they expire before I use them these days).  But I saw one the other day for Toblerone so thought I would try it!

It worked!!  The TJ’s cashier was happy to take the coupon!  He said that TJ’s DOES take coupons, but because most of the products are store brand there are not normally coupons that apply.  Only mine did!  Wheee!

So not only did I save a bunch by just choosing to purchase the candy bar at TJ’s instead of across the street at Safeway, I saved EVEN MORE by using a coupon.

Spend a ton for the same thing at Safeway (same size)

Like to waste money?  Go to a drugstore and buy one

OR BE SMART - buy the same exact candy bar, same quality, same size, at Trader Joe's.

Savvy shoppers unite!

Price – $1.99 (even LESS if you have a coupon!)

Rating – 5 (that is a rating for the yumminess of Toblerone & the great price at TJ’s)

Day 329 - Valrhona Advent Calendar

This I believe*:  no matter how much you cut corners, save pennies, and sacrifice, there are some moments when you need to TREAT YOURSELF.  Those special treats are what make all of the thriftiness pay off.  I think this is one of my core values – be careful with your money and time, but once in a while, SPLURGE!!

This advent calendar is one such splurge.

Here it is folks - the Valrhona Advent Calendar 2015

Look, we do not NEED an advent calendar.  We are adults and can pretty much count days on our own without needing to open a little window.

Plus, at our house we do not even RESPECT the days as they are presented to us on any given calendar!  No lie – we have a very large pile of UNOPENED gifts that we got for each other from Christmases and birthdays past.  There they are – all wrapped up neatly with bows, and piled high, shiny, smiling at us, waiting patiently to be opened.  Some are years old!  They are like a great archeological site.  Who knows what is in them??  Certainly not us!  When we decide it is an “open a present day” (the mood strikes every once in a while!) the GIVER of the gift is normally equally as surprised as the RECEIVER, because the present has been wrapped so long no one knows what in the world is in there!  It is exciting!!

All of that is to say, even when we get to the END of this advent calendar, it will not be like the starting gun of some race that announces, “This is it!!!  It is time to begin!  OPEN…  THE…. PRESENTS!!!”.   The end of the advent calendar (for us) will be “OH look, a bigger bar of chocolate on this day!”. 

So although we did not NEED an advent calendar, we bought this one.  There was one for a fraction of the cost sitting right next to it on the Trader Joe’s shelf, but we chose this FANCY ONE.  Because we decided the splurge was worth it at that moment.

In our morning attire (and hair dos) TREATING OURSELVES by opening not one but TWO windows on our new calendar

And it was! 

“Wait…” you may be thinking.  “How do they know it was WORTH IT already?  It is not time to open the first window yet!!”.

Did you learn NOTHING by reading the paragraph above that explains that we do not really respect “correct” holiday dates at our house???  J

Plus, we HAD to try the chocolates in this calendar early if I was going to review it in time for you to rush to your local Trader Joe’s and pick one up, right???

If you think the outside is pretty, wait until you open a door and see the wrapping on a chocolate!!

The concept of this product is the same as other advent calendars – you peel open a little cardboard window everyday and reveal a treat inside.  Only, with THIS one, unlike other advent calendars, you are not greeted by a waxy piece of chocolate made in the shape of a reindeer.  No siree.

Nope.  What you find behind the little doors are lovely petite artisanal chocolate bars.  Really yummy ones.  Wrapped in pretty papers.  They are sort of like the SPA of advent calendar chocolates.  They are like taking a mini vacation to France (in your mouth!).

Look, we have only eaten two of these little chocolates, so we have only tasted two of the flavors.  They were amazingly delicious.  They were very high quality chocolate and not the crazy, wacked out flavor blends that some chocolate companies now think everyone loves.   They are rich, complex, DELICIOUS little chocolate squares.  (Spoiler alert – on the last day of this calendar you get a FULL SIZED VALHRONA CHOCOLATE BAR!!)

This product was pricey.  But we are worth it.

And so are YOU!!!!  In this season of rushing about, cooking, writing cards, baking, and buying/wrapping gifts for other people – make sure you take at least a moment to TREAT YOURSELF.  For us, these chocolates are a good way to do that.  Maybe for you it is taking time to read People magazine cover to cover.  Or getting your nails done.  Or going to a hockey game.

Whatever it is, just remember to TREAT YOURSELF.  That, to me, doesn’t by any means you have to spend  a ton of money.  “Treating myself” sometimes means getting a funky bottle of nail polish.  Or buying a cup of fresh squeezed orange juice and sitting down to savor it.  Treating yourself can be ANYTHING.  DO IT!  And when you do, if anyone says you are being selfish or extravagant, just tell ‘em I told you to do it.

Find it at your TJ's with the other holiday products.  GO TODAY - they are selling out.

If you want to get this particular advent calendar, make sure you hustle to your TJ’s today.  They miiiight already be out, but for your sake I hope not.  And if they are out of this particular advent calendar, TREAT YOURSELF to another one of the fancy holiday items there.  Go for it!  Seriously, do it.  J

Here is a link to the Valhrona website where you can see their gorgeous chocolates.  The only thing I wish it had is a SMELL functionality where it wafted the scent of chocolate through your computer speakers.  click here to see amazing chocolate

Price – an expensive $9.99

Rating – 5, rating based on taste, beauty, joy, and the ability to make us feel pampered

*- credit to NPR for the “This I Believe” concept.  If you have not listened to any “This I Belive”s, you must.  They are really powerful and will make you consider what is important to you.  This I Believe

Day 328 - Fair Trade Organic Guatemalan Coffee

This coffee is extra dark roast and the label says it is “full bodied with cocoa and brown sugar notes.  100% Arabica whole bean coffee”. 

   

It has a really pretty label, don't you think?

It is nice.  We mostly drank it as espresso.  It is strong enough to taste like COFFEE.  That might sound like an odd statement, but we have tried quite a few Trader Joe’s coffees for this project this year and some of them were weak and not very “coffee”ish no matter how I brewed them.  This one has a better coffee taste – you notice it when you drink it.

David’s adjectives to describe this one were:

·         Smooth

·         Bold

·         Rich

(And after he said those out loud, of course , we followed it up with a “Just like you like your women!” remark.)

Look!  The espresso maker he won on Price is Right (no lie!) makes 2 little cups of espresso at once.  Adorable.

He says he has no complaints about this one!  He did acknowledge that he was drinking this one under ideal conditions – very hot in a beautiful espresso cup – and that may have boosted the rating a tiny bit.  J

Ahhhh, a nice cup of coffee is a thing to delight in

We agree that this is one of the better TJ’s coffees.    I have tried to pick a different TJ’s coffee each time we ran out this year so that we would try a bunch of them (so far I think we have tried at least 12 varieties).  Sometimes it if hard to remember which ones we have tried already so I have to bust out my smart phone while at the store and look at this blog to see which ones I have reviewed!

Not a bad price for a good coffee (oops - bit of a spell-o on this sign though)

This is one we will be buying again.

Price – $7.99

Rating – 4.5

Day 327 - Benefactor Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon (2014)

David and I ENJOY grocery shopping.  I know that many people dislike it.  I don’t really “get” that because from my vantage point it is fun!  David and I like it so much that we went grocery shopping on our very first date some 27 years ago!  (Note:  we did NOT shop at a Trader Joe’s on that first date, we went to a Wegman’s in Rochester, NY J ).

Anyway, one fun thing about grocery shopping is that sometimes the store becomes a disco!  Here you see David cutting loose on the “dance floor” at Trader Joe’s (that’s one benefit of having most of the carts out of the cart coral – it becomes a dance floor!).  

I guess the moral of this "we love grocery shopping" story is this:  life is what you make of it.  ENJOY yourself.

  

Go David!  Bust a move!!!  (Clarendon, VA store)

Ok, we haven’t had a wine review since Friday, so let’s fix that!  :)

This is a Cabernet Sauvignon from Southeastern Austrialia.  Well, I mean, WE didn’t go to Southeastern Australia to buy it, but that is where it originated…  Boy I WISH we could go to Australia to pick up a bottle of wine!!  This was our first time tasting this one and I really like it!

This wine is good!  It is fruity.  It is complex without being headache inducingly complex (like the SAT test).  We are reviewing this without looking at the price tag, and David is guessing it is a $9 or $10 bottle of wine.  If it is less than that it is a good bargain!

Isn't this artwork GREAT??

Here's a more "regular" price sign

The label states that this wine is a “celebration of reciprocity”.  Well that sounds pretty high fallutin’. 

David says, “It is rich, full bodied, but not too oaky.  It still has a bit of lightness to it.”

This is a good bottle to keep in the wine rack for just an “after work glass of wine”. And hey, we allowed ourselves sto look at the price tag now - it's only FIVE BUCKS!  That's half of what David anticipated.  It's a good one folks, get a bottle.

Price - $4.99

Rating – 4

Day 326 - Chicken Parmesan Lollipops

We had these treats when my sister and brother-in-law were in town visiting recently.  I forced them to try and them and be guest reviewers (it didn’t really take much forcing, they were totally game).  We ate them in between rushing around town finding fun things to do (like paint rocks at a mobile art van we found on the side of the road in Alexandria, VA!). 

We found a mobile art lab!  And it just so happened that it was ROCK PAINTING day!

Before I go into the individual reviews let me explain the product a bit.

These Chicken Parmesan Lollipops are easy to make – just take them out of the freezer and bake them for 15 – 20 minutes on a parchment covered cookie sheet.  The “lollipop sticks” (which are a bit fatter than normal toothpicks) are a bit superfluous.  You cannot really use the sticks to transfer the lollipop from the cookie sheet to a plate, because the stick falls out.  This is because the CHICKEN is not a solid piece of chicken (we we thought it would be).  Instead it is ground up chicken mixed with spices then formed into a little ball, not really a ball but a FLAT BALL, then breaded and put onto the stick. 

Here is the box - it is in the frozen food section

As for my opinion, I felt that this ground up chicken makes the texture a bit odd.  It is also a littttle too tomato-y but I personally liked it.  I thought they were interesting as an appetizer.  I would give them a 3.75.

They look cute on the plate, but trust me, the sticks had to be put back in after I transferred them over from the cookie sheet.

Jim’s thought on this product:  “I decided to spread the Chicken Parmesan Lollipops on CRACKERS.  I enjoyed them so much more this way.  I think that the texture lends itself to being spreadable.  I like the taste.  They taste like CHICKEN.  I would give them a 3.5, which is high.”  (Jim is a college professor and I kid him about being a tough grader, so this is a great score from him.)

Jim's new invention - CHICKEN PARM LOLLIPOPS ON A CRACKER!
Who needs a STICK when you can have a CRACKER?

Sherry’s thoughts:  “I didn’t really care for the texture when I bit into it, but I liked them spread on a cracker.  I liked the taste.  I don’t think I would BUY these, but if someone had them at a party I would eat one.  I would give them a 3.”

Sherry mid-bite.  

And finally, David’s musings on these meat lollipops J:  “I appreciate the respect that this food item has for my feelings.  First of all – potion size.  They are in small, manageable portions.  Each one provides 3 or 4 small bites so you don’t need to worry about a huge portion on your plate that is constantly saying, “You haven’t finished me yet…” and putting your blood pressure up.  The taste:  very nice.  Flavorful.  Like a little bit of chicken parmesan on a stick!  The downside of chicken parmesan is all of that TOMATO SAUCE, but when the portions are this small you don’t have to suffer through all of that.  You just have the delight of the taste and then you are done with it.  You don’t have to finish the rest of the chicken parm that is left on your plate.  Now, for this new concept of which I have heard of placing it on a CRACKER… I did try this, and I have to admit that it is nice.  Because the tomato paste is modified by all of that starch/breading so it “milds it out” and that is good.  But I prefer them on a stick to on a cracker (because the cracker is too stressful…).  (Editor’s note:  David seems remarkably stressed about his appetizers, doesn’t he???)  It doesn’t STICK to the cracker, it just SITS on the cracker because of all of the BREADING…  So, as you bring it to your mouth, you are worried about it rolling off!!!  (Editor again:  apparently Jim smooshed his onto the crackers more to prevent the falling off factor.) I would give these a 4.” 

$4.99 - not a bad price if you want chicken balls on a stick

So, in the end, nobody hated these, nobody thought they couldn’t live without them, and one person invented a new way to eat them.  All in all a good time was had by everyone.  J

Price – $4.99

Rating (average of 4 raters) – 3.5

Day 325 - Reduced Guilt Pita Chips

Before I review this product I must briefly mount my soap box.  (Boy am I glad I didn’t wear heels today, this soap box could be pretty tippy and dangerous in stilettos…)

REDUCED.  GUILT.  PITA.  CHIPS.  Reduced GUILT?  Guilt over PITA CHIPS???  As in, if you eat pita chips other than these, you should feel f-ing GUILTY for eating PITA CHIPS???  I find this so offensive.  Seriously, it makes my blood pressure spike a bit. 

"Reduced Guilt" Pita Chips - it is even written in a RED flag.

I presume this “reduced guilt” line is marketed primarily towards women.  Women who are told that they should be skinny, sexy, thin, fit…  Women who are brainwashed into believing that the bodies of the women they see in magazines and movies are real, when they are actually airbrushed, made up, and specially lit to look “ideal”.  Women who try sooooo hard to be “perfect” that they have eating disorders and hate their bodies.

Women – listen up.  THERE IS NO GUILT ASSOCIATED WITH EATING.  You can eat these pita chips if you are hungry for them – go for it!!!!  You can eat broccoli.  You can eat turkey pot pie.  You know what?  You can even eat CHEESECAKE if you are in the mood!!!!  Everything in moderation, and sometimes even NOT in moderation is ok!  I have been known to consume almost a whole bag of gummy bears and guess what?  Afterward I have a sore jaw from chewing so much, but not an OUNCE OF GUILT.  And you don’t need to feel guilt about food either.

So Trader Joe’s, I assume by “Reduced Guilt” you mean “Reduced Fat”.  If that is the case, say it.  But don’t be “cutesy” by calling it “Reduced Guilt”.  It is offensive.  Trust me, we do not need any more guilt in our lives, be it reduced or full strength.  And let’s save the guilt for times when it might actually apply – say something like “reduced guilt for going out dancing all night when your grandma was on her death bed” or “reduced guilt for borrowing $20 from a friend and never paying it back” or even “reduced guilt for spilling a glass of red wine on your sister-in-law’s white table cloth”.  But NOT “reduced guilt” for eating a freakin’ PITA CHIP.

This is what a feminist (watering the garden) looks like.  And she is not happy with the name of this product.

There. 

Sorry.  Stepping off soap box now.

Deep breath.  Annnnnd here is the review of the actual PRODUCT (not the name, I believe you already know how I feel about the name…).

Pita Chips are not something we normally buy. 

I say that in a lot of reviews, don’t I?  Variations of that sentence anyway – “We don’t usually eat (insert product)” or “This isn’t something we normally buy”…  It makes me think of a super tacky reality TV show I watched a season of called “Amish In The City”.  It was about a group of young Amish kids who left their community for “rumspringa” and went off on wild adventures.  One girl, her name might have been Ruth, always made me laugh because every single thing she did, she said it was the FIRST TIME she had done it.  They went to the beach, she said, “I aint never seen the ocean before!!”.  They went to a mall, she proclaimed, “I never bought clothes before!”.  She was so wide eyed and full of innocence.  So every time I say things like, “We have never eaten (x, y, z) before…” I think of her.  J

But honestly, we do not buy a lot of pita chips.  J  In our entire almost 3 decade relationship, if you count this purchase of pita chips, I think we may have bought bags of them 3 times. 

They are a BEST SELLER!  Bet they would sell even more if the name wasn't offensive.

I liked the taste of these.  Previous pita chips we have had seemed too crunchy to me (note:  I sometimes confuse pita and bagel chips…).  But these TJ’s pita chips were crunchy without being overly so.  These were good with hummus.  They can really hold a LOT of hummus, which I appreciated!  They become little pita chip hummus spoons!  The sea salt on these is good – it is not overpowering and there is just enough of it.

They make great "hummus spoons"

The bottom of the bag had a lot of busted bits which is to be expected.  They were good as a side dish to a sandwich as they added some crunch to the lunch.

Tasty lunch

David said, “They are good.  They are crispy.  They are not hard.  They are very good with DIPS, but not so good with CHEESE because they are too crumbly.  But they are fine.  I would be happy with them as a dip accompaniment.  They are tasty.”

Price – $1.99

Rating - 4  (I am not going to ding them for the name here, I think I did enough of that at the start of the review)