Peaches and Cream Tarte

This is a new seasonal product.  We picked it up at Trader Joe’s the other day when we were invited over to our in-laws for a cook out and were tasked to bring DESSERT.  Let me just say, the last time I had that assignment with this same group of people I failed MISERABLY, and I have not recounted that dreadful experience here yet, but I will!  But for now, let’s focus on the positive – PEACHES AND CREAM TARTE!  (As with all TJ's tarts, the "e" on the end makes it fancy!)

Here's the box, doesn't it look tasty?

We cooked this dessert for 30 minutes in the oven at 350 degrees.  There is also a microwave option listed on the box, but we haven’t tried that yet.  Here is what the reviewers thought of this treat:

David’s opinion (Note: David topped his peaches and cream tarte with vanilla Haagen Dazs ice cream): “The tarte crust, as with all Trader Joe’s tartes, is really good.  The peaches are delicious.  There is something else goin’ on here, and I am not sure everyone else is gonna like this…  there is a little hint of some kind of a creamy thing going on here.  There is a yogurt-y, cream cheese-y thing goin’ on that is different than your straight American sweet fruit pie.  I think it is a valuable addition to the overall palate of pie land.  I am gonna give it a 4.5.”

David before we even tried it - you can tell he expected good things...

Greg (David’s brother, and if you follow this blog and have seen any of his other reviews you will know he is a very harsh judge of food) (Greg also topped his peaches and cream tart with vanilla Haagen Dazs ice cream):  “This was very, very, very good.  Really the best, ever, in the history of the world.  Big-ly (big league) (you may be able to guess what voice Greg was impersonating…).  It has a lovely balance of sour and very sweet.  I didn’t detect the underlying creaminess – it seemed to be just the fruit which I was delighted with, because I liked the fruit.  The crust was superb; crispy but not hard, and delicate.  I would give it a 4.5.  It was great!”

Here is what it looked like out of the box

My opinion:  “I ate half of my piece of the TJ’s tarte, then remembered that we had just picked a bunch of fresh blueberries out of Greg and Joan’s backyard, so I put some of those in with my dessert!  The blueberries were amazing with it because they were tart and were a perfect blend with the sweetness of the peaches.  I think this dessert is really good.  I love the crust!  At first, I thought it was a little too “jam-y” instead of just peachy – the first bite seemed more like pie filling than fruit.  But it only took one more bit for me to get over that issue – I like this tarte very much!  Plus, if you have leftovers I think they would taste amazing for breakfast the next morning.   I also give it a 4.5.”

Chris’ opinion (our college age nephew):  “I agree with most of what has been said.  But unlike most of the other reviewers (the old geezers), I would say the crust was a bit lacking.  I thought it could have had more flavor.  It could have added more to the dish.  (Editor’s note: At this point I felt I HAD to shout the term “snowflake” repeatedly at Chris.  He needed to be brought down a peg.  I mean, the crust on this tarte is amazing!  He was totally wrong in his assessment… 😊 )  I did really like the fruit, and the Haagen Dazs ice cream added a lot, but I think the crust could have been a little bit better.  I would give this a 3.5.”

Here is Chris.  He is a lousy judge of crust.  I mean, he is a good KID and all,
but he wouldn't know a good crust if it bit him in the butt...

Joan (our sister-in-law, also typically a very stern reviewer of food in this blog): “I give this a 4.75.  This is a delightful dessert.  It is very yummy.  I had mine with ice cream and blueberries, I am not sure I would like it quite as much alone since I like complexity of flavors.  However, I thought this was terrific.  The only thing better is my mom’s pie!  But, you have to make the crust and peel the peaches for that, which is a lot of work.  This dessert is a great thing to bring to any summer BBQ you are attending.”

This is a photo of a bird that attended the BBQ.  Isn't he pretty?

There you have it folks!  This one is a winner!!  In fact, now that I have written this up my mouth is watering and wishing that I had one of these tartes to dive into…  Alas, we are 90 minutes away from the closest Trader Joe’s.  Sigh.  Oh well, David is going to be in the TJ’s neighborhood in just a few days and I am making a shopping list for him.  Guess I better add “Peaches and Cream Tarte” to the list!

Price:  $4.99 (CHEAP and well worth the price)

Rating (average of 5 reviewers): 4.5

Price cut - Basmati Rice

Trader Joe's always has reasonable prices.  Seriously.  You can save money by shopping at TJ's.

But one thing I really respect about the store is that, every once in a while, they CUT THEIR PRICE on something.

They don't have "sales" like other stores do.  They don't have an ad in the Sunday paper like other chains.  But they keep their prices down overall, and, like this sign says, sometimes when THEIR cost goes down, they pass that savings onto you, the customer:

As they say, "When our cost goes down so does our price" - now only $2.99!

I am not naive.  I mean, obviously they are still making a profit, and I want them to!  I want them to stay in business, employing lots of people and filling my belly with (mostly) healthy, great food!!!

But man, when they can sell super delicious basmati rice for only $2.99 a bag???  Yup.  That is when I sorta worship them.  Try finding this much delicious rice for this low of a price somewhere else - it'll be tough.

Last note:  the packaging still sucks.  :)

Original review of TJ's Basmati Rice
Original review of how hard the packaging of said rice sucks:  Packaging Fail

And finally, here is how I feel about scoring a big bag of basmati for under 3 bucks!!

Price:  $2.99
Rating:  still a solid 4.5

Campfire S'Mores Bar

I am guessing that this is a seasonal item, for s’more season.  The package says a serving size is 1/3 of the bar.  Here is what we thought when we tried it for dessert after a late night dinner while watching the very disappointing final episode of the Amazing Race on DVR (the wrong team won):

David when we bought this treat.  He looks not 100% convinced, which surprises me!  He loves chocolate stuff.

David:  “Very good.  The chocolate is good.  The marshmallows are very good.  I would just say it could use more graham cracker to set it off, to give it substance.  As it is, it is kinda more a “chocolate bar with marshmallows with a little bit of graham cracker”, and if it had more graham cracker then I think it would be a nicer balance.  I’m going to give this a 4.0.”

Here is the TJ's Campfire S'mores before David dove into it.

My take on it: The thing that makes a S’MORES special is a campfire.  I think Trader Joe’s knows that, or they wouldn’t have named this product CAMPFIRE S’mores Bar, eh?  The whole concept of a s’mores brings to mind camping, sitting around a fire, smelling the smoke from the flames, laughing or singing with friends, and roasting marshmallows.  On the contrary, this “s’mores” from Trader Joe’s has us open a box and cut open a little bag.  Let’s just say that, in my mind at least, that destroys the “magic” of the s’mores.  Not making it yourself around a campfire defeats the purpose.

Also, this bar is weird.  Its base is a layer of mini marshmallows coated in chocolate, where a S’MORES base is a GRAHAM CRACKER.  Am I right here??  Can I get an “amen”???  This TJ’s s’more has no graham cracker bottom, let alone graham cracker top (yes, in my world a s’mores both begins and ends with a graham cracker.)  This TJ’s product is false advertising, man!!  It is calling itself something it is not 😊 .  There are only a few wimpy pieces of graham cracker scattered on top to make it look pretty.  I’m telling you, in a REAL S’MORES, the graham crackers serve a function, to hold your treat together!!   This is a campfire fail.  Why, if I was camping and someone handed me one of these puppies and said, “Would you like a s’more??” I would say, “Are you out of your frickin’ mind?  That is no s’more!  Where are the graham crackers?”. 

David pigging out

The taste of this treat is okay.  It is not amazing.  I am not a calorie counter, and even I say this is not worth the calories.  It is not that it tastes gross or anything, it just isn’t mind blowing and it is not a s’more. 

Price tag - see, it is NEW

Pretty packaging - doesn't it look like you would
 find graham cracker as a base??

One thing this has going for it is the packaging – the faux s’more is displayed nicely.  Though that display is also part of the trick – it makes it look like there is a traditional graham cracker base (which, I know am beating a dead horse when I mention this again, there is not…).   But dude, David even went through our cupboards looking for spare graham crackers to ADD to this treat (alas, we had none). 

Lest you think we are real CAMPERS, I must confess:  we do not camp.  Growing up my family "camped" in an RV (sorta faking it I guess, I mean, we had a little tv with us (though I am so old that it WAS black and white if that makes it sound more like "roughing it"...).  David hates bugs, so therefore hates tents.  However, we went GLAMPING a few years ago and it was insanely fun and cool.  We went to Yellowstone Under Canvas and loved it.  Here are a couple of photos - there was even a campfire!  (Link to the glamping site here:  Yellowstone Under Canvas Glamping

Oh, don't mind us.  We are just enjoying morning coffee on the "deck" of our "tent".  

See, a real live CAMPFIRE!!

Gorgeous set up and stunning surroundings 

Despite all of my misgivings about this Trader Joe's Campfire S'mores, I guess I will give this thing a 3.25. 

Price:  $2.99

Rating (average of 2 raters):  3.5