Showing posts with label cheddar cheese. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cheddar cheese. Show all posts

Saturday, November 7, 2015

Day 311 - Broccoli and Cheddar Quiche

Honestly, I thought I reviewed this little quiche way back in the beginning of this project, under day 60 for sure.  We used to always keep one of these in our freezer for a quick meal.  Between you and me, our TJ’s shopping has had to change some this year because of these reviews.  We need to eat new and different products all the time now to have items to review, so some of our old standbys have gotten a wee bit ignored, like this quiche.  But when I looked back in the blog and realized I had MISSED reviewing this, I needed to rectify that stat!  I cannot let the whole year go by and the project finish without helping you find this little quiche if you do not already know about it.

Find this box in the frozen food department.  It is a tiny box, like the size of a personal pizza
These quiche are great to have on hand for nights that you are not in the mood to cook, or days when you work from home and want a nice, hearty lunch.  The packaging (or was it the receipt?) says this is a “breakfast quiche”, which makes no sense to me.  Who decided that quiche was a BREAKFAST FOOD?  It is a lunch quiche.  A dinner quiche.  A midnight snack quiche.  I say quiche is an all day food. 

We ate this one for LUPPER – a 4 PM late lunch/early dinner – while sitting out on our front porch on a sunny day.  I recommend this setting for a tasty meal J.  

If you eat lunch on our porch you can see stuff like THIS!  A mamma dove with two babies in their nest in our Dogwood tree!
I usually bake these quiche in the oven, but this time I tried the microwave method. The packaging says this is one serving, but we always cut one in half and share it.  On this particular day I served it with cous cous and peas which made for a delightful combination.  We always plop some TJ's Dijon mustard (which I also thought I had reviewed but maybe I haven't, am I losing it???) on our plate for dipping the quiche in (it’s a French thing…) and this time I also did some dipping in Hatch Valley Salsa.  David was starving and wanted a bit more sustenance, so he also added a piece of HAM to the plate. 

Yum!
I have an announcement that simply must be made here:  REAL MEN DO EAT QUICHE.

This is a good product.  It is super easy and quick to make.  It is cheesy but not too cheesy.  The crust is good.  The inside filling (broccoli, cheese, and egg) is tasty and filling.  The side of Dijon mustard really makes everything pop.

After tasting this quiche cooked by both methods – oven and microwave – we think the oven is the way to go.  The crust turns out better using the old fashioned oven method. 

This is a good staple to keep in the freezer.

Price - $2.29
Rating – 4.25


Monday, August 3, 2015

Day 215- British Crumpets

Crumpets, for those Americans who have not had them, are AMAZING.  They are a breakfast bread, like an English muffin, but so much better (in my opinion).  They are less hard, and somehow tastier.  The HOLES in them are the very best part!  All bread products should have holes!  Holes are perfect for filling with good butter (try Kerrygold, reviewed on day 49 of this blog).  Holes are good for filling with Sunflower Seed Butter (look at day 96 of this blog)!  Holes are good for filling with jelly or jam (if you like those things, I do not).  And holes are good for filling with Dulche de Leche (check out day 182 of this blog).

Here is what they look like in the package, before you start loading them up with stuff.....

Crumpets are a nice base to build on if you have time to make a real breakfast.  Try this configuration:
a.        Crumpet
b.      Butter
c.       Cheddar cheese
d.      Thinly sliced avocado
e.      Fried egg (with salt and pepper)
See??  Doesn’t that sound great? 

This isn't the recipe above, but doesn't it look great?  Crumpet, butter, cheese, garden tomato, egg, and a side of mustard.
Or how about:
a.        Crumpet
b.      Butter
c.       Wasabi Mayo (reviewed on day 187 of this blog)
d.      Pieces of a nice lettuce
e.      Fresh slices of garden tomato
See???  Another good combo!  It’s easy!

Here is one more:
a.        Crumpet
b.      Butter
c.       Fleur de Sel Caramel Sauce (5 star review on day 132 of this blog)
d.      Thin slices of banana
e.      Pieces of sliced almonds
DELICIOUS!

May I present - crumpet, butter, and Dulce de Leche!
 The package of Trader Joe’s crumpets holds 6 pieces and it is basically split into two groups of 3.  So you can open the package and only have 3 exposed to air and starting to go bad, the other 3 can stay sealed.  I like that packaging. 

TADA - just crumpet and butter.  See the big HOLES I was talking about???  They rock.
The worst part about Trader Joe’s Crumpets is that sometimes they are out of the original ones and all they have left are cinnamon flavored.  Maybe it is just me, but if I am going to have a bread for breakfast, I want it to be plain, then I will add whatever flavor I am in the mood for ON TOP of said bread, thank you very much!

Price – $2.99
Rating – 4.5



Friday, April 10, 2015

Day 100 - Chicago Style Popcorn

I have made it to DAY 100 on this blog!  And for the big 100th review I have chosen one of our very favorite new products – CHICAGO STYLE POPCORN!!!!

I am going to tell you right off the bat – this product is a solid 5 stars!!!!  We are so excited about it!

Let me explain…  My friend Amy told us once about this “delicious popcorn available in Chicago” that is a combination of caramel and cheese.  Sure, it sounds gross, but it is NOT gross.  Anyway, it is available in O’Hare Airport at a little place called Garrett Popcorn Shop.  Oh suuuuure – you can also get it at “Nuts On Clark” at O’Hare, but if you do that, you are a beginner and do not GET IT.  No – it is worth waiting in line at Garrett’s. 

Let’s just say this – once Amy told us about Chicago style popcorn at Garrett and we had tasted it, our travel changed.  We cannot go thru O’Hare now without going to Garrett and stocking up – even if it means running through a terminal to get there and back to our gate in time.  My partner David has been known to fly strange routes and accept long lay-over times JUST TO GET GARRET POPCORN (he sometimes buys straight caramel instead of the mix, but that is another topic…).  I often travel alone and if I go through Chicago I MUST stop at Garrett and bring back a bag for David.  Last time I was there I snapped a photo to text him while I was in line, and the guy in front of me did the same thing and texted it to his wife – it seems we are not the only addicts!  And I should point out – this popcorn is not cheap at Garrett, not at all.

What the WHAT???  Wheeeee!
ENTER TRADER JOE’S!!!!!  You guys – they now have CHICAGO STYLE POPCORN for only $2.99!!

Does he looked a little bit EXCITED???!!!
We were nervous…  We thought, there was no way it could be as good as Garrett’s…  I mean, when you have had the BEST, isn’t it dangerous to even try a new kind???

But it ROCKS!  It is so, so, so good!  The caramel pieces are amazing and the cheese ones, too!  There are very few “yuckies” at the bottom of the bag.  Even if you think this combination of flavors sounds disgusting I urge you to try it!  You will like it or your money back  (note:  the “money back” is from Trader Joe’s, not me.  Just take the bag back if you think it is not good and they will give you your money back with a smile.)

SO CHEAP!
There is a bit of a mystery with this product -it is exciting!!!  When we first bought it at the La Jolla, CA store, the bag said “Chicago Style Popcorn”.  Then, in New York City, they called it “Caramel and Cheese Popcorn”!!!  Same bag, same great taste, all the other artwork is the same, but the NAME is different…  So I checked at our local Trader Joe’s in Virginia and guess what – they had one bag that was named “Caramel and Cheese” and the rest were called “Chicago Style”!!  Bizarre!  I hope they stick with “Chicago Style” cuz that is a much cooler name.  Even if shoppers don’t know right away what it means, if they read the package they will get it.

The mystery of the names....
Color us happy that we don’t have to pay hundreds of dollars to fly to Chicago to get this anymore (but we will still go to Garrett’s when we are at O’Hare!).

If you would like to see some Yelp reviews of Garrett -  look here:  http://www.yelp.com/biz/garrett-popcorn-shops-chicago-17

You will find things like, “HOLY SCHNIKIES” and “WTF!” and “Have you ever found yourself with the a warped sense of morals in which it is suddenly okay to trample small children to snag the last bag of your favorite treat?”

Price - $2.99
Rating - 5