Archive for the ‘Recipes, food, cooking and related items’ Category
01/07/2017
January 7, 2017
This is the kind of product that used to be found at a local bakery. It’s too bad there aren’t more local bakeries anymore.
These are surprisingly light and fluffy. The cake is slightly firmer than a Twinkie. The center of each cake is filled with a fruit jam (1 each of: apricot, apple, cherry). The cakes have a rich not overly sweet buttery taste and feel in the mouth. Each cake comes in an individual thin cardboard baking tray. They’re a nice change from the usual cakes that fill supermarket freezer cases.
(more…)
Tags:aldi, calories, deutsche kuche, food, fruit pound cake, pound cake trio, price, review, reviews
Posted in ALDI, Recipes, food, cooking and related items | 2 Comments »
12/31/2016
December 31, 2016
Lets just say, your local Italian restaurant would be quickly out of business if it served this dish. The concept sounded good, the ingredients were there, but the execution didn’t work out – just like some Sunday NFL games. The tortelloni came out unevenly cooked, ranging between tough to mushy. The cheese filling was just okay. Read that as not very flavorful. The tomatoes varied from okay to mushy. The red pesto including bits of red pepper, zucchini and whatnot was the best part. There was very little liquid to the sauce, if that’s what you’re expecting.
However, considering the price of $1.99, it’s competitive in quality with other frozen entrées in this range. If the pasta and tomatoes could be cooked more evenly, this would be a much better dish. Maybe all it needs is a quick stir in the middle of cooking?
Calories: 460, Serving: Size 1 container Price: $1.99
Tags:calories, food, frozen box lunches, price, review, reviews, ricotta spinach tortelloni, tj, tj's, trader joe's
Posted in food, Recipes, food, cooking and related items, Trader Joe's | 8 Comments »
12/31/2016
December 31, 2016
This was a gift. Really this was a re-gift, which was probably a re-gift again from someone who picked up the bag and didn’t notice it was whole beans. Whatever the tortuous path, it eventually ended with me as I have a coffee grinder. I’m not proud.
The coffee has a mild but nice aroma in the bag. The brown colored beans and oil are consistent with the indicated medium roast. Brewed, the coffee has a fairly strong earthy flavor with a noticeable lingering bitterness. There’s some acid feel and tartness, especially as the coffee cools, eventually settling (and unsettling) in the stomach.
This is a milder version of a typical Starbucks coffee. For those who like Starbucks, this should be a familiar taste. It’s drinkable black. Personally, I’d drink this with some half and half as I normally do the few times I’m in a Starbucks. Price ?? – it was a gift
Tags:breakfast blend, coffee, medium roast, review, reviews, starbucks, whole bean
Posted in coffee, food, Recipes, food, cooking and related items | Leave a Comment »
12/24/2016
December 24, 2016
Gingerbread on first bite, but there’s much more here. Second bite, read the ingredient label. This is a mini fruit cake without the bad reputation. It’s like eating a puzzle as you try to match the flavors in your mouth with the ingredients. Third bite, this cookie has history. It was created by 13th century monks in its present form. Where would foodies be without monks? Think about it. But before the monks the history goes back to the Roman legions. Where would men in short skirts be without the Legions? Maybe, don’t think about it.
(more…)
Tags:calories, cookies, food, germany, gingerbread, lebkuchen, nuts, price, review, reviews, tj, tj's, trader joe's
Posted in Recipes, food, cooking and related items, Trader Joe's | Leave a Comment »
12/16/2016
December 16, 2016
Aside from the fairly recent rise of the craft beer industry, most beers consumed in America are lagers. Coming from Belgium this ALDI beer of the month is also a lager, but with the usual European flavor. Generally European beers have more of everything when compared with American beers; flavor, calories, alcohol and bitterness. This lager is somewhat of a transition between the two. The bitterness is reduced making it closer, but still different, from an American lager. For Americans desiring more from their beer, this is a way to take a step in that direction. Price $6.49 – 6 pack, Calories – unspecified
Tags:aldi, beer, belgium, food, lager, price, review
Posted in ALDI, Recipes, food, cooking and related items | Leave a Comment »
12/16/2016
December 16, 2016
Maybe this should be labeled as half-pound cake? The cake is surprisingly light and fluffy with a consistency similar to but firmer than a Twinkie. The cakes have a nice taste and are not overly sweet. There’s a thin layer of jam, with some pieces of fruit, embedded in the cake, sometimes rising to the surface. Each cake comes in an individual thin cardboard tray. This is a quality product similar to what local bakeries might have. The only negatives are the price and calories (watch it, the box listed calories are for half a cake – really?). The regular price is $3.99 per box of three cakes. It seems many people agreed about the price as this was marked down to $1.99 when I purchased it. One of the nice things about ALDI is we get to try some imported products that otherwise we’d never know existed. For that reason alone, this is worth a try, if and when it comes around again to the ALDI freezers – especially if the price is $1.99. Calories 380 per whole cake
Tags:aldi, calories, deutsche kuche, food, german pound cake, price, review, reviews
Posted in ALDI, Recipes, food, cooking and related items | Leave a Comment »
12/10/2016
December 10, 2016
This was quite a surprise to find a mainstream store carrying something so spicy. Have the Zantac ready!
(more…)
Tags:aldi, black bean, calories, chipotle, food, price, review, season's choice, vegetable burger, veggie burger
Posted in ALDI, Recipes, food, cooking and related items | 7 Comments »
11/26/2016
November 26, 2016
I wonder if the jar was mislabeled? Except for on the label, what seems to be missing is the pineapple. There are plenty of references in the ingredients to pineapple. But if they’re in the jar, I missed them.
To be fair, wash away the red stuff and there really are pieces of pineapple in the salsa. Take a spoonful of the salsa by itself and there’s an interesting complex blend of flavors. On a chip, the complexities are muted.
I was expecting a sweet-hot salsa experience. What seems to be in the jar is a very mild tomato based salsa.
Aside from expectations, this is a nice tasting mild salsa. If that’s what you’re looking for give this a try. But if you’re expecting a pineapple experience, move on.
Calories 15 per 2 tablespoons (30g) Price $1.99 -12 ounce jar (340g)
Tags:calories, food, nutrition, pineapple salsa, price, review, tj, tj's, trader joe's
Posted in food, Recipes, food, cooking and related items, Trader Joe's | 7 Comments »
11/26/2016
November 26, 2016
It’s Swiss, but it’s French. Hmm? Well it’s a Swiss-style cheese made in France. But saying that would probably get me thrown out of the country. Both countries!
Let’s just say that if the word Madrigal was misread as Magical, that would be a good description of this cheese. At $5.99 a pound this is a very good semi-hard cheese that actually tastes like a Swiss-style cheese, albeit a milder Swiss cheese. The only thing to be careful about is the thin wax covering that sort of blends in with the cheese and tends to stick between the teeth if measures aren’t taken to avoid it. Don’t ask me how I know.
Calories 100 per ounce (28g)
Price $5.99 -per pound
Tags:calories, cheese, food, france, madrigal cheese, nutrition, Président, price, review, swiss-style, tj, tj's, trader joe's
Posted in food, Recipes, food, cooking and related items, Trader Joe's | 2 Comments »
11/19/2016
November 18, 2016
The medium-dark brown fairly oily beans produce a nice aroma on opening the can. Once brewed, the coffee produces a strong taste which is mildly bitter on the tongue. As it cools, the coffee transitions to an earthy taste and the bitterness declines. The bitterness is a good bitterness, like a good beer has some bitterness to it. However as with many things, bitterness is an acquired taste. If you’re adverse to bitter tastes, this may not be a coffee for you. There’s some sense of acidity on the roof of the mouth and in the stomach.
This is a good coffee for people looking for a stronger tasting coffee without going over the edge. The coffee is labeled as both organic and fair trade. Price $7.99 (14 oz can)
Tags:bolivia, bolivian blend, coffee, fair trade, food, organic, price, review, tj, tj's, trader joe's, whole bean
Posted in coffee, Recipes, food, cooking and related items, Trader Joe's | Leave a Comment »
Ain't Found A Good Title Blog 