Veggie Conquest

Posted by: Jessica

I love Trader Joe’s, but I hate the crowds. Here in NYC the TJ on 14th Street is always packed. Often the line wraps around the perimeter of the already small store, making it difficult to actually shop. There is a lot of strategic aisle planning and “can you hand me that, please” going on. Somehow I always keep going back (and apparently everyone else does too). The truth is you really can’t beat the prices, and the quality of the food is great!  You only have about 5 sec to look at a product’s labels before someone is accidentally ramming a cart into your heels or reaching over you to grab the last bag of frozen broccoli before someone else does. In the past this has stifled my desire to try new things at TJ. It is too much of a health hazard, not to mention nerve-racking, to read the labels and ensure everything is vegan while watching to make sure someone isn’t pushing your cart all the way down the aisle out of their way … I would just stick with what I knew was good and likely vegan. That was until they started putting these cool labels on things …

They have labels for gluten free, low sodium, fat free, vegetarian, vegan, heart healthy, quick meal and kosher. You can see the full list and the detailed description of what these mean here, at Trader Joe’s website.

These have changed my shopping experience at Trader Joe’s. I can now quickly scan the shelves and look for this very recognizable vegan label and put whatever it is in my cart, and then while in the forever long line I can more closely read the label and decide if it is something I would like to try (I am not sure I have ever put anything back, I will pretty much try anything once as long as it is vegan). Now it should be noted I have found plenty of vegan things at TJ that do not sport this new vegan label, but this is helpful in discovering new products I might not have picked up otherwise.

For example, These Mint UFOs.

I probably would have passed right by them, but the pretty little V on the bag caught my eye. I quickly grabbed them and throw them in my basket. When I got home and cracked open the bag, the refreshing smell of mint poured out. I was a little surprised they were solid mint chocolate, not like peppermint patties. The mint flavor is very strong and not for the so-so mint likers.

I suddenly realized how many different things I could do with them if I could keep from eating them straight out of the bag. They could be coarsely chopped and put into cookies, ground up into powder and sprinkled over ice cream or cupcakes. There are so many possibilities. I think I am going to try some cookies this weekend …