Trader Joe's has lots of ready-made foods that make preparing dinner on busy nights
much easier, from bagged salads to pre-made sushi and heat-and-eat soups.
But one of our favorite places to scout for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert is the
Trader Joe's frozen aisle.
Waking up in the morning isn't always easy, but with a warm almond croissant in your hand
and a steaming mug of coffee, things are a lot more tolerable.
Making croissants, however, is a days-long process, and thankfully, Trader Joe's has
a solution.
Trader Joe's Almond Croissants come frozen, in a box of four.
To make them, you let one or more sit, covered, at room temperature overnight, so the dough
can thaw and rise.
In the morning, you pop the croissants into the oven, and a few minutes later you've got
croissants that are at least as good as, if not far better than, the kind you can get
from your grocery store bakery.
The frozen aisle in grocery stores across the country has become the home of a new type
of treat, light ice cream.
In fact, Halo Top, a low-cal, high-protein ice cream brand, became the bestselling pint
at grocery stores around the nation, which might be why Trader Joe's has introduced its
own Light Ice Cream.
They started with two flavors to choose from: Joe-Joe's Cookies & Cream Light Ice Cream
and Trader Joe's Chocolate Peanut Butter Light Ice Cream.
They're both around 350 calories each, give or take, and low-cal ice cream?
Sign us up.
One benefit of choosing Trader Joe's Light Ice Cream over Halo Top?
The kind from Trader Joe's isn't sweetened with a food additive known to cause some people
to experience gas and bloating.
"I like ice cream a whole lot.
It tastes good when days are hot.
On a cone or in a dish, this would be my only wish."
Making traditional pizza crust from scratch takes a lot of time, and who really wants
to take all the time to make pizza crust when they're craving a quick weeknight meal?
Enter Trader Joe's Broccoli and Kale Pizza Crust.
Unlike Trader Joe's cauliflower pizza crust, the broccoli version definitely has a distinct
vegetable flavor, but one that plays well with tomato sauce, cheese, and other toppings.
It's made of mostly broccoli and black kale, and it's healthier than traditional pizza
dough, too.
Any way you look at it, it's a total win.
Unless you're not a broccoli fan…and in that case, you'll just want to pick up one
of Trader Joe's other varieties.
Gnocchi is a classic Italian dish, made from potatoes and flour, sometimes from ricotta,
and other times, even has butternut squash thrown into the mix.
But making it yourself can be a pain, and most versions are loaded with carbs.
Luckily, we have Trader Joe's and their Cauliflower Gnocchi, made with cauliflower, cassava flour,
potato starch, olive oil, and salt.
You can boil them, but according to Trader Joe's the easiest way to cook the cauliflower
gnocchi is to saute them and crisp them up in a skillet, so they get nicely golden brown
on the outside and stay tender and slightly chewy on the inside, like the real thing.
It's fast enough for a weeknight, fancy enough for a date night, and if you decide you like
them, Trader Joe's carries other tasty varieties, too!
One of the best parts of eating Thai food is getting dessert, but when we're craving
the same dessert at home, there's no need to turn on the rice cooker or head to the
store on the hunt for the perfect mango, because now, you can get your fix with Trader Joe's
Mango Sticky Rice Spring Rolls.
The spring rolls come frozen, with five to a bag, and you cook them either by baking
them or pan-frying them.
The rolls are so delicious, they were even named one of Trader Joe's 50th Anniversary
Best Products.
They're delicious on their own, but for a real treat, try serving them alongside a scoop
of vanilla ice cream.
Have you ever wondered, nestled among the Cornbread Crisps, Unexpected Cheddar, and
Cookie Butter, what the most popular Trader Joe's product of all time is?
Look no further than the freezer aisle, where Trader Joe's Mandarin Orange Chicken has held
that title for years now.
Trader Joe's Mandarin Orange Chicken was introduced in 2004, and it's still a favorite.
It tastes just as good as delivery, but is ready in a fraction of the time it takes for
food to reach your doorstep.
Bake the chicken pieces, heat the sauce up in a hot pan, then stir them together until
the tangy-sweet sauce clings to each and every crispy chicken morsel.
Chicken isn't your thing?
There's a meat-free version of them available now, too!
There are a million ways to use it.
You can serve it with Trader Joe's Riced Cauliflower Stir Fry and some steamed broccoli, or add
it to a wrap with a scoop of Trader Joe's Sesame Crunch Chopped Salad Kit for a flavorful
lunch.
Dinner just got easier.
Check out one of our newest videos right here!
Plus, even more Mashed videos about your favorite stuff are coming soon.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell so you don't miss a single one.