Pumpkin Products, Part 1

Well, it's autumn again: beta-carotene's time to shine! Root-Vegetable Madness! Squash-Varietal Mania! ...and pumpkin EVERYTHING at Trader Joe's.
First, before I review any products, I would like to humbly put forth my take on why food manufacturers go nuts with pumpkin in the fall and why we, the consumers, all giddily go along with it: My suspicion is that those hundreds of thousands of us who zealously hop on the pumpkin bandwagon are actually most excited about pumpkin pie, a Thanksgiving staple, of course, but understand that we can't actually eat pumpkin pie every day from September through December because that would be weird, impractical, and really not that good for us. So we seek out that pumpkin-pie flavor in whatever other format it is presented to us: waffles! ice cream! bagels! pasta! bread! and on and on, and the food manufacturers know this. (Enablers!)
And so we've got this symbiotic relationship whereby TJ's sells us all manner of pumpkin product, and we buy it.
What do you think? Am I right?
Anyway, earlier this week I made my first trip to TJ's in about three weeks (!) and brought home the following pumpkin-flavored products: Pumpkin Waffles, Pumpkin Bagels, Pumpkin Cream Cheese Spread, and Honey-Roasted Pumpkin Ravioli.
I feel ridiculous as I look at that list, honestly. Pumpkin bagels? Come on! How desperate for pumpkin-pie substitutes can I be, right?
Anyway, for what it's worth, here are my highly subjective and unscientific reviews of each:

Pumpkin Waffles. OK, first of all, are you a toaster-waffle person? If you're not, then never mind, this product isn't for you. However, if toaster waffles are popular in your home, as they are in mine, I urge you to try these. They get two thumbs up from both of my kids, even Hunter, who hates vegetables so deeply he once literally threw up the entire contents of his stomach after I paid him to try a Brussels sprout. (I realize there isn't much "vegetable" in pumpkin waffles, but there is some, and it says something that Hunter knows this and eats the waffles anyway.)
These waffles are the right combination of light, crispy, soft, hearty, and sweet, and the pumpkin and pumpkin-pie-spice flavors are present but not overpowering. Plus, as with all TJ's waffles, the ingredient list isn't scary: these waffles contain flour, eggs, leavening, pumpkin, spices, salt, an assortment of added vitamins, and not much else, so I feel pretty good about feeding these to my kids. (And a bonus: 20% RDA of both vitamin A and iron!)

Pumpkin Bagels. Meh. I mean, these aren't a horror show or anything, but they're really not great, either, and I can't say we are likely to buy these again. The pumpkin flavor is minimal, and their texture is that of a typical grocery-store bagel: chewy and doughy and roll-like without any of that loveliness that comes from boiling the bagels first the way good bagel shops do it.
These bagels do, however, contain "pumpkin pie spice bits," which are pleasant to encounter (albeit a desperate attempt to win over pumpkin-pie fans). So that's kind of fun. But otherwise...meh.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Spread. Now THIS is good stuff right here, if you're into bagels. Get your bagels elsewhere (might I suggest Brooklyn Water Bagel?) and slather this stuff on them liberally! I eagerly await this product's arrival at TJ's every autumn, because it is creamy and pumpkin-y and spicy, and it just makes sense. It's the marriage of pumpkin-pie filling and cream cheese, which is a happy marriage indeed.

Honey-Roasted Pumpkin Ravioli. I really like this stuff. I don't believe it's for everyone (like, for instance, my daughter), but I do recommend it if you're into pumpkin and you're up for a seasonal diversion from traditional ravioli. The filling is mainly ricotta and small chunks of roasted pumpkin, with some additional sweetness and spice crammed in there. I just drizzled melted butter* over it after boiling it for a few minutes, and voila, dinner's main course was ready(...and veggie-hatin' Hunter ate two bites!). It was yummy for lunch the next day, too. I will buy it again.

I've heard from you that the pumpkin-cranberry cracker thingies are delish, so I'll for sure try them next time, as well as the pumpkin macarons another friend suggested. And good old Pumpkin Butter, which I actually have eaten so much of in previous years I had to take a break from it, but I feel ready to dive in again this fall.

Other pumpkin-flavored TJ's suggestions?

*Actually Earth Balance whipped spread, which is the only "butter" my kids will eat.

Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate

Well, this is embarrassing. It's been nearly one full year since I last posted to Mo Loves Joe, and I shudder to think of all the intriguing, unique, and utterly delightful TJ's products I've sampled during the past 11 months that have failed to make an appearance on this site.
However! As of last week I am officially gainfully unemployed, and while being laid off is no happy experience, to be sure, the various silver linings have included more time with my kids, greater involvement in their school day and extracurriculars, a re-examination of my professional trajectory, and---hooray!---a few extra moments each day to devote to celebrating some of Trader Joe's more fabulous offerings here on this blog.
So then, without further ado, let's turn our attention to TJ's Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate, which I am pleased to report I have so far resisted chugging straight from the bottle, although believe me when I tell you I am tempted EVERY SINGLE MORNING to do so.
This stuff appeared at the Santa Monica Trader Joe's, near my former employer, for the first time this summer, and it has been nothing short of a revelation. I had long daydreamed about making my own iced coffee at home but never quite knew how to go about concocting my own coffee concentrate (and was, apparently, far too lazy to Google it). I remember my Grandma George always kept a jar of homemade coffee concentrate in her fridge, in a repurposed glass jar, but unfortunately I never thought to ask her how she made it, and it's too late now.
Anyway, when I found this over by the bean grinder at the Santa Monica TJ's, I couldn't believe my good luck and didn't hesitate one nanosecond to grab a bottle---even though, by TJ's standards, it's a little pricey at about seven bucks per bottle for only 12 servings.
But oh, my: worth the indulgence! True to the marketing claims on the label, this "cold-brew"

concentrate is smooth, rich-tasting, only mildly bitter, and makes a perfectly lovely glass of super-refreshing iced coffee, perfect for an excruciatingly hot day in my tiny, stuffy little house. My husband Seth and I have also tried it heated, to make a hot cup of coffee when we ran out of canned ground beans, and it worked well and tasted virtually the same as fresh drip coffee.
For iced coffee, you simply follow the directions to combine one part concentrate with two parts milk, add some ice, and there you have it. I suppose you could stir in some flavored or simple syrup were you so inclined, but I found the coffee itself so smooth and delicious it needed no sweetening whatsoever.
Finding ourselves now far more tightly food-budgeted, we can't afford to make Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate a permanent part of our grocery repertoire, but we're picking one up once a month or so and polishing off each bottle in just over a week each time.
My question to you, like-minded TJ's fan, is what are some more-creative ways this product could be used in cooking? I'm wondering about adding a splash or two to homemade brownie batter, or using it in a mole sauce or some kind of steak glaze. Yes? No?

Sweet Apple Chicken Sausage

A caveat: These sausages aren't going to change your life or anything.

But, it occurred to me the other day while grabbing a couple of packages from the TJ's meat cooler for probably the 100th time since I first became a TJ's shopper that these humble Sweet Apple Chicken Sausages deserved a post on this blog. Here's why: They have become a reliable, highly valued staple of my (admittedly limited) meal-prep repertoire. Their versatility and quick cooking time come in SO handy on hectic, time-crunched weekdays, yet they're equally useful on a weekend morning. Plus---the importance of this cannot be overstated---MY ENTIRE FAMILY LIKES THESE SAUSAGES AND WILL HAPPILY EAT THEM. If you're a parent or friend of any small, highly particular, frustratingly ambivalent children, you understand my choice of all caps there.
We often eat these sausages butterflied and pan-fried for dinner, with rice and a vegetable on the side. Simple as that. We get a well-rounded meal of basic, not-too-bold flavors that everyone enjoys. Sometimes we'll make them part of a "breakfast dinner" and serve them alongside fried eggs, fresh fruit, and toast. They also work beautifully on a weekend morning as a protein to go with a stack of pancakes.

What makes these sausages so kid-friendly, besides their mild, sweet flavor, is the absence of a casing. So they're as easy to eat as hot dogs, but way better. (Love the juicy little apple chunks tucked inside!) And nutritionally, they seem pretty reasonable: no nitrates or nitrites, all recognizable ingredients, and a decent amount of protein.
Oh! They're precooked, too, which is a bonus for those of us who live in constant fear of undercooking our poultry and poisoning everyone in our homes with Salmonella.
:-)

Frozen Steelcut Oatmeal

You know what I like to do when work is shitty, my taxes aren't done, my living room needs vacuuming, and I have no clean laundry? Blog about Joe's Frozen Steelcut Oatmeal, that's what!
I so enjoy oatmeal (or "oapmeal," as Maya insists on calling it. Made from 100% whole-grain oaps!) Oapmeal is comforting, isn't it? But not bad comforting, like the Reese's peanut-butter chocolate egg I just scarfed down a moment ago. The nice thing about oapmeal is that not only does it feel cozy and satisfying on a chilly morning, it's also so jam-packed with nutrition, you feel downright virtuous for eating it. It's a win-win kind of food.
Really the only downside of oatmeal is the inconvenience of cooking it on a weekday morning. Oatmeal Complete is, of course, a super-quick, healthful, yummy solution to this problem. However, if the texture skeeves you out, or you're looking for a more-generous serving size, or steelcut oats are your preference, may I introduce you to Frozen Steelcut Oatmeal (flavored with brown sugar and maple syrup)?
This oatmeal is GOOD. My husband loves it, my good friend Carie loves it, Maya loves it...I don't know anyone who's tried it who didn't like it. It's the closest thing to homemade oatmeal you're going to get in a box.
The way this oatmeal works is that it is already cooked, then frozen into pucks and individually shrink-wrapped. You can't deny the fun factor here: Oatmeal pucks! My kids always want to touch the frozen pucks before I pop them into bowls and zap 'em in the microwave. (It's gotten me wondering, too, whether this could be done from scratch. Couldn't I cook up some steelcut oatmeal on a weekend, then freeze it in small Tupperware bowls for future weekday breakfasts...?)
Anyway, you take the puck out of its wrapper, drop it into a bowl, cook the thing in the microwave for a couple of minutes, remove it and stir, cook it another minute or so, and you're done: Very thick, very hearty, very delicious steelcut oatmeal with a mild sweetness that is just right.
Which do you prefer, btw: steelcut oats or rolled? I prefer rolled when I'm making granola, but I like either for oatmeal. I like that steelcut oatmeal makes you work a little bit---the grains are chewy; your jaw gets some exercise.

I should mention that we recently tried Fresh and Easy's version of this product, and it was disappointing. The pucks were tiny---maybe 2 ounces of oatmeal---and there were things on the ingredient list that didn't need to be there, like milk and butter. (If I want to add milk and/or butter, I'll do it myself!)
Sorry Fresh and Easy, the winner of this round is TJ's!

Organic Greek Style Nonfat Yogurt Vanilla

Wow, that name is a mouthful right there: Organic Greek Style Nonfat Yogurt Vanilla (and I even left out the "0% Milkfat" part)! Good lord. I eat this yogurt almost daily, but I'd never noticed its awkward, rambling nomenclature until studying the photo just now. I always just seek out the squat purple-and-white containers in TJ's aforementioned huge yogurt section, chuck them into my cart, and move along.
So anyway, here's the thing about Greek yogurt in general: I am conflicted. On one hand, the texture is thick and dense and creamy and perfect. I remember taking my first bite of Fage about a year ago and being like, "Oh. OH. So THIS is what yogurt really is. Right. OK. I stand corrected. Got it."
On the other hand, having been raised on Yoplait and Dannon and accustomed to such sugar-bombed flavors as "Key-Lime Pie" and "Raspberry Chiffon," I haven't yet been able to enjoy the taste of plain, unflavored Greek yogurt. I actually find it kind of revolting, honestly. It's just too "sour cream meets unidentifiable musky note" for me at this point in time. I'll keep trying, but so far, no thank you.
So what's fantastic about TJ's vanilla-flavored Greek is that you get the dreamy, super-satisfying texture and mouthfeel of Greek yogurt but ALSO just a smidge of sweetness and vanilla flavor. Enough to make this yogurt seriously delicious and the perfect partner for fruit and granola, but not enough to overpower the tart or dairy flavors or make you feel like you've just eaten dessert.
Also, for what it's worth, OGSNYV contains 12 grams of protein, which is about double that of typical American (or, I guess,"non-Greek-style"?) yogurts---a boon for those of us who don't eat a ton of meat and could therefore use extra protein grams wherever we can get them.
I am always interested in new ways to get even more yogurt into my life, so I'd love to know how others eat it. Here's my preferred method:
1. Dump a container of OGSNYV into a medium-sized bowl.
2. Slice strawberries and bananas into it.
3. Sprinkle generously with granola (preferably homemade!) or whatever other crunchy thing I have available: Grape-Nuts, Joe's O's (review to come!), etc.

P.S. Maya (age 6) loves this yogurt concoction, too, which kind of blows my mind apart, considering her other favorite foods include such paragons of nutrition as corn dogs, mac and cheese (packaged, mind you), and Chicken McNuggets.

Oatmeal Complete

First off, apologies for the grainy, dark, generally lame photo on the right here. It was shot at night in my dimly lit kitchen, on my phone. So...yeah. I'll replace that with a better shot the next time I buy a box of Oatmeal Complete---probably next weekend.
Uninspiring photography aside, who loves a warm, hearty, thick bowl of not-too-sweet instant oatmeal on a weekday morning? I do! And so does my three-year-old son, Hunter, who occasionally throws back three bowls of oatmeal (one at breakfast, one for a snack, and one at lunch) in one day, which is fine by me. Oatmeal is healthful, what with all the soluble fiber and all, and it's filling and whole-grain.

Hunter, oatmeal enthusiast

Now THIS particular oatmeal right here, Joe's Oatmeal Complete, is different, special, and probably not for everyone. I've actually gone through times when I've eaten it every morning, day after day, for weeks on end, then suddenly thought, "Ugh. I need a break," and abruptly cut myself off for a few months. I believe this has something to do with the texture, which is slightly atypical for instant oatmeal. It's creamier, I think because of the powder of good-for-you additives that puffs out of the pouch when you dump the oatmeal into your bowl: namely soy protein isolate and flax meal. When this powder mixes with the boiling water, it amounts to an oatmeal texture that is creamier and smoother than other instant oatmeals'. And I believe those additives contribute to the ever-so-slightly different flavor. (I would describe this flavor as somewhat sweet and even milky.)
Most of the time, the things that make this oatmeal different are what draw me to the oatmeal and make me want to eat it---but I do get tired of it after awhile and will want to switch it up. (See soon-to-come post on Frozen Steelcut Oatmeal.)
All in all, though, Oatmeal Complete is a healthful, satisfying, just-barely-sweet alternative to the instant oatmeals sold in other grocery stores. (And my three-year-old loves it: SCORE!) I like to maintain a steady supply of it in my pantry.

Chocolate European Style Lowfat Yogurt

Let's jump right in and waste no time: Trader Joe's does a kick-ass job with their yogurts. Would you agree? Michael Ian Black once joked on his "Mike and Tom Eat Snacks" podcast that approximately 80% of grocery-store real estate these days is dedicated to yogurt, and thankfully, that figure holds *true* (give or take) for every Trader Joe's I've shopped. And really, hooray for that, because first of all, yogurt is tasty and interesting and healthy, and there are so many varieties and flavors to sample and experiment with; and secondly, Trader Joe's yogurts in particular are generally high quality and priced well. Bring on the 'gurt, I say!

...and for the first of many TJ's 'gurts to be featured on this blog AND the first Mo Loves Joe product post, period, I present to you Chocolate European Style Lowfat Yogurt. (Resisting strong urge to insert much-needed hyphen between "European" and "Style," btw. It's not a Chocolate European we're referring to here---thankfully---it's a chocolate-flavored European-style yogurt. But, okay.)
This yogurt is simple yet decadent, and that's why it's fabulous. It is tangy and tart, as yogurt should be, plus chocolately, bitter, and mildly sweet. Other chocolate yogurts from other places and other manufacturers are hardly yogurts at all---they are nauseatingly sweet confections and read more like pudding in flavor and texture. This yogurt is thick and creamy and feels "real." Simply put: I can eat THIS chocolate yogurt as a late-morning snack and feel good about myself afterward.