14 Must-Try Trader Joe’s Fall Groceries, According to Store Employees (We Can’t Wait!)
We’re into October now, and you know what that means: pumpkin spice season and the return of Trader Joe’s fall groceries. The two seem to go hand in hand because according to the latest episode of the Inside Trader Joe’s podcast, which dropped earlier this week, cohosts Tara Miller and Matt Sloan revealed that there are 73 (!) seasonal pumpkin-themed items this season.
While pumpkin is, of course, a big focus, the duo also spilled the beans on their other seasonal favorites coming to shelves, which include a variety of apple, cardamom, and maple-flavored groceries and a few new staples that will be sticking around for (hopefully) good. Among the dozens of new arrivals, here are their 14 favorites.
1. Pumpkin Spice Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate
This newly launched cold brew is flavored with “cinnamon and ginger and clove and nutmeg and orange peel,” Tara says. It’s a concentrate, and it comes in a 32-ounce bottle. While you can drink it straight up like a shot, it’s best served with milk, water, or another liquid of your choice. Oh, and it can be served hot or cold!
2. Pumpkin Spice Mini Sheet Cake
The mini sheet cakes at Trader Joe’s are a big deal. Its chocolate and vanilla flavors have so much buzz behind them and now, for fall, Trader Joe’s has released its first-ever Pumpkin Spice Mini Sheet Cake. “It’s just delicious,” Tara says. This sheet cake has a pumpkin bread-like moist crumb with a cream cheese frosting that Tara describes as “delightfully creamy.”
3. Chocolatey Caramel Pretzel Drumstick Decorating Kit
Although this kit doesn’t hit shelves until the end of October, Tara, Matt, and Arlene, a product developer at Trader Joe’s and episode guest star, found it too cute to not bring up. These are not musical drumsticks or turkey drumsticks. They are “pretzels behaving as drumsticks,” according to Tara. The kit comes with mini pretzel sticks and soft caramels to mold into little drumsticks.
4. The Iced German Gingerbread Cookie
Get a taste of European Christmas markets with these spiced gingerbread cookies that Arelene says have a “great balance of spice” and “ a nice chew,” Matt adds. “If you like [soft and chewy] Lebkuchen, I think you will flip out for this new gingerbread cookie.” Also not in stores until the end of October.
5. All Butter Apple Shortbread Cookies
What’s fall without apples? “These are shortbread cookies made in England — the perfect accompaniment to an afternoon tea,” Matt says. They are made with both dried apples and apple juice concentrate. “Every cookie has a cute little apple stamped on it. I just think they’re adorable,” Tara gushes. They’ll hit shelves mid-September.
6. Apple Pear White Stilton Cheese
If you’re looking for a great cheese to pair with all of these exciting seasonal desserts, look no further than this seasonal Stilton cheese that’s loaded with bits of dried apple and pear pieces. “This is a really fun cheese,” says Matt, who recommends scooping it with a little cracker (or cookie) because of its crumbly nature.
7. Butter with Brown Sugar and Maple Syrup
If you really want to up your baking this fall, be sure to snag a container of this newly launched brown sugar and maple butter. Not to be confused with the store’s seasonal Maple Butter, this product is more like a compound butter. It’s superlight and airy, and would be just delightful on some freshly made dinner rolls or a slice of pumpkin bread (right out of the oven).
8. Limone Premuto Extra Virgin Olive Oil
A new olive oil just hit the shelves at Trader Joe’s! Limone Premuto, which means pressed lemons in Italian, is a cold-pressed olive oil made with fresh whole Sicilian lemons. Matt recommends using it anywhere you’d typically use your favorite grocery store olive oil to get a “lemony brightness,” aka when “you have something that you’ve prepared and it’s just lacking some oomph. Or, take a cue from product developer Hasmik and drizzle over some vanilla ice cream.
9. Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
Everyone remain calm: The Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese is officially back! It’s made with a traditional béchamel sauce, a three-cheese blend (gouda, cheddar, and Parm) and plenty of butternut squash to add some sweetness to the rich cheeses. It’s in such high demand that this year the TJ’s team ordered more of it than they ever had (IYKYK), as Hasmik emphasized “we took the go big rather than the go-home approach.”
10. Savory Squash Pastry Bites
Be the star of your fall potluck with these cheesy squash pastry bites. They come in a pack of 12 and are made with a mixture of pumpkin puree, butternut squash puree, mascarpone cheese, ricotta cheese, feta cheese, and Parm. All you’ve got to do is pop them in your air fryer.
11. Caesar Broccoli Bake Kit
What’s great about this new product (aside from the obvious: Caesar dressing!), is that it comes with everything you need for an “impressive side dish,” according to Tara. It’s got plenty of Parm, a savory caesar dressing, and fresh broccoli. It’s great for dinner parties and quick weeknight dinners.
12. Hoisin Sauce
After years of R&D, Trader Joe’s has finally released its own version of Hoisin sauce. It’s vegan and made from fermented soybean paste and brown sugar and seasoned with warm spices like cumin, star anise, garlic powder, and Szechuan pepper. According to Tara, “This is not a fall only” or “limited-edition” item. “This is something that we plan to have on our grocery shelves for as long as people show us they want it.”
13. Vanilla Cardamom Flavored Cold Brew Coffee
Sold in a 32-ounce quart bottle, this fall-forward coffee is bursting with warm fall flavors — heavy on the cardamom — with smooth, vanilla finish. Unlike the pumpkin cold brew concentrate, this cold brew is ready to drink.
14. Vanilla Pumpkin Scented Hand Soap
If you can’t get enough pumpkin in this season, then you’ll absolutely want to check out the vanilla-pumpkin scented hand soap that hit shelves this week. “It does smell good enough to eat, but please do not,” Tara warns.
This article originally published on The Kitchn. See it there: 14 Must-Try Trader Joe’s Fall Groceries, According to Store Employees (We Can’t Wait!)
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