Trader Joe’s annual holiday-themed grocery drop has become part of well-known traditions that usher in the holiday season, much like the first snowfall, tree lighting and family gatherings.
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The grocery store chain just launched 57 new products featured in its brochure, ranging from seasonal drinks like the “festive” Winter Wassail Punch to unique snacks (keeping the brand going with a staggering number of truffle-infused products) like White Truffle Popcorn.
Here’s a tally of the 15 most unique but still edible foods on the list. You can find the full list here on the Trader Joe’s site.
There are 19 Trader Joe’s locations in Massachusetts with only two located outside of Eastern Massachusetts, one in Hadley and one in the town of Shrewsbury.
- Mint Chocolate Bread Baking Mix — This is a baking mix of cocoa, chocolate chips, and natural mint flavor that needs a few other ingredients to create a cake-like loaf and stands out among traditional holiday dessert options. The site also said the baking mix creates mint chocolate crinkle cookies and provides another recipe for a mint s’mores cake. Stores are selling 19-ounce boxes of the Chocolate Mint Bread and Baking Mix for $3.49 each.
- Dark Chocolate Covered Gingerbread Folk — Made without the traditional candied orange peel and nuts, TJ’s Gingerbread Men are covered in dark chocolate. The chain said the people-shaped gingerbread cookies are good to eat on their own or as the base of an ice cream sandwich, and is selling a box of 12 for $3.49.
- jingle jingle — Mini chocolate covered pretzels with a white chocolate drizzle, along with chocolate covered caramel popcorn, chocolate covered broken Joe-Joe’s cookies, red candy covered chocolate gems and mini peanut butter cups make up this sweet treat Christmas gift with chocolate. The site said the 22.7-ounce can is $9.99, and Trader Joe’s put out a 6.75-ounce box of six Jingle Jangle pretzels for $3.99 this season.
- Wassail Winter Punch — This festive juice is a sweetened blend of apple, tart cherry, blackcurrant, and lemon juices, and is spiced with cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, cardamom, ginger, and orange peel. Trader Joe’s said it serves the drink mix cold, on the rocks, warmed or hot on the stove with red wine, and is selling a 64-fluid-ounce bottle for $4.99.
- Candy Cane Green Tea — Originally launched in 2009, Trader Joe’s seasonal candy cane green tea has a base of mint leaves and decaffeinated green tea, along with a blend of orange peel, cinnamon, milk thistle, mulberry leaves, carob and roasted radicchio. The chain said it can be enjoyed hot or cold, and costs $2.79 for a box of 20 tea bags.
- Double Crème Brie with Truffles — Keeping with the theme of the chain’s self-proclaimed truffle obsession, the chain said this particular cheese is “exceptionally creamy” and made in the French Alps. It has bits of black truffles, and the 8.5-ounce piece of cheese sells for $9.99. TJ’s recommended it for holiday entertainment.
- gingerbread ice cream — This ice cream has a slightly spicy ginger flavor in every bite, according to Trader Joe’s, along with hints of molasses, ginger, nutmeg and cloves. A pint costs $3.49, and the grocery store chain said the new flavor will pair well with French toast or cake, and makes a nice smoothie.
- Sugar plum sparkling drink — Trader Joe’s has gone back to the age-old Christmas tradition with this drink, which features four ingredients, according to the chain: carbonated water, prune juice concentrate, white grape juice concentrate and natural flavors. The 750-milliliter bottle is $3.99, and TJ’s said it’s good to drink neat or spiked with alcohol.
- Candy cane filled with cocoa cream — These candy canes are made by hand, Trader Joe’s said, but their even more unique quality—besides the ingredients of peppermint oil, tapioca syrup, and red radish-derived colors that make up the hard candy—is a cocoa cream soft that is stuffed inside the cane. . TJ’s listed the candy canes at $1.49 each.
- Cauliflower Pancakes — While not exactly Christmas themed, the cauliflower pancakes on offer seem like an interesting concept juxtaposed between two meals that don’t usually go together. Trader Joe’s said they are crisp on the outside, tender on the inside, and can be eaten as a daytime snack with sour cream and applesauce, or as a base for a smoked salmon Benedict. The chain is selling 10.6-ounce boxes of pancakes for $3.99.
- White Truffle Popcorn — The chain says this pre-made popcorn, which is sold in a five-ounce bag for $3.29, has a “deep, earthy umami flavor,” and because the seasoning is made with white rather than black truffles, it has a “more distinctive aroma.” Trader Joe’s recommended this snack along with a “fancy cheese plate” or with a movie.
- truffle sauce — Even more on the topic of Trader Joe’s truffle obsession is this sauce that’s nothing more than truffles and cheese. The chain said its ricotta, Parmesan and cream cheese ingredients along with black truffle pasta and white truffle-infused olive oil make it not only good as a dip, but also as a dip on a sandwich or for pasta. The 7.5-ounce tub is $4.99.
- Maple Cranberry Orange Spread — TJ’s created a spread with a Christmas theme outside the realm of mint and cocoa. Good on charcuterie boards, toasted or as a marinade, the chain said, the ingredients in this paste include maple syrup, blueberry puree, orange juice concentrate, allspice and cinnamon, among others. Each 10-ounce jar is $3.99.
- O’Nog Non-Dairy Oat Drink — Trader Joe’s says this vegan version of eggnog has the same creamy, nutmeg-and-ginger flavored texture, but is completely oat-based. The chain also said that its holiday drink is gluten-free and has the cartons listed for $2.99.
- Mint and cocoa truffles — The chain already has a chocolate caramel truffle in stores, but it introduced the mint-flavored chocolate caramel truffle for the holiday season at $2.99 a box. TJ’s said the main difference is the sugar crystals within the creamy chocolate, with a “cool mint flavor factor” in each of the 32 pieces per box.