Trader Joe’s Macadamias mix Gingerly with Cranberries & Almonds

Trader Joe's Macadamia Mix Gingerly with Cranberries & Almonds

Trader Joe's Macadamia Mix Gingerly with Cranberries & Almonds

Now, I know that this name is a bit strange. I actually did not notice how weird it was until I stopped to type it down for this post. You know how much we LOVE to eat trail mix and all kinds of nuts, right? Well I  guess I was only seeing the great ingredients when I picked up this package.

I mean, any nut lover would grab fast for a mixture that had macadamias, cranberries and almonds, right? But Trader Joe’s always goes the extra mile, and well, they added chunks of ginger to this mix!

Yes, you read that right! I think this is the first time I have purchased a Trail Mix/ Trek Mix that had chunks of spicy-sweet candied ginger in the package. YUMMZ!

As you can see from the photos (I am so amazed that we remembered to even take photos of this wonderful stuff 🙂 Trader Joe’s did not skimp on the ginger- there are tons of real large chunks of ginger in this mix. (the ginger was about the same size as the macadamia nuts- eeks!)

Trader Joe's Trek Mix

Trader Joe's Trek Mix

So anyway we wanted to alert you all to a wonderful nibble that is available right now at your local Trader Joe’s store. This will be one of our favorite snacks to enjoy over the summer and we hope that you all get a chance to enjoy it as well.

Don’t forget: This snack is Wheat Free too!

Let us know what you thought of this mixture. Please leave a comment in the space below.

How to Cook Brown Rice: EZ Way

Trader Joe's Brown Basmati Rice

Trader Joe's Brown Basmati Rice

We both love to eat brown rice, but sometimes cooking it can be a hassle. Because it is a whole grain, it does not cook up as quick as white rice. I like to plan about an hour to cook brown rice. Now this does not mean that it takes a whole hour to cook brown rice, but we cook the rice in shall we say a “slow way” and so I like to give the rice time to rest etc… We do like to eat Brown Rice as much as possible, but shhhh… we do keep a bag of white rice around, just for “fast food” because it does take a while to cook!

What we like to do is to cook a bigger batch of brown rice than we need for a meal so that we have leftovers. Brown Rice can sit covered in the refrigerator for a week and still be OK.

If you don’t think you will use it up, you can also freeze it in a plastic zipper bag. We like to use frozen brown rice in soups (just break off a chunk) or thaw the rice for an hour and use in a stir-fry. YUM!

Now, if you are new to cooking brown rice, we suggest that you start cooking a few small batches of brown rice to get a feel for this EZ way to cook brown rice.

What you need:

  • Brown Rice (we like Trader Joe’s Brown Basmati)
  • Water

How to:

In a small sauce pot with a lid, measure out ½ cup of brown rice.

Now add 1 cup of water and cover. Bring to a boil over medium high heat.

Brown Rice in Pan covered in water

Brown Rice in Pan covered in water

Let the rice cook for 20 minutes then check. You want to catch the rice about ½ way through the cooking process, so that about ½ the water is gone. This could take about 10-15 minutes more depending on how much is in the pan, where you live etc… You are waiting for the water to be absorbed to the level of the rice. You will still see the water, but it will not be higher in the pan than the rice. (See picture).

Brown Rice with steam holes

Brown Rice with steam holes

When the water is down to the level of the rice, and you see that nice big steam holes have developed, put the lid back on and turn off the rice. Let the rice just sit in the hot pan and soak up the rest of the water. This takes about 15 minutes. When you are ready to serve, the rice should be all fluffy and ready to just heat back up- for a few minutes.

If there is still some water in the bottom of the pan, just use heat with the lid off and the extra water will help steam the rice/warm it up for searving. In fact you will want to make sure there is some water in the pan when you heat it up to serve,  or your rice might stick to the pan.

We then take a fork and sorta “fluff” up the rice before serving.

Variations:

You can cook the rice in some chicken or vegetable stock if you like

You can sauté onions and garlic in olive oil before adding the rice and water. This adds a wonderful flavor to the rice.

Try cooking your brown rice this way and see if you don’t agree that this is an EZ way to cook Brown Rice at home.

Vita Mix: Strawberry Banana Smoothie

We mentioned how the Vita Mix blender makes making smoothie drinks so easy, right? Well we are at it again, with a new, classic smoothie flavor: Strawberry Banana.

Click HERE to Get FREE shipping on your Vitamix

We noticed these wonderful strawberries the last time we were at Trader Joe’s. They were plump and full of flavor. They were so good that our Trader Joe’s store was using them in the morning sample 🙂  Yeah! We tried some wonderful muffin pieces as well, but seriously the strawberries were simply fabulous.

Vita Mix Super 5000 in Action

Vita Mix Super 5000 in Action


Like we noted, many times you see great looking fruit in stores, but when you go to eat it, the fruit is watery or just lacking in flavor.  Well, not these strawberries, that is for sure.

So into the Vita Mix they went! We popped a banana, some of the strawberries and used almond milk as the “creamy” part. We even added a few ice cubes to this smoothie just to add some extra coolness to the drink.

Because the strawberries were soo sweet we did not need to add any honey to this drink, we just poured it out- and enjoyed!

Vita Mix Smoothie: Strawberry & Banana

Vita Mix Smoothie: Strawberry & Banana

Have you checked out the Vita-Mix yet?  This super blender might be just what you need to reach your health goals. Take a look today….

Click HERE to Get FREE shipping on your Vitamix

Do you have a Vita Mix blender? What are your favorite items to make in yours? Please take a minute to leave us a comment – even if it is just to say hello, we love to hear from our readers.

Vita Mix: Blueberry Banana Almond Smoothie

Making smoothie drinks at home is easy with a Vita Mix and items from Trader Joe’s.

Maybe it is the heat, or maybe it  is the end of another semester in graduate school and we are looking to try something new, but WOW  we  are making a lot of blender drinks (or smoothies) in our Vita Mix.

Click HERE to Get FREE shipping on your Vitamix

This week, the blueberries were calling to us, as was the heat, so in an effort to enjoy those yummy blueberries and keep cool, we used the remains of the blueberries in a smoothie.  In addition to those SuperBlues blueberries, we had other great ingredients from Trader Joe’s to select from: Bananas, Raw Almonds, Honey and Vanilla Yogurt.  How to choose….

Blueberry Almond Banana Smoothie

Blueberry Almond Banana Smoothie


So you can see that selecting the items is the hard part, making a Smoothie is actually easy with the Vita Mix. You simply add the ingredients and then let the strength and power of the motor make short work of blending everything into a smooth and creamy drink.

This drink was super easy and just delicious!

What you need:

  • 2 Cups cold water
  • 1 ripe banana
  • ½ cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)
  • ¼ cup raw almonds
  • Honey to taste

How to:

Blend the water and the almonds together on High to make a smooth almond-milk. Then add the fruits and honey if using. Blend on High again until smooth. Taste and add more honey if you need to- depends on how sweet your banana is, right?

This will make about 3 cups of rich, fruity smoothie.

Variations:

  • Strawberries
  • Mango
  • Yogurt
  • Maple Syrup

There are so many variations possible- these are just a few of our favorites. Please feel free to share your favorite fruit smoothie combinations below.

We just love making drinks and soups in the Vita Mix.   When you add the fact that Trader Joe’s has a wonderful selection of produce, nuts and frozen items for sale, you can see there are a zillion items to make.  In fact,  we hope to share many more adventures in blending with you soon.

Have you checked out the Vita-Mix yet?  This super blender might be just what you need to reach your health goals. Take a look today

Click HERE to Get FREE shipping on your Vitamix

If you liked this post, please take a minute and leave a comment. Even if it is just to say hello, we love to hear from all our readers.

This item is Wheat Free/ Raw