I thought I would share a little haul today with the items I recently got at Costco and Trader Joe’s. On my Facebook page, I asked what were people’s favorite Trader Joe’s items and I got some good recommendations.
Costco – When we go to Costco, majority of our purchases are from the Savings book (the monthly sales they have on their products). Here is what we bought:
Bark Thins – They were sampling these and the kids and I couldn’t resist (perfect example of an impulse buy at Costco)
–Jif Peanut Butter – These tubs are huge. Ryan takes one to work to use for lunches.
–Rice Krispies Treats – On sale $3.30 off. I’m so addicted to these. Did anyone else eat these when they were younger?
–Nesquik – Maddox likes this in his milk in the mornings. Does anyone know a healthier alternative for this for kids?
–Ancient Grains – They were sampling this and they were really good. It’s a great food so we grabbed one. I plan on using this with some grilled chicken mixed in and a veggie on the side. This would make a good “meal prep” meal.
–Laundry Detergent – This was on sale (lowered price) and we were running low on what we had.
Outshine Fruit Bars – These are my favorite popsicles ever. I’ve always had the pineapple ones, but the other flavors are just as good if not better. These were $3.50 off. Came out to .41 cents a pop.
Cereal – This was $2.10 off. Not the most nutritious buy, but oh well.
Pirates Booty – My kids love this. It was was $2.40 off. I pack this in their lunch a lot or as a snack.
Crescent Rolls – These were $3.40 off. We use these as sides and for meals.
Honest Juice – This is the best buy I have found. There are 40 juice boxes, making them .24 cents each. At Walmart they are .40 each.
Deli Meat – Ryan uses this for school lunches. I don’t like packaged deli meat, but it’s easy for him.
Strawberries – I don’t ever buy produce at Costco (haven’t found a deal better than at Walmart or Sprouts) and I don’t really think they have good produce, but we were in need of strawberries.
That’s an idea of a Costco grocery trip. The total bill was $94.63.
As for my Trader Joe’s haul…
Here’s what we got:
Tamales – I love tamales and will top this with salsa and pair it with my crockpot beans and maybe some rice.
Uncured Bacon – I just love bacon. My favorite way to eat it is on an egg and cheese sandwich (using either a biscuit, english muffin, or sandwich slices).
Mozzarella Cheese – This is for a homemade pizza
Honey Walnut Shrimp – I got this several weeks ago when they were sampling it and this stuff is just so good! There is not a ton of it in there though.
Vegetable Fried Rice – This stuff is really good. We eat it with that orange chicken and the shrimp mentioned above.
Orange Chicken – This is one of my son’s favorite meals. The bag actually feeds all 4 of us, but Ryan doesn’t get a big “man” portion and Maddox rarely touches it (as it is with most meats).
Dried Mangos – One is sweetened and one is unsweetened. I knew I loved the sweetened ones, but wanted to try the unsweetened ones too. They are worth the no added sugar…not as yummy obviously as the sugar ones, but still good.
Lobster Ravioli – Someone recommended this on my FB page and I can’t wait to try this. It looks like a small portion, so I plan to have this for lunch one day with some marinara sauce.
Pizza Dough – I love that they have this. Dough, ready to go and bake. It doesn’t last long in the fridge, so I plan to use this asap. We add sauce, cheese and pepperoni. My favorite pizza to make this with this dough is fresh mozzarella with cooked bacon, mushroom, and onion.
Crunchy Cookie Butter – I purposefully try NOT to buy this because it’s literally addicting. Probably one of the yummiest things I’ve tasted. Crunchy is my favorite.
Turkey Corn Dogs – For the boys’ lunch.
Blueberry Waffles – I love topping one or two with peanut butter and sliced strawberries or bananas.
Brownies – These looked so good. I can’t wait to try these.
Butter Lettuce – I hate chopping lettuce with a passion. And butter lettuce is my favorite. Perfect for a small side salad at dinner.
Cottage Cheese – I absolutely love cottage cheese and the lowfat kind has amazing macros on it (high protein and low calories). Trader Joes is my favorite for sure. I like to eat this as is…with a spoon. I also use it in my mom’s homemade lasagna instead of ricotta cheese.
Mediterranean Hummus – I just started liking hummus. This was another recommendation from someone on FB, so we’ll see.
Z-Bars – My kids love the iced oatmeal kind. Walmart doesn’t sell this kind, but Target does. It’s cheaper to buy in a box, but these were .79 cents each. Great for snacks or lunches.
Eggs (organic free range) – I am picky about most diary products, especially eggs and milk. I will spend more on better eggs. These were only $3.79.
Bananas – just needed bananas
Coffee Ice cream – My friend Brittany told me about this when we went to her house for dinner on Sunday and knew I needed to get this. I took a bite before putting it away and yes, yes, yes!
I also bought some flowers. The boys each need one to take to school today and I thought I’d use the bouquet to display in my house. When we got to the register, there was no tag on them and he asked me if I knew how much they were. I didn’t, so he gave me them for $1.99!
Our total bill for Trader Joes was $76.06. When I take a look at the entire haul, I feel like that is high, but it’s TJ’s and there are some entire meals or main dishes within the entire lot.
And the beautiful flowers I got!
I would love to know what you like to buy at Costco or Trader Joes. I feel like I need an entire year to try out everything that was mentioned.
Love your blog so much! Am enjoying these money-saving posts so much!!! Ps…I read on a nutritionist’s blog that she puts 1/2 packet Carnation Instant breakfast in milk for her kids…I started doing that too and my son likes it. Sometimes I blend it with a little banana and tiny bit of spinach for a smoothie.
I’m with you on bacon – YUM!!!
My daughter drinks chocolate or vanilla milk with her school lunch every day. (She buys it from school on the days she buys, and takes a box from home on other days.) I feel guilty letting her drink it this way, but instead prefer to focus on the fact that it ensures that she’s getting some milk at lunch every day. 🙂
Ovaltine is a great substitute for nesquick. My kids have never noticed a difference!
I thought I had seen that somewhere…I’ll get that next time.
They sell kid’s organic cliff bars at Costco, just an FYI! Also, fair life chocolate milk is lower in sugar than other already mixed milks if you want to take a look. It’s also delicious!
Oh yes, I’ve seen those…my kids only liked the Iced Oatmeal ones so we only get them at Target where we can get just that box. I’ll have to look at Fair Life chocolate milk…not sure I’ve seen that.
My favorite thing to buy from TJ is the frozen mac and cheese. It is crazy delicious and you should try it !
Ooh I’ll for sure try!
Do you have an Aldi? Aldi actually owns TJ and has some similar offerings for better prices. I used to avoid Aldi like the plague, but since I’ve started shopping there I can NEVER go anywhere else.
We actually do have one nearby. I’ve only been a couple times and didn’t really like it, but I’ll have to try again. Didn’t know that they own TJ. I always feel like they don’t have enough food and the produce isn’t very good, but I haven’t been to the new one.
If you are really into saving money, like you say your are, Aldi is THE best place to shop. I make my weekly grocery list based on our weekly menu. Then, I make an Aldi list and HEB list. I buy as much as I can from Aldi (savings of at least $5 to $20 PER wk) and then buy the rest from HEB. The staples at Aldi which will at least save you $5 a week are as follows: milk, eggs, toilet paper, yougurt, bread, cereal, fruit bars, chips and I can go on. That is actually over the $5 a week savings. The brand is great, the produce is better than HEB (and we live in Houston), and they also have name brand items if you are still stuck on that. It is really a great savings for our family and we buy all we can from Aldi before we proceed to HEB. Savings for us apprx. $20 per week! That’s $100 per month from shopping at Aldi…yes ma’am! And, Amen! We are NOT food snobs as long as it saves us money 🙂
That’s awesome! I need to go back and shop there again…wasn’t very impressed the first time I went, but now that one is open closer to me, maybe I need to check it out again…maybe it’s gotten better. I’ve heard a lot of people talk about how they love Aldi.