Trader Joe's Peppermint Pretzel Slims

I've avoided buying these every year because I couldn't imagine liking them. To be sure, I love TJ's Pretzel Slims. And I love peppermint. But together? No. Ew.

I was correct. I had several at Nina's house the other day. They just seemed...off. Put the "creamy coating and peppermint sprinkles" on something else--a big marshmallow, say, or a maraschino cherry--and I'd probably think you a culinary genius. But on a pretzel? No. It's too clashy.

On the other hand, there's Nina: "I love them." "Delicious." "I could eat a hundred of these."

De gustibus, etc.


Will I buy it again? 



via GIPHY

Trader Joe's Pretzel Slims

I didn't really hold out much hope for these being good. I was wrong. In fact, they're excellent. Full of pretzel flavor, delightfully crunchy, eminently snackable, even addictive. They could use just a little more salt, but that's my only complaint.


Will I buy it again? 

Yes indeed. I don't think this product is quite Top Ten material, but it's definitely going to take a place in my regular rotation of salty snacks.

Trader Joe's Milk Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Pretzels

Following the #TraderJoes hashtag on Twitter, I of course see what brand-new products catch people's attention. But I also see which older ones people express their undying love for--and this is one of the most frequent in that category. So I finally tried it.

I can't join the chorus of fans. The milk chocolate is nice, but the pretzel is just a thin shell between the chocolate and the peanut butter. And the peanut butter is, well, solidified, not creamy. I assume they have to sort of desiccate it in some way to keep its oils from soggifying the pretzel, but the result is that there's nothing "butter" about it.


Will I buy it again? 

No. Did not like.

Trader Joe's Soft Handmade Pretzel

If there's anything that distinguishes this as a pretzel, anything to convince me that it's not just ordinary white bread tied into a knot, it escapes me. There's no saltiness, nothing special about the crust, none of the flavor that I've come to associate with pretzels. I don't get the purpose of its existence.


Will I buy it again? 

No.

Trader Joe's Honey Wheat Pretzel Sticks

These are the best pretzels I've had in a long time. They're unconventional, in that they're less salty and more sweet than most. This is unexpected (well, unless you noticed the "honey" in the product name), but very pleasant. They're worlds better than the shelf-mate pumpernickel pretzel sticks with the same goofy-looking dude on the package.

The thickness of the sticks allows them to be used for dipping without the constant breakage that occurs with thin pretzels. Nina and I tried them with TJ's Pub Cheese (review to come), and I thought it was a fabulous combination.


Will I buy it again? 

Yes. It's not Top Ten quality, but it's a new snacking favorite.

Trader Joe's Pumpernickel Pretzel Sticks

Had you asked me, before I bit into one of these odd pretzels, whether I had ever tasted pumpernickel before, I would have said no. But with the first bite, I was flooded with memory recognition of that flavor--so strong that I'm sure I have had pumpernickel at some point in my life, and did not like it.

I ate about five of these, hoping that my initial dislike would fade and I would warm up to them. It has happened with other things, though admittedly not often.

It did not work. I could not like them--primarily because I don't like pumpernickel, as I am now forcefully reminded.

Nina, on the other hand does like pumpernickel. So, did she like them? Stay tuned.


Will I buy it again? 

Nope. It went back to the store for a refund.

Trader Joe's Gluten Free Pretzel Twists

This is Day 11 (!) of an extended New and Seasonal Products Week--and the last. Tomorrow we can finally get back to our regular programming. 


I'm using two photographs of this product because, for the first time ever, I honestly can't tell which is the front of the package and which is the back.

This is a brand-new product at Trader Joe's, not yet announced on the company's web site.

I found it in the store Monday morning, and that evening I took it to a friend's home poker game so that I could get an assortment of opinions about it. Ten of us sampled them. I seemed to like the pretzels more than most people did. I kept munching on them, while most others took one or two and then quit. Nobody admitted to having any sensitivity or aversion to gluten.

They need a little more salt, but they're not too bland. My first impression of the taste was that they're a lot like Crispix cereal, which is like a blend of Rice Chex and Corn Chex. This shouldn't be surprising, since to avoid gluten they're made of rice, corn, and potatoes. They are surprisingly crunchy--more so than most regular pretzels--yet not brittle, and that quality makes up much of the pleasure of eating them.

We had two outlier opinions. At the good end, one guy liked them enough that he said he would fork over money to buy a package on his next trip to the store. At the bad end, one guy said that he would buy them only "if they were the last pretzels on earth."

But by far the majority opinion--held by eight out of ten of us (including me), if I counted correctly--was that they're not as good as regular pretzels, but good enough that we'd be happy they were available if we had an issue with gluten that precluded eating the traditional variety.

It's difficult to make good gluten-free substitutes of products that are primarily based on wheat flour. That Trader Joe's could get 80% of an arbitrary sample of taste-testers to give these pretzels even that modest level of endorsement is, I think, a pretty good accomplishment.

Will I buy it again? 

No. But if you have gluten sensitivity and you've regretted not having pretzels to munch on, I think you may have something to rejoice about today.

Trader Joe's Multi-Grain Pretzel Nuggets

This was another item I auditioned for a place in my backpack o' snacks for my long trip in August. It did not make the cut. I found these seriously unpleasant. The taste they most reminded me of was burnt toast. There was practically no salt at all on the outside.

Will I buy it again? 

Ick, no. If I had a Trader Joe's Ten Worst list, this would go on it.