Last fall we had a quick trip to Phoenix. We got hungry and wanted some snacks, so decided to make a trip to Trader Joe’s. We were unsure what we would find, i.e. would this Trader Joe’s be as vegan-friendly as the ones we’re familiar with in the San Francisco Bay Area?
Well, we found pretty much the same array of vegan convenience foods in the refrigerated section and were delighted to find the Trader Joe brand of vegan cookies.
The biggest surprise, however, was seeing that the Phoenix Trader Joe’s has a vegan cookie flavor that we’ve never seen at the Daly City or South San Francisco Trader Joe’s. Well, of course, we had to go for the cookies we’ve never had … turns out they had coconut, which I’m not crazy about. But Chris like coconut and has declared this the best of all the Trader Joe cookies. We even brought the packaging home to show our local Trader Joe’s ….
Trader Joe’s has a selection of vegan foods at very competitive prices. The top three foods that I buy at TJs are: fresh sliced organic bread, soymilk, and organic frozen broccoli.
Since the economy went south, I’ve been watching my spending more closely than normal. Trader Joe’s helps me in two ways: 1 – food prices and 2 – easy recycling.
Trader Joe’s prices regularly beat Safeway’s and my nearest natural food stores (NFS) in Pacifica or Half Moon Bay. Here’s their list of vegan products, and below is my typical “shopping list” for TJs
Fresh:
- organic sliced sprouted barley bread $2.99 (I think this is the repackaged Alvarado bread that sells at my NFS for $3.69)
- vegan chocolate chip cookies (bag of fresh cookies, similar to Uncle Eddie’s, $3.99 )
Shelf-stable products:
- canned organic tomato paste and diced tomatoes
- organic soymilk (64 oz, 2.99)
- canned organic beans (until I get my pressure cooker!)
- Clif Bars (.99 each, versus 1.49 at my NFS)
Refrigerated foods:
-Tofurky slices (1.99 for smoked hickory)
- Earth Balance (organic, vegan spread that we use instead of butter, $3.69)
- tofu (I like the organic “twin pack” Soga at $1.69)
Frozen
- organic broccoli (16 oz for $2.29 – my favorite vegetable – I eat this about 5 times a week!)
- organic corn
- breaded “chicken” nuggets (look for the Trader Joe’s brand; they also carry Morningstar and these aren’t vegan)
- black bean and corn enchiladas
Recycling pays off in different ways. Obviously, it diverts materials from landfill and can be used to create new products. We’ve always recycled, and appreciated the curbside recycling that our community conveniently offers. With a renewed focus on watching where my money goes, I’ve started taking my cans and the occasional bottles to recycling centers for cash. Just recently I discovered that at the South SF Trader Joe’s, I can bring in cans and bottles and get my recycling cash right at the register. Very convenient, no special trip needed.
Have a yen for vegan pizza? Well, it’s easier than you think thank to some widely available vegan products that have become staples in my household.
Pizza Dough: Don’t feel like making pizza dough from scratch, or even kneading the premade pizza dough available from Trader Joe’s? A very easy and delicious alternative is the cornmeal pizza crust from Vicolo’s. They’re sold as a two-pack in the refrigerated or frozen section of natural food stores. The last time I checked, New Leaf in Half Moon Bay priced it at $5.09.
Follow Your Heart Vegan Gourmet
Vegan Cheese: This isn’t entirely necessary for a vegan pizza, but it does provide another flavor dimension. There are quite a few commercial vegan cheeses now available as well as potentially making your own tofu ricotta style cheesey sauce.
The Follow Your Heart “Vegan Gourmet” cheese alternatives are the most widely available, even in small towns on the San Francisco mid-Peninsula. With this brand, the trick is to broil the pizza for the last few minutes of cooking to help the “cheese alternative” melt. (Hey, that’s what they call it on their website; cheese alternative photo courtesy of Follow Your Heart)
Vegan Pizza with Broccoli, Pineapple, and Olives
Sauce: I’m rather simple in this manner. I take a can of tomato paste (Trader Joe’s house brand), and add some water and herbs to it and use that as my sauce base. For herbs, I use a generic mix called “Italian Seasoning” that I’ve bought from the herb & spices bulk section at Rainbow Grocery. Another alternative is equally simple – instead of the dried herbs, I’ll use freshly crushed garlic. Or maybe both. Then a pinch of salt.
Toppings: Everything tastes good on pizza. My favorites are: bell pepper, onions, olives, pineapple, corn kernels, and broccoli.
Trader Joe’s is a great place to shop, for vegans and non-vegans. First, they have great prices on staples, a large selection of which are organic, including tofu, jams/jellies, nut and seed butters, canned beans, bread products, frozen vegetables, and non-dairy milks, including soy-, nut-, and rice-based flavors. (Hmm, now I’m stumped trying to think back to the basics of high school English to remember if that is the appropriate use of hyphens. I think it is, but it’s been so long .. )
Recently I spotted a fairly new arrival at the Daly City location – a quadruplet of house brand faux meat products. I’m not necessarily a big fan of buying faux meat products to prepare and eat at home, but they looked so darn appealing on the shelf.
Having a vague recollection of having brunch at Herbivore’s a few months back with friends, and hearing a rave review about stuffed cutlets purchased at Trader Joe’s in SF, I went for the fake meat in box number four. Upon reaching home, it joined my other collection of vegan-foods-to-be-eaten-later in cold storage.
Flash forward to about a week later .. I’ve just been for a gorgeous hike on a late spring Sunday, didn’t feel like cooking, and so out came my home-frozen rice and O Organics broccoli, and my new stuffed cutlets. Interestingly, the two cutlets were individually packaged, which is nice if you don’t want to eat both at the same time.
Well, I followed the instructions on the box and microwaved the cutlets (yes, in my tired and lazy state of mind, I microwaved them in the plastic bags). It was simple to prepare, and when combined with the brown rice and broccoli, it made a decent meal. The cutlets were good — the sauce had an enjoyable slightly spicy undertone, the fake meat tasted fine, the stuffing was okay. I thought the cutlet on the package box looked more appealing than my actual cutlet though.
On a scale of one (low) to five (high), the average reviews from the two vegans in the household was a solid 3.0, which reflects our thoughts that while it was good enough to eat again, it seemed a bit pricey for what it actually was.
Anyways, if you’re looking for other ideas of what to eat vegan at Trader Joe’s, cheaply, check out Michelle’s recent video blog at Vegan Break.
