A foodie's quest to turn up the heat through strength and conditioning with whole food and a hungry mind.

Sunday, September 30, 2012

September Food PenPal Reveal: My Trader Joe's Care Package


This is only my 3rd Foodie Penpal posting but I already feel like I'm a part of an exclusive club.  I guess, in a way, it is an "exclusive" club, but any foodie can join. No blog required, you can just be a reader and join in on the fun.  To learn more and sign up, check out Lindsay's Foodie Penpal program details and then stay to enjoy her food and exercise tips at The Lean Green Bean. Thanks, Lindsay, for putting this amazing event together for us all to enjoy!!

This month, my package came from Allie who has a fun blog at A Day In a Joyful Life.  Her post on Sunday is looking back at being a kid and she posted a picture of the original Power Rangers; wow, forgot about those guys! My little brother would watch them and I'd watch along pretending I didn't care; but I really did! No shame here.

Allie was so kind as to take into consideration my requests for nothing with a lot of ingredients, no sugar, most oils, or carageenan gum. On top of that, I am now gluten-free adding more things to look out for. I also tend to hold a grudge against anything in a package, with a few exceptions, since packaged usually means too processed for my liking.

From our conversation, I could tell she genuinely cared about getting things I'll enjoy, and she ended up with the perfect package! This was basically a Trade Joe's care package I'll happily accept anytime!  Here's what she sent.....

- Trader Joe's Ruby Red Chai Tea
- Trader Joe's South African Smoke Seasoning Blend Grinder
- Trader Joe's Hot Chipotle Salsa
- Trader Joe's Almond Butter with Roasted Flaxseeds

"Awesome" was the one word I used upon first opening the box, and awesome best describes the items I received. Tea, not sweetened at all, is always a welcome gift for me.  I brew all types of tea throughout the day everyday and love how many varieties there are. Mixing herbal with black or green tea gives me a flavorful boost of caffeine in minutes; I love it! Red (aka Rooibos) tea is my favorite herbal variety, and chai is my favorite flavor blend, so the Ruby Red Chai is a win-win for me!
Perfect for my Meatless Monday meal!!
Another everyday essential in or on my food is some form of salsa (for my salad dressing) and spices galore.  I didn't own any spice mixes and usually just add a little from each bottle I have each time, but the South African Smoke spices made this a lot easier and kicked up my salad with the heat I crave.  Adding to the heat, I topped my salad with both the spices and Chipotle Salsa to make a delicious cold, yet "hot" salad.  The smokiness from the spices and chipotle creates a depth of flavor that would be perfect in baked salmon cakes ....hmmmm.

Last but never least, almond butter with roasted flaxseeds is pretty much good on anything.  I dipped carrots in it, smeared it on my microwave protein cinnamon bread, and mixed it into creamy protein dips.  Oh yeah, and I just ate it with a spoon. Good, no, great....I don't want it to end.
Share? I don't understand that word.....

Thank you, Allie, for the perfect package and being so thoughtful in your choices.  I am making great use of all of these and it even inspired me to go to a Trader Joe's not so close to my home for the first time.  The verdict? I'll be returning very soon!

If you want to see what I got my Foodie Penpal this month, check out Olivia's blog at The Lovely Sisters.


The Lean Green Bean


And now it's time for some details about Foodie Penpals.  In case you’re a new reader, here’s a reminder of what the program is all about:
-On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.

-You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal! 

-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
-You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month. 
-Foodie Penplas is open to US & Canadian residents.  Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We've determined things might get too slow and backed up if we're trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa. 

If you’re interested in participating for October, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions. 
You must submit your information by October 4th as pairings will be emailed on October 5th!

*If you're from somewhere besides the US, Canada or Europe and want to participate, send me an email and I'll see if we get enough interest this month!

16 comments:

  1. I got that South African spice in a foodie penpal box several months ago. I love it!

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    1. It's perfect for foodie penpal gifts, I think I'll be sharing with my next fpp. Such a great tea for Fall!

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  2. Oh wow, that salsa sounds delicious! Enjoy xo

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    1. It is, and I go through a lot of salsa. Something about that chipotle that adds a wonderful hint of smokiness. Thanks for visiting!

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  3. What a great package! Gotta love that almond butter!

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    1. Hi! Thanks for visiting, and yes, the almond butter is splendid and goes on anything!

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  4. That tea looks amazing! I am going to have to search that out and give it a try :)

    Thanks for sharing!

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    1. It is amazing and perfect for the cooler weather. I highly recommend!!

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  5. i think that peanut butter might have gotten re-called. i would look into it. which is a shame because it's one of my favorites!!

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    1. I think it's ok unless almond butter was recalled too, but didn't see anything on that. Thanks for the head's up though, probably best I look into it anyway!

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  6. I'm so glad you enjoyed everything in the package! It was eye-opening to see how difficult it is to find real natural foods with few ingredients, even in a store like Trader Joe's where you would expect everything to be that way.
    Re: the comment before me, I believe it was the TJ's Valencia PB that got recalled, but obviously you should look into it to make sure :)

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    1. Yes, and I'm still enjoying them all. It can be hard to find the right foods, but after a while, you just "know" what's good and what's not. I just went this weekend and did find a lot of products with a lot of ingredients. Oh well, it was still fun.

      On the recall, I will look into it, but thought it only affected peanut butter, not the almond butter. I feel fine right now, but yes, better safe than sorry! Thanks again, Allie!

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  7. What a great package of treats! I've seen almond butter in a few of the FPP packages, and my penpal sent me a recipe that needs it, so I'm very interested in going out and getting some to try. Too bad there's no Trader Joe's in Canada.

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    1. And I thought it was bad b/c TJ's is about 30 miles from my home. Sorry to hear there's not one nearby. Maybe next month's FPP package will have some for you!

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  8. Anything from Trader's Joe is a win. =)

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    1. +1 to that! I feel like a winner every day.....ok, at least when I'm having a TJ's product!

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