Dieting with Trader Joe's

Ok, so I have to talk about my new favorite obsession:  Trader Joe's.  We got one just around the corner from us earlier this summer and hubby and I have found many new HEALTHY food items there.  I'm super excited because they have a much different selection than Wegmans does and the food is very tasty.  Trader Joe's has some really unconventional products and the prices are fairly decent (not Wal-Mart prices, but hey, you're not buying Wal-Mart items here!) 

As I have previously mentioned, I usually eat eggs or flax cereal for breakfast since they are lower in carbs and calories than cereal and milk.  But I'm always on the lookout for other options to mix things up and I found these great meatless breakfast patties at Trader Joe's.  I could probably eat these on their own, but they were a delicious addition alongside my poached eggs.  I microwaved them and they still came out with a nice, crispy exterior.  There are 80 calories and 3 grams of carbs in each patty,and as an added bonus, it turns out they are also Kosher..


And now I shall proceed to apologize for the horrible quality of the following photos...I have been too lazy to recharge the battery in my point and shoot, so I had to settle for some impromptu photos with my cell phone (sorry friends!!)

So at the top left of this photo, you can see some lovely, yummy looking nuggets of some kind..they are made of tofu and edamame and have some veggies mixed in for added nutrition and flavor.  Regardless of what they are called or made of, they are CRAZY delicious (and trust me, I can't stand most tofu items) and I paired them with Trader Joe's Carolina Gold bbq sauce (see below)  I cannot tell you how delicious this bbq sauce is - it's tangy and sweet and smoky and totally addicting! I haven't used this for anything but dip for my tofu nuggets, however I think it would be delicious on salmon and chicken. 
(if you're wondering what else was on this plate, it is grilled veggies - onion, peppers, mushrooms, squash. Yum!)

NUTRITIONAL BREAKDOWN:
bbq sauce - 2Tbl
60 calories
14 total carbs
no fat. 

tofu nuggets - 4
220 calories
16 grams of fat
10 total carbs. 

The next super delicious meal I made from Trader Joe's products is this amazingly delicious pizza burger sandwich.  I cooked the patty, then added some mozzarella cheese and pizza sauce on top to channel my inner pizza lover.  Now I won't lie and tell you that these taste EXACTLY like pizza, but they are a little tangy, cheesy, and basil-y and taste really good with pizza sauce on top. 

NUTRITIONAL BREAKDOWN:
pizza burgers 
130 calories
7 grams of fat
7 total carbs.

whole wheat buns
110 calories
2 grams of fat
18 total carbs


One other meal that I don't have pictured is a chicken sandwich that I made for my work lunch.  Trader Joe's sells these rather delicious chili lime chicken patties.  They are a bit on the spicy side, so I paired it with some mild guacamole (also Trader Joe's), colby jack cheese, bacon, and lettuce.  I used Trader Joe's whole wheat thin sandwich bread and ended up with a delicious, filling sandwich.

NUTRITIONAL BREAKDOWN:

chicken patty - 1

150 calories

6 grams of fat

3 total carbs

whole wheat thins

100 calories

1 gram of fat

19 total carbs 

And that's my current review of products at Trader Joe's...  They are constantly getting in new items and I'm pretty sure I'll be visiting again soon...overall I would say their food is delicious and healthy (ok, minus the desert aisle...) and fits into my new diet plan quite well.  Yay!!!

Stay tuned for some new recipe reviews that I'll be posting throughout September.  I have several new recipes that I'll be testing on myself and the hubby..anytime I try a new recipe I get really nervous and excited, and I can't wait to share the results with you!!