Wednesday Gourmet: TJ’s Cookie Butter

I’ve been hearing a lot about Trader Joe’s Cookie Butter.  Is it cookie dough, I wondered?  Or is it like Nutella?  Well, I finally picked up a jar from my TJ’s and boy is it delicious.  TJ’s describes it best…

Trader Joe’s Speculoos Cookie Butter is spreadable Speculoos cookies. Speculoos cookies are classic Belgian cookies with a slightly caramelized, almost-but-not-quite-gingerbread flavor. They’re crushed into a fine powder and mixed with magical ingredients and turned into a smooth, spreadable substance we call Cookie Butter. It resembles peanut butter in color and consistency. Spread it on toast, bagels, pancakes or waffles. Use it as a dip for hunks of dark chocolate or pretzels or (gasp!) veggies like carrots or celery.

Well, I’ve been eating it spread on cookies but am in search of some recipes with Cookie Butter in it.  If I don’t make something with it, it’s going to make me gain 10 pounds!  Here are some recipes I’m thinking of trying out.

Cookie Butter and White Chocolate Smoothie
Source: loveveggiesandyoga.com via Chris on Pinterest

Cookie Butter Baked Oatmeal
Source: healthyfoodforliving.com via Emily on Pinterest

Cookie Butter Waffles
Source: thevegancrew.com via Gina on Pinterest

Wednesday Gourmet: Goat Cheese Flatbread

Every week I trudge through the crowds and do my grocery shopping at Trader Joe’s.  If you have not been to a NYC Trader Joe’s, you do not know what it’s like to weave in and out of crowds and customers waiting to checkout.  On the weekends, you’ll average a 30 minute wait to checkout.  It’s crazy but I love Trader Joe’s so I do it.

I wanted to come up with a quick appetizer for dinner so I came up with a goat cheese flatbread that was pretty delicious!

Goat Cheese Flatbread

Total Time: 10 min
Prep 5 min | Cook 5 min
Yield: 2 servings

Ingredients

• 2 small whole wheat wraps
• 1 goat cheese medallion
• 1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• salt and pepper to taste

Cooking Directions

1. Turn oven broiler on.
2. Spread goat cheese on wraps.
3. Thinly slice onions and sprinkle on top of wraps.
4. Sprinkle with dried basil, salt and pepper.
5. Place flatbread directly onto the rack so the bottom also crisps.
6. Cook for 5 minutes or until crisp.

Wednesday Gourmet: Roasted Rosemary Marcona Almonds

I picked up a bag of Roasted Marcona Almonds with Rosemary from Trader Joe’s and can’t stop eating them!  They’re a delightful afternoon snack or would be perfect with wine or beer.

What are Marcona almonds?  They’re only grown on the Mediterranean coast of Spain and have a light and crunchy texture almost like a macadamia nut.

If you can’t pick these up at your local Trader Joe’s try this recipe from The Foodista blog.

Rosemary Roasted Marcona Almonds

Photo from Michelle Morris

Ingredients

• 2 cups Marcona almonds
• extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary
• sea salt

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spread out a single layer of Marcona almonds.
2. Drizzle lightly with extra virgin olive oil then toss together with about 1 tablespoon of minced fresh rosemary.
3. Roast almonds until they start to turn a slightly darker brown color. Remove from the oven and toss generously with coarsely ground or flaky sea salt. Serve warm.
4. Store leftovers back in the freezer in a covered container. To serve again, just reheat in the microwave and add a little more salt.