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I Tried All Trader Joe’s New Products for April 2024

Trader Joe’s New Items for April 2024 – Credit: Samantha Jenkins/Shopfood.com

Trader Joe’s new products for April include a variety of pastries, snacks, ice cream, and even a sous vides turkey or chicken entrée. As always, I went to my local Trader Joe’s to try their new items for this month. I taste tested and reviewed these products, so if you want to decide which items to pick up on your April grocery run, here’s my list.

1. Mini Chocolate Chip Croissant Swirls – $3.99

Trader Joe’s Mini Chocolate Chip Croissant Swirls – Credit: Samantha Jenkins/Shopfood.com

These croissant swirls from Trader Joe’s are a cross between a croissant and a chocolate chip cookie. They have the size, shape, and chocolate chips of a cookie, but they also have the flaky, buttery texture and flavor of a croissant.

Unlike traditional croissants, these require no proofing, so they can go straight from the freezer to the oven. I cooked mine for 25 minutes, but Trader Joe’s recommends 30 minutes for a full golden brown. The semi-sweet mini chocolate chips add just the right amount of richness to compliment all those buttery layers.

Rating: 9/10

2. Dulce de Leche Ice Cream – $3.79

Trader Joe’s Dulce de Leche Ice Cream – Credit: Samantha Jenkins/Shopfood.com

The latest ice cream flavor to hit Trader Joe’s shelves is the classic, creamy Dulce de Leche. It’s made with a caramel ice cream base and ribbons of thick Dulce de Leche-style caramel.

Trader Joe’s ice cream always hits the spot, but this pint is up there with their Cookie Butter flavor for me. I love ice cream with chunks – brownies, cookies, you name it – but this is one of those delicious desserts because of its incredible smoothness.

If you still want to add a little crunch to the mix, crush up some of their new Brown Butter Salted Caramel Mini Biscotti and sprinkle it on top. More about that product next.

Rating: 8.5/10

3. Brown Butter Salted Caramel Mini Biscotti – $4.99

Trader Joe’s Brown Butter Salted Caramel Mini Biscotti – Credit: Samantha Jenkins/Shopfood.com

These biscottis are probably my favorite new Trader Joe’s product this month. According to their description, they’re smaller than your average biscotti – 2 inches long and three-quarters of an inch wide.

Each biscotti has bits of salted caramel that are hardened and provide the perfect crunch. The cookie has a rich, buttery flavor. When I took my first bite, I thought these had a bit of a chalky texture, but as soon as I dipped it in my coffee, that went away and turned into a melt-in-your-mouth texture.

If you plan to try only one of their new products in April, make it the Brown Butter Salted Caramel Mini Biscotti!

Rating: 9.5/10

4. Salted Caramel Swirl Danish – $3.99

Trader Joe’s Salted Caramel Swirl Danish – Credit: Samantha Jenkins/Shopfood.com

I knew these Danishes were the real deal as soon as I saw they were made in Denmark. These are made with laminated dough that’s golden brown and crispy on the outside and chewy and rich on the inside.

You’ll find almond cream and a salted caramel custard inside each Danish. I’m not a fan of almond flavoring in baked goods, but it’s very mild in these pastries, so I didn’t mind. The caramel was perfectly salted and provided a nice balance against the sugar in the rest of the pastry.

Rating: 7.5/10

5. Strawberry Overnight Oats – $1.99

Trader Joe’s Strawberry Overnight Oats – Credit: Samantha Jenkins/Shopfood.com

Overnight oats are one of my favorite lazy breakfasts. Whether you make them the night before or buy premade oats, they require zero prep work in the morning. Trader Joe’s has come out with a handful of overnight oat flavors in the past, and their newest is strawberry.

I was picturing a mild fruity flavor here, but the second these oats hit my tongue, I knew I was in for a lot more. This has a flavor I can only describe as aggressive – it’s super strawberry-forward, which is what the packaging promises, but it was a little overpowering. For now, I’ll stick with their vanilla or peanut butter overnight oats.

Rating: 6.5/10

6. Cheery Lemon Animal Crackers – $0.99

Trader Joe’s Cheery Lemon Animal Crackers – Credit: Samantha Jenkins/Shopfood.com

Frosted animal crackers were one of my favorite childhood snacks, so I was excited to find this new lemon-flavored variety in the Trader Joe’s checkout area. One bag only costs 99 cents. Each cracker is covered in a creamy yogurt lemon-flavored coating and a sprinkling of nonpareils, which brings extra crunch to each bite.

According to Trader Joe’s, they produce these cookies in thirteen different animal shapes, including elephants, tigers, and rhinos. To be honest, I couldn’t really tell what animal any of my cookies were supposed to be, but that doesn’t change the fact that they were delicious.

Rating: 8/10

7. Vanilla & Cream Yogurt – $0.69

Trader Joe’s Vanilla & Cream Yogurt – Credit: Samantha Jenkins/Shopfood.com

Hot off the heels of their recent Blueberries & Cream yogurt, Trader Joe’s released a new Vanilla & Cream flavor. Both flavors used to be sold together in a pack, but it seems like these were popular enough to be sold on their own.

This is a classic yogurt – it’s a little tart, sweet, and creamy, all at the same time. Each cup is four ounces, and there’s just enough room on top to add some fruit and granola for a miniature yogurt parfait.

Rating: 8.5/10

8. Sous Vides Turkey – $8.99

Trader Joe’s Sous Vides Turkey – Credit: Samantha Jenkins/Shopfood.com

It’s pretty much impossible for dinner to get any easier than this. These new Sous Vides Turkey Breast Tenderloins are pre-cooked and pre-seasoned, so all you have to do is heat them up. The seasoning here is a simple mix of sea salt, garlic, and onion, so the turkey will blend seamlessly into whatever dish you’re cooking.

I heated up my package in a skillet and paired it with broccolini and squash for a colorful spring dinner. I noticed right away that these tenderloins could easily be mistaken for chicken nuggets. Turkey gets a bad rap for being dry and flavorless, but these were neither of those things and actually reminded me of Chick-fil-A’s grilled nuggets.

Speaking of chicken, Trader Joe’s also has a chicken thigh version of this sous vide product, available for $8.99.

Rating: 9/10

9. Savory Squares – $3.99

Trader Joe’s Savory Squares – Credit: Samantha Jenkins/Shopfood.com

These crackers are a better-for-you, gluten and dairy-free version of Cheez-Its. They’re made with flour substitutes like tapioca, sunflower seed, and almond flour. Flavor-wise, there’s sea salt, onion powder, and garlic powder.

Despite the orange hue and cheddar flavor, I didn’t see any actual cheddar in the ingredient list, but there’s no mistaking the cheesy flavor here. These would be delicious dipped in hummus or on a cheese board paired with some sliced gouda or Boursin.

Rating: 7/10

10. Brown Sugar Boba Mochi – $2.99

Trader Joe’s Brown Sugar Boba Mochi – Credit: Samantha Jenkins/Shopfood.com

Trader Joe’s new Brown Sugar Boba Mochi is, in a word, interesting. I mean that in the best way possible – the texture, taste, shape, everything about this snack is unique.

The construction of this snack is a brown sugar boba pearl encased in a thick cream coating, all wrapped in a squishy, sweet mochi ball. It really tastes like a classic boba tea in solid form, with caramel notes and creamy, milky flavor throughout.

Rating: 9/10

11. Vanilla Cookie Thins – $4.49

Trader Joe’s Vanilla Cookie Thins – Credit: Samantha Jenkins/Shopfood.com

I think Trader Joe’s new Vanilla Cookie Thins will be popular with the masses, but they missed the mark for me. Their Meyer Lemon and Triple Ginger Cookie Thins have such a bold, natural-tasting flavor, but I found this vanilla flavor to be a little artificial tasting.

There are little flecks of vanilla inside, so I know there’s real vanilla here, but it just didn’t translate. These cookies are super thin, crispy, and crunchy. I prefer a soft, chewy cookie, which is another reason I wasn’t a fan. Like I said, I do think plenty of people will love these cookies.

Rating: 6.5/10

12. Cinnamon Twist Danish – $8.99

Trader Joe’s Cinnamon Twist Danish – Credit: Samantha Jenkins/Shopfood.com

This massive pastry is as flavorful as it is large! While it’s technically a Danish, it has all the elements of a cinnamon roll, so I’d consider it a mix of the two. It’s made with laminated dough filled with cinnamon custard, plus cinnamon and sugar throughout.

The top of the pastry features a crunchy, sweet sugar shell. There’s a ton of cinnamon flavor in this Danish – a little bit too much, in my opinion, but the perfect amount for anyone looking for a spicy, warming breakfast pastry.

I cut mine into pieces like a pizza and warmed it up for 15 seconds to give it that fresh-from-the-oven taste, but you can also pop this in the oven for a few minutes to get the outside crisped up.

Rating: 7.5/10

About the Author

Samantha Jenkins is a food writer and digital marketing manager with a passion for storytelling, perusing grocery store aisles, reading menus, and eating really good food.

In her free time, she enjoys baking, performing in musicals, and cohosting the East Coast Haunts podcast.

April 1, 2024