I live near a Trader Joes and I love it. I'll bet a lot of you do too. I thought we could swap meal and snack ideas from TJ's - I am not a patient cook and have severe fatigue from MS, so fast meals from TJ's are the best. Here are my contributions:

Shepherd's Pie - the serving sizes are more generous than any of us could eat in one sitting, and the nutritional content is pretty good for a pre-packaged meal.

TJ's brand spaghetti O's and microwaveable turkey meatballs - these are separate products that I mix together. It's a high Protein lunch that, unlike actual spaghetti-o's, is decent calorie, carb, and fat-wise

Turkey meatballs - microwaveable, these can be added to any dish

Reduced guilt mac and cheese - the name says it all, and it doesn't taste like cardboard.

Frozen fruit (mangoes in my case) - great for ice cold smoothies

Yogurt with almonds - a bit high in sugar, but it's a great source of protein

Pre-sliced fruit - cantaloupes are hard for me to slice because of the MS, and I can't for the life of me figure out how to slice a mango, so these are great

Cheese! - they have a million kinds to choose from

chicken tikka masala- keeps me from going to the Indian place down the street

Pre-packaged sliced grilled chicken + salad veggies - great dinner salad

So - anybody else have any TJ's meal ideas?

1. 1/2 can Trader Joe's skipjack tuna + 6 frozen grilled asparagus spears, snapped into small chunks & thawed in the microwave + 1 T. TJ's light champagne vinaigrette dressing = delicious, low calorie, low carb, high protein tuna salad (you can change it with different frozen veggies and dressings, the ginger soy dressing is also delicious and low calorie)

2. I make myself a little "dessert" plate with a slice of rosemary ham, a couple of Calimyrna figs, and a small serving of the toasted coconut chips. *love*

3. take 1/2 can sardines in harissa, mix in a little chopped dark leafy greens (chopped kale is really good). Brush the inside of a small ramekin with olive oil and place in oven while it preheats to 375. Take out the ramekin, add in the sardines & greens, bake for 5 minutes. Take out and crack a Trader Joe's Omega 3 egg over the top. Bake for another 10 minutes. Take out and sprinkle with chili powder, curry powder, hot sauce to your taste. Top with shredded cheese of your choice -- I love Trader Joe's shredded Swiss & Gruyere blend -- and return to bake until the cheese is melted. You can vary this by using avocado instead of dark leafy greens (or in addition to). Lots of protein and healthy fats in this meal. Sardines are underrated as a weight loss/post WLS food -- not only are they chock full of protein, they have Omega 3's, calcium, and iron too.

I live near a Trader Joes and I love it. I'll bet a lot of you do too. I thought we could swap meal and snack ideas from TJ's - I am not a patient cook and have severe fatigue from MS, so fast meals from TJ's are the best. Here are my contributions:

Shepherd's Pie - the serving sizes are more generous than any of us could eat in one sitting, and the nutritional content is pretty good for a pre-packaged meal.

TJ's brand spaghetti O's and microwaveable turkey meatballs - these are separate products that I mix together. It's a high Protein lunch that, unlike actual spaghetti-o's, is decent calorie, carb, and fat-wise

Reduced guilt mac and cheese - the name says it all, and it doesn't taste like cardboard.

Frozen fruit (mangoes in my case) - great for ice cold smoothies

Yogurt with almonds - a bit high in sugar, but it's a great source of protein

Pre-sliced fruit - cantaloupes are hard for me to slice because of the MS, and I can't for the life of me figure out how to slice a mango, so these are great

chicken tikka masala- keeps me from going to the Indian place down the street

Pre-packaged sliced grilled chicken + salad veggies - great dinner salad

So - anybody else have any TJ's meal ideas?

I, too, love TJs for their low carb options and quick meal items. A lot of what you mentioned above is super high in carbs, so unfortunately, that doesn't fit in my nutrition plan.

I do love the frozen shrimp, the guiltless fish sticks, the korean short ribs, the hummus, etc. They have tons of frozen cooked protein that has no sides of rice/pasta/sauce and that's super convenient.

Yup TJ lover, here, too.

Actually I never go but now that I have some idea's I will. I always felt lost. I am hoping more people respond so when I get back from vacation next week I can go shopping and have some fun yummy new stuff.

~LA

@@gal friday: Good for you that you can eat all of those carbs and fat! It just goes to show that different people respond differently to different foods! Personally, most of those suggestions just wouldn't work for me. But, then again, I don't know the quantity of the frequency you indulge in these, so I can't judge. I will go to TJ and check it out. Maybe I am misinformed! Thanks for such a thorough, thoughtful post!

Actually I never go but now that I have some idea's I will. I always felt lost. I am hoping more people respond so when I get back from vacation next week I can go shopping and have some fun yummy new stuff.

~LA

There are actually TJ's cookbooks - official and unofficial - that focus on healthy meals.

@@gal friday: Good for you that you can eat all of those carbs and fat! It just goes to show that different people respond differently to different foods! Personally, most of those suggestions just wouldn't work for me. But, then again, I don't know the quantity of the frequency you indulge in these, so I can't judge. I will go to TJ and check it out. Maybe I am misinformed! Thanks for such a thorough, thoughtful post!

I think you'd be surprised - like I was! I think TJ's is staffed by ninjas, who, late at night when we are sleeping, sneak into grocery stores, suck fat/carbs/calories out of normal products, and sells them the next day in their stores. Don't get me wrong, it can be tricky to shop there because they have PLENTY of food that looks so yummy but is SO bad for you, but if you can resist temptation, you can make it out of there with success. Just steer clear of the bakery and dessert aisle! You'll gain weight just LOOKING at that stuff.

I want some Turkey meatballs! I love love love Teriyaki meatballs. I stretch/modify the Terayaki sauce by adding some lemon juice or vinegar and a packet of Stevia.

Man, I'll be honest, i hate stevia with a passion. It tastes so weird. But I stumbled upon Monk Fruit - I'd had lo-han fruit based sweetener when I was in China, so I'm psyched it's here in the states.

They also have non-turkey meatballs, but they were too high in fat for me. The turkey meatballs are great because I have a five year old, and their nice and familiar to them so he eats them without a fight. Veggie burgers? Not so much (although TJ's veggie burgers are great.)

I just looked up the fat on the Shepherd's Pie, and it's 3.5 grams per serving, which is quite low, and I don't think anybody with a sleeve could eat a whole serving, unless the split it into two meals. The carbs were reasonable too.

Has anybody used fish from TJs?

Me! The fish is decent. I'm picky about seafood but this isn't bad. Not great, but not bad.