Want to know the most kid-friendly items you can get at Trader Joe’s? Here are my kids’ favorite things from Trader Joe’s – your kids might like them too!
I’ve been a fan of Trader Joe’s for a long time. I was first introduced to Trader Joe’s in law school, when it was the only grocery store option within walking distance to my apartment. At first, it was a little bit shocking not having brand name items on the shelves, but after I got used to it, I realized that I really liked a lot of their products. Since then, I’ve used Trader Joe’s in multiple ways. It’s been my primary grocery store, a stop for specialty or seasonal items only, and now, a staple among many grocery stores that I shop weekly.
Why? My kids are absolutely obsessed with certain Trader Joe’s items. These are my kids’ favorite things from Trader Joe’s. We always have them in the house. If you have a Trader Joe’s near you, your kids might like these items too.
My Kids’ Favorite Things from Trader Joe’s
Peanut butter granola bars
My kids love granola bars of all shapes and sizes, but their favorite variety is Trader Joe’s peanut butter chewy coated and drizzled granola bars. These things are probably my kids’ favorite things from Trader Joe’s. They love these things. It’s their favorite after-school snack these days. Just a word to the wise. If you’re transporting these things in the warmer months of the year, keep them cool. My favorite way to do this is in a Packit freezable snack bag. These things are genius. If you don’t have one, it’s worth the money.
Fruit leather buttons
Another favorite on-the-go snack from Trader Joe’s is their fruit leather buttons. They come in three flavors – grape, strawberry, and mango. I think each kid would pick a different flavor to be their favorite flavor. My son would pick the mango buttons and my daughter would pick the grape buttons. Is this because my son’s favorite color is orange and my daughter’s favorite color is purple? Probably, but they eat them, so I don’t ask questions. If you have a kid who likes orange, purple, or pink, this snack might become one of your kids’ favorite things from Trader Joe’s.
Pizza salad
Perhaps a surprising entry on the list of my kids’ favorite things from Trader Joe’s is their pizza salad kit. My kids are usually salad fans, but it’s hot and cold. Sometimes they eat the salad, sometimes they don’t. But when it’s the pizza salad kit from Trader Joe’s on their plates, they definitely inhale it. I mean, when you cover lettuce with pizza cheese, herby croutons, and pizza ranch dressing, how could it not be delicious?
Bamba
Like many people who have kids, I was first introduced to Bamba (puffed corn with peanut butter) when my first kid was introducing solid food into his diet. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends early introduction to allergenic foods, including peanuts, starting at 4-6 months of age. Although we did stir peanut butter into oatmeal too, we found that our best source of regular peanut exposure was Bamba. They were easy for our babies to eat, easy to pack on the go, and easy to get them to want them often.
Although we are no longer concerned about making sure our kids have sufficient exposure to peanut butter now that we have peanut butter waffles in our typical breakfast rotation and peanut butter granola bars as their favorite after-school snack, my kids still love Bamba. They eat them very regularly and ask for more when they’ve gone through a bag. I can see Bamba remaining on the list of my kids’ favorite things from Trader Joe’s for years to come.
Flavored sparkling water
As I’ve mentioned previously in my post on fun ways to keep kids hydrated, my kids love flavored sparkling water, which they affectionately call fruit water. Although they like fruit water from pretty much anywhere, they particularly like the flavor options at Trader Joe’s. When I polled them for their favorite flavors, they both said cranberry clementine without hesitation. If your kids aren’t into the cranberry clementine flavor, they have many other delicious flavors that could appeal to them. My kids also like the watermelon lemonade and raspberry lime flavors a lot.
If you struggle to keep your kids hydrated or just want to make drinking water a bit more fun for them, give Trader Joe’s flavored sparkling water a try. It just might top the list of your kids’ favorite things from Trader Joe’s!
Sesame bagels
If your kids love bagels, give Trader Joe’s sesame bagels a try. My kids love them because they love sprinkles and they think the sesame seeds are white sprinkles. I’m not about to yuck their yum and tell them they aren’t actually sprinkles so we call them sprinkle bagels in my house now. Good for breakfast or a snack, I imagine that the sesame bagels will remain one of my kids’ favorite things from Trader Joe’s for a long time.
Freeze dried fruit
I must admit, I was skeptical about freeze dried fruit at first. When I was growing up, all I knew about was fresh fruit, dried fruit, and canned fruit, so freeze dried fruit was new to me and I couldn’t imagine what it would taste like or feel like in my mouth. Now that I’ve tried it, it’s not bad. It’s still not my favorite, but it sure is my kids’ favorite. They can’t get enough freeze dried fruit!
Although you can find freeze dried fruit lots of places now, I find the variety and price of what’s on offer at Trader Joe’s to be the best. They have freeze dried mango, bananas, strawberries, blueberries, and mixed berries. My kids like them all, so we tend to have a rotation going. And I can’t be mad about it because freeze dried fruit is a great snack.
Teeny tiny tomatoes
Almost across the board, we love the produce at Trader Joe’s. But with only one exception, my kids could care less where I buy their constant supply of fruit and the few veggies they will eat. What’s that exception? Teeny tiny tomatoes. My son eats them with every meal – breakfast included. He pops them like grapes. If you have a kid who likes tomatoes, give these particular tomatoes a try!
Freeze dried fruit
Look, Trader Joe’s maple leaf cookies are just plain delicious. Everyone in my family likes them. My mom, who doesn’t have a Trader Joe’s near her, buys them in bulk when she visits. We just have to hide her stash while she’s here so the kids don’t tear into them because they love them too. We don’t let them subsist on a steady diet of maple leaf cookies, but they are a great occasional treat and they definitely make the list of my kids’ favorite things from Trader Joe’s.
Elote dip
I first picked up the Everything and the Elote dip at the recommendation of Megan of @feedinglittles. I’m a sucker for a dip and she couldn’t shut up about this particular one, so I just had to buy it. Let me tell you, she was not wrong. This stuff is amazing! What I didn’t expect, though, is that my 5-year-old would be such a big fan. It’s got a little kick to it. But both my kids love when we get the elote dip out and its definitely one of my kids’ favorite things from Trader Joe’s.
My son would also add the Elote Corn Chip Dippers to his list of favorite things from Trader Joe’s, but they’re a bit too spicy for my daughter. I happen to agree with him, though.
Flavored Greek yogurt
Look, it’s no surprise that kids like yogurt. But what is a surprise is that they love Greek yogurt, but man do they ever! I first bought Trader Joe’s flavored Greek yogurt for myself. I love Greek yogurt, but I don’t like fruit on the bottom Greek yogurt. Trader Joe’s flavored Greek yogurt is blended, so I much prefer it. And apparently so do my kids. They steal my Greek yogurt regularly. I can’t be too upset, though, because it’s a great source of protein for them. I just have to buy more because just because they’re one of my kids’ favorite things from Trader Joe’s doesn’t mean they get to eat them all!
Frozen hashbrowns
Trader Joe’s frozen hashbrowns are essentially breakfast French fries, so of course they make the list of my kids’ favorite things from Trader Joe’s! They will eat them anyway I serve them, but our favorite thing to do with them is to use them as a base for a little bacon, egg, and cheese stack for an easy weekend breakfast.
Tiny ice cream cones
Last, but certainly not least, no list of my kids’ favorite things from Trader Joe’s would be complete without Mini Hold the Cone ice cream cones. They’re the perfect after-dinner treat for the kids and the adults because it’s just enough ice cream to satisfy your sweet tooth. There are several delicious flavors available, but we like the chocolate chip and strawberry flavors best.
Other posts
Interested in other kid-friendly content? Check out these posts:
I hope you can find some inspiration for your kids from my kids’ favorite things from Trader Joe’s. If your kids have additional products from Trader Joe’s that they love, please leave them below or over on Instagram @sarainseason.
[Note: None of this content is sponsored. The links above may be general affiliate links, which earn me a small commission so I can keep making great content for you!]