Pick This Up, Not That: Trader Joe's New December Foods

Pickle-lovers and hostesses alike will love these cocktail-ready skewers of cornichons, carrots, jalapeños, olives, bell peppers, and pearl onions. Briny, crisp, and ready to dress up your drink, they're one of our favorite new items this month.

This almond, pear, and persimmon tarte (or galette, if you will), is pretty darn good for a frozen dessert. Do note that it's a relatively small dessert (a blessing or a curse, depending on your perspective).

As their name suggests, these biscotti have a different texture than what we've come to expect. Tender and relatively plain with sizeable chunks of dried fig, these not-too-sweet cookies would be nice with a cup of tea or coffee.

Fans of Trader Joe's classic crunchy chocolate chip cookies will love this seasonal spin on the bite-size cookie. Buttery with a mild peppermint flavor from chunks of peppermint candy, they're a crowd-pleasing treat.

We're glad that Trader Joe's brought back these previously discontinued dried fruit bars. Apple-based, these are a sweet, grab-and-go snack that'll remind you of the fruit leather of your youth. Our favorite flavors are the Apple Mango and Apple Raspberry, but all four are solid.

If you're keen on seaweed snacks, pick up this Organic Roasted Teriyaki Seaweed, a tangy take on the healthy snack.

Trader Joe's take on dukkah, an Egyptian seed, nut, and spice blend, is a winner. Anise-heavy, with plenty of coriander, sesame seeds, and finely chopped almonds, it makes for an easy, satisfying dip for pita bread or a baguette when mixed with extra-virgin olive oil. At $3, it's a steal.

As the name suggests, these Mochi Rice Nuggets are pleasantly crisp, crunchy, and snackable and sort of like a thicker, rice-based pita chip texturally. Our only hangup: we wish they came in a bolder flavor, perhaps something more akin to Asian rice crackers (these are very mild, seasoned with salt and oil and nothing else).

Neither too sweet nor too tannic, this black tea and guava juice blend is just right. Refreshing served over ice, it'd take well to mixing with rum or vodka for an easy cocktail.

Is this premade guacamole on par with a homemade version? No, but it's a convenient option for use in recipes where it'll play an accent role, like nachos or huevos rancheros bowls. Given the choice, we'd choose Sabra's take on individually portioned premade guac, but this is a solid second best.

Packaging aside, this airy honey-flavored candy bar is virtually identical to Great Britain's beloved Crunchie bar. Just salty enough to balance the sweet filling and milk chocolate, it's easily our favorite of Trader Joe's December lineup.

Dense and chewy with bits of dates and a drizzle of icing, these sweet and spicy gingerbread bars are a bit tricky to classify: Are they dessert? A breakfast pastry? A snack? Confusing categorization aside, they're a winner. Plus, how cute is the packaging?

Shockingly sweet in both scent and flavor, these white chocolate truffles are a hard pass.

With packaging like a holiday popper and the promise of a sticky toffee filling, bits of buttery shortbread, and a dark chocolate shell, these cookie-filled truffles sounded like a surefire hit. Unfortunately, the ratio is way off: the chocolate shell is too thick, which both overwhelms the cookie and caramel and makes the truffles uncomfortable to bite into. Save your money for a Twix bar.

We were hoping that this sparkling Blackberry Spritzer could be a fun, non-alcoholic way to toast the new year; unfortunately, it's too sweet, without enough acidity to balance everything out.

While the concept of this smoke-infused olive oil is interesting, the smoke flavor completely dominates and lingers unpleasantly.

We had high hopes for these saucy braised gigante beans — one of our favorite recipes is similar in concept — but they fell mightily short of our expectations. While the beans have a pleasantly tender texture, the sauce is overpoweringly sweet and has an unpleasant, canned aftertaste; all in all, they reminded us of Chef Boyardee.