Snack Review: Trader Joe’s Handmade 100% Dried Fruit Bars

I sometimes feel blessed that my neighborhood seems to have more Trader Joe’s stores than any other. The ever-growing chain is great for unique, yummy and convenient foods at great prices. Typically, I stop by the store for a quick lunch or dinner. However, I often walk away with more than I’d planned – for TJ’s aisles are lined with all manner of tempting, ready-to-eat snacks. Most of Trader Joe’s stock consists of in-chain generic brands. In addition to keeping prices low, this strategy results in many products that can’t be found elsewhere - offering the adventurous snacker nearly endless opportunities to try new things.

Today, I walked away with some Trader Joe’s 100% Dried Fruit Bars. I’d noticed the snacks, seemingly TJ’s answer to a Fruit Rollup, on my last few visits. Though the flavors looked interesting, I’d abstained from purchase. This morning, however, a sign on the fruity snacks’ display rack caught my eye. “We’re sorry,” it explained, “but our warehouse is out of this product.” Out of the product? That sounded serious. I needed to take some home – it could be my last opportunity to taste the delicacies! The fifty-cent fruit bars were available in four flavors – Apricot, Raspberry, Passion Fruit, and Cape Gooseberry. Naturally, I grabbed one of each.

Each 0.7-ounce bar’s vibrant packaging identifies the bar as “unsweetened dried fruit with no added sugar.” This may be true, but a look at the ingredient list reveals that not only the fruit touted as the bar’s “flavor” is used. None of the bars I tried were apple-flavored, but the first ingredient listed for three of the four was “apples.” To give Trader Joe’s credit, the second ingredient is always the flavor-appropriate fruit.

Opening the packages, you can tell the bars are made of dried fruit. Although they’re very thin, the bars sport visible specks of fruit. They’re about pen-length and fairly thin, but visibly dense. While the apricot, raspberry and passion fruit flavors are fairly similar in texture, the gooseberry bar is distinct. A brown-green mass of seeds, it looks less appealing than the others, if more authentic (which it is, as gooseberries are the only ingredient). After tasting, here’s my opinion of each bar:

Apricot – Since fresh apricots are a favorite of mine, I sampled this bar first. At first bite, I was a bit surprised by the tough texture, which lacked standard Fruit Rollup stretchiness. After my teeth acclimated, I noted a good apricot flavor, with an equal apple taste.

Raspberry – Same texture as the apricot, with noticeable raspberry seeds every few bites. Flavor nicely balanced sweet and tart notes, and raspberry was the dominant flavor.

Passion Fruit – Admittedly, I’ve never tasted a passion fruit. Therefore, I can’t vouch for this bar’s flavor authenticity. It was the sweetest of the flavors, with a tartness level similar to the raspberry’s. All in all, my favorite bar.

Cape Gooseberry – I found this bar, the homeliest, to be the least tasty. Made of 100% dried, ground gooseberries, and you can tell. This bar is softer than the others, giving nicely in the mouth. However, it’s extremely grainy, with several dozen tiny gooseberry seeds per mouthful. The taste is fig-like, with added elements of sourness and salt. In a word: BLECCH!

Although I love Trader Joe’s dearly, and adore most of their products, I understand why these little bars are being phased out. I’m not the biggest fruit snack-fan, but I’ve found myself enjoying one from time to time. These, while “healthier,” are not on par with Fruit Rollups. In taste, these vary from okay (Passion Fruit) to deplorable (Cape Gooseberry). I won’t particularly miss them when they’re retired from store shelves.

• Trader Joe’s Website

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