Trader Joe’s Vanilla Bean Scones – Worth It? Absolutely!
Scones @ Trader Joe’s?
I’m sure TJ’s have had other scones before, but I love vanilla (even their vegan vanilla cupcakes) and Trader Joe’s Vanilla Bean Scones stood out to me. A friend showed them to me via social media, and I headed over to TJ’s, but didn’t see their vanilla bean scones. I figured they were sold out, so I went back a couple weeks later and got a package of their scones! The person packaging my bags said that they’re extremely delicious and they sold over 70 packs of them the day before. High expectations!
Packaging/Description
Trader Joe’s Vanilla Bean scones are packaged in a thin plastic bag that easily rips. Usually this is a turn off, but since there are only 4 in the package, these will be eaten up quickly. The scones are easily visible in the clear packaging, with a TJ’s logo and description on the front and nutritional facts and date on the back.
Specs of Vanilla Bean
I’ve always wanted to make delicious vanilla scones, but a major part of them are real vanilla beans. The specs need to be there to show it’s from vanilla beans and not just extract. Trader Joe’s vanilla bean scones has those specs on its vanilla bean glaze. The scone portion uses vanilla extract, and the glaze/topping uses ground vanilla beans. It looks amazing. I couldn’t wait to get home and get into one.
Nutrition of Trader Joe’s Vanilla Bean Scones
It’s a scone, usually buttery and floury, dense and rich in flavor, so it’s expected that these are not healthy. One of these scones runs around 250 Calories, which isn’t as bad as I thought. The macros are 10g fat, 36g carbs, and 3g protein per scone. The ingredients confirm that the scone portion uses vanilla extract and the glaze uses ground vanilla beans. Yaaaay, specs!
The Taste and Texture
The bag ripped open easily, and I grabbed one to try. My kids each got half of one, lol. The issue I have with most scones is that they usually don’t have enough flavor or stuff within then (i.e. most blueberry scones lack enough blueberries in them in my preference). These didn’t have that issue. Of course, I could use more vanilla bean specs and flavor, but these had the vanilla flavor. The glaze portion was really good and went so well with the scone. An issue I did have was that these were really soft. I like scones to have that crumbly denseness, semi-hardness to them, but these were on the softer end. It may have been the batch I had, and since the packaging was really weak, there may have been a hole in there. My friend mentioned that hers were harder in the center, so I suspect mine weren’t as sealed properly. Otherwise, the taste and texture were great.
Would I Buy Again?
Absolutely. The scones were around $4, so a dollar per scone. Not too bad, and they are decently sized. Someone else said they really liked these and was surprised they were from TJ’s as she liked them better than a famous coffee chain’s vanilla scones. These go so well with coffee or tea, or just enjoyed alone. I love scones and would like to make these from scratch one day (I’ve made other scones, but not vanilla bean scones), but vanilla beans are just so pricey! I can’t wait to go back to TJ’s and buy more vanilla bean scones.
