All About Trader Joe’s Vanilla Bean Paste

Travelling soon? Tired of airport food? You can save yourself a lot of trouble simply by stocking your pantry with some Trader Joe’s vanilla bean paste, and you’ll never have to sacrifice on quality!

This delicious flavor booster comes in a lovely glass jar, perfect for gifting too. The paste is made from organic Madagascar vanilla beans and sugar, for a sweet taste that goes great with desserts or drinks. It works best when mixed into things like whipped cream, but can also be used as an ingredient in other baking projects.

If you’re looking for a gift to take with you on an airplane, you can’t go wrong with this. Vanilla is one of those products that NEVER goes out of style and it’s a great thing to keep in the pantry for when you’re craving something sweet!

TJ’s Vanilla Bean Paste Ingredients:organic sugar, organic vanilla beans

Nutrition Facts: Servings per container: 1  Amount Per Serving Calories 110 Total Fat 0g Saturated Fat 0g Sodium 10mg Total Carbohydrate 26g Dietary Fiber 1g Sugars 25g Protein 1g You can read more about the ingredients here.

The vanilla paste is also gluten free and certified Kosher.

It’s very versatile, thanks to the jar package:

1) Use it to make a vanilla yogurt smoothie for breakfast – trust me, it’s delicious!

All you have to do is throw in some Trader Joe’s plain Greek yogurt, add a little bit of sugar if you want (since TJ’s vanilla is rather sweet), and top with a generous amount of the paste. Mix well and drink up! The smoothie will last for two days in the fridge. 

2) Use it as a filling for cupcakes:   You can use one can of Trader Joe’s All Natural Vanilla Pudding as a filling instead of frosting.

3) It’s pretty good in baked goods like chocolate chip cookie dough and these amazing peanut butter cookies.

4) Add it to coffee or tea instead of sugar

5) Combine it with your favorite fat free yogurt or milk for a delicious frozen treat.

6) It also tastes great on a vanilla wafer. Or, use the vanilla paste to sweeten pancakes or any other baked goods!

Don’t have time to make your own desserts? Here are some ideas for using the Trader Joe’s Vanilla Bean Paste:

1. Add the paste to any type of fat-free pudding for an instant ‘ice cream’ dessert.

2. Add a dab to your favorite sorbet.

3. Mix the paste into the yogurt for an instant ice cream pastry cream dessert (pictured above).

4. Add a bit to coffee or tea to sweeten it, or mix with fat-free milk for a simple hot chocolate drink!

5. Add it to cookies and muffins as a sweetener.

6. Squirt some vanilla paste into your favorite smoothie, pudding or yogurt. Don’t worry if you don’t have much left over – you can use another flavor or brand of frozen foods instead of the vanilla bean paste!

7. If you have kids, serve up their favorite pudding in balls and let them roll them in the paste for dessert!

8. It’s also good in a fruit parfait – top with some whipped cream!

9. Use the paste to sweeten ice cream.

The vanilla bean paste is the equivalent of 3 vanilla beans, so it’s a great deal for your money! Vanilla is easy to grow yourself (Dolce), but you can also buy it here (the price of vanilla has skyrocketed lately). You might want to check out these deals on vanilla beans before you make your purchase.

And of course, don’t forget about all the great ways you can use Trader Joe’s Bourbon Vanilla Extract! This magic extract has almost 5 stars in reviews and it works with cakes, cookies, ice cream and all sorts of other desserts.

Trader Joe’s Vanilla Bean Paste is a traditional, tart-style vanilla bean paste that delivers deep, rich vanilla flavor with just the right amount of sweetness. This delicious, all-natural product is made from whole Madagascar vanilla beans and doesn’t contain any of the corn syrup so common in conventional brands. Use it for baking or to create an impressive homemade ice cream topping!

Ingredients: Grapeseed Oil, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Water, Vanilla Beans (Water, Vanilla Bean Paste [Vanilla Beans], Rum and/or Bourbon Flavor), Sorbitol, Sodium Benzoate (Preservative), Natural Flavor.

Size: 14 oz. (384 g)

Other Trader Joe’s products that I use and recommend:  (all organic)  Sprouted Flax Seeds – High in nutrients and easily digested by dogs & cats!  The recipe for homemade dog & cat food that can be purchased in my Etsy shop .  

Dog Treats with Salvia – Salvia is an herb which is a member of the mint family. The leaves, and other parts of the plant are edible and have been used for medicinal purposes for thousands of years.

It contains a number of compounds that have various effects on humans. Some of these compounds have also been isolated from Salvia including salvinorin A which is known for its psychoactive properties. Eggs – I recommend organic brown eggs from Trader Joe’s. They are the best looking, best tasting eggs in the market.  Easy to prepare, easy to digest, high in protein and loaded with nutrients.  

Disclaimer: All nutritional information provided by Trader Joe’s is meant for informational purposes only. I do not represent that any products represented on this website meet any health goals you may have nor do I represent that all or any portion of the information found on this website is accurate or complete.

The information found on this website should not be used as a substitute for texts books, the internet, doctors or other sources of medical advice, treatment or diagnosis. Please seek out other sources for your health care needs.

Ingredients listed above are for the food items included in my meal plans (e.g. organic chicken, whole organic brown eggs). The ingredients listed are for informational purposes only and are in no way intended to replace the advice of your health care provider.

Please always seek professional medical advise when formulating a diet plan for your dog or cat. Control what goes into your pet! Buy only grass-fed, organic meats! And remember:  pasture-raised, soy free is always best!  See this chart for details on meat choices.

Where do you get vanilla beans?

You can usually find all the vanilla beans you need on Amazon, but I prefer to buy them at Whole Foods or Gourmet Food Store.

You can also buy them on eBay – search for ‘vanilla beans’ and they should be fairly easy to find.  I’ve bought Vanilla Beans from Amazon, so presumably they are great quality. If you go this route, make sure they are Madagascar Vanilla Beans and not Tahitian Vanilla Beans which are not as flavorful. You can tell by looking at the bottom of the bean pods. Tahitian Vanilla Pods have a lighter color or white on the bottom (bottom picture). The better quality beans have dark patching on the bottom of the pod (top picture).

How much do vanilla beans cost?

I’ve seen them as low as $4.50 for 2 pods, but you can buy them in bulk online for about $19 for 7 pods.  You can get about 3 cups of vanilla bean powder from one pod (based on the Whole Foods price and average weight of beans) or about a quarter cup from an Amazon or eBay vendor.

Does Trader Joe’s still have vanilla bean paste?

I’m not sure about this, but I do know that I can buy store brands of vanilla beans for super cheap! If you have a Trader Joe’s near you, then check the bottom of the bean pods to see if there is a small number inside.  

Look for:  World or Madagascar on the bottom of the pod or  Veganaise on the bottom. You can also tell these apart by looking at them under a magnifying glass. Here is a picture of both types with an example of what they look like when you break apart. The Veganaise beans will have blackish beads inside (like someone spilled some molasses on it).

How much vanilla do you need to make vanilla bean paste?

Trader Joe’s Vanilla Bean Paste is made with Tahitian (bourbon) vanilla which is twice as strong as the Madagascar variety. I used one pod to make my homemade Ice Cream Topping. If you want to make your own vanilla bean paste, it will be about 5 pods for every 8 cups of sugar.  You’ll need about a third of that for a small batch (about 1 cup). So if you plan on making 1-2 cups of homemade Vanilla Bean Paste, you’ll need 1/8th of a pod per cup (1/4th of a pod for 1 tablespoon).

What kind of vanilla beans does Costco sell?

Costco sells Tahitian Vanilla Beans for about $13 for a 7oz jar, which is double (5 pods) the amount of vanilla you will use for my recipe. If you’re going to make your own vanilla bean paste at home, you would need to buy 3-4 jars Tahitian Vanilla Beans.  I’m not sure how much a tiny jar of Tahitian Vanilla Bean Paste costs, but I bought two small jars at Costco and they were less than $6 each.

Which vanilla beans are best for extract?

The best vanilla beans for making extract are the Bourbon Vanilla Beans, which are darker and have a richer flavor. You can buy them on Amazon or eBay. If you are buying vanilla beans from Amazon, try to get the ones that are Fair Trade Certified and not grown by slaves.  (If you’re buying from eBay, then odds are there is slave labor involved!)

I hope that the information got you thinking about what you feed your pets. The health of your dog depends on what they eat!  It is not based on any quality of the food, but rather what goes in their body that makes them sick. And since dogs and cats eat much more than we do, they can get more from each meal than us. It is better to be over-cautious than just assuming everything is fine. In my opinion, I prefer to feed them only organic and grass-fed meats from companies like Evo’s, which have been verified by the USDA as having no hormones or antibiotics in their meat.