Trader Joe's Vanilla Mochi Ice Cream

If you're into frivolously un-scientific personality quizzes, there's a great one I latched onto a few years ago based on your favorite [popular but non-exotic] ice cream flavor. And if there's anyone who is vanilla as vanilla is, it's my husband, A. Who else goes to a hipster handmade ice cream store, tries a bunch of flavors, and orders vanilla? Who picks vanilla at the end of an all-you-can-eat-sushi meal when everyone else picks green tea/red bean/chocolate/literally any other flavor? There is absolutely nothing wrong with vanilla. It's classic. It's reliable. A good vanilla is perfectly fine by itself and plays well with others (ie. cookies, cookie dough, brownies, apple pie). So when I saw this new exciting product (I got news for ya. It's the most recent mochi ice cream to hit the shelves but it's not really new...:P), I knew it was perfect for A. 

If by now you still haven't heard of mochi ice cream (mochi itself is not ice cream but the sticky sweet rice dough that encases the ice cream), it means you probably have not had enough Asian food, tried enough delicious desserts from TJ's, or stumbled across the mochi bar at a Whole Foods. Or maybe you live in the middle of nowhere under a rock with absolutely no access to any of these places - completely possible.

Years ago, TJ's carried Mikawaya brand mochi ice creams (cheaper than the Asian grocery stores) in four flavors (chocolate, vanilla, green tea, and strawberry). And then they stopped carrying the brand, probably because they weren't all natural enough, and replaced it with some vegan brand. While I don't expect TJ's to carry an expansive selection of mochi ice creams (an average Asian grocery carries like 3-6 brands of mochi ice creams, each with at least 3-5 different flavors), but I kind of expect whatever they do carry to be the cream of the ice cream crop. Also - the directions have been updated with the message that I've been preaching for years for optimal mochi ice cream enjoyment. Good job, TJ's. :P 

I must say in TJ's favor - these ingredients are pronounceable and there aren't any weird added ingredients. 

Again, I suspect this mochi ice cream shares the same supplier as the green tea mochi ice cream I reviewed last month. So yes, it's pretty much the same product just with a different flavor ice cream.

1. I don't have anything new to say about this product. The shape and size are the same. The mochi is the same. The ice cream to mochi ratio is the same. No new complaints, which is a beautiful thing.

2. Except the middle is vanilla. A very good vanilla. A classic vanilla. Which means, yes, in theory this product is supposed to earn a perfect score from A. But he knocked off a point to correct for his vanilla bias. :P

3. In an Instagram world obsessed with finding the latest and greatest trend/restaurant/ecological phenomenon to tarnish, there is something to be appreciated about classic beauty and minimalism. It's nice for something to execute something simple quite beautifully. It's not the world's most exciting or thrilling food ever. But it's very very nice. Good as is.

4. $4.49 for a box of 6 mochi ice creams - on par with the retail price for most mochi ice creams.

5. Don't change a thing about the product - but may we have more flavors, please?

TL;DR: Trader Joe's Vanilla Mochi Ice Cream.  Perfection for vanilla ice cream and mochi lovers. A point off for everyone else. :P 9 out of 10. Mantou Joe repurchase? Uhh yeah cuz it's A's fav new TJ's dessert.