Hi! I’m Clara Gustafson, one of the Executive Editors of The Evanstonian. Every month for the rest of the school year, I’ll be sharing my thoughts on something new. For my first column, I decided to write about something I consider myself an expert on: Trader Joe’s.

With every season comes an abundance of new items on the shelves at Trader Joe’s. After their impressive fall selection with a combination of delicious candles and delectable treats left the shelves, I was eager to fill a basket with every new thing I saw. On Dec. 1, I got into my silver Honda Element and drove over to 1211 Chicago Avenue and found the following items:

Peppermint Baking Chips:

Alone, these were quite pepperminty, and I was worried that they would overpower the cookies I was making with them, but in the end, I had nothing to worry about. These baking chips made an excellent addition to the classic chocolate chip cookie. Everyone I shared them with really enjoyed them, and I encourage you to try them too!

Peppermint Loaf Mix:
When I saw this I was intrigued, and it did not disappoint. With this mix, you can choose to either make the peppermint loaf or crackle cookies—I made the loaf. It was basically a peppermint brownie; a very good one. I’m curious to try it in the peppermint crackle cookie form as well, and I look forward to reporting back.

Chocolate Croissant Candle:
This is the only item that I did not love. To be quite honest, I don’t think that a chocolate croissant needs to be made into a candle. If you are a big chocolate fan, however, you might love the way this makes your home smell. I prefer the Cedar Balsam candle to this one, and was hoping for another fun winter smell after the vanilla pumpkin candle that I loved from their fall selection.

Candy Cane Joe-Joe’s:
I’ve waited since last December for these to come back, and year after year, they are amazing. The cream is great, and I like how it has actual pieces of candy canes in it rather than just a flavoring like the mint Oreos.

Jingle Jangle Mix:
This is jam-packed with all sorts of dark and milk chocolate, caramel, pop- corn and peanut butter, and this mix is a perfect snack to enjoy while spending time with family over the holidays. My favorite part is the dark chocolate mini peanut butter cups!