This post is sponsored by ALDI

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So here’s what happened.

I went to ALDI and I bought just about every single holiday product I could find. The candies. The cookies. The special flavored snacks and drinks and cheeses and crackers and chocolates and OMG. There was a lot of food. And a lot of festive feelings.

I took it home, and I basically tried all the food (happy to do all this hard work for you), and I made my lists of favorites so that I could share the best of the best with you today.

Now, if you’ve been around the blog for even a teeny bit, you know we at Pinch of Yum have a lot of love for ALDI. Like, a lot. We’ve worked with them for many years. But it is especially fun to talk about ALDI during the holidays – take one quick loop around the store in December and poof! Instant cheer. Something new over here, something unexpected over there, something classic over here. ALDI is where it’s at for your weekly basics, as we’ve discussed before, but it’s also the place for affordable, sparkly, try-a-little-bit-of-everything holidays, which is exactly how I like my holidays to be.

So, of all the holiday products that I tried, this is it. This is my list of the top 12 holiday favorites I keep coming back to again and again.

And I’m stocking up before they’re gone for the season. I mean, can you ever have too many packages of fudge coated peppermint creme cookies in the depths of your cabinets? No, the answer is no.

1: Specially Selected Artisan Crisps

Why I like it: I’m sorry, what? FIG AND BLACK SESAME CRISPS?! From ALDI?! Too fun! Could not love this any more! And yes I am eating them with the gingerbread goat cheese as I write this post, in case you were wondering.

These extra-crispy, super-crunchy, artisan-fancy crackers are the kind of thing that you are going to want to stock up on, and then re-stock up on, then stock up on again before they are gone. They are a match made in heaven with many of the other items in this list (gingerbread goat cheese, plum spread, truffle goat cheese…), so read on.

Holiday snack spread: handled.

2: Emporium Selection Cheese Logs

Why I like it: ALDI has so many fun goat cheese varieties for the holidays right now, and if you see a woman in the cheese aisle with a cart that is half-full of mini goat cheese logs in every flavor, that is me. My two favorites of all the ones I’ve tried:

1. Gingerbread goat cheese – it’s golden and sweet, just barely spiced, and goes perfectly with those artisan crisps or an almond coconut caramel cookie or on French toast or pancakes! So festive.
2. TRUFFLE goat cheese – yes, truffle. Big, earthy, delicious truffle flavor packed into one tiny log of creaminess. The truffle goat cheese was a mega hit amongst the POY team when we tried all the products together. There was talk of throwing a few hunks of this goat cheese into a hot bowl of pasta. BRB, need to go try that.

3: Specially Selected Plum Fruit Spread

Why I like it: Fig spread is something I often add to my cheeseboards, but plum? That is a whole new level of holiday charm. If you want to experience snack perfection, layer it on a fig and black sesame cracker and smear the whole thing with a knob of truffle goat cheese. You’re welcome.

4: Friendly Farms Peppermint Mocha Almondmilk Creamer

Why I like it: I am normally not a huge fan of almond or dairy-alternative creamers, but I’ve been using this stuff everyday for the last month and I am INTO it. It’s very good. It has just the right amount of sweet pepperminty flavor, but more importantly, it’s actually smooth and creamy. Without the dairy. Three cheers!

5: Specially Selected Caramel Stroopwafels

Why I like it: If you’ve got a steaming hot mug of coffee in your hand, you’re not complete until you have one of these caramel stroopwafels in the other hand. I have definitely eaten these plain and they are a fabulous little treat, but add a mug of hot coffee and you’ve gone to a new level of holiday cheer.

6: Emporium Selection Baking Brie

Why I like it: Okay first of all, YUM.

Second of all, the best part of this little baking brie kit is that it comes with THE CERAMIC DISH! Which you can reuse for MORE BRIE! The brie wheel is perfectly sized for the dish, so you pop it in, bake it up, and finish with the included toppings. I can think of no easier way to impress others (or… yourself?) at a neighborhood happy hour party or a holiday movie viewing with friends.

7: Fresh Pomegranates

Why I like it: For all your decorating, garnishing, and snacking needs: fresh pears, fresh cranberries, and most excitingly – FRESH POMEGRANATES – are now ready for you at ALDI! Bring it on! I bought cranberries for decorating at home, and I’ve bought multiple pomegranates for topping various salads and dips. (And my girls love to snack on the seeds.)

8: Park Street Deli Greek Olive Spread

Why I like it: This olive-loaded, creamy, tangy, roasted red pepper and feta-speckled dip is not a holiday-specific product, which is good news because it’ll be around for a few months. My tip: BUY AS MUCH AS YOU CAN. I have been eating this nonstop, with ALDI’s sweet potato chips or pita crackers for a snack. It’s a great last-minute-friends-coming-over solution. But it’s also great to go with meals! Chicken pitas, salads, sheet pan salmon and veggies. Can you tell that I love this? I love this.

9: Simply Nature Coconut Cashew Crisps

Why I like it: Okay these are also a non-holiday specific item that work really well around the holidays for situations like: people coming over and you don’t know their dietary needs / preferences? Kids who want to eat cookies round the clock and moms and dads who would rather not with all the sugar? People who just love to snack on munchy little things that taste like a caramel dream? These are a must-keep-on-hand 5 ingredient miracle.

10: Friendly Farms Peppermint Mocha Whipped Dairy Topping

Why I like it: This peppermint mocha whipped cream is the appropriate topping for… everything. But obviously the best use for this is with hot chocolate. Bougie that mug up with your peppermint mocha whipped cream, your candy cane crumbles, and a few cookies of choice, flick on the fire, and you have the magic of the holidays right there in your hands.

11: Benner Holiday Candy Cane Tea

Why I like it: I’ve been enjoying a mug of this tea in the evening literally every night for the last three weeks. It has become my *something cozy* when we finally get the girls in bed and have a moment to light up the fireplace, turn the TV on, or just sit and talk. I love that it’s pepperminty but also sweet and warm, with a little extra cinnamon, licorice, and even roasted carob (!!) in there to give it the candy-like mood. Big fan!

12: Benton’s Fudge Coated Peppermint Cremes

Why I like it: This is, hands-down, my favorite holiday item that I got from ALDI this year. OHHHH MAN these are good!

Sometimes when you buy this style of cookie, they are too thick. Do you know what I mean? It’s like the cookie gets lost in the coating. But not these! These have just the right amount of fudge coating where they are solid and heavy, but not, like, overwhelming. They have a good cookie crunch, an appropriately hefty amount of fudge on the outside, and those little crispity bits of candy cane on top. ALDI is speaking to me with these. I can’t get enough.

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And there you have it! 12 products on the tip-top of my ALDI grocery list during the holiday times.

I would obviously love to hear from our ALDI squad out in the wild, too! Do you have any must-have ALDI finds that are just perfect for this time of the year? I’ve got my paper and pen ready to take notes.

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Thank you to ALDI for sponsoring this post!

The post I Tried All of the Holiday Products at ALDI, and These Are The 12 Items You Absolutely Need In Your Life appeared first on Pinch of Yum.