I'm a New Zealander living in the US. Here are 11 things I love to buy at Trader Joe's.

I grew up in an apple orchard in New Zealand so I can be quite picky when it comes to good fruit. Trader Joe's has delicious fresh Honeycrisp apples during the fall season that are enjoyed by everyone in our house.

We eat them whole as an easy backpack snack or slice and dip them in Trader Joe's mixed-nut butter.

Trader Joe's puff pastry is a seasonal indulgence from the fall through the holiday season. I keep a few packs in the freezer for later use.

Us New Zealanders love meat pies and sausage rolls made with puff pastry and Trader Joe's has great flavor. We use it for homemade steak-and-cheese pies or sausage rolls.

We love Trader Joe's PB & J snack duo as an energy boost while hiking or on soccer days. The PB & J snack duo contains peanut-butter wafer sticks and a sticky raspberry jam to dip them in.

It comes in individual packages, though I'd love to see Trader Joe's introduce family packs of the wafers so we could pack our own, too.

New Zealand is a great place for frozen-dessert fans because Kiwis lead the world in ice-cream consumption and produce some of the best. I grew up eating Hokey Pokey, a vanilla ice cream with lumps of a sort of honeycomb toffee.

Trader Joe's reps worked to bring a non-dairy version to the American market and came up with the Okie Dokie oat non-dairy frozen dessert. The frozen dessert is a great treat for those who can't eat dairy and it's a reminder of my childhood summers.

Pavlova is a traditional Kiwi dessert often served on special occasions. Since it's a meringue-based dessert with a soft center, it requires a bunch of egg whites and toppings.

A classic pavlova topper includes cream, kiwifruit, and berries, all of which I can buy from Trader Joe's. For a non-dairy topping, I've found that the sweet-rose-coconut whipped topping is great.

The fruit Americans know as "kiwi" originated in what's now China, was grown commercially in New Zealand and exported worldwide, and became known as "kiwifruit" for the country's national bird.

Trader Joe's organic kiwis are often grown in New Zealand, too. Besides being a delicious snack, they're a traditional choice sliced on top of the pavlova.

The slow cooker comes out a lot with our busy schedules in the fall and winter seasons. I love to serve a beef pot roast and vegetables with gravy made with Trader Joe's condensed cream of portabella-mushroom soup.

The cream of portabella-mushroom soup is seasonal, usually available around late fall, so I buy a few extra to hold us over.

Trader Joe's versatile potatoes are perfect for the slow cooker and other starchy dishes.

The organic mini-medley potatoes, which come in purple, red, white, and yellow colors, are perfect when roasted with olive oil, sea salt, and rosemary. We leave the skins on for the extra nutrients and just give them a good scrub before cooking.

We're big fans of Trader Joe's New Zealand sharp cheddar, especially in the steak and cheese pies I make or to add flavor to nearly any dish.

To me, Trader Joe's New Zealand sharp cheddar cheese has the dairy goodness produced by the grass-fed cows of home. It's a regular in my shopping basket.

New Zealand remains a land of more sheep than people so, for the meat eaters, we serve lamb for Sunday roasts or special occasions. In the US, I'll often slow-cook a boneless lamb leg from Trader Joe's for Thanksgiving or Christmas instead of roasting a turkey.

The boneless lamb leg at Trader Joe's is from New Zealand and is delicious when slow-cooked with garlic, rosemary, and red wine.

I also love a good glass of red or white wine. Trader Joe's stocks a rotating variety of New Zealand wines from various regions, including Marlborough Sauvignon Blancs or Pinot Noir from various regions.

For me, the Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc is always a solid choice.

Click to keep reading Trader Joe's diaries like this one.