The Best Foods To Buy At Costco For The Holidays, According To A Culinary Expert
Costco is one of America’s favorite big-box retailers — and not just for people who like to stockpile peanut butter in their pantry. Nope, everybody loves Costco, especially around the holidays. And now food industry experts have revealed the very best products to fill up your cart with this festive season. You’re welcome Costco fans!
1. Fresh cranberries
Meredith Ochs, a Speciality Foods Association evaluator, told Insider that she swears by a number of Costco products for her own holiday shopping. First on her list? Fresh cranberries! She revealed, “I’m a produce nerd, so I get excited when the new cranberry crop hits store shelves each fall. Costco sells a 2-pound bag of Ocean Spray’s fresh cranberries for $3.99. I grab two and freeze one, since they keep beautifully in the freezer.”
2. Hot cocoa mix
Drinking hot cocoa has been hardwired into us as a holiday tradition ever since childhood. This is why the Swiss Miss mix — only $5.99 at Costco — was voted best cocoa on the market by a panel of Eat This taste-testers! One tester said it had the classic taste they remembered as a kid drinking cocoa after sledding, and another admitted, “Reminds me of nights carolling around the neighborhood.” Overall, the verdict was, “Great balance of sweet and chocolate texture.”
3. Cranberry cinnamon goat cheese log
Everybody loves a cheese board at Christmas — and no cheese board would be complete without some sort of goat cheese. The Costco cranberry cinnamon log would be our choice, as it’s as creamy and rich as regular goat cheese, but also has the fun holiday-themed addition of sweet, tart cranberry and spicy cinnamon. It’s a real taste sensation, and a cheese that can also be used to stuff chicken or make a beautiful sauce!
4. Kirkland spiral ham
CostCuisine is a website run by Costco enthusiast Natalie and, in a 2021 review, she posted, “I honestly despised ham until I tried the Costco Kirkland Signature Spiral Sliced Ham. Other hams I’ve tried are fatty and greasy while being way too salty, but not the spiral sliced ham from Costco.” She added, “My favorite part about the Costco ham is that it comes with a sweet glaze that you brush on when it’s almost done. This makes the outside of the ham sweet and slightly crispy.”
