At ShopRite's pre-Can Can Sale, avoid Colonna sauce with corn syrup

Three 24-bottle packs of Poland Spring Water are only $9 with a Super Coupon from the ShopRite flier, as long as you spend $10 on other items and have a store card.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

ShopRite's Can Can Sale isn't as great as it used to be, so now the supermarket chain has come up with a "Can't Can't Wait" promotion to entice shoppers.

At the ShopRite in Paramus on Tuesday, I used a Super Coupon from the store flier to buy three 24-bottle packs of Poland Spring Water for $9.

That's about what I'd pay per 16.9-ounce bottle at Costco Wholesale in Teterboro.

And a 5-pound box of clementines from Spain or Morocco was only $3.99, a discount of $2.

I also picked up three half-gallons of ShopRite 1% Lactose Free Milk for $2.99 each, the regular price.

The Paramus ShopRite is at 224 Route 4 east.

A 5-pound boxes of Roxy Clementines from Spain, as well as others from Morocco, was $3.99 with a store card.

If you buy 10 jars of Colonna Pasta Sauce, you'll pay only 77 cents each. But the Traditional Pasta Sauce, above, contains high-fructose corn syrup, an ingredient you don't need.

Colonna Vodka Sauce is made with lots of artery clogging heavy cream. Victoria Vodka Sauce, which is not on sale, contains no cream.

A breakfast of Organic Eggs Marinara served over Organic Whole Wheat Penne with Salted Codfish and Black Olives, below. All of the ingredients are available from ShopRite.

I used Victoria Marinara (no added sugar), adding a few ounces of red wine, a can of drained and rinsed anchovies, and extra-virgin olive oil. The Luigi Vitelli-brand Organic Whole Wheat Penne from Italy is available at ShopRite for $1.25 (1-pound package).

Sugar or worse in bottled pasta sauce, great products you can't eat

Bottled pasta sauces with added sugar are bad enough, but these jars of Colonna Tomato Basil Pasta Sauce at ShopRite in Paramus list high fructose corn syrup as the second ingredient. Colonna has the nerve to label them, "Classic Italian Taste."

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

I add a lot of things to bottled pasta sauce -- red wine, extra-virgin olive oil, anchovies, garlic powder, dried herbs -- but never start with one containing added sugar.

Still, more manufacturers seem to be adding sweeteners to pasta sauce, giving the resulting product an off taste.

Pasta sauces from Victoria and Kirkland Signature, the house brand at Costco Wholesale, are never sweetened with sugar.

Two of these ShopRite Imported Pasta Sauces, Puttanesca and Arrabbiata, which are made in Italy, contain added sugar.

Colonna's Vodka Sauce lists artery clogging heavy cream as the second ingredient. Victoria's Vodka Sauce contains no cream at all.

A GREAT PRODUCT YOU CAN'T EAT: Michelin Defender tires come with an astounding 90,000 mile warranty. I bought four 185/65R 15 tires for a 2007 Toyota Prius for $113.99 each at Costco Wholesale in Hackensack.

Tires, 3-in-1 for shower

You'll find a great product you can't eat in the tire store at Costco Wholesale.

The Michelin Defender tire comes with an unusually long 90,000 mile warranty.

I bought a set for our 2010 Toyota Prius a few months ago, and a second set for a 2007 Toyota Prius we are selling.

The Michelin tires give both cars a firm footprint and sharp handling. 

The first set replaced the original tires on the 2010 Prius, and we bought the second after a disappointing experience with Bridgestone Ecopia 422 tires, which didn't last anywhere near the 70,000 miles covered by the warranty.

We had to replace two of the Bridgestone tires on the '07 Prius prematurely because the Toyota dealer in Hackensack repaired them improperly.

Trader Joe's Shampoo, Conditioner and Body Wash.

At Trader Joe's in Paramus, I picked up Formula No. 3, an all-in-one shampoo, conditioner and body wash.

A 32-ounce bottle with a pump seemed pricey at $7.99, but it's a good value, if you normally buy two or three products for the shower.

Trader Joe's combo lathers well, but doesn't have much of a scent.

Update

I've tried increasing the amount of Trader Joe's Formula No. 3 I use, and found the resulting lather and scent more to my liking.

I use two pumps for my hair and two to three pumps for my body.