Garlic is essential in most of the cooking we do. And since my partner makes Italian food for a living, running out of it isn’t an option.

A two-pound bag of fresh garlic can last us a few months.

Prosciutto is our bacon — we substitute it on eggs Benedict and breakfast sandwiches, include it in pasta dishes, and wrap it around chicken or fish for dinner.

The salty, cured pork packs a ton of flavor, but high-quality options are expensive and often sold in smaller, 2- or 3-ounce packages at traditional grocery stores.

When we can find it, we grab Citterio’s 18-month-aged prosciutto di Parma, which is imported from Italy.

These convenient bunches of cheese contain three little balls of mozzarella, but we’ve never eaten just one snack pack at a time.

You can also skewer them on a toothpick with cherry tomatoes and basil to make an excellent Caprese or toss them on a homemade pizza.

I often use maple syrup in a one-to-one ratio as a substitute for white or brown sugar in my baking. Its flavor is more complex, and it’s particularly good in cookies and glazes.

I always reach for 100% pure maple syrup, which can be expensive, but Kirkland Signature’s option is typically affordable and high quality. 

In Seattle, a bagel with cream cheese and lox can easily cost over $12, which is not a daily expense that kitchen salaries can afford. So we buy our favorite bagels from bakers around town and build our own.

Subtly smoky and presliced, Kirkland Signature smoked salmon is both fairly priced and versatile — we add it to salads and risottos, as well. 

My partner is lactose intolerant, and Kirkland Signature’s oat beverage is our nondairy alternative of choice.

Creamy, with a subtle oat flavor, this option is great in coffee but also a good substitute for whole milk in many baked goods.

We don’t mind buying this in bulk because the boxes can be stored in the pantry until opened. 

Kirkland Signature’s organic extra-virgin olive oil is a cooking staple. We use it as the base of salad dressings, roast vegetables in it, and drizzle it on pasta.

For something so ubiquitous in our cooking, we want an oil that is high quality but not out of our price range, so Kirkland Signature’s option does the trick. 

In restaurant kitchens, we got used to working with some of the best ingredients, like Parmigiano Reggiano, but they aren’t cheap.

Known as the “king of cheeses,” the ingredient is imported from Emilia-Romagna, Italy. At conventional grocery stores, Parmigiano Reggiano is hard to find and can be quite expensive for a small sliver.

At Costco, the 36-month-aged cheese is usually sold for half the price of that at local shops and grocery stores near us — making it a must-buy on every trip. 

Three 28-ounce cans of San Marzano whole peeled tomatoes only last a few days in our house.

Aside from adding canned tomatoes in marinara and ragù, we use them in braises, as part of soup bases, and in my partner’s favorite egg dish, shakshuka.

Buying in bulk only makes sense when we fly through cans the way we do.

Costco is not the most obvious place to shop for something to read, but the selection offers many of the latest cookbook releases at a fraction of the price of traditional bookstores.

We love getting new cookbooks to inspire both our home and professional meals. I always buy the latest Yotam Ottolenghi release.

Books vary in price but are typically 20% to 40% off the traditional retail rates.

Click to keep reading Costco diaries like this one.

This story was originally published on February 2, 2022, and most recently updated on July 2, 2025.