Monday, September 21, 2015

The Pumpkin Post

If you haven't guessed from the title, this post is about pumpkin flavored treats.

Jello Pumpkin Spice Pudding

Jello's Pumpkin Spice Pudding is pretty good despite the strange flavor. It has a good balance of flavor and the spices are not overpowering. I can clearly taste the pumpkin flavor as well as one of the spices, cinnamon. I could not taste the other spice, ginger. I was surprised to see that ginger was the second spice used in the mix. It was a welcomed surprise since most pumpkin flavored foods have spices found in pumpkin pie recipes, which is normally cinnamon as well as nutmeg.

For a sweet topping, I chopped up almonds and mixed them with cinnamon as well as brown sugar. The topping went very well with the pudding and added a delicious, sweet note.

Little Debbie Pumpkin Delights


These are my favorite seasonal treat. The pumpkin flavor is perfect, since it is not overpowering or lacks flavor. There are also other subtle- spices such as cinnamon. The texture is soft similar to an oatmeal patty or whoopie pie. The appearance is cute and clever. The pumpkin filling makes up the face and mouth of the pumpkin while the cookie makes up the pumpkin itself. The cookie as a whole is a good choice for a different but not outrageous pumpkin treat. 

Auntie Anne's Pumpkin Spice Pretzel


Well, they definitely had flavor. I could taste the pumpkin, and this being a pumpkin spiced item, some spices. There is probably nutmeg and some cinnamon. The flavor was not that great because I would have liked to taste less spice and more pumpkin. The texture was softer than their normal pretzels. It was different but I would not get them again. Good try for creating a seasonal treat but I think I'm going to stick to plain or cinnamon pretzels.

Quaker Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal
 


Blah! That is the word that can describe this oatmeal because it was one toned. All I could taste was pumpkin and spices. However, unlike the other pumpkin spiced food I tasted, I do not taste individual spices such as cinnamon or nutmeg. It tasted like someone mixed pumpkin spice mix into oats and tried to make it exciting. Yuck! If I had to grade the oatmeal, I would give it a C for trying. I decided to give it a second try the next day and bumped the flavor up a notch by adding brown sugar as well as cinnamon. After giving it a flavor boost, I raised the grade from a C to a B-.
 
 
Kashi Pumpkin Spice Granola Bars


These crunchy bars have a mild pumpkin flavor with a hint of cinnamon. The taste is pleasant and not overpowering. Unlike other sweeter pumpkin treats, these granola bars have pumpkin seeds in them. I taste a lot of the nutmeg, which does not bother me. If it is the middle of winter and you have a hankering for pumpkin, these will do the trick, since you can find them year round.

  
Pumpkin What?

Pumpkin candy and sweets are alright, however, sometimes companies go a little overboard on pumpkin. At my local grocery store, Giant, there is a display of pumpkin flavored foods. Most of them are normal such as pumpkin pudding and pumpkin cookies. Then there are the oddball items such as pumpkin pasta sauce and soda. It seems like a contest to see who can create the weirdest pumpkin flavored items.

Saturday, September 12, 2015

Chocolate Bread With a Surprise


The chocolate zucchini bread is different but still good. The taste is similar to a brownie but with a hint of cinnamon. It tastes even better after I added chocolate chips to the batter. I do not mind the zucchini and really only taste a bit of the vegetable. As with any warm dessert, it was difficult to slice but might be easier to cut when cold. After trying it a second time, the bread tastes and cuts better when it is cold.

Unique Chocolate Candy is Exploding With Flavor




WARNING: This candy may explode if eaten incorrectly. That is the lesson I learned after I ate the first piece of Chocla-Taschen Dark Chocolate Candy. I took a bite towards the middle and caramel started pouring out as the candy broke apart. The dark chocolate was bitter but smooth while the caramel was not as sweet as other caramel. The candy is gluten-free, kosher, nut-free and non-GMO. It also has a mixture of white chocolate and dark chocolate, which is the reason for its unique taste. Even though the candy was a little different, it was still delicious. Also, it comes in a two pack, which makes it even better.