Pumpkin Passion

Name: Zachary’s Pumpkin Spice Gourmet Candy Corn
Purchased At: Walmart
Price: $3.99
Availability: Seasonal

This season, there’s a strange phenomenon going on with candy corn. There are currently several different types of gourmet candy corn in stores—to me that’s similar to gourmet spam, it just doesn’t exist. Target has a variety of flavors including Pumpkin Pie, Tangerine, Green Apple (plus Chocolate Covered Green Apple), Toffee and S’Mores. This particular Pumpkin Spice Candy Corn was found at Walmart (don’t hate me Sharon!). Even Walmart is carrying gourmet candy corn?!?!

I feel strange even admitting this but these were really good. When I first saw them on the shelves I think I groaned because I knew I had to purchase them for blogging purposes. Candy corn, pumpkin mellowcremes, and all the other similar candies are not my favorite. They are the last eaten and reserved only for sugar emergencies. My expectations were very low, low, low.

These did have a mellow pumpkin spice flavor to them. They were also somewhat soft and almost creamy—let’s just say they were fresh. I enjoy eating them in small quantities sporadically. We’ve had them for almost two weeks now and they are almost gone. This is surprisingly quick for candy corn but slower than a snail’s pace for candy—most candy in our house is gone within two days tops.

I recommend them for lovers of candy corn and pumpkin mellowcremes but others won’t find them all that spectacular.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Finally! After two year’s worth of New Year’s Resolutions, my etsy shop is up and running. I’m still working on filling out the multiple profile information but I’ve got a couple of items listed. Take a look!

I recently saw a recipe for pumpkin waffles and thought I’d give it a try and maybe even blog about it. Now, I’m hesitant to review the recipe because I made the waffles early in the morning before I’d had any coffee and I went out and bought the only waffle maker left on the shelves of a local department store that was a total cost of $6.98 plus tax plus and I had to use LIBBY’S Easy Pumpkin Pie Mix instead of the pureed pumpkin that the recipe requested. With all that stacked against it, the pumpkin waffles were a disaster. They were flat, runny, and burt in the middle.

I can’t blame the disater on a bad recipe until I at least try the recipe again using all the right ingredients and with a decent waffle maker. I ended up salvaging them by adding an extra cup of flour and making pancakes out of them instead. The texture was a little funky for pancakes but the flavor was delicious.

So, I’m blogging about not wanting to blog about this recipe in order to tell you that this was the first time I’d discovered there is a serious pumpkin shortage in the United States. WHAT?!?! Yes, just go to your supermarket and try to find canned pumpkin. For a good number of places the cans are missing!
My extensive google searching capabilities have solved the mystery: a chilly, damp summer in the Midwest and Northeast has hurt the pumpkin crop. There’s a great two-part series on the shortage at the “Daily News Transcript.” Their conclusion is:

Nationwide, the shortage of warm, sunny days has caused spotty pumpkin growth. Some pumpkin patches were ruined by the rain and many farmers had to re-plant, delaying the peak season in some places. Also, pumpkins are pollinated by bees, farmers said, and bees don’t fly in the rain.

The difference, local farmers have said, is in the soil – if the soil is heavy to begin with, the added rain will drown the pumpkins. However, if the soil is dry, the pumpkins turn out OK.

Now that I can find any canned pumpkin, everywhere I turn I keep finding delicious looking pumpkin recipes: Pumpkin Flat Bread with Caramelized Onions; My Best Pumpkin Bread; Pumpkin Spice No-Bake Cheesecake; and Pumpkin Hummus.

I’ve heard that organic canned pumpkin is easier to find. I must go on a search this weekend! Pumpkin Eatin’ Season 2009 cannot be a total bust!

Rating for Pumpkin Shortage: 0 out of 5
Rating for the article on the pumpkin shortage that can be found here and here:
5 out of 5

Name: Sexy Hair’s Pumpkin Shampoo & Conditioner
Purchased At: Marshalls
Price: $10 each
Availability: Year Round

A few years back, I found the pumpkin line of Sexy Hair products. I was so thrilled at the thought of my head smelling like a pumpkin pie that I was willing to overlook the incredibly high price tag. I chose the Pumpkin Whipped Soufflé Styling Crème. I think I went home that very night and tried it out. It was utterly disappointing. My hair was a gooey mess and didn’t smell anything like pumpkin. No, pumpkin smelling head for me, bummer!

With this history in mind, when I first heard about the Sexy Hair Pumpkin Shampoo and Conditioner was on sale at Marshalls ($10 each instead of the regular $20) I wasn’t inspired to promptly run down and buy them.

A year ago I was a firm believer in paying top quality for hair Bumble and Bumble; Redken, etc. My naturally curly hair demands moisture either to keep the curls from frizzing or to protect it from the super high heat of the flat iron. However, when Shannon and I moved in together and then had to plan a wedding in two weeks, money was tight and so I started using her $1.99 Suave hair conditioner. I honestly can’t tell the difference in my hair and so I’ve stuck with the cheap stuff.

First off, the stuff is still overpriced even at 50% off. It’s a big bottle but my hair still feels and looks the same as when I was using the cheap stuff. It doesn’t leave my hair any softer. Second, the scent is pleasant and does smell somewhat like pumpkin…more like a pumpkin pie. The shampoo smells better than the conditioner, which has a somewhat sour scent (Shannon disagrees, she feels the conditioner smells better). Lastly, my favorite part of the product is that the scent lingers but is not overpowering. Directly out of the shower the scent is strong but after my hair dries and I style it, the scent gets faint. Then, eventually I can’t smell it at all until I fluff my hair or it gets wet again. I don’t want such a strong scent so that by the end of the day I can’t stand the smell but I want to catch an occasional whiff of my hair and wonder who’s baking the pumpkin pie.

Overall, I enjoy the Sexy Hair Pumpkin Shampoo and Conditioner. However, once it’s gone I’ll probably go back to my $1.99 conditioner. Maybe not if it’s still $10; the more I use it the more I like it. Thanks for finding it, Chris!

Rating: 4 out of 5

Congratulations to sherry who left the following comment:

I can’t wait to try the pumpkin blizzard you recommended. I had no idea.

You’ve won the Pure Simplicity Pumpkin Mask. I’ll be contacting you soon.

Thanks to everyone who left a comment. All comments were appreciated and a pleasure to read!

This Labor Day weekend has been spent crafting and pumpkin searching. I even managed to combine the two with this zipper pouch:

I was going to make it for my future etsy shop but it came out a little louder than I wanted. It kinda screams “PUMPKINS!!!” I’m working on a similar zipper pouch but this one will only strongly state “pumpkins.”

Today is the big day! It is the season opener of “Pumpkin Eatin’ Season 2009.” Can you feel the excitement in the air . . . wait, that’s not excitement; that’s ash. The sky over Los Angeles is ugly and dirty with a temperature of exceedingly HOT. However, I did leave the office for a quick lunch and walked over to Starbucks. Today is the first day of the seasonal pumpkin latte and the pumpkin frappacino. They are also now stocking the mediocre trio of bakery items: pumpkin cream cheese muffin, the pumpkin scone, and pumpkin loaf. I did order a tall pumpkin spice latté with soy milk. It tastes exactly as mediocre as I remember. Hopefully the 2009 season will bring more exciting pumpkin treats rather than the same old stuff.

To commemorate the kick off of “Pumpkin Eatin’ Season 2009″ I’ve got a first ever Pumpkin Passion’s giveaway. From my blog stats, 90% of you probably found my blog while looking for the Pure Simplicity Pumpkin Mask. While it seems to have been discontinued–it’s a crying shame!– you can still occasionally find it for sale on eBay. I have 1 container left over from my last eBay purchase and I’m offering it to one lucky blog reader. To win it, simply leave a comment telling me about me your favorite pumpkin item. The winner will be chosen at random unless there’s a really interesting favorite pumpkin item related comment and then I’ll just choose the winner. You have until September 14, 2009, at midnight PST to leave your comment. Be sure to leave me an email address where you can be contacted. Sorry to any international readers but this is for those in the continental U.S. only. Good Luck!