Pumpkin Passion

I’ve already ruined my personal goal of posting a blog entry every Monday for all of the 2008 Pumpkin Eatin’ Season. My excuse is as follow: Last week was the craziest work week ever in my entire working life. I could have used a case of pumpkin wine and have still not forgotten my troubles. It feels a little like the sky is falling and my only hope is that on November 5th we’ll see some actual change.

To forget my troubles, I’ve recently had some excellent pumpkin filled weekends . . . . . but for this post I’m forgoing the excellent. Oftentimes, I’m quick to post about the really awful pumpkin finds or the really awesome pumpkin finds. The mediocre ones get pushed to the side and forgotten. Not this time! This is my mediocre pumpkin post.

First off….

Name: Jack’s Pumpkin Whoopie
Purchased At: West Coast Whoopies in Calimesa, CA
Price: $2.50
Availability: Year Round

From the first moment I was told about Whoopies I’ve wanted to try them. The one thing I possibly love almost as much as pumpkins are cupcakes and since Whoopies are a variation on the cupcake I was totally excited to hear about them. A Whoopie is like a crème-filled cookie but it’s more like if you took the tops off two cupcakes and used them for the cookies but put the frosting in the middle, which sounds great. The only thing wrong with cupcakes are the wrappers and this eliminates that step.

We set out to get ourselves a Whoopie and when we pulled up to the shop I noticed the sign outside read PUMPKIN Whoopies. Yea! We got one pumpkin and one chocolate with peanut butter frosting. I took a bite of the chocolate one right outside of the shop but was unimpressed. They seemed dry and ordinary. The pumpkin Whoopies are frozen so we decided to take them home and have them later in the day.

I was hoping that my patience would be rewarded but it wasn’t. They aren’t horrible but they’re nothing special. They made the classic mistake of using a vanilla cream cheese frosting, which I have bemoaned frequently on this blog, and the cake was dry and uneventful.

Yawn, we probably won’t be going back but it did spawn the idea that if I’m going to ask the bakers of the world to STOP using cream cheese frosting then I have to come up with an alternative. Keep watching because I’m going to try out a variety of frosting recipes until I come up with the perfect one for pumpkin cupcakes.

Rating: 2 out of 5

Name: Phenomenal Pumpkin Spice Cookie
Purchased At: Nearly Every Independent Coffee Shop in Southern California
Price: $3.00ish
Availability: Year Round

I buy the “Phenomenal Pumpkin Spice” (their use of the term “phenomenal,” not mine) cookies made buy the Alternative Baking Company too often. I see them year round and I’m always thinking that I really should blog about them but they’re just too boring to say much about. The taste is decently pumpkinish but the cookie ends up feeling like a ball of lead in my stomach. It’s probably because it’s vegan but the texture is Dense with a capital “D.” Another mark against it is that one cookie has 440 calories and it is sooo not worth it.

Rating: 2 out of 5

Name: Mini Pumpkin Pie
Purchased At: Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf
Price: $2.25
Availability: Seasonal

The mini pumpkin pie at the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf looked cute in the pastry case but was a yawner. It’s mostly crust and the dollop of whipped cream is rubbery and artificial.

Rating: 2 out of 5

Name: Pumpkin Latte
Purchased At: Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf
Price: $3.75
Availability: Seasonal

It tasted better than the Starbucks’ version but not by much.

Rating: 3 out of 5

Name: Pumpkin Loaf
Purchased At: Starbucks
Price: Forgotten
Availability: Seasonal

There is nothing new at Starbucks in the way of pumpkin treats. It’s all the same old stuff that they’ve had for the past few years. Maybe they think they can trick us into thinking the pumpkin loaf is new because this year because they put crushed pumpkin seeds on top instead of the cream cheese frosting with the tiny candied ginger pieces like every other year but it’s soo not new. I prefer it the old way.

Blah, Blah, Blah . . . it’s fine but boring.

Rating: 2 out of 5

Wow! I’m kind of caught up now. I’ve also made some great pumpkin finds and I’ll post them soon. Hopefully you are still awake after all this boredom.

Name: Pumpkin Empanada
Purchased At: La Fuente
Price: $.60
Availability: Not Sure

I recently moved from my city of the last ten years, Long Beach, CA, to the Inland Empire. If you’re not familiar with these two places let me paint you a picture: Long Beach is a large urban beach town that is strongly liberal and has an ultra adorable gay ghetto; The Inland Empire is practically the desert, is hotter than freaking hot all the time, has probably never been called “ultra adorable,” is majorly conservative, and we’ve already had a “Yes on 8″ flyer put on our door.

As a result, I was feeling a little homesick and wondering if I would ever adjust to this strange place when I asked Shannon if there was a place to get Mexican pastries. She took me to La Fuente, a bakery/food-to-go in San Bernardino that, in addition to selling pastries, has tamales (that are supposedly really good) menudo, rellenos, and tortillas.

I’d been waiting for a few days to get my pastry because the first time we went there was a big sign on the door saying “Back on September 1st.” Well, I was back on September 1st early in the morning to find cases of yummy looking stuff. I had a difficult time not getting one of every thing.

On the back side of one of the case were the empanadas and on the bottom shelf was a pumpkin empanada! Here it was, the first day of Pumpkin Eatin’ Season, and I’d found my first product and it was in my new hometown. I was so excited.

I can’t help but compare this empanada with the last pumpkin empanada I had at Starbucks. This one was simpler with no cinnamon sugar baked on top and the crust was moist rather than flakey. However, the biggest difference was in the filling. The pumpkin filling was simple yet delicious. If there was any cinnamon or nutmeg in the filling it was minimal and there was not artificial aftertaste like the one at Starbucks, which doesn’t look like it will be back this year.

It was pointed out to me that this was their first day back from vacation so everything was probably made that morning. The pastries were certainly fresh and delicious!

Rating: 4 out of 5

On New Year’s Day a big group of my friends went out for brunch in San Pedro at the Omelette and Waffle Shop. There were about ten of us and since certain friends, who shall remain nameless, are frequently late we didn’t come together until late in the afternoon. We are all healthy eaters, particularly the skinniest ones, and we were starving. To keep us from drinking straight shots of syrup, we ordered 3 different types of waffles as appetizers.

The Omelette and Waffle Shop is best known for their billion different types of omelettes. There are over 100 on the menu and then there are the daily specials. One person at our table had an enchilada omelette and another had one stuffed with crab. I’m a broccoli, ham, and avocado type of gal.

The waffle options are limited in comparison to the omelettes but only in comparison. They must have about 15 different choices. We had a coconut pineapple waffle and some other type of waffle, which wasn’t interesting enough to remember, and a PUMPKIN waffle.

Name: Pumpkin Waffle
Purchased At: Omelette and Waffle Shop in San Pedro, CA
Price: $5.99 approx
Availability: Year Round

I’ve had their pumpkin waffle before and really enjoyed it. Most of their other waffles take a traditional waffle and just mix up the toppings. The pumpkin waffle has all the pumpkin goodness mixed directly into the batter. It’s topped with cinnamon, powdered sugar, butter and whipped cream. The waffle is thin and crispy but isn’t quite big enough to fill you up but perfect to share as an appetizer.

There’s not much to say about it except that it’s a good pumpkin waffle. I like it and I would order it again but it’s only extraordinary in its simplicity.

The first solid food in my mouth and belly in 2008 was a PUMPKIN waffle. I’m so proud. I couldn’t have planned it better.

Word of Warning: The pumpkin waffle isn’t on their regular menu but I’ve always seen it on their specials menu listed on the wall.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Name: Pumpkin Pie Bars
Purchased At: Creative Cakery
Price: I forgot but it doesn’t matter because you should buy them at any price!
Availability: Seasonal

I can describe the pumpkin bars from Creative Cakery in 2 words, “THE BOMB!” Kick your pumpkin-pie-making granny out of the kitchen NOW and head over to Creative Cakery to get these instead. They are soo freaking yummy.

I went in for a one-biter tray to take over to a friend’s house (Hi Annie) and saw the sign for the pumpkin bars. Joy of all joys! Creative Cakery had something pumpkin! Woot! Woot! Everything I’ve ever tried from this place has been delicious. However, it looked fairly boring so I wasn’t sure what to expect.

Creative Cakery is small shop with just a few steps from the door to the counter. This is a buy-here-but-take-it-home-to-enjoy kinda place. While we were purchasing our items a woman was standing around eating a pumpkin bar right out of the plastic carton. She said that she couldn’t wait until she got home to eat it. She couldn’t stop raving about it and stuffing it into her mouth.

One this particular day I’d made quite a few pumpkin purchases which were mostly mediocre. I left this one uneaten until the next day. It was love at first bite! The pumpkin was perfect. It was very similar to a good pumpkin pie. The texture was creamy and the spices weren’t overpowering…just the way a good pumpkin pie should taste.

What really pushed this into the superb category was the crust. It was a gramcracker crust with lots of crushed walnuts. Clearly it was made with mass amounts of salted butter but the salty flavor worked really well. The saltiness of the crust blended perfectly with the sweetness of the pumpkin pie as did the crunchy with the creamy.

It was a really well thought out recipe. Kudos to Creative Cakery!!!

Rating: +5 out of 5

To all the many small privately-owed cupcake store owners who are out there making a pumpkin-flavored cupcake this holiday season, I have a few words for you:

“PUMPKIN CUPCAKES ARE NOT CARROT CAKE CUPCAKES WITHOUT THE CARROTS, RAISINS AND WALNUTS!” Seriously people!

I just don’t get why it is so freakin’ difficult to make a decent pumpkin cupcake? There are some excellent pumpkin cakes, loafs, and muffins that cupcake store owners could find inspiration from and improve their mediocre ode to the fall holiday season.

I think the biggest problem is the cream cheese frosting they insist on using. Pumpkin does not have a strong flavor, even with the pumpkin spices it’s a fairly delicate flavor. The cream cheese frosting has that sour/tangy flavor that is just too overpowering for pumpkin cupcakes. Carrot cake can take a tangy frosting like cream cheese because of the chunks of nuts, raisins, and pieces of carrot. Cream cheese doesn’t overpower carrot cake but it certainly does to pumpkin.

Keep it simple people. Why not put a light whipped cream frosting, which would improve the taste and be somewhat more reminiscent of pumpkin pie. Give it a try cupcake store owners!

Since no pumpkin cupcakes have been particularly noteworthy, they’ve gone unblogged until now. Here are your 3 reviews in 1 blog posting–quick and dirty:

Name: Pumpkin Cupcake
Purchased At: Cake & Art
on Santa Monica Blvd. in West Hollywood
Price: $3.25
Availability: Seasonal

I found this place by accident on a search for some pumpkin frozen yogurt that was never found. At first I ordered their pumpkin cream cheese cookie but they were out and when I asked if they had anything else pumpkin he said that there were some pumpkin cupcakes in the back just waiting to be decorated. We continued the search for pumpkin frozen yogurt and then came back a few minutes later to find the pumpkin cupcake all freshly decorated.

The picture of the cupcake is not so great but then again the cupcake was not so great. The cake didn’t taste like pumpkin. I kept expecting to bite into a raisin or walnut. Yes, they played into the whole “let them eat carrot cake but without the carrots, raisins or walnuts,” which included the cream cheese frosting. Even without the frosting, the cake didn’t taste much like pumpkin.

The best thing about this cupcake was that it had a whipped cream filling…kinda like a dingdong does. If only they had used that filling for the frosting it might have saved this mediocre cupcake.

Rating: 2 out of 5

Name: Pumpkin Cupcake
Purchased At: Bristol Farms
Price: I forget
Availability: Seasonal

While buying deli-sliced chicken at Bristol Farms, I overheard a couple of women talking about the pumpkin cupcakes. The woman behind the counter said the frosting was SOO AMAZING. The woman at the cash register said that the frosting was SOOO AMAZING. I started to get worried that no one was commenting on the cake.

This was one of the best pumpkin cupcakes I’ve ever had…but that’s not saying much. The cake was too light on any pumpkin flavor but it was a moist and yummy cake. The frosting was really good. It was a cream cheese frosting but it wasn’t too strong. I love the chocolate leaf on top, very fall festive.

This is the only one I would purchase again.

Rating: 3 out of 5

Name: Pumpkin Cupcake/ Pumpkin Seed Cupcake
Purchased At: Yummy Cupcakes in Santa Monica
Price: $2.50
Availability: Year Round…I think

Ugh! I didn’t like it. When I first checked out their website I could swear they called it a “pumpkin cupcake” but when I got to the store they were calling it a “pumpkin seed” cupcake.

The only difference between this pumpkin seed cupcake and a plain vanilla cupcake was a little bit of nutmeg and some pumpkin seeds mixed into the cake. The frosting was really sour because of the cream cheese, so much so that it upset my stomach. Having the seeds in the cake was a little disconcerting when you bit down on one…it was chew smooth, smooth, chew, smooth , smooth, crunch.

Their other cupcakes were so great that I’m not sure why this one was so off. During November they have a pumpkin pie cupcake described as “pumpkin cupcake centered with fresh whipped cream, topped with pumpkin cream cheese.” It sounds good…maybe I can get there before they go out of season.

Rating: 1 out of 5

Don’t forget the pumpkin cupcake at Sprinkles reviewed here.

***If anyone has had a really good pumpkin cupcake PLEASE let me know where, especially if it’s in California.

Name: Pumpkin Spice Bundt Cake Mix
Purchased At: Williams-Sonoma
Price: $19.00
Availability: Seasonal

An interpretive dance! This stuff is SOOO amazingly good that a coworker spontaneous preformed and interpretive dance inspired by the yumminess of Williams-Sonoma’s Pumpkin-Spice Bundt Cake Mix after having eaten a small piece. I’m totally serious! It’s that dang good.

The cake was moist and flavorful with just the right amount of pumpkin flavor. Lots of cinnamon and nutmeg are jammed into this cake. They got it right!!!

That was the build up and now here is the tear down: this stuff is freaking $19.00 and I still have to do a ton of work to make it! I realize it’s Williams-Sonoma, where SUPER CUTE spatulas that have raw wooden handles will cost you ten bucks, but come on! Here’s the description on their website:

A celebration of the autumn harvest, our all-natural mix yields a moist, spicy Bundt cake with minimal preparation. The pumpkin-spice cake is laced with a buttery streusel filling made from brown sugar and premium California-grown walnuts. It’s a delicious complement to the cake, which includes American-grown pumpkin, pure Madagascar bourbon vanilla, cinnamon and allspice. Created for use with Williams-Sonoma Bundt pans, this mix makes it easy to bake a cake that tastes as luscious as it looks. A sprinkling of confectioners’ sugar or a simple glaze is embellishment enough.

…Ummm, “minimal preparation” ?!?!?! The recipes calls for you to add “cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch (12 mm) pieces;” 4 eggs, water, milk, zest of an orange, minced fresh ginger, sugar and brandy. However, the last four ingredients listed are “optional” but a “simple glaze” it ain’t. Also, the instructions read “To make the cake, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater….” I have NO idea what a flat beater is but I’m pretty sure my $15.00 Target mixer doesn’t have one. Lastly, “Created for use with Williams-Sonoma Bundt pans…” the cheapest bundt pan they have is $32 but it IS IN THE SHAPE OF A FREAKING OCTOPUS, which is sooo cool that I want to SCREAM in pure joy (umm…anyone want to get me an awesome Christmas present?) but why must they try to sell me their own pan in the middle of a recipe.

I feel like they gave me the flour and some spices in a bag and now they’re asking me for all the other ingredients…that’s not a MIX. Of course it’s going to be better than any other MIX because you’re adding almost a dozen ingredients and you’re making a streusel, a cake, and a glaze.

It’s yummy and it’s almost worth it but I think you could get the same results if you made it from scratch and it would cost you less…since you have to go to the store to get all the ingredients anyway you might as well.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Here are some other pumpkin treats you can find at Williams-Sonoma this year:

Halloween Truffles $15.00

Pumpkin Potholders (set of 2) $24.00

Pumpkin Patch Plaque $32.00

Sprinkles Cupcake Mix, Pumpkin $14.00

Name: Pumpkin Bagel with Pumpkin Cream Cheese
Purchased At: Einstein Brothers Bagels in Las Vegas, NV
Price: $2.29
Availability: Seasonal

I love pumpkin surprises. You know, when you just walk into a place and you don’t even hope that there will be something pumpkin but there it is, a special pumpkin treat, looking extra yummy. The pumpkin bagel was just sitting there all shiny, fluffy, and orange (but not too orange) looking. Then as I began ordering it, I noticed that they also had pumpkin cream cheese. Score!

At the register they had a flyer announcing all their new fall flavors. One of the things listed was an iced pumpkin cookie but when I asked about it they said that they’d never received the cookies. Bummer! it sounded good and now that I’m back in Los Angeles there aren’t any Einstein Bros. near me.

Back to the bagel, at first bite I was overwhelmed with pumpkin deliciousness. Yummy yum yum! On the second bite I began to wonder if it was the bagel or the cream cheese or the combination that held such an intense flavor. I broke off a piece of bagel from the bottom where there was no cream cheese and found that the bagel was fairly blah. I tried another piece and I couldn’t really taste any flavor.

The pumpkin cream cheese is defiantly where the flavor lives in this combination.

Rating: Pumpkin Cream Cheese, 4 out of 5
Rating: Pumpkin Bagel, 2 out of 5

Name: Pumpkin Empanada
Purchased At: Starbucks
Price: It was a gift. Thanks!
Availability: Seasonal

There’s not much new in the way of pumpkin treats over at Starbucks this season. Yawn! There’s the pumpkin latte, a pumpkin muffin, a pumpkin loaf, and my favorite a pumpkin scone.

The only new item I’ve seen is the pumpkin empanada. At first glance into the bakery case you won’t know that it was pumpkin. It looks like one of those Hostess Fruit Pies but much larger.

There’s a nice amount of cinnamon and sugar on the top crust of the empanada. The crust is quite yummy. Inside……well, it’s a little disappointing. There’s plenty of pumpkin goodness but not too much like there was with Francoise’s Pumpkin Bread. The flavor is reminiscent of pumpkin pie but there’s something else. It tastes sour! Someone else I spoke with about the pumpkin empanada said the same thing. It’s kind of a strong lemonish taste that’s a little overwhelming.

I tried this a few weeks ago and I’ve thought about getting it again but at 400 calories and a sour aftertaste I just can’t do it.

Rating: 2 out of 5

P.S. Ugh! The picture is just BAD but I didn’t like it enough to buy another one and retake the photo.

Name: Pumpkin Cranberry Scones
Made By: Sticky Fingers
Purchased at: It was a gift. Thanks Kat!
Price: $5.95 on their website
Availability: Year Round?

I’ve had this mix for a while now…maybe for a couple of months. It’s been sitting on top of my refrigerator just waiting for a proper occasion to have the water added and the dough baked. This Sunday was just that occasion. What better way to celebrate your best friend’s completion of a yoga instructor’s training course than to invite everyone over for a Sunday brunch complete with 2 quiches, roasted potatoes, lemon green beans, a mound of bacon, a bucket of sangria, and pumpkin cranberry scones? She may just be the last yoga instructor who actually still eats bacon but I applaud her for it.

Back to the scones…It’s an easy mix to make, just add water and plop them on a baking sheet. They came out nice and fluffy with a texture more like a muffin than a regular scone. I like my scones somewhat dryer and more hearty. The taste is somewhat pumpkinish but if I made them again I would add some pumpkin spice or pumpkin butter to the mix. The addition of the cranberries was a nice touch. The flavors go very well together and I LOVE me some cranberries.

For a “just add water” mix it was quite good but you’re sacrificing easy for flavor. For those of us who are not morning people, this is occasionally a sacrifice we are willing to make.

Rating: 3 out of 5

Name: Pumpkin Bread
Purchased At: Francoise
Price: $1.00
Availability: Year Round

There’s a little deli near my work that sells really good sandwiches (although they are WAY over priced), frozen yogurt, and bakery items. I was waiting for my turkey and brie sandwich on some amazing walnut bread when I started looking at the shelves of bakery items. Here it is a warm June day and I can still find some things PUMPKIN!

As far as I can tell, Francois is a Korean Bakery with at least two locations in the Koreatown area of Los Angeles. I was at the 3540 Wilshire Blvd. but there is also one near the intersection of Harvard and Olympic. Their baked goods include breads, rice cakes, cookies and some breakfast rolls similar to the pumpkin bread shown above.

This is probably the most beautiful pumpkin bread I’ve ever seen but would the taste live up to the appearance? Well it’s NOT your typical pumpkin bread: it’s not sweet; there’ve been no pumpkin related spices incorporated into the mixture; the “bread” is not pumpkin flavored; and it’s not even bread-like. It’s more like a jelly Danish but, the filling is anything but jelly like. A thin danish-like bread covers a large portion of pumpkin that’s similar in taste and texture to red bean (they even have these with red bean instead of pumpkin). The filling has got to be just straight-up 100% pure pumpkin that’s been boiled and then strained of most of its moisture.

There’s a LOT of this pumpkin filling and not much bread. Once I squished out some of the pumpkin, I enjoyed it much more. Like I said, it’s not your typical American pumpkin pie flavor but there’s lots of pumpkin. Mostly it’s just a nice breakfast treat to have with a cup of coffee that doesn’t cause you to go into an early morning sugar shock.

Rating: 6 out of 10

P.S. If you look at the photo in the larger size and notice some black specs on the surface….I purchased two and ate the first one right away but waited too long to take the picture of the other. Consequently, there was a little moldiness going on, OPPS!