Pumpkin Passion

UGH! I’m trying to make a Pumpkin Gingerbread Trifle by Paula Deen for Thanksgiving tomorrow but I just hit a major disaster.

I’ve made the recipe twice before and it always got rave reviews. This time I decided to use Trader Joe’s “Deep Dark Gingerbread Cake and Baking Mix” and it was bad…really, really bad. There is soo much ginger in this mix that it burns the back of your throat for a considerable amount of time after you swallow it. It’s just too much! Blah! I even got someone else to try it and they agreed it was really, really bad. I love their “Pumpkin Bread and Muffin Mix” but this is wrong!

Now, I must go out and brave the supermarket to try and find the Betty Crocker version.

Happy Thanksgiving and best wishes on your holiday baking!!!

There’s still so much going on related to pumpkins even though Halloween is just a distant memory. For instance, I’ve recently tried the pumpkin spice lollipops at See’s Candy and their pumpkin truffles. There were more pumpkin truffles at Godiva Chocolates (review coming soon but don’t rush out and buy them–they were WRONG!) and so many pumpkin waffles that it’s ridiculous.

Lately, I’ve been working on the Etsy shop, which is still under construction. I need a better welcome message and profile page. There are also more photographs that I should take and more items to be listed. However, I thought I’d give my blog readers a look at my favorite scarf that I have up on Etsy. It was hand knit with 100% soft merino wool. The colors are a beautiful warm autumnal palette of oranges, browns, and creams. Perfect for any pumpkin lover!

For the pre grand opening of my store I am offering a 20% discount on any item from now until Thanksgiving. Here’s how to get the discount:

1.) First add an item(s) from my shop to your cart and start the check out process.
2.) Enter the code ”Pumpkin Love” in the ‘notes to seller’ and the email address where the revised invoice should be sent.
3.) Complete the order but do NOT go to Paypal to pay.
4.) You will receive a revised invoice, and a link to complete payment, via email reflecting the discount.

Also, what pumpkin treats are you making for Thanksgiving? A simple pumpkin pie or something more daring? I’m making this.

It looks like the pumpkin shortage is over! Can I hear some “Hip Hip Hooray!!” I’ve seen fully stocked shelves in several different stores.

Also, last week the Hungry Girl newsletter made the announcement:

True, it’s been a rough few months of gazing at the empty market shelves where the canned pumpkin should be. But — good news — the pumpkin shortage is OVER! One thing to note: The pumpkin you get from your cans of Libby’s may have a slightly different texture than before (a little softer). However, that kind of thing happens with all-natural products and varies from crop to crop. Who cares? Pumpkin is back!

The newsletter also referenced a Daily Herald article with this tidbit of information, “The grocers said prices of canned pumpkin are essentially the same as last year.”

Let the pumpkin baking begin!

The photo is courtesy of cupcakequeen

It’s November 2nd . . . where did October go? All the pumpkin patches are gone. No more pumpkin festivals to attend. Such a downer. Is anyone else bummed that Halloween is already over?

Disneyland has gone pumpkin crazy! There are pumpkins nearly everywhere you look from the entrance gates, down Mainstreet, all the way to Sleeping Beauty’s Castle. There are simply too many items to mention. Some highlight are the giant Mickey Mouse head at the beginning of Mainstreet (pictured above) and the pumpkins carved with Disney characters surrounding the Walt Disney statue at the center of the park.

They even had a pumpkin Mickey Mouse Hat. Of course, I had to get one with my name stitched on the back. I don’t think I’ve had one of those since I was about 6 years old.

The Nightmare Before Christmas Haunted House is the #1 reason to go to Disneyland this season. It’s simply awesome.

While you’re feasting your eyes on all the pumpkin decorations you can also treat your tummy. There’s a pumpkin latte and a pumpkin cupcake at Blue Ribbon Bakery on Mainstreet. The latte was descent but cold and the cupcake was good but the frosting was similar to what you get with grocery store cupcakes. At California Adventure in the Wine Country Trattoria there was a tiramusu with a pumpkin mousse in a take-home ceramic Mickey Mouse mug. It was simply delicious but didn’t taste much like pumpkin. It tasted much more like banana. I wanted to eat 4 of them for a complete set of mugs to take back home. I probably could have eatten them all because the portion is teeny tiny–there’s a disposable plastic cup inside the ceramic cup. The whole thing is little more than the size of a shot glass but it was yummy and super cute.

Since I could never adequately describe all the many pumpkin items, here’s a little montage:

Name: Pumpkin Eggnog Ice Cream
Purchased At: Scoops
Price: it was under $2.50
Availability: Seasonal

Scoops is this really small ice cream shop on an obscure L.A. street. They sell only about 10 or 12 flavors collectively of ice cream, sorbet, and vegan ice cream. The store looks somewhat worn but not in a dirty/not well kept kind of way. It’s more like an establish mom and pop store that’s been around for a while but with a hipster feel to it. There are only a few tables available and the place is almost always packed

What really sets this place apart from all the other ice cream/frozen yogurt stores is their unique flavors of ice cream. Actually, “unique” does not even begin to describe the flavors. For instance, their repertoire of flavors has previously included avocado pale ale, brown bread, pomegranate and yuzu, blueberry and ricotta, pistachio and black pepper, sea salt malt, and pear and lychee sorbet.

I’d been there once before and really liked the ice cream. So, I went back this Saturday after having visited 2 pumpkin festivals in 90 degree weather. I needed something cold and yummy. The place was packed, as usual. While I was scoping out the flavors, Shannon pointed to one of them at the end of the row and my jaw dropped. It was pumpkin eggnog!

If there were more eggnog flavored items in this world I would probably have a blog titled “Eggnog Enthusiast.” I freaking love eggnog! To have pumpkin and eggnog combined in one item made me giddy.

I knew instantly what I was getting. So, I used my taster to try the strawberries with balsamic vinegar flavor. Yum! Shannon tasted the brown bread which she said was good but got a scoop of their chocolate peanut butter. Their scoops are a good size; one is definitely enough.

With eager excitement I sat down to eat my pumpkin eggnog ice cream. I defiantly enjoyed every last bite but it was difficult to taste the pumpkin flavor. The extra nutmeg in the eggnog overpowered the pumpkin. I wouldn’t say I was disappointed because a solo eggnog ice cream would make me jig for joy but I did want more pumpkin flavor.

Even with my minor criticism, I would still recommend Scoops with no hesitation at all. Enjoy!

Rating: 3 out of 5 for the pumpkin eggnog ice cream
Rating: 5 out of 5 for Scoops

“He’s Cute” photo by EJK41

This weekend was jammed with pumpkin events. It was so full that we had to get up early Saturday and Sunday just to fit them all in.

First off, early on Saturday morning we drove over to the Cal Poly Pomona Pumpkin Festival. When we drove past the crosswalk in front of the event, we realized that we may have forgotten an important item, a wagon. It seemed as though everyone had a wagon or a wheelbarrow and those that were headed back from the event had pumpkins piled high.

The pumpkin field was brimming with pumpkins. However, upon closer inspection the pumpkins weren’t growing out of the ground. They’d been gently placed all over the grassy hills. I saw a few people with pumpkins that had vines attached. So, maybe there was a section of the pumpkin patch where pumpkins were planted.

They also had a few craft and food booths but none had anything pumpkin to eat. What was surprising was seeing people eat the craziest foods at 9:00 a.m. like kettle corn, cotton candy, ice cream, and funnel cakes.

It’s a fairly small festival. The main event is picking your pumpkin—$5 each or 5 for $20. We picked out a good sized pumpkin but then had to carry it back to the car which was far, but could have been really REALLY far had we been shoved in one of the Timbuktu parking lots. Did I mention that it was close to 90 degrees this weekend. Walking in 90 degree heat, while carrying a large pumpkin, with not enough sleep, and PMSing is not exactly fun. By the time we got back to the car, I had a road rage break down while trying to back out of the parking. There was much cursing and screaming involved…it wasn’t pretty.

The best part was the Farm Store at Kellogg Ranch. The Agriculture Department at Cal Poly Pomona seems fairly large, which surprised me. They grow fruits and vegetable on the campus fields and then sell them at the Farm Store. It’s open year round and it has good prices on produce. We stocked up on butternut and acorn squash for only $1 each. They also had several products that are pumpkin oriented and by oriented I mean that they have Poprocks with pumpkins on the packaging but they are orange flavor—SOO very annoying. Those pumpkins that were not chosen over the weekend (So SAD!) can still be purchased at the Farm Store. Please give them a good home! In the end, I was glad that we went to the Cal Poly Pomona Pumpkin Festival in order to discover the Farm Store.

Other weekend pumpkin events included the Calabasas Pumpkin Festival, the best pumpkin eggnog ice cream ever, and a pumpkin tiramisu in a pumpkin head Mickey Mouse cup. Stay tuned as I attempt to blog each of them!

How’s your Pumpkin Eatin’ Season going? Been to any good pumpkin festivals lately?

We decorated this past weekend with all the pumpkins we’ve purchased. There have been lots of pumpkin purchases lately which is why we may need to resort to eating Top Ramen until pay day. Most of these pumpkins were purchased from the Live Oak Canyon Pumpkin Patch in Yucaipa, CA. Others are from Trader Joe’s and Home Depot. Home Depot?!?!?

If you just want a simple carving pumpkin Home Depot is your best bet. Each pumpkin is only $2.99 but they tend to sell out quick!

Where have you found cheap pumpkins this year?

Name: Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Muffin & Bread Mix
Purchased At: Trader Joe’s
Price: ???
Availability: Year Round

I hope everyone has a Laurel in their office. She’s the person who you bring in something scrounged up from your own cupboard shelves for the office potluck because you want access to her dish and no one else’s. Sometimes, she’ll forget that there even is a potluck and just walk to the grocery store and come back to create the most wonderful salad with items you never would’ve put together yourself. In other words, she’s an awesomely amazing cook.

Today was the end of a big project that several staff members have been working on and to celebrate the completion, she made a full lunch for everyone: salad, pasta, bread, and pumpkin cake. The cake was absolutely delicious (along with everything else, of course). When she told me the cake was from a Trader Joe’s boxed Pumpkin Bread & Muffin mixed I was seriously surprised. This is someone who could take bologna and make it taste gourmet but she swears she just follows the recipe on the box and adds some pecans. The frosting was whipped cream cheese and pumpkin butter. The pumpkin butter really cut the tang of the cream cheese. So yummy!

While I haven’t always enjoyed the pumpkin treats I’ve found at Trader Joe’s, this mix has a great mix of spices and is something you should try if you want a quick but delicious pumpkin cake.