Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Pumpkin Pies: A Ten-Pie Test

“You’ll have to do without the bourbon-cherry-apple pie,” I told Patrick. “This year, I’m bringing a ready-made pumpkin pie.”

A few days later, after making the store rounds, Patrick and I sat down with friend Bernice for some pie nibbling.

The Vons pumpkin pie ($2.99 for 18 ounces) looked sickly. “Flavorless, white, gummy crust,” said Bernice.

“Light on the pumpkin flavor,” added Pat.

Vons’ other pie offering won the marketing award: ESP (“Extra Special Pie”) pumpkin pie ($4.99 for 22 ounces). “We know you want this pie,” stated the pie box. The marketing text caught Bernice’s eye.

“59 million pies are eaten each Thanksgiving” she read, “and the average American eats six slices of pumpkin pie each year.

Sponsored
Sponsored

“‘In early times,” she continued, “the pumpkin was used as crust for pies, not for filling.” “Pumpkins are fruits, not vegetables.” “Pumpkins are 90% water.”

“Can we move past the pumpkin trivia and back to the eating?” asked Patrick.

I passed around a slice of ESP pie. “A little more spice, more dense filling...it’s passable, but I’m not sure it’s ‘extra special,’” laughed Pat.

The Sprouts pumpkin pie did not fare as well ($2.99 for 24 ounces). “So processed, the texture is slippery in the mouth, like baby food,” said Bernice. “And the crust is a little bitter.”

“Kudos for the crust on this one — it looks like a sunflower,” said Bernice about the Trader Joe’s pumpkin pie ($4.99 for 24 ounces). “I can pick out individual spices in the filling: cinnamon, ginger.”

“It’s too sweet and too spiced for my taste,” said Patrick.

Albertsons wasn’t selling a pumpkin pie when I popped in, but they did have a Harvest sweet-potato pie ($4.99 for 24 ounces). “The thickest of all the pie fillings and a flaky crust,” observed Bernice. “This would be an okay substitute. Your guests would know it’s not a pumpkin pie, but it would fill the spicy, squashy dessert needs.”

“The filling tastes candied to me,” said Patrick. “You would have to serve this with an unsweetened cream.”

The Ralphs 8-inch pumpkin pie ($4.99 for 22 ounces) ranked at the bottom of our ten-pie testing. “The crust feels like rubber and tastes like cardboard,” said Bernice. “And the filling has so much cinnamon I can feel it up in my sinuses.”

“The texture is like gelatinous chicken fat,” laughed Patrick, shaking a clump of pie filling.

Ralphs’ other pie: the Jessie Lord pumpkin pie ($5.99 for 24 ounces) was a no-sugar-added Splenda dessert. “It’s got that melt-away sugar-free sweetness, no sugary granule texture. It makes me think squash baby food,” said Bernice.

“Gloppy texture, and the flavors are not integrated,” added Patrick. “First you’re hit with sweetness, followed by overpowering pumpkin.”

Another non-keeper: the Fabe’s Bakery gluten-free pumpkin pie from Whole Foods ($7.69 for 10 ounces). “The crust tastes like old french fries,” grimaced Bernice. “And the filling is too runny.”

“Tastes like ginger snaps, not pumpkin pie,” agreed Patrick.

Whole Foods’ other pumpkin offering was the winner of the evening ($9.99, 20-ounce 9-inch). “A substantial lip on this crust...and I can actually taste the butter in it,” said Bernice.

“Something about cloves immediately makes you think of the holidays,” smiled Patrick. “The clove in this puts it into its own class.”

The whopping 58-ounce pumpkin pie from Costco was the other winner ($5.99). “The crust looks homemade,” said Patrick. “A dark, scalloped crust with a rich caramel hint in the filling. I could eat this without slathering it in cream. And after enough wine and tryptophan, I’d have no idea it wasn’t homemade.”

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Why did Harrah's VP commit suicide last summer?

Did the fight the Rincon casino had with San Diego County over Covid play a part?
Next Article

WAV College Church reminds kids that time is short

College is a formational time for decisions about belief

“You’ll have to do without the bourbon-cherry-apple pie,” I told Patrick. “This year, I’m bringing a ready-made pumpkin pie.”

A few days later, after making the store rounds, Patrick and I sat down with friend Bernice for some pie nibbling.

The Vons pumpkin pie ($2.99 for 18 ounces) looked sickly. “Flavorless, white, gummy crust,” said Bernice.

“Light on the pumpkin flavor,” added Pat.

Vons’ other pie offering won the marketing award: ESP (“Extra Special Pie”) pumpkin pie ($4.99 for 22 ounces). “We know you want this pie,” stated the pie box. The marketing text caught Bernice’s eye.

“59 million pies are eaten each Thanksgiving” she read, “and the average American eats six slices of pumpkin pie each year.

Sponsored
Sponsored

“‘In early times,” she continued, “the pumpkin was used as crust for pies, not for filling.” “Pumpkins are fruits, not vegetables.” “Pumpkins are 90% water.”

“Can we move past the pumpkin trivia and back to the eating?” asked Patrick.

I passed around a slice of ESP pie. “A little more spice, more dense filling...it’s passable, but I’m not sure it’s ‘extra special,’” laughed Pat.

The Sprouts pumpkin pie did not fare as well ($2.99 for 24 ounces). “So processed, the texture is slippery in the mouth, like baby food,” said Bernice. “And the crust is a little bitter.”

“Kudos for the crust on this one — it looks like a sunflower,” said Bernice about the Trader Joe’s pumpkin pie ($4.99 for 24 ounces). “I can pick out individual spices in the filling: cinnamon, ginger.”

“It’s too sweet and too spiced for my taste,” said Patrick.

Albertsons wasn’t selling a pumpkin pie when I popped in, but they did have a Harvest sweet-potato pie ($4.99 for 24 ounces). “The thickest of all the pie fillings and a flaky crust,” observed Bernice. “This would be an okay substitute. Your guests would know it’s not a pumpkin pie, but it would fill the spicy, squashy dessert needs.”

“The filling tastes candied to me,” said Patrick. “You would have to serve this with an unsweetened cream.”

The Ralphs 8-inch pumpkin pie ($4.99 for 22 ounces) ranked at the bottom of our ten-pie testing. “The crust feels like rubber and tastes like cardboard,” said Bernice. “And the filling has so much cinnamon I can feel it up in my sinuses.”

“The texture is like gelatinous chicken fat,” laughed Patrick, shaking a clump of pie filling.

Ralphs’ other pie: the Jessie Lord pumpkin pie ($5.99 for 24 ounces) was a no-sugar-added Splenda dessert. “It’s got that melt-away sugar-free sweetness, no sugary granule texture. It makes me think squash baby food,” said Bernice.

“Gloppy texture, and the flavors are not integrated,” added Patrick. “First you’re hit with sweetness, followed by overpowering pumpkin.”

Another non-keeper: the Fabe’s Bakery gluten-free pumpkin pie from Whole Foods ($7.69 for 10 ounces). “The crust tastes like old french fries,” grimaced Bernice. “And the filling is too runny.”

“Tastes like ginger snaps, not pumpkin pie,” agreed Patrick.

Whole Foods’ other pumpkin offering was the winner of the evening ($9.99, 20-ounce 9-inch). “A substantial lip on this crust...and I can actually taste the butter in it,” said Bernice.

“Something about cloves immediately makes you think of the holidays,” smiled Patrick. “The clove in this puts it into its own class.”

The whopping 58-ounce pumpkin pie from Costco was the other winner ($5.99). “The crust looks homemade,” said Patrick. “A dark, scalloped crust with a rich caramel hint in the filling. I could eat this without slathering it in cream. And after enough wine and tryptophan, I’d have no idea it wasn’t homemade.”

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

The danger of San Diego's hoarders

The $1 million Flash Comics #1
Next Article

Gonzo Report: Three nights of Mission Bayfest bring bliss

“This is a top-notch production.”
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader