With the fall holidays of Halloween and Thanksgiving right around the corner, there is no better way to celebrate the season than with Trader Joe’s fall food and drink selection.
As someone who has regularly shopped at Trader Joe’s from an early age, I knew I had to purchase my favorite fall treats in addition to some new, exciting items. While many instantly filled me with fall joy, others fell flat.
I would definitely purchase the pumpkin bagels. Even though they might not have had the strongest pumpkin flavor, they are delicious and hearty. They go especially well with the pumpkin cream cheese, as it has a stronger pumpkin spice flavor that makes up for the lack of it in the bagels. That said, I would still only use a little of the cream cheese because it can become quite overwhelming quite quickly.
Continuing the theme of breakfast foods, I would recommend you pass on the pumpkin flavored overnight oats. They’re just fine if you’re already a fan of overnight oats, but if it’s your first time, the pumpkin flavor is not worth the sogginess. Even though the overnight oats weren’t the best, definitely try out the pumpkin pecan instant oatmeal. It’s sweet, but not too sweet, and the aroma that filled my room after only two minutes in the microwave brightened my morning every time.
Next up, the non-dairy pumpkin oat beverage is perfect with morning coffee and the pumpkin pecan instant oatmeal. The aroma of the milk is just delightful, and it’s almost as creamy as regular milk. Unfortunately, the carton is very small, so I would recommend buying a couple.
The frozen pumpkin waffles were also quite scrumptious, with a crispy, pumpkin spice aroma. Like the bagels, they don’t have the strongest pumpkin flavor either, but adding maple syrup or pumpkin pie spice brings the meal together.
In terms of their fall flavored snacks, I would definitely recommend the pumpkin spice pretzel slims. Like Pocky, they have a fine yogurt coating with pumpkin spices and pumpkin seeds, but the pretzels themselves are a bit small, but have a lot of flavor.
Even though Cornell Dairy’s clocktower pumpkin ice cream is delicious, the ginger-pumpkin mini cones are tiny, but packed with a strong pumpkin and ginger flavoring that keeps me going back to get another one.
I would skip on the pumpkin tortilla chips, as they taste the same as any multigrain chips with just a hint more spice that isn’t enough to really call it pumpkin flavored. I would also pass on the “this pumpkin walks into the bar…” cereal bars. They are very soft and have a nice gooey filling but are too sweet for my liking. Sometimes it felt like I was chomping down on liquid sugar.
The pumpkin Greek yogurt tastes like plain Greek yogurt, so I would rather get the organic pumpkin spice creamy cashew yogurt, which is even creamier and has the perfect amount of pumpkin spice flavoring.
The pumpkin biscottis went perfectly with tea at night or a late night snack when kept in the freezer.
To top off a fall themed charcuterie, the pumpkin cranberry crisps are a great option. The combination of cranberry and pumpkin is delicious, and I really like how they’re different from the normal crackers I buy; they’re perfect if you’re looking for something new and different.
All in all, next time you’re going to Walmart or eating out at Chipotle, it’s worthwhile to stop at Trader Joe’s for their festive fall treats.
Bella Capuano is a freshman in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. She can be reached at [email protected].