It's Officially Fall At Trader Joe's, So I Tried Their New Pumpkin Products Along With A Favorite Return — Here Are My Thoughts
If you've walked into a Trader Joe's recently, you probably took in the scent of a cinnamon broom, eyed the skull succulents, and thought to yourself, "Ah, fall is here." And if, like me, your fall countdown starts in August, you're probably pretty thrilled about all the new fall items popping up. So to celebrate my favorite season in the best way possible, I went ahead and grabbed all the new pumpkin products I could get my hands on, along with one returning item I just couldn't pass up tasting.
Here's everything I grabbed (and, yes, one is butternut squash, but it's pretty much like pumpkin's cousin, right?):
Without further ado, light those vanilla pumpkin candles, pour yourself some harvest tea, and let's dive in, y'all.
1.Butternut Squash Lasagna, $4.49
I know this isn't technically pumpkin, but at the end of the day, squash is squash (please don't hate me for that statement). And given the hype around the butternut squash mac 'n' cheese every year, I knew I had to grab this. I've seen mixed reviews of this frozen lasagna — some say it's better than the mac 'n' cheese, and others say it's underwhelming, so I truly had no idea what to expect.
I thought it looked promising right out of the container with the pumpkin seeds and breadcrumbs sitting on top.
And it was honestly pretty solid, but I couldn't help but feel like something was missing.
I'll start off by saying this was good and ended up being my lunch for that day. I baked it at 425ºF for 45 minutes like the box recommended but bumped up the temp to 475ºF for the last 10–15 minutes to get the top even crispier. I loooved how crispy that top layer got, and you could really taste the smoked Provola cheese. The pumpkin seeds were probably my favorite part, though, and a really nice touch. Unfortunately, the rest of the layers lacked flavor. I was expecting to taste more of those traditional fall spices like rosemary, nutmeg, sage, etc. but didn't really get any of that. So texture-wise, this was a win, but flavor-wise, not so much.
Overall Rating: 7/10 — The top layer gets a solid 9/10 from me, but the rest of the lasagna lacked some of those signature fall flavors and cheesiness.
2.Mini Pumpkin Ginger Scones, $4.99
Even though I love to bake, I also love to see ready-to-bake products that require zero effort or time. Sometimes I just want a scone without overpaying for one at a coffee shop or spending a ton of time making my own. Plus, I'm a sucker for anything mini, so Trader Joe's kind of got me with this one. The pumpkin ginger "Hold the Cones" are already a favorite, so I had high hopes for this flavor combo.
The package recommends brushing the tops with milk or cream before putting them in the oven, so I tried with half of them to see if it would make any difference when it came to browning.
I'm no scone expert, but apparently, milk is supposed to help the tops brown better and get a little crispy.
These smelled so good out of the oven, and I found them to be the perfect little breakfast treat to have with some coffee.
3.Gluten Free Pumpkin Ravioli, $4.49
I don't think anyone is shocked that Trader Joe's came out with a new ravioli flavor for the season. Well, I guess the flavor isn't new, but the gluten-free part of it is. I'm personally not gluten-free, so I'm not super familiar with how TJ's products stack up against the rest. What I do know is that it's super difficult to make a gluten-free pasta dough that doesn't end up being mushy.
As always, I think it's only fair to get a filling shot for ravioli. This one looked...less than appetizing and smelled purely like canned pumpkin, which made me a little nervous.
My suspicions were confirmed — I could barely get through one bite of these.
I know this is a gluten-free pasta, so it's definitely not fair to compare it to regular pasta, but TJ's really could've done better here. Per the package instructions, I boiled them in salted water for only two minutes, and they still came out so mushy and gummy. It's not super surprising given that they're made with tapioca and potato starch — I think chickpea or lentil flour would've held up a lot better.
While I tried to give them the benefit of the doubt when it came to texture, I absolutely could NOT give a pass to this filling. It tasted exactly like it smelled — no seasoning or cheesiness, just canned pumpkin. The filling is meant to have both ricotta and mozzarella along with some seasonal spices, but I honestly could not taste any of that, save for maybe a hint of nutmeg.
Overall Rating: 3/10 — After I dressed these up, they were a bit more tolerable, but I'm still sad to say this is the first product I've had to completely trash. If you're gluten-free and still want to try these, I recommend one minute in boiling water and one minute finishing in a VERY flavorful sauce of your choice.
4.Two Robbers Pumpkin Happy Coffee, $12.99 for four
The pumpkin spice-loving basic gal inside me could not have been more excited to see these on the shelf. While not a Trader Joe's-specific product, this is the first time I've seen hard coffee seltzers in store. I've never had anything like this before, and the fact that it's labeled as a seltzer intrigued me. I also love that they're low caffeine — as someone with anxiety, having a 10 p.m. espresso martini is usually (read: always) out of the question, so these felt like a happy compromise.
I loved how this poured and, I kid you not, it smelled exactly like a cinnamon roll. Consider me a fan.
First of all, can we talk about how adorable these cans are?! I've said it before, but I'm a total sucker for branding which has proved awful for my bank account. Now, on to the taste. I can maybe see how this hard coffee would turn someone off, so let me just say this: If you have mixed feelings about pumpkin spice, do not buy this. The main notes I tasted were cinnamon, maple, and brown sugar, and it's definitely spice-forward (but not overly sweet). I do wish I could taste more of the coffee and, at first, the seltzer of it all threw me off. I did like it the more I drank it, though. Think of it as having the flavor of a stout with the lightness of a seltzer.
It didn't get as foamy as the pour on the box showed, but I actually think the small bit of microfoam worked better for this than a heavy beer-like foam. It kind of resembled an espresso martini in that sense.
Overall Rating: 7.5/10 — I really enjoyed this and found it to be a unique take on boozy coffee, although I don't think I could drink more than one. If the coffee flavor came through more, I'd bump this up, but I still loved the sweetness and warm spices.
5.Pumpkin Sticky Toffee Cakes, $3.99
The long-awaited return of the pumpkin sticky toffee cakes is finally over. I never spotted these when they were released last year, so I was thrilled to see Trader Joe's bring them back. In fact, there was so much hype around them this year that I actually thought they were new. For that reason, I knew I needed to include them in this pumpkin-filled taste test.
There are two cakes per box, and they each come in a little plastic bundt-like container that goes straight into the oven for 14–16 minutes.
I'll say it again: Convenient ready-to-bake desserts are my jam.
You'll never be able to eat a sad pumpkin pie ever again after having this. It's the pumpkin dessert to end all pumpkin desserts.
I 100% get the hype around these. In my tasting notes, I literally just wrote "WOW." The cake itself is so moist (sorry, but it's really the best descriptor) and tastes a bit like pumpkin bread. There's a lot of those warm fall spices throughout, but it's not slapping you in the face with pumpkin spice. And the toffee caramel sauce?? I want to be buried in it and am officially starting a petition for Trader Joe's to bottle and sell it on its own. Yes, it's wildly sweet (it is caramel, after all) but also has this wonderful butteriness to it. Once again, TJ's has exceeded my expectations with a frozen dessert.
Overall Rating: 10/10 — I have no notes here. If you're the kind of person who doesn't love overly sweet desserts, maybe look elsewhere. But I personally loved how indulgent these were while still tasting like something other than sugar. It may not be an "everyday dessert," but I'll be stocking up on these for sure.
