Even though pumpkin season may be once again behind us for another year, don’t forget that now is the time to stock up on supplies to carry us through the summer as the stores try to clear their shelves of seasonal merchandise!

I found these two Jello items deeply discounted over at my local Sweetbay – 75% off, in fact – bringing the no-bake dessert down to $0.80/box (originally $3.19) and the pudding down to a staggering $0.28/box (originally $1.15).

I’m not gonna lie – I felt a little like I was on Supermarket Sweep, checking out with a basket filled mostly with discounted pumpkin supplies and only a couple of the other items that I had actually come to the store for, and I did get a bit of eye-rolling from the wife when I got home, too, but we’ll see who has the last laugh later on this spring and summer when I’m baking up all sorts of creative concoctions with these simple pumpkin treats while the new stuff won’t be hitting the store shelves again for months…

Ahhhh, 2011 – talk about a busy year for pumpkins!

Not only did I write more about pumpkins last year than the previous two years combined, but arguably I also sampled some of the best pumpkin treats I’ve tasted since I first started this goofy, little blog way back in 2008!

If I had to rank ‘em…

1. Market Pantry Pumpkin Spice-Flavored Milk
2. Pumpkin Tastykakes
3. Stephen’s Pumpkin Spice Gourmet Hot Chocolate

Honorable Mention: Eggo Seasons Pumpkin Spice Waffles

Even More 2011 Pumpkin Favorites…

A Toast!: I guess you could say that this pumpkin ale was actually my beverage of choice for ringing in the new year, a last-minute offering by my brother-in-law, who had actually set some aside long ago in anticipation for our Christmastime visit! It really is the little things, isn’t it?

A Non-Beer-Drinkers Beer Review: Surprisingly even to myself, I actually kind of liked this beer! As my brother-in-law noted, Blue Moon is a bit more smooth than other ales, which I appreciated because it allowed me to actually get through the entire glass without feeling like I was just choking it down in obligation! The harvest spices were intriguing also, in that they seemed a bit more pronounced than in other alcoholic beverages that I’d sampled in the past.

The Verdict: And so while it still wasn’t enough to convert me into an actual beer drinker, not only did I appreciate the effort but this also officially becomes the very first pumpkin beer that I’d actually recommend here on this meager, little pumpkin pursuit of mine – bottoms up!

P.S.: Happy New Year!!!

Quick Review: One more random find that I came across while perusing the local Meijer on vacation, I honestly was just sort of so-so about Hudsonville’s take on this frozen pumpkin dessert. I mean, the flavor was there and all – not fantastic, not horrible – but moreover, I guess I just didn’t really care for the consistency of this ice cream. It was almost too milky and as such, I want to say that the flavors felt just a little watered down as a result.

Either way, I only ended up having the one bowl because desserts were aplenty and we were leaving two days later, but final verdict – not impressed.

Redemption: Despite yesterday’s “pumpkin” donuts being kinda slimy and gross and anything but, their muffins on the other hand, were what I would call perfectly respectable. Not incredible or life-changing, mind you, but they:

1. actually tasted kinda like pumpkin
2. were moist and flavorful on the inside
3. weren’t covered in slime

They pretty much reminded me of the same thing found at our local supermarket, Sweetbay, back home. Not terrific, but not slimy, either – a perfectly acceptable breakfast on the road.

Slogan: “Is it just me, or do those donuts look slimy?”

Take a Hint: Maybe I should’ve let the 30% Off Clearance sticker give me a clue, but frankly these were pretty terrible. I couldn’t help but notice when walking around Meijer’s bakery that all of their stuff looked pretty darned similar to the shipped-in baked goods found at Walmart’s bakery … for all I know, they might even come from the same exact factory! Either way, the day I find one of these trucked in bakery numbers that is actually worth its weight in calories, I’ll eat my hat…

…and traditionally I don’t even wear hats…

Flavor Summary: Slimy on the outside, dry on the inside – maybe you could stretch and call these Spice Donuts or something, but the pumpkin is more a figment of the baker’s imagination.

A little Christmas gift from my sister and her husband – will have to make sure that Cleo doesn’t get a hold of this one!

Locale: This was another grab from a random travel plaza en route when we stopped to stretch our legs, but I’m sad to say that I was a little more excited about the find itself than its actual quality when I bit into it a while later…

Description: I don’t really know how old it was, but the piece that I got actually tasted kind of stale, and a little bit dry. It was certainly dense, and the crumbled pumpkin seeds on the top seemed like a nice touch, but I honestly couldn’t even find/enjoy any real flavor because it tasted like it should’ve been thrown out at the end of yesterday’s shift.

Pondering: Perhaps this is simply an issue of rest area Starbucks not keeping to the same standards of regular, stand-alone stores? Either way, for this particular attempt the nod goes to Seattle’s Best for making the better pumpkin bread…

Foreign Find: Anyone who follows me on Twitter or maybe reads my blog knows that I’m currently roaming the countryside on Christmas vacation to visit family and whatnot. Of course, an added perk of visiting such far-off lands is also discovering fresh, new pumpkin delicacies as well, sometimes even in the likes of expressway travel plazas…

Deliciousness Revealed: I had actually considered ordering some of these right to my doorstep because I couldn’t seem to find them anywhere in Florida, but it seemed a bit tricky to justify ordering an entire case of them to my wife! In hindsight, however, had I any idea that these are actually awesome, I would’ve figured out a way to sway her opinion because despite their tiny, travel-sized form, these Pumpkin Tastykakes are probably some of the best pumpkin pies I’ve ever tasted!

The Flavor Experience: Soft and flaky crust, smooth and creamy filling, with just the right blend of pumpkin and pumpkin-like spices – it honestly saddens me that it took me four whole years to discover these incredible treats because they’re certainly a pumpkin dessert force to be reckoned with! So yummy…

More to Come???: With less than week left in this 4th year of proud pumpkin reviews, it seems only fitting to go out with a bang. Viva la pumpkin!

The Grand Finale: What can I say? This is hands down the best pumpkin fudge that I’ve ever tasted. The spiral of pumpkin spices hits you the moment you open the bag, and even though a bag might not necessarily be the best way to transport fudge (I kind of had to separate the pieces a bit…), the flavor just blows away any minor packaging problems because they really did a fantastic job with this one. The presentation looks great, as you can see, and the flavor is nothing short of a pumpkin pie celebration that so many other candy purveyors fail to achieve.

The Final Tally:

1. Pumpkin Spice Malted Milk Balls
2. Spicy Pumpkin Seeds
3. Pumpkin Pie Fudge
4. Chocolate Covered Pumpkin Seeds

Talk about an outstanding way to round out the 2011 pumpkin season! Needless to say, if I happen to find any pumpkin presents underneath the tree after Santa pays us a visit tonight, I’ll be sure to post about them before the end of the year, but for what it’s worth, if this bevy of treats from Nuts Online ends up being the final features for this festive year, then I certainly can’t complain…

Happy holidays, and may all of your pies be pumpkin!