Awww, Nuts: I honestly wasn’t quite sure what to expect with these things, as I’ve been kinda hit and miss in the past with pumpkin seeds and honestly am not really the biggest fan of just the raw seeds in general, but these sounded a little different so I thought that I’d give ‘em a go anyways…

Mmmmm!: Apparently a hint of spice is exactly what my pumpkin seed-eating experience has been looking for because I actually really, really enjoyed these! The salty spice adds a nice kick, albeit not so much as to warrant keeping a glass of water nearby … at least not unless you happen to go through these things a handful at a time, which admittedly wouldn’t be the hardest thing in the world to do.

One Yummy Pound: If there’s one area (other than flavor) that Nuts Online really doesn’t skimp on, it’s definitely the size because I’ll admit I was a bit taken aback to see just how big all of the different bags were in the box that I received! Maybe it’s just because it seems like when you buy candy by the pound at a candy store, a pound ends up being next to nothing, but I was really impressed with these pumpkin seeds in particular because simply put, I’m still going to be eating them for a long time!

Credentials: I mean, seriously – with a doctorate in crackers, this guy has got to know what he’s talking about, right?!

Undue Enthusiasm: Ok, so I was pretty excited about this particular find, admittedly mostly just because I thought that the name sounded awesome, however unfortunately in hindsight after having tasted the results of what I can only imagine were many long and grueling years of graduate work, in reality I found them kind of dull and uninspired, and if I were Doctor Kracker I’d maybe think about finding another line of work like heart surgery or psychiatry or something that isn’t necessarily cracker-centric.

Untapped Market?: For what it’s worth, my dog liked them, but then again, she also has a voracious appetite for shoes…

Initial Reaction: “Holy cow – sinful doesn’t even begin to describe it!”

Explanation: Although I’ve munched on pretzels from Wetzel’s many a times while wandering around Downtown Disney, it’s always been the traditional variety that I’ve enjoyed – usually with a side of cheese of some sort for dipping at my leisure.  I’ve never had one of their cinnamon pretzels before, but in hindsight now I think it’s safe to say that when I’m considering dessert options after a long day of shopping for pins and LEGOs, this ridiculously sweetened gem of cake-like proportions definitely needs to be in the running and should have no problem whatsoever holding its own even against the likes of Ghirardelli and Goofy’s Candy Co…

The Glaze: With a faint hint of cream cheese, but much sweeter – before I realized that it was a dipping sauce, I was kind of curious to see how a drizzled concoction was going to work, but this definitely worked and I even ended up having a little leftover after the pretzel had been devoured!  Very delicious.

The Mess: So, yeah … the big difference between a cinnamon pretzel and your conventional, salted pretzel is that apparently one topping has more of a tendency to fall off and make a gigantic mess all over the table than the other.  By the time I was finished, I probably had enough sugar accumulated on the table in front of me to cover another whole pretzel!  For what it’s worth, I tried to clean it up as best I could, and ultimately I suppose that too much sugar is always better than not enough, but nonetheless, I hope that the janitor who had to clean up my mess can forgive me…

Look Familiar???: http://www.scottsevener.com/pumpkin/snacks/pumpkin-spice-cookie-bites/

Two Years Later…: They at least remembered to put the chocolate chips in, so technically the label is batting 1-for-2, but flavor-wise these cookies couldn’t have been made within 100-miles of anything even remotely resembling a pumpkin!  Admittedly, they do kind of look and taste like those mini chocolate chips cookies that you used to be able to get at McDonald’s, but that’s not really what we’re looking for here…

Foreword: Much like my recently touted pumpkin s’mores, it seemed like destiny when I discovered these pumpkin marshmallows that eventually one day I would find myself transforming them into the treats that I adored so much in my childhood growing up.  And now, that day is here!

The Creation: To be honest, I think I’ve actually only ever made Rice Krispie Treats one other time before in my adult life, and that must’ve been during a time when we kept a cleaner stove top because I ended up having to try the microwave version of the recipe this time around … although frankly, in hindsight I actually think it was a lot easier!  Melt some butter, melt some marshmallows, mix in the cereal, and boom – you’ve got the mysterious blob you see above that I couldn’t for the life of me figure out how to shape into something even remotely more presentable!

The Shape: In the spirit of all that I do here, I wanted to try and shape it into an actual pumpkin, but as you can see I ended up with some sort of abnormally-shaped hearty/spleeny thing.  I first tried to shape it using the spoon itself, which got me nowhere, and then switching over to hands basically just got me two hands covered in hot rice krispie treats.  I’m sure there’s a trick to it – my Mom used to make us perfectly shaped Easter eggs and Christmas trees and probably even pumpkins for Halloween, for all I can remember!  Maybe next year…

The Taste: Actually, I think I enjoyed these better than just eating them out of the bag!  The aroma that came wafting out of the microwave upon melting the marshmallows was wonderful – melting really helps to unlock the flavor in these tasty treats, and in the end it was neat to at least taste the pumpkin even if my shape didn’t actually end up looking like a pumpkin.

Familial Acceptance: You know you’ve finally leveled up when not only do your relatives stop giving you a hard time about that weird pumpkin obsession of yours, but in fact even fuel the fires themselves from time to time with exciting new discoveries such as these!  Thanks, Christina…

Taste: The flavor is most definitely dry, and it goes quick, as one would generally expect from a marshmallow, however that initial taste does bear a distinct taste of pumpkin, which then seems to fade into more of a cinnamon aftertaste once the marshmallow has dissolved.  Admittedly, it took me a handful of eating these one by one to really taste it, and squinting was involved, but again – they’re marshmallows … how often do you even eat flavors other than plain?!

Speaking of an Open Fire: In consideration for all of the grilling that I’ve up to over the last couple of months, please rest assured in knowing that there will most definitely be a Pumpkin S’Mores post coming here eventually!  The time to stock up on graham crackers and pumpkin chocolate bars is now…

P.S. Also, hot chocolate.  Definitely gonna need to try these in some hot chocolate!

Point #1: I technically already reviewed the fat free version of this stuff way back in 2008 when I first started this site, and it didn’t exactly fare so well.  Still not much of a fan of yogurt, I pretty much opted to give this stuff another try solely for the fact that they had multiple health-conscious varieties, and I was kind of on a roll at finding pumpkin stuff around Target…

Point #2: Trust your gut, at least with regards to rating limited edition yogurt flavors … because this one still sucks, now in TWO varieties!!!  In its defense, the low fat version did boast a slightly more orange-ish tint to itself than its fat free brethren, but still … nope, not happening.

Point #3: At least they jazzed up the artwork on the outside of the container?

Quick Review: Now as far as pumpkin representation is concerned, this one was by far my favorite.  I’ve been eating a lot of applesauce with my lunches lately in an effort to lose some weight and I could definitely see making up a jar of this variety to enjoy as my fruit serving each day!  I actually ended up using Mott’s Cinnamon Applesauce, with complimented the pumpkin nicely and gave an extra sweetness to the combination.

Recipe: Applesauce + Pumpkin (via VeryBestBaking.com)

The Recipe: via Chex.com
Substitutions: I didn’t use pecans because I’m not much of a nut fan, and I substituted margarine for butter out of habit.

Inspiration: This one is actually a pretty easy sell for me because I’m what you might call very much a fan of regular Chex Mix, to the point where I’ll typically make several batches of the stuff over the course of December.  You know – just a little something to snack on while the cookies are in the oven!
So How About Some Pumpkin?: The pumpkin flavoring isn’t very dominant, which usually isn’t a surprise when you’re working with Pumpkin Pie Spice instead of the real thing.  On the upside, though, these are very sweet on account of both the sugar and the regular flavorings of honey and cinnamon from the cereals themselves.  Still yummy, but definitely a dessert-type snack as opposed to what you might expect from your traditional Chex Mix.
Again?: The only thing that would prevent me from mixing up a batch of this again is that frankly, there are other flavors of Chex Mix that I honestly just like better – my go-to variety being the Original Chex Mix, with Muddy Buddies being a fun variation for chocolate lovers of the world, so while Pumpkin Pie Crunch is still an interesting and definitely worthwhile dessert-type snack for your harvest-themed gatherings, if you’re simply looking for a sweet treat without necessarily any pumpkin ambiance, you might want to consider your options first.

Chewy Pumpkin Granola Bars: At last!
So Where Did I Find Them?!: in the health food specialty section, mixed in with all of the vegan stuff
Well???: Yeah…  Not for nothing, but “Pumpkin Spice” is a bit of a stretch on the packaging here.  I think I could argue that they feature somewhat of a pumpkin aftertaste, but they’re certainly not what I’ve been searching for in a pumpkin granola bar all of these years!  I would say that the pumpkin seeds qualifies them more along the lines of the granola that I looked at earlier than an actual pumpkiny granola bar.  I had such high hopes when I spotted them on the shelf, too … they’ve got a pumpkin on the package and everything!
Verdict: And the search goes on…