Day 286 - Mini Pumpkin Pies

This pie is so tasty that when I dropped a piece of mine on the floor, I picked it up and popped it in my mouth (note:  it did qualify for the 5 second rule…).  This was our first PUMPKIN flavored thing of this Trader Joe’s PUMPKIN SEASON (seriously, TJ’s goes insane this time of year and makes every single item available in pumpkin flavor – pumpkin this and pumpkin that…)

Here are boxes of these cutie patootie little pies still in the freezer section at Trader Joe's

 The on these pies crust is nice.  It has little sugar crystals on it.  Trader Joe’s has different varieties of “mini pies” and they all seem to have the same crust. (see the review of the Mini Pie Medley here and see the review of the seasonal Mini Pecan Pies here ).  I think the crust is a great match for this pumpkin filling.  We ate these little pies for dessert and paired them with a Vin de Bordeaux from TJ’s.

Here is a San Pellegrino lid next to a pie to show the size

The wine we paired these with

These pies taste like a little tiny taste of Thanksgiving.  J  They are not really BARBIE sized – Cabbage Patch size is more accurate.  I made one for each of us for dessert but David (who normally doesn’t like pumpkin things) snuck back into the kitchen and heated up a second one for himself.  We also had them for BREAKFAST Saturday morning.  Cuz what the hell – it’s the WEEKEND, life is short – eat pie for breakfast right??

This would be a good dessert to serve if you were having an autumn dinner party and had a little platter of various desserts.  We ate ours warm and did not add ice cream or whipped cream on top, we just ate them naked. 

David says, “I like these, too.  The best part about it is the crust which is delicious and soft and nice.  The filling is pumpkin, so if you are a fan of pumpkin pie (which I am not terribly…) you will like this.  I think a crust this nice should be graced with some fruit filling, but if I have to have pumpkin pie, then give me pumpkin pie with lots of good CRUST like this has!”

Hmm David, this is pie number 2 for you...  You don't look like you are disliking this pumpkin...

I think part of the reason this pie works well is that it has some crust on TOP.  Normally pumpkin pie (in my experience) has a bottom crust, then a huge ass can of pumpkin…  This results in way more PUMPKIN than crust.  But these little TJ’s pies balance the pumpkin to crust ratio better.  David agrees with that.  He loves this crust. 

Reasonably priced little treats

If you are only going to invest in one pumpkin item this year from Trader Joe’s – this one would be worthy.  And if you didn’t read yesterday’s review of PUMPKIN BODY BUTTER, you probably should… 

Price – $3.99

Rating – 4.25

Day 48 - Mini Pecan Pies

These teeny tiny bite sized pies are oh-so-yummy.  If you want a little dessert, and I do mean LITTLE dessert, here it is!!!!  The box has six tiny pies.  All you do is preheat the oven (325 degrees) and heat for around ten minutes.  The end result is delicious – flaky crusts, luscious pecan filling, and a beautiful light layer of sugar on the top. 

Wait until Autumn for these, but get other great mini pies now!

For my money these are winners.  Serving size is one pie.  That is obviously not as big of a serving as most people would normally plop on their plate, but it is just enough sweet deliciousness to satisfy your appetite after dinner.  You can add a tiny dollop of ice cream or some whipped cream – ahhhh. 

These baby sized pies would be fun to serve to guests, too. 

The good news:  they are delicious

The bad news:  they are a seasonal item and you need to wait until next Fall to get YOURS (sorry!)

The other bit of good news:  Trader Joe’s has tiny pies of OTHER FLAVORS all year long, and those are tasty, too!  So even though you cannot get these pecan gems, you can get other flavors (more reviews of other tiny pies coming).

Price - $4.49 (which works out to only 75 cents per pie!)

Rating – 4.25