Fall has hit New York City.
Store fronts are adorned with pumpkins and fake fall foliage. Fashionable socialites are sporting their oversized leather blazers and lugged sole boots. Less fashionable semi-socialites are constantly amidst the “jacket-on, jacket-off” dance as the crisp air battles the unusually warm sun. Pro Tip: “What’s going on with this weather!!!” is a safe conversation topic that no one will be offended by.
A new season also means new menu items. While apple, cinnamon, chai, and spiked cider grace the pages, pumpkin is the golden child. You can consume it via lattes, doughnuts, cold brews, scones, muffins, cakes, pie, croissants, pie. Name a dessert, and you can probably fined the pumpkin-ized version somewhere in the Big Apple.
Lucky for me, I adore pumpkin.
Here are 5 pumpkin desserts in NYC that I tried, and I’m ranking them from least favorite to “OH MY GOSH YOU NEED TO TRY THIS BEFORE YOU DIE”.
5. Pumpkin Spice Danish from Petit Choux
This treat is a described as a “danish shaped croissant with a layer of pumpkin cake topped with pumpkin cream.” It certainly looked tasty, but alas, the pastry was dry. I enjoyed the pumpkin topping, and there was a pumpkin strudel of sorts in the middle that helped save the day. But for $5.99, I’d say find another treat instead.
Rating:
Flavor: 4/10
Value: 4/10
Overall Score: 3/10
4. Pumpkin Spice Pudding from Magnolia Bakery
Magnolia Bakery is the champion of banana pudding. (Although their carrot cake is quite impressive too.) But how does their seasonal special, Pumpkin Spice Pudding With Cookie Butter, stack up?
The texture is delightfully thick- so thick that you can’t get a spoonful without holding the tub down with your other hand. (A challenge if you happen to be attempted to capture the content alone…) The taste is less exciting. While there are hints of warm spices, the main flavor is “super sweet.” My taste buds couldn’t find the cookie butter, and after a couple bites I was over it. A shame, given the fact a tiny tub is over $6. Out of all the pumpkin desserts in NYC, this was gets the most hype. Unfortunately, it doesn’t meet expectations.
Rating:
Flavor: 4.5/10
Value: 2.5/10
Overall Score: 4/10
3. Pumpkin Sugar n’ Spice Cookie From Funny Face Bakery
Funny Face Bakery is one of the mega cookie elites of New York City. They whip up fist sized mounds of butter and sugar along with expertly decorated sugar cookies to resemble the likes of Bernie Sanders and your beloved pet dog. They invited me on over to try out their new seasonal cookies. A fun perk of having a bunch of followers on Instagram is that I get invited to eat for free sometimes!
The Pumpkin Sugar n’ Spice cookie tasted exactly like pumpkin pie… but a cookie! There were decent levels of spice. But I think it needed a crunch- spiced pecans would have done the trick.
Pro Tip: Their other special, Mallow Crunch, is DELICIOUS! Like a rice crispy treat…. but a cookie!!
Rating:
Flavor: 6.5/10
Value: 5/10
Overall Score: 6/10
2. Pumpkin Spice Oatly Froyo from 16 Handles
My obsession with self serve froyo began in college. I frequented the local self serve froyo establishment, Josie’s, at least twice a week. You see, I’m that friend who always says, “Can I just have one bite?!” Self serve froyo allows me to get “just one bite” of all the flavors and toppings my heart desires. My qualm is that my “small, cheap treat” turns into a $10 mountain of frozen confectionary adorned with all types of sugary ornaments.
So when 16 Handles reached out to me about trying the new seasonal pumpkin spicy Oatly froyo in exchange for content, I pounced!
The pumpkin spice froyo is delightfully creamy with nice warm spices and a subtle pumpkin flavor that is distinguishable, but not overbearing. I’d have no idea it’s vegan if you didn’t tell me…. huge fan. Definitely recommend!
Rating:
Flavor: 8/10
Value: 5/10. PRO TIP: go easy on the heavy toppings….
Overall Score: 8/10
1. Pumpkin Biscuit Bread Pudding from Jacob’s Pickles
Out of all the pumpkin desserts in NYC, the pumpkin biscuit bread pudding from Jacob’s Pickles is by far superior. It’s one of those desserts that takes your breath away and leaves you speechless. The flavor is like the best pumpkin pie you’ve ever had- loads of warm spies, not too sweat, subtle pumpkin flavor. The texture is soft and gooey with a nearly-melt-in-your-mouth-but-still-some-chew quality. 3 huge scoops of cinnamon ice cream tie it all together.
Pure bliss. You owe it yourself to try this.
Rating:
Flavor: 9.5/10
Value: 7/10, Around $18, but can easily feed 4… probably even 6.
Overall Score: 9/10
