Trader Joe’s releases annual exclusive fall products

In the corner of Trader Joes off University Drive sits a ton of pumpkins to choose from. Pumpkin picking has been a fall tradition in many local stores for several years.

Madison Friedman, Writer

With Halloween just around the corner, pumpkin spice and other fall flavors are back in swing. Several places, like Walmart, Whole Foods, Target and Publix have released fall exclusive items ranging from flavored drinks to scented soaps.

Trader Joe’s has recently released a variety of fall items including surprising food you would not necessarily expect to have a seasonal flavor. Most stores usually stick to the basic fall foods, like pumpkin bread, apple cider donuts, pumpkin flavor cookies and pumpkin spice coffee creamer. However, Trader Joe’s surprised its customers with harvest salsa, pumpkin tortilla chips, petite pumpkin spice cookies, pumpkin ice cream, pumpkin pasta sauce, pumpkin spice hummus, apple caramel yogurt and pumpkin butter.

The first unique fall item from Trader Joe’s that I tried was the harvest salsa. I was not sure what to expect because I have never heard of a seasonal flavor salsa. To my surprise, I really enjoyed its taste. Even though there was not a super apparent pumpkin taste, this flavor was addicting with its subtle spice. The salsa is made with red peppers, jalapenos, lime juice, pumpkin and butternut squash. I will definitely be purchasing this item again.

The second fall item I tried was the pumpkin tortilla chips. I ate the chips with the harvest salsa, which created the perfect combination. The chips alone without the salsa were okay, nothing amazing, as they tasted like regular tortilla chips with a hint of cinnamon. Something I did like about them was how extra crunchy they were but, once again, they did not really portray a pumpkin flavor as advertised. These chips are diverted more towards people who want something from the fall collection but do not enjoy strong pumpkin flavors in their food.

Petite pumpkin spice cookies was the third item I tasted from Trader Joe’s. These were delicious and definitely a hit. I could not stop eating them. These little cookies were covered in yogurt that covered a pumpkin-flavored cookie sprinkled with other fall spices. The yogurt coating around it was perfect and not overpowering, as it had the perfect spread across the cookie. These cookies may have been one of my favorite fall treats and I would definitely recommend them to any pumpkin fan.

Next, I tried the pumpkin ice cream. This ice cream had a strong taste of pumpkin and lots of other fall spice flavors, which is not your typical ice cream flavor. It also had a smooth consistency. This was not my favorite fall dessert just because I enjoyed other things more, like the pumpkin cookies, but it is something I would recommend to others looking for something with a more strong taste of pumpkin.

The last item I decided to try was different from the other items, as it was not food: pumpkin body butter. This body butter is very thick and seems like it belongs at an expensive beauty store. After spreading the cream on my hands, they felt softer than ever. It had an addictive, subtle scent of pumpkin; I could not keep my hands away from my nose. My only warning would be to those faint of smell. I would only recommend this if you like pumpkin scents as the smell is very noticeable.

Out of the long list of items from Trader Joe’s fall collection, I am sure there is something for everyone to enjoy. There is a wide range of basic pumpkin spice items along with very unusual beauty products. You may even surprise yourself, like I did, with the atypical and delicious harvest salsa. Make sure you go to your local Trader Joe’s because you will not want to miss out on the abundance of fall flavors.