It’s September which means it’s now officially pumpkin spice season… according to Starbucks, at least. Every September 1st, the coffee chain revives its beloved Pumpkin Spice Latte for the public to enjoy during the fall. This annual unveiling of the PSL seems to kickstart the abundance of pumpkin-flavored treats, such as pumpkin spice cookies, pumpkin spice ice cream, pumpkin spice bagels… anything you could possibly dream of becomes pumpkin-ified. With these endless possibilities, it’s easy for companies to get wrapped up in the hype of pumpkin spice and the obsession is often taken way too far.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I love pumpkin spice just as much as the rest of the world. It’s one of the very reasons why fall is my favorite season. However, lately I have been bombarded with an increasingly large amount of food products that have been given a touch of pumpkin spice where it seems completely gross and unnecessary.
For example: Pumpkin Spice Gum. I love gum, I love pumpkin spice… but combining the two sounds like a disaster. I’m not sure if I would want a super-artificial pumpkin spice flavor to linger in my mouth for as long as gum lasts.
Another odd pumpkin spice product: Pumpkin Spice Pringles. Again, I love the two of these things separately, but imagining a salty, crunchy chip that tastes like pumpkin makes my stomach turn.
And for the last pumpkin spice product that has taken this flavor obsession too far: Pumpkin Spice Hummus. Hummus is one of my favorite foods and is already delicious on its own, so I can’t help but think that adding a pinch of pumpkin spice would ruin it.
Please don’t let this article make you think that I am a pumpkin-spice-hater. I’m the farthest thing from it (I’m craving pumpkin spiced Oreos as I type this). I simply believe that some foods have taken pumpkin spice too far. For now, I’ll just stick to the pumpkin spice treats that I know and love. Maybe one day, these food companies will realize that there is nothing left to pumpkin-ify and stop trying to create these wild and unnecessary pumpkin spice creations.