Review of Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Muffin/Bread Mix
I love Trader Joe’s. If you’ve read many of my posts, you probably know that I always say that you can find the weird ingredient at Trader Joe’s. One of my first times there, I bought a mix for corn bread. I love corn bread, but it’s always too dry. This corn bread was amazing. It was not too dry and had little bits of corn in it. Delicious. This isn’t the only bread mix they have though.
A while back, I saw they had a Pumpkin Bread & Muffin mix and I decided to try it. The corn bread was so delicious, the pumpkin muffin mix must be delicious too, right? Here, I’ll review the mix for you so you can decide if you want to try some too. I made the muffins, so I’m not sure how this would change for the bread.
Review:
Taste: The taste was excellent. As soon as I opened the mix, the smell was amazing. It smelled like all the spices in pumpkin pie and tasted like it too. Absolutely delicious. 5/5 for sure.
Texture: The problem was the texture. They took longer to bake than the box said they would (I baked for 23 minutes and the box said 18-20 minutes). When I took them out, the first one I had stuck in my teeth a bit like it was chewy. This improved as they cooled, but what kind of baked good isn’t divine right out of the oven? 3/5 for this.
Appearance: As you can see, my muffins were not very muffin shaped. I have an oven thermometer so I know that wasn’t the problem. They look funky, but not the worst I’ve seen. 4/5
Ease: This muffins were very easy and I imagine the bread would be as well. I understood the directions well and they were simple to follow. 5/5
Overall, I’d give these 4/5. They were definitely easier than making them by hand, but they weren’t the perfection I was looking for.
Posted on December 31, 2011, in Recipe. Bookmark the permalink. 4 Comments.
Holly's Helpings 
If I may, is it possible that you over-mixed the batter? The muffin tops are peaked, which is usually caused by over-mixing. It may also account for the chewy texture since the more the batter is mixed, the more gluten develops and the chewier the final product will be.
That is possible. I did try to leave the mix clumpy like a normal muffin batter, but two things happened. First, the instructions said to mix until smooth, which confused me since muffin batter is not smooth. Second, the mix blended into the wet ingredients very quickly. I mixed until wet, but by that point it was not as clumpy as I usually like my muffin batter to be. Perhaps this mix is better for a bread? Thanks for your input!
These muffins look delightful. Yummy.
Happy New Year!!
Thanks! Happy New Year to you too!