Ah, the taste of fall!

[ermingarden]

Pumpkin spice...kefir?!


Photo (c) Lifeway

Well, I needed to get some kefir (I drink it for breakfast), saw "Pumpkin Spice" flavor, and thought – why not?

It's one of the absolute strangest things I've ever eaten or drunk, and I'm still struggling to decide, an hour later, if it tasted good or bad.

ETA: Photo is from the Lifeway website – though I'm flattered some of you guys think I'm that good a photographer!

Comments

[shirebound]

At least you celebrated the beginning of fall with courage!

[ermingarden]

That's one way of looking at it! ^v^

[dr_zook]

I understand your confusion!! Also, that heap of matchsticks gives food for thought, haha.

[ermingarden]

It's a very interesting advertisement – for a very interesting concept, lol!

[atamascolily]

Okay, I don't usually buy processed food, but I would totally try that--I love kefir and very rarely have it! I'm curious how much of the "pumpkin spice" was actual pumpkin spice and how much of it was "natural flavors,"--I run into this problem with storebought eggnog a lot, where the artificially flavored stuff just tastes incredibly off from how the homemade version tastes.

Love the framing with the sunflowers and the pumpkin--no question that it's fall!

[ermingarden]

Lifeway did put together a charming ad there!

To clarify, I'm not recommending it! I think adding the spices to plain kefir yourself would probably get a better result.

[anerea]

Hmm. I started thinking "Ooh, I should add some pumpkin spice to my kefir." (I get goat's milk as I'm allergic to dairy.) But then I carried on reading and now I'm not too sure. Maybe I'll try make a pumpkin spice smoothie type thing with kefir? I do like your photo setup, very evocative.

[ermingarden]

Oh, the photo is 100% not mine – it's an advertisement photo from the kefir company! I should clarify that.

I think adding the spices to plain kefir yourself might lead to a better result than whatever chemical pumpkin spice flavor is in this....

[anerea]

Haha! OK, that's funny, I was thinking you had gone all out for this post's photo!

So, pumpkin pie is not a thing here (and tinned pumpkin puree is unheard of) but we do have a variety of squashes — many of which are in season now too (they're clearly still on Northern Hemisphere time). But now I can't remember all the spices that go into pumpkin pie — I know cinnamon and nutmeg, and maybe ginger, but I'm sure there are others. Any tips?

I'm thinking for my smoothie some butternut pumpkin with kefir and almonds and a banana for sweetness and maybe some dates...

(I'm also thinking this will either be the next best thing or absolutely disgusting!)

[ermingarden]

Pumpkin spice is cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. (Or allspice in place of cloves, depending on your preference.)

Oooh, that sounds good!

[anerea]

Oh my delicious hat!! I think I have a new favourite smoothie!

I popped in about half a cup of raw butternut (because I'm lazy and wasn't going to cook it), a small banana, two dates, a heaped tablespoon of sesame seeds, a great big lug and a half of kefir, all the spices you suggested (with allspice instead of clove because it was the only one not ground and I was too lazy to grind a single bud) and a pinch of vanilla seeds as a special treat to celebrate the first smoothie since last summer. Oh, and the obligatory handful of baby spinach leaves because, after all, a smoothie's main function in life is to be a delicious vehicle for our greens. Oh, and then I added some blueberries afterwards although that was just because I had them and were the only frozen things to chill it a little, but it tasted delish without. I had also thought maybe a slice of pineapple, because they're in season here too, but after tasting the smoothie I ate the slice of pineapple on its own. I may try add it tomorrow instead of banana...

Anyway, I can highly recommend it! Thank you so much for the idea!

Oh, and I couldn't resist knocking off the kefir promo photo. (The toothpick and chopstick are not just to stand in for the hilarious pile of matchsticks, but actually were to loosen my vanilla which was stuck at the bottom of a very thin test-tube-like thingy.)

[ermingarden]

That photo is amazing, omg! I laughed so hard!

I love that we have confirmation that kefir + pumpkin spice can be good! That sounds delicious!

[anerea]

Tee hee! Glad it brought you a laugh.

I think, judging between our experiences, plain kefir with added real spice is the way to go. Let me know if you try it!

[sauronnaise]

I'll try to get a sample to see if mum likes it. Could be her Halloween gift (she's the kefir consumer of the house).

[ermingarden]

Report back if you do – I'd like to hear someone else's reaction!

[chestnut_pod]

A whole new meaning to "liquid courage!"

[ermingarden]

Cheers!

[elwendell]

I found it very funny, how much pumpkin spice was around in the USA shops when I visited. It's just not a thing here. However, I did like the smell as I walked around stores.

[ermingarden]

The dominance of pumpkin spice from September through November, and the complete absence of it the rest of the year, is such an interesting phenomenon! It's aggressively seasonal – you never see it outside of the fall months – when it really doesn't need to be: it's not like you can't get cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves year-round! It's a bit like eggnog that way.

The accompanying phenomenon, of course, is people who really HAVE to make clear to EVERYONE that they DON'T LIKE PUMPKIN SPICE, they are TOO SOPHISTICATED FOR IT. Which is annoying on its own, but then they often finish that up by saying And anyway, it doesn't even taste like pumpkin! And that completely misses the point. It's not called "spiced pumpkin," it's "pumpkin spice" – i.e., the spice mix that traditionally goes with pumpkin! It's like "barbecue sauce" – you don't see people complaining that barbecue sauce doesn't taste like grilled meat, because they understand it's the sauce for barbecue.

My personal opinion of pumpkin-spice-flavored things is that I'm not wildly excited about it, but I don't think there's anything wrong with loving it! It's like ordering a pumpkin spice latte at this point has become a statement of your opinion on "high" vs. "low" culture. It went from the coolest thing about ten years ago to – for some people – vaguely cringy.

[anerea]

That is so funny! I mean, if a thing tasted like the thing it's flavouring, it wouldn't be needed, would it? People are so odd sometimes, especially when they're looking for excuses to be snobby.

We just call that collection of spices chai spice here, give or take a pepper ground or two, and drink it in tea year round.

[atamascolily]

When I went to Grenada in the Caribbean (which is known as the "Spice Island"; it's one of the world's largest producers of nutmeg), I was intrigued to learn that nutmeg is used in just about everything year-round, but is considered a savory flavor rather than sweet. Likewise, mashed "pumpkin" (technically more like a round orange butternut that a stereotypical Halloween pumpkin) is a very common dish--always savory with onions and garlic, never served with the pumpkin spice combo or sugar.

Of course, seasons in the tropics don't match to the standard New England template, but it was such an interesting contrast from the barrage of seasonal stuff you always see in the US. That really hit home for me how much the pumpkin spice craze is the result of marketing and culture. I think we can safely blame Starbucks for the "seasonal" aspect--they make a lot of money by playing up the drink as a limited-time-only offer and introducing artificial scarcity--and also for a lot of the hype and resulting backlash against a flavor combo that'd been quietly existing in the background for centuries by that point.