It’s October and pumpkin spice madness is officially in full swing. As a person who prefers pumpkin, I’m always on the lookout for new and exciting recipes and products to try. At a recent visit to Trader Joe’s, I bought a box of their Pumpkin Joe-Joe’s. Soon after, I saw Oreo had released a Pumpkin Spice version of their popular sandwich cookie. Light bulb! I decided what the world really needs right now is a full on pumpkin sandwich cookie smackdown. So…
Let’s get ready to crumble!!!
In one corner we have Pumpkin Joe-Joe’s weighing in at 10.5 oz. with 20 cookies. This box will set you back $2.99. In the other corner we have Pumpkin Spice Oreo cookies tipping the scales at 10.7 oz. but spread out over 24 cookies. Oreo edges out Joe-Joe’s by a penny at $2.98.
It’s hard to miss just how different these two competitors look. True, they are both round and have the same diameter, but that’s where the similarities end. The Joe-Joe’s are much thicker, with a lighter colored, creamier filling. The Oreos are slimmer with a much darker filling.
When it comes to flavor and texture, these two cookies continue to be completely different. The Joe-Joe’s filling is much creamier and there’s a lot more of it. The crunch of the cookie and the creaminess of the filling balance each other out quite nicely. In the flavor department (which after all, is the crux of the matter), the Joe-Joe’s deliver the spice component in spades. If you look closely, you can even see the specks of spice in the wafer part of the cookie. The sweetness of the cream is the perfect complement to the spice. Overall, a very tasty, enjoyable cookie.
When first biting into the Oreo, on the other hand, the wafer part of the cookie almost overwhelms the filling. The wafer appears to be the standard cookie used for all “golden” Oreo varieties and has no particular pumpkin spice flavor. However, upon chewing, the flavor of the filling comes through and is a pleasant, “pumpkin spice.” The quotation marks are there because upon examination of the ingredients list, pumpkin is conspicuously absent. “Natural and artificial flavors” are present, for whatever that’s worth.
Pumpkin Joe-Joe’s, on the other hand, do boast pumpkin puree in the ingredients list, definitely giving the cookie an edge over the Oreo.
Interestingly, while both the cookies have flavor evocative of the season, neither of them tastes much like actual pumpkin. So which cookie has what it takes to win this pumpkin spice smackdown?
Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Joe-Joe’s!
The distinctive flavor and excellent texture of the cookie won me over – not to mention the use of pumpkin in the recipe!
Have you tried either of these cookies? Is there some other brand of pumpkin spice sandwich cookie out there that’s even better? Are there other pumpkin smackdowns you’d like to see? I’d love to hear from you so please leave a comment below!
Holly Layman: Writer and Editor 