Pumpkin pie is one of the most reliable staples of the holiday season, but not all store-bought versions live up to their festive promise. With shelves packed with options and prices rising across most grocery chains, many shoppers want to know which pies are actually worth bringing to Thanksgiving dinner.
Known for its Plus shoppers' card discounts, it's a great place to find deals and delicious food. After the tasting of Trader Joe's pumpkin pie, Target Pumpkin Pie, and Aldi pumpkin pie, it was time to put Kroger to the test.
Get all the details from serving size to taste to decide whether this passes the test for a classic comfort dessert or is a hard pass.
Site note: Depending on where you live, the store may be called Kroger or Gerbes. They carry the same products, including this pumpkin pie, just under different labels. In the tested area, the store is Gerbes, but the pie itself is made by Kroger.
Where to purchase
This grocery store knows what the customers want during the holiday season. Fast shopping, easy access to desserts, and the ability to pivot and check out right away. Right by the entrance are all the holiday pies. There was a big stack of pumpkin pies, easy to grab and go.
They did have two sizes to choose from: a 10-inch and an 8-inch. As long as you have a Plus shopper's card (free to sign up), you can purchase the 8-inch pie for $4.99 and the 10-inch pie for $6.99. These prices may vary as they include the discount using the Plus shopper's card. Without the card, the 8-inch is $6.49 and the 10-inch is $10.99. We purchased the 8-inch pie.
The sell-by date was listed as 11/13, giving us a three-day window from the time we bought the pie to when we could eat it. We looked at the other pies' sell-by dates, and they were the same, so it's a safe assumption that they'll get more pies in to enjoy them closer to Thanksgiving.
There is no information listed on the pie that these are seasonal. They can order ahead for pickup or pick up in-store.
Ingredient list
pumpkin, water, enriched flour (wheat flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), sugar, vegetable shortening (interesterified soybean oil, soybean oil, hydrogenated cottonseed oil), eggs, corn syrup, nonfat milk, soybean oil, modified tapioca starch, modified cornstarch, salt, locust bean gum, carrageenan, xanthan gum, guar gum, maltodextrin, cinnamon, sodium tripolyphosphate, potassium chloride, glucono delta lactone, molasses, dextrose, citric acid, l-cysteine, sorbic acid and calcium propionate (preservatives), annatto (color), beta-carotene (color), medium chain triglycerides, acacia gum.
On the 8-inch pie, there is a note under the ingredient list stating that it "contains a bioengineered food ingredient."
The list of ingredients was long, with pumpkin first and water second. Instead of butter, there was vegetable shortening, soybean oil, and lots of preservatives.
The container does say to refrigerate leftovers.
Appearance
The container is made of clear plastic. It does say that it is recyclable. You can see the entire top of the pie and know that it's sitting in an aluminum foil pan.
There is a clear pull tab that makes the top lid easy to remove. There is space to put your fingers and pull out the pay, making the process simple. It's also effortless to put the pie back into the transparent container.
The plastic container is very sturdy. There were a few things stacked on top of it in the grocery bag, and it did just fine.
The pie itself had a nice coloring, and the crust had a fun zig-zag design. The crust was also golden brown, giving a freshly baked look.
Weighing in at 1 lb 5 ounces, this is an average pie size. The 8-inch diameter makes it easy to cut into six slices for serving.
Cutting and slicing
Cutting the pie was simple. The bottom crust stuck a bit and was tricky to get out, since the aluminum pan was flimsy and hard to fit the pie server into.
The slices have a good weight to them and didn't crack. The crust also didn't crumble during cutting. The filling kept its shape after being placed on the plate. Given the size of the pie, six serving sizes are accurate.
A sniff test is a must. The pie smelled of cinnamon and spices, and the crust didn't have a scent.
Taste
The first impression was that it had a heavy cinnamon flavor. We couldn't really taste anything else or any other flavors. We thought that it might mellow out a bit, but it remained even as an aftertaste once we'd finished our bite.
After a few more bites, the spice flavor was just as strong. The crust under the pie filling and on the edge of the pie had no taste and didn't add anything to the pie. We felt like the pie had one flavor and one flavor only: heavy spices and cinnamon. Nothing else came through, no matter how many bites we tried.
The pie was sweet, but not overly so. The strong spices left a lingering taste that wouldn't mellow. Whipped cream would be a welcome addition, adding sweetness and helping balance the flavors.
Texture
The texture of this pie was interesting. It was smooth and not grainy, but it also had a gelatin-type texture. It's hard to pinpoint it exactly, but it was thick in texture, without being heavy.
The crust was extremely soft and thick and underbaked. One thing we overlooked is that on the back of the container, there is fine print about baking the crust longer for a crispier crust. This wasn't noticed before we ate it, but it seems like a good step to improve the crust's texture. We suggest not skipping this step for a more positive outcome.
The directions state that you can warm the crust for a crispier crust by preheating the oven to 350 degrees, removing the pie from the packaging, and placing it on a baking sheet. Warm for 15 minutes and then let it cool for 5 minutes.
The pie, straight from the container, is sturdy enough to pick up and eat by hand or enjoy with a fork.
Would you buy it again
We thought long and hard about whether we would repurchase this pie. We considered warming the crust in the oven to improve its texture if we were to purchase it again, but we couldn't shake the feeling that we'd have to slather it with whipped cream to balance out the heavy spice. Based on those factors, it's not worth buying again.
At under $5, this is a budget-friendly pie, but be sure to factor in the extra cost of whipped cream when serving. If you're a fan of heavy cinnamon flavors, this might be right up your alley.
The takeaway
Kroger and Gerbes offer a pie that may not be a show-stopper in terms of looks, but it's an option to purchase without breaking the bank. It doesn't taste like a homemade pie, but it doesn't taste like chemicals, either. Cinnamon fans may feel differently and ecstatic about the heavy spice flavoring, but we're moving on to see if we can find other baked goods at Kroger's to try.
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