The Marie Callender's Frozen Fall Pie We'd Never Buy Again

In our ranking of 11 Marie Callender's frozen pies, we came to a stunning conclusion. One dessert, a favorite flavor during fall, was a severe flop — and considering it's such an iconic American dish, we were honestly pretty shocked. It turns out our friend Marie can't bake a proper pumpkin pie, which is as surprising to us as it is to you.

A lot of it had to do with its texture. Our writer noticed that Marie Callender's pumpkin filling is pretty much just an unappealing dense mash of squash, so starchy that it's hard to swallow. "Another egregious error that further confuses the pie's identity is the lack of spices," our taste tester observed. The ingredients list does list "spice," but it does not say specifically what those flavorings are. The tester couldn't detect much more than sugar and squash — the comforting aromas of cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg that associate pumpkin spice with fall were pretty much absent. In the end, they didn't want to finish the slice of pie, which should be enough to clearly show you where they stood.

So Marie Callendar's pumpkin pie was the opposite of good — can't win them all (though we are sorely disappointed, Marie). So if you're looking for a store-bought alternative, we have one recommendation: Go to Costco. Not only is Costco's pumpkin pie cheaper (it's under $6), it's also absolutely massive, and, unlike Marie Callender's, it packs that punch of spice that the classic freezer brand is sorely lacking.

Speaking of freezers, if you have a small household, those monster pies are probably too big for you, which is a common concern with Costco goods. It will please you to know that Costco's pumpkin pies freeze well, which means you can pick one up early, freeze it, and thaw and eat it later at your leisure without sacrificing quality.

Not all is lost with Marie Callender's, however. Even though we couldn't bring ourselves to enjoy the brand's pumpkin pie, a lot fared better. While the fruit ones were only middling to average, Callender's makes some killer chocolate cream pies. Skip the pumpkin altogether and indulge a different part of your sweet tooth when it comes to Marie's.