Know what won’t cost you more than a few dollars at the grocery store this week? A standard, round, orange (read: boring) pumpkin. We say, why not spend a little extra dough and make it a Halloween to really remember?
Across the Lower Mainland, Urban Fare markets are offering Frankenstein pumpkins – organically grown in California using special moulds shaped like the classic horror film character’s gruesome, misshapen head – for just shy of $80 a gourd. According to farmer Tony Dighera, it takes a pair of $100,000 tooling machines to make the monstrous moulds – an investment he expects to earn back within the year.
If you’re less into carving and more into craving, Vancouver chocolatier Thomas Haas is offering three very special, very seasonal pumpkin and jack-o’-lantern creations for between $24 and $45 apiece (don’t fret, they’re truffle filled). Over at the Pie Shoppe on Gore, a whole pumpkin pie made with roasted Cinderella pumpkins (a unique French heirloom with a fairytale flavour) will cost you a mere $28.
You’ll need something to wash all of those goodies down – how about a pumpkin-inspired ale courtesy of a B.C.-based brewery? From Phillips Beer in Victoria, Crookeder Tooth is a slightly sweet, gently spiced brew that pairs fresh pumpkin with soft, velvety vanilla. Or, try Burnaby’s Steamworks Brewing Company’s Pumpkin Ale, which combines traditional pie spices like cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves with at least 100 pounds of local pumpkin mash per batch.
