Pumpkins add spice to Fall menus

Candy corn, popcorn balls and candy apples are reminders that Halloween is near. However, many eateries have incorporated another Halloween favorite into their menus - pumpkin-flavored options.

Carol Morris has been eating Jarling's Custard Cup's Pumpkin Pie custard for years.

"It's just one of those tastes you have in the Fall, I guess," Morris said.

For more than ten years, Jarling's Custard Cup has offered the custom-blended treat, which includes vanilla custard, pumpkin filling and vanilla wafers, during the Halloween season.

Angie Horath, the store manager of Jarling's Custard Cup, 309 W. Kirby Ave. in Champaign, said customers began requesting Pumpkin Pie custard as early as August.

"It's a seasonal thing and something we look forward to," Horath said.

Horath described Pumpkin Pie custard as a traditional fall item at Jarling's, which will close for the season the Sunday before Thanksgiving. Her store began selling it on the first Sunday in September. In Horath's ten years working at the shop, she has witnessed Pumpkin Pie custard become a favorite among customers.

"It tastes exactly like pumpkin pie," Horath said.

Early in October, Champaign's International House of Pancakes (IHOP), 308 E. Green St., joined the pumpkin craze with its Pumpkin Pancakes. The pancakes are made with real pumpkin and topped with whipped cream.

"People seem to like it so (IHOP) keeps it up," said Kyle Stich, IHOP's assistant manager.

Stich said some customers even want Pumpkin Pancakes added to IHOP's regular menu to be sold year-round, but he is not sure if that will ever happen. For now, the Pumpkin Pancake promotion will end in November.

Dunkin' Donuts, 515 S. Neil St. in Champaign, offers pumpkin muffins during the fall season. Store manager Nil Patel said his store often runs out of the pumpkin muffins.

Although the pumpkin-flavored treats will only be available during the Halloween season, their popularity is growing. Danville's Custard Cup also introduced Pumpkin Pie custard for the first time this year.