Sara Lee's Worst Frozen Dessert Is Actually A Fall Holiday Classic

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It's not fall without pumpkins. Whether that's pumpkin spice drinks, pumpkin soup, or pumpkin pie; this is truly the season of everyone's favorite big, orange gourd. It has become a seasonal comfort staple, and it's hard to deny the popularity. According to Grandview Research, pumpkin pie was a $1.59 billion industry in the United States in 2024, and it has been deemed the most popular Thanksgiving pie by YouGov. As much as pumpkin pie is beloved, not all pies are created equal. Sara Lee's frozen pumpkin pie is hands down the worst of all the brand's frozen offerings.

When we ranked 10 Sara Lee frozen desserts, we were surprised by how poorly the pumpkin pie turned out. Despite using real pumpkin and all the traditional spices, something clearly went wrong in the formulation. The pumpkin taste is drowned out by overpowering cloves and nutmeg, a criticism echoed in other reviews. If you're looking for a well-balanced pumpkin pie, Sara Lee just doesn't deliver.

The most egregious issue with Sara Lee's pumpkin pie is the consistency. It's extremely mushy, a concern mentioned by many customers. The directions on the package make it clear that the company is well aware of this problem. They devote a lot of space to explaining that the center will not set as firm as the outside, that you need to wait for it to fully set upon cooling, and you may need to bake longer if it doesn't firm up right.

Other reviews have noticed the same shortcomings with Sara Lee's pumpkin pie that we did. In particular, the runny filling has been a recurring issue dating back years. One user on Amazon simply titled their review "Yuk" and complained that three pies were going into the garbage thanks to poor crust and runny filling. A review from Walmart compared it to soup. It's far from an isolated incident.

Pumpkin pie filling is naturally slightly runny before fully setting, but it should never resemble a liquid when done. Even some of the kindest reviews rank it as the worst of Sara Lee's offerings while citing the overpowering spice and loose filling as the big drawbacks. The only part we liked was the crust, and even that has been a let-down to some customers, so it really seems like a hit-and-miss experience.

Unfortunately, Sara Lee doesn't do well when compared to other brands. When we tested Sara Lee frozen pies against Marie Callender's, they fell short. If you're looking for something cheap, sweet, and you don't have other options available, then maybe you have the patience to try to bake one of these to an edible consistency. However, if other frozen pies or fresh pumpkin pies, such as those from Costco, are available, choose them first.