Pumpkin shortage could mean empty shelves after Thanksgiving

Someone needs to break the bad news to Times Test Kitchen Manager (and pumpkin lover) Noelle Carter:

Mother Nature may have sneaked off with a sought-after slice of Thanksgiving.

Recent heavy rains in the Midwest are putting pumpkin pie in short supply this holiday season. On Tuesday, food giant Nestle, which controls about 85% of the pumpkin crop for canning, issued a rare apology and said that rain appeared to have destroyed what remained of a small harvest this year and that it expected to stop shipping the holiday staple by Thanksgiving. Read more here:

-- Rene Lynch

Photo caption: Nestle has forecast a shortage of canned pumpkin as recent heavy rains in the Midwest have damaged much of the crop, including in Morton, Ill. Credit: Adam Gerik / Nestle