Long-Overdue Conclusions!

A friend recently asked me if I had given up on my cereal quest and I quickly defended that I had in fact drawn my conclusions and completed my task. After listening to me explain my various opinions, she politely suggested that I actually take the time to post my conclusions! What a concept!?!

So, here's a stab at wrapping this up.

My first conclusion was that I learned nothing. I left this quest realizing that I had already determined which cereals were best and my family was already eating them.

The Winner in the Flaky and Seemingly Nutritious Category
All four of us prefer Honey Bunches of Oats - Almond as our "flaky favorite." This is a sort of category if you will which includes everything from Special K to Frosted Flakes to Total. We determined we like a little flavor with our flakes and a preferably a little crunch - no fruit or fruit-flavors necessary.

The Winner in the Kid's Cereal Department
Lucky Charms won by a landslide. The healthy part, which I regularly refer to as the "Lucky" is tasty rather than bland and the charms are the perfect flavor and consistency. Occasionally you even get a box with lots and lots of charms and the mystery of not knowing how many charms you'll get is part of the fun! Lucky Charms also doubles for a great late night snack when there's no ice cream in the house or you don't want the guilt of eating after 10pm.

An Honorable Mention in the Kid's Cereal Category : BooBerry
This was one area where I learned that my childhood memories of BooBerry were right, it's VERY, VERY yummy. But, like many things, too much of a good thing ruins it, so this is still a special occasion cereal.

Winner in the Chocolate for Breakfast Category: Cocoa Pebbles
This has always been a favorite of mine, but I hadn't really done the consumer research or taste comparison until this quest. Yep, Cocoa Pebbles rules. It's better than all of the other chocolate breakfast foods because it remains yummy even as it becomes soggy and it gives Nestle Quick a run for its money in making the perfect chocolate milk.

Winner of the Granola is Bad for You Category
Banana Nut Granola Cereal with Bananas and Almonds. This horribly fattening gem is found at Walmart and is really delicious until you read the side of the box. You could eat a whole box of some other kind of cereal and not match the fat content in this box, but it's so tasty!

No Winner in the Peanut Butter for Breakfast Category
Despite my best effort I could not with a clear conscience recommend any of the peanut butter flavored cereals. Even though Reese's and Captain Crunch Peanut Butter both come highly recommended by close friends and loved ones, I'm still seeing peanut butter as mostly a lunch food.

So, these are my conclusions. I hope that you all enjoyed this little experiment with me and that somewhere in the midst of the monotony of the daily grind you, too, can find a little something fun to sweeten your life!

Undercover Krispies

OK, so I'm probably not the only one who thinks CRASH DIET between the months of December and January?! Winter clothes, winter weight, extra yummies around the holidays. So, as I'm wandering through the cereal aisle trying to pick my next victim, I think you know, in the name of science I should try the Special K diet.

Anybody ever tried it?? Tell me, how is it not the exact same thing as Rice Krispies revisited in a flake??? Seriously! I poured myself a bowl and took a bite and honestly thought to myself "close your eyes and BAM" -- it's Rice Krispies minus the sugar I used to throw on them! So, I walk over to the box and wadda ya know "lightly toasted rice cereal." So, how is this not the same thing as Rice Krispies and their "toasted rice cereal." I can see it now -- "diet" bake sales featuring Special K Treats!

So, now that I've tried Special K -- I'm probably heading back to the Elves -- they are way more fun and I'm guessing I could lose six pounds on the Rice Krispies diet just as easily!

Though I'd have to lay off the sugar...

Silly Rabbit Trix are for Kids!

OK, so I'm dating myself with the title there. If you remember it you are probably over 30. Hang in there, though, the old cereal was pretty good. Unfortunately, I don't have any memory of my mother indulging in such a thing in my childhood, so I'm not sure how much these little bits have changed, but they were both tasty and interesting when I tried them this Fall.

Unlike most kids cereal, these were not uniform in shape or color. The ceral was full of little multi-colored flowers and circles and other shapes, each very distinctly formed. The flower, for instance, had a separate color for the center and the petals. I have only seen something similar on marshmallows, but this was much more distinct. So, aesthetically speaking, it was very colorful and pretty, even.

As for taste -- very sweet with a definite strawberry flavor, but I didn't pop out in a rash, so I'm thinking it was more sweetener than fruit. Whatever it was the milk turned pink and tasted like Strawberry Flavored Milk -- do they still sell such a think? Kind of like chocolate milk but light pink?

Tasty, not terribly filling, worth the weekly adventure.

Sorry for my lack of posting this Fall. I have another writing gig, one that actually pays, and between that, the house cleaning and the kids -- not much time left. But, with the holidays approaching I'm thinking of trying Special K as my next cereal and might even take the Special K Challenge! Wait and see!

All puffed up and nothing to taste

So, back in the 80s, somewhere in the later years of my childhood there was some kind of puffed square cereal with very little taste. One of those things that ends up in pantry and you just have to add sugar to it to get it down. Well, evidently those things have been reinvented as something called Puffins. They taste and feel (in my mouth) exactly like these things I can't recall the name of. They are small, brown, generally tasteless squares with air in the middle. Like little miniature pillows with nothin' on the inside. They weren't bad. They weren't good. They were slightly sweeter than cardboard, but not too much tastier.

So, does this ring a bell for anyone? What were those things called and do they still sell them??

If not, try Puffins!

Kashi -ew!

OK - so, remember a few months ago when a friend passed me a few Ziploc bags of cereal. Well, this morning I got curious enough to actually try one. Kashi GoLEAN Crunch. I know that some of my readers think it's the best thing since sliced bread -- I guess if you think sliced bread is a big deal, you might actually like this!

I, however, thought it tasted almost as yummy as a day-old rice cake and twice as good as stale Sugar Smacks! Ugh. I actually ate it wondering if it would have some lasting and redeeming gastrointestinal quality -- but even that amounted to nothing. I can say I wasn't hungry an hour after eating it, but that's not saying much either.

So, if you like rice cakes and the chewing qualities of cardboard -- go for it. As for me -- I'm happier with Vitamin-enriched kids cereals and portion control!

Still the best!

In an effort to induce a bit of sunshiny happiness into the battle that it is each morning to get "Whiney" off to school, I decided to go back to an old favorite.

Cocoa Pebbles -- Mommy's Cereal!

Ah, a bit of chocolately goodness each morning -- don't talk to me about the empty calories, the lack of fiber, the implanted requisite 8 Vitamins & Minerals -- my mouth was happy! As "Whiney" has taken a turn for the Brattier -- but we can't call her that -- it's been a rough month. Meanwhile, my tasty chocolate cereal has not let me down. The little "pebbles" stay crunchy away from the milk on the top layer while the lower ones soak up the milk and add more flavor to each bite. I was a little concerned that after all of these cereals I would go back to a trusted favorite and not love it as much. Not the case here.

So, in the spirit of back-to-school time -- Cocoa Pebbles rule!

"I'm Not Dead Yet"

Just exhausted from trying to get one wriggly six-year old ready for first grade! Forget trying to eat different cereals, I've been lucky if I'm even getting breakfast these last couple of weeks!! The last full week of July we had doctor's or dentist appointments EVERY DAY! Then we were on vacation for a week ~ we ate breakfast, though I don't really remember it much! And then we hit the ground running in preparation for school starting on the 14th. The last two mornings, everyone has eaten but me!

So, I will say this, our last day on vacation I do recall I ate Honey Bunches of Oats in the brownish box. They were very good. All the crunchiness, nothing wasting my time like random bits of fruit, just good flavor - from what I recall as we ran out the door to catch the plane!

So, next up is something I grabbed off the center aisle at the Super Walmart -- evidently the Cheerios people felt they needed to compete in the Fruit Loop market and they've developed a Fruity Cheerios. Fortunately, if they turn out nasty I'm sure my one-year-old will love them.

Stay tuned...