Cereal #12 and #13: Corn Pops and Shredded Spoonfuls

Blogging on a Tuesday morning about cereal is ironic. Why you ask? Well, the most wonderful (and only) routine thing in my life happens on Tuesday mornings. Breakfast with 3 lovely ladies happens. Our usual hangout is Roxy's diner, but on occasion we visit Liz and Megan's (pardon me if I refer to them as Miz and Legan) darling apartment where we share tastier coffee, stray from our usual eggs and toast, and babble incessantly about design*sponge.

This particular morning my breakfast fiends ate cereal with me in solidarity! I brought Corn Pops and Joy brought Shredded Spoonfuls (an organic interpretation of Life). Liz and I mixed them together. And then there's Megan, who so graciously asked permission to make an eggy hash since she doesn't like cereal. If she wasn't so sweet about it, I may have actually thrown egg in her hair.

Cereal #11: Kashi Golean Crunch! Honey Almond Flax

This one cereously wins the Long Lasting and Most Satisfying Award. I've had this cereal box for over a week. And I only eat a small bowl at a time that satisfies me til lunch. Plus its impossible to shovel in your mouth. The milk needs to soften it first in order to only crunch so much at one time with my already rotting teeth. And its absolutely delish! Go high fiber and protein!

Cereal #10: Froot Loops

Fruit Loops? Or Froot Loops? If I would have bet on myself, I would have won. Too bad there aren't symbols for me to insert as o's that look and smell like Froot Loops.

I know I've overused the phrase "this one is my favorite". I mean really, the reason this blog exists is my adoration for everything cereal. But honestly. NO LIE. I stand by this one. I've loved Froot Loops ever since those necklaces we made in kindergarten. Which is why they never made it home. I devoured them on the bus. And I've also been a snob when it comes to wannabes. Malt O' Meal doesn't come close. And those Fruity Oh's or Fruit Rings just don't cut it either. But there was one brand that came close. My dearest friend Emily introduced them to me in Durham, NC. Shurfine maybe? That was a fine meal indeed, no?

Remember when there were only red, orange, and yellow loops? And then green made a smashing hit. And then the blue and purple. Has anyone tried the 1/3 Less Sugar version? I'm curious if they could even get away with it. The box should be less vibrantly colored. Like maybe black and white. The brighter the colors, the more sugar. On the brighter side... ha... I discovered Froot Loops actually has its own website.

I googled Froot Loops. The first website I clicked on had this opening message "Getting online is great... and so is getting outside!" As it leads you to the main site page where Toucan Sam leads you through Japan, it ends with a page that gives you the following options...

Its time for a break!

Turn off your computer. Jump out of you chair. Go outside and play!

Click here for fun ideas that get you moving

Return to the site.

What a surprisingly wonderful message! I dislike all the new websites targeting children and seducing their already short attention spans with nonsensical online games, but props to companies like Kellogg's who are attempting to address the sedentary nature of some of their consumers. Small steps, right?

Cereal #9: Rice and Wheat Flakes with Strawberries

This is the Wegmans version of Strawberry Fields by Kashi. I was told by 2 reliable sources that companies like Wegmans actually pay companies like Kashi to buy their product in bulk, put their name on it, and turn around and sell it to their customers at a less expense. Crazy! Have I been blind to this? Is this how every store brand is? Shurfine? Giant? Kroegers? King Soopers? I just figured they created similar products, but not using the EXACT same ones.

My small mind has a hard time wrapping itself around big business.

Cereal #7, #8 Magic Cinnamon Toast Crunch Stars

This past weekend my good friend Matt came to visit from the Philly direction. I told him to bring a box of his favorite cereal to share. And then my newly engaged H-burg friend Micalagh also brought a box of cereal. And together in one bowl they became Magic (Cinnamon Toast Crunch) Stars. Magic Stars=Lucky Charms. Flavorblast of sugar!

Win.

Thanks for sharing, friends!

Cereal #6: Baked Oatmeal

Oatmeal is a kind of cereal. I didn't get it from the cereal isle and so therefore it isn't truly part of the challenge, but whatev. I made baked oatmeal from the coveted Hershey Pantry cookbook, and it was heavenly. If you'd like the recipe, it'll cost you.

Cereal #5: Honey Smacks

I've said before that we didn't eat a lot of sugary cereal growing up. My sister and I knew better than to beg for it, too. Well. Every now and then, I would find Sugar Smacks in the cupboard. And now after moving out of the house, I've noticed it once in a great while in the cupboard when I visit. Hm. Conclusion? Its my mom's favorite cereal. The part I find troubling is that mom doesn't like milk. That means she eats it dry. But Smacks without milk?? Is like... like a bath without water, or chocolate without peanut butter.

I tried eating a huge bowl of it for breakfast this morning. Tay-sty! But I overestimated the milk. And since the bowl was already oversized, I just couldn't eat anymore. I saved the sugary milk and its waiting in the fridge for another bowl... or perhaps a cup of tea or coffee. Why waste perfectly sweetened milk? I could eat one small bowl of shredded wheat to fill me up until lunch. But Honey Smacks? Nope. I need to eat 2 bowls at a time and still need a snack before lunch. What does that say about the necessary nutrients for a balanced breakfast? Hmpf. Oh well, satis-Smack-tion!!

Wikepedia says....

In a 2008 comparison of the nutritional value of 27 cereals, U.S. magazine Consumer Reports found that both Honey Smacks and Post Cereals' Golden Crisp were the two brands with the highest sugar content - more than 50 percent (by weight) -, commenting "There is at least as much sugar in a serving of Kellogg's Honey Smacks [...] as there is in a glazed doughnut from Dunkin’ Donuts". (The cereals are both sweetened puffed wheat.) Consumer Reports recommended parents to choose cereal brands with better nutrition ratings for their children.^[

Introduced in 1953, the cereal has undergone several name changes. It started out as Sugar Smacks. In the 1980s, it was renamed Honey Smacks. In the early 1990s, perhaps because the product mascot, Dig'em Frog, had customarily been portrayed as calling the cereal "Smacks", the word "Honey" was dropped from the name and the product was then simply called Smacks. In 2004, the cereal was given back the name Honey Smacks, which is now its current name. It is known in Mexico as SMAK.

Several slogans have been used in the advertising of Honey Smacks, including "They're Honey Smackin' good!" from 1984 to 1987, "I Dig'em" from 1991 to 1994, and "Satis-Smack-tion!" from 1995 to 1997.