Living in a Cereal World

You know, it's not very often that I read a recipe and think, "I need to make this now. " For somebody's birthday, maybe, or to serve a crowd. Or even a few weeks from now. But when I saw this recipe for  Asian Spaghetti and Chicken Meatballs  in this month's Better Homes & Gardens, I thought, I really want to make this.  Fast-forward two weeks (hey, that's a pretty good turnaround for me) and I'm eating pasta out of a big cereal bowl. I don't really have bowls that I would consider appropriate "noodle bowls." Anyway, it's a pretty simple recipe. The trickiest part is making the meatballs. It would help if the recipe said approximately how many meatballs it would make. We went with twelve. I actually managed to eat two. And the peppers and cabbage didn't upset my stomach. That's the most important quality of a recipe for me. They were so flavorful I ate one-and-a-third on a club roll for dinner last night. I will definitely

To show you how far behind I am, this dinner was over a week ago. It was suggested to me to find a baked chicken recipe that called for bone-in chicken pieces, and I just happened to cut this one out of the Sunday coupons. You've probably seen it:  Herb Roasted Chicken and Vegetables . It shows up every now and again. I didn't buy the heavy duty foil, though; I just doubled the regular kind. If you like simple dinners (with a simple clean-up) this is the one for you. Everything cooked together for the same amount of time; the chicken was cooked through and the potatoes and carrots were fork-tender. The herbs had a nice flavor, too; I'd never had garlic salt before (or if so, I was too young to remember). ******** Now I think I can catch my breath. I'll have two new cereal reviews next week and a hot cereal in the pipeline. Oh, and a cake this weekend. Oh, wait, and tonight's dinner. Well, that's plenty.

I was worried Morning Energy would have me all over the place because what I really  needed yesterday was focus, not energy. It happened to be banana day so I just sprinkled a little over my Peanut Butter Cheerios for a taste. The first thing I noticed were the nice-sized clusters. I mean, really, they earned the term "cluster." Then I tried one and realized they were pretty much cinnamon Just Bunches transferred to a new cereal. Not that I'm complaining. The cereal itself had that funny puffed-grain aftertaste like the new  Fiber One Protein ; I have no idea what that is--the barley? The wheat germ? Then I bothered to read the back of the box, which said the combination of protein, whole grains, and fiber gives you energy. So no weird stuff. And I'd always wondered why eating various raisin brans make me feel like I'm about to explode. I felt the restless energy kick in roughly two hours later. Nothing crazy; I just needed to be active for a while. So I would r

A few years back Fleischmann's came out with Simply Homemade Bread Mix and I was so excited. No-knead bread mix? Yes, please. We had a bread maker ages ago but it was sold at a yard sale and it wasn't for many years later that my mom came to regret that. So anyway: bread. I tried the different grain options and four of the flavor suggestions (I especially liked the lemon blueberry), and while I liked it, no one else did all that much. So I stopped making it. Then, last month, I noticed the new Pretzel Creations. I wanted to make a treat for the holidays that wasn't a cake--how about cinnamon sugar pretzels? That went over really well, so I thought, maybe I should try the bread again.  While searching the  website  for the cinnamon-sugar measurements I found this recipe for  Apple Cinnamon Bread . I think the only word I can use to sum this up is mouthwatering . I'd never used cinnamon chips before; it's like eating pie in a bread slice. Oh, and I used the Multi-Gr

I didn't realize I was going to open this today; I ran out of granola and had to mix something  together. The first thing I noticed was the texture: there's a lot of puffy pieces mixed with what I would consider "regular" granola. It's like they were aiming for  Ancient Grains granola  but erred on the side of  Honey Smacks  (which, by the way, I didn't eat as a kid. We were strictly a Golden Crisp family). Anyway, the next step was to taste a cluster, which went from slightly medicinal all the way back over to sweet. I was concerned but it really didn't come across in the yogurt. Still, I don't think I'll be eating a whole bowl with milk. Also, I don't recall seeing too many almonds; they're probably all in the bottom of the box. Also, I have to send Fiber One Caramel Delight to the cereal graveyard. This makes me sad. It was the best! When you think "fiber" wouldn't you rather think, "oh, yay, not a dry flake cereal&q

Isn't that always the way? For a week I had nothing to write about; now I have a 3-4 entry backlog. Somebody  had a craving for  Italian Wedding Soup , so I obliged. I hadn't made it in two years. You can learn a lot about soup making in two years' time. For instance, my family likes brothy soups, so I should always add a little bit more broth and/or water than the recipe calls for. Second, make sure the meatballs are done. I mean done  done. Picky eaters with sensitive stomachs will put the slightest pink meatball back in the pot. We don't want another  kale incident . And since I only needed half of the ground pork, with the rest I made  homemade pork sausage . Except it was later at night and I wasn't totally focused and between my mother and myself we could not get the measurements right. So the sausage ended up a little spicy, so they say (I wouldn't know, I don't do breakfast meat). ******* In other news, what did I spy when searching for the last

See if you notice any trends here... Special K Chocolatey Almond-- let's see...we've got Vanilla Almond and Chocolatey Delight...I know! Let's put the two together! Honey Bunches of Oats Morning Energy Chocolatey Almond Crunch/Cinnamon Crunch-- I'm dying to know what gives it that "morning energy," something we could all probably use...as long as it's not some weird drug, I'm in. Multi-Grain Cheerios Dark Chocolate Crunch-- to appeal to those guilt-ridden just looking  at Chocolate Cheerios? Pass. Chocolate Toast Crunch-- you're on your own here. I could see crushing it and using it in recipes, though. Great Grains Digestive Blend Vanilla Graham-- I didn't even know this existed until my grandma gave my brother her half-eaten box (something in it was too hard for her to chew). I almost tried it before he left but I read the label first--there's probiotics in it. It's like the Activia of cereals. Which is fine if you need it, b

I don't know how I feel about a savory sweet potato pancake, but I had to put this  breakfast option  on my list of things to make during the holiday season. Luckily, I was able to squeeze it in Sunday morning before the weather forced my brother to leave early (freezing rain followed by single digits! Fun! *sarcasm*). He loves anything sweet potato, especially pie, so why not try pancakes? They're a little bit richer than my pumpkin pancakes  since they take buttermilk, but they're totally worth it. It's the spices--cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice--that give it that distinctive flavor. ****** In a brief cereal update: I think I have finally have a handle on all the new cereals. I only have the new Fiber One protein, which is actually a granola cereal, so I'll be trying that with yogurt. Maybe I'll make a comprehensive list next entry.

...you can add butternut squash to the list. I know, I'm so far behind. I think I've had this recipe for  Squash Crumble  for at least a year; I just had to wait for the right moment to try it. A dish combining butternut squash and apples was just the ticket. I was able to cut the recipe in half and still have leftovers. And how often do you find a recipe that can be used as a side dish or a dessert? As for the taste, it's definitely in the pumpkin family. I would totally recommend this as a great way to ease into a new flavor. I look forward to using this squash again. ***** In cereal news, guess what I saw today? Special K Chocolatey Almond. Arrgh. Okay maybe I'd be more receptive if I wasn't eating Chocolatey Delight right now.