Living in a Cereal World

For the last couple of years I've bought a box of Do-Si-Dos (Peanut Butter Patties) as my post-Lent reward but, you know, this year I didn't see a single booth anywhere! I guess all the scouts around here were just selling online. As a former Girl Scout myself, I can speak to the benefits of learning to do face-to-face sales. Having to put yourself out there, be polite, manage money...all great skills to have. But anyway, this year I had to be satisfied with this new Caramel Crunch cereal, inspired by Samoas. When I was a kid this was my favorite GS cookie (followed by Tagalongs), so my standards may have been a bit on the high side. It had a strong scent of caramel and tasted like caramel dusted with cocoa powder. Unfortunately it had that texture that drives me crazy, sort of gritty and crispy, although the aftertaste didn't hit me until after adding milk. Even then it was only a few bites. This one will require more tasting. I like to get own second opinion. I can s

I am of the belief that one shouldn't save certain recipes for certain times of the year. Apple pie? Good anytime. Cranberries? Not just for Thanksgiving. So last weekend I made this Currant-Orange Irish Soda Bread . I wasn't about to wait another year for St. Patrick's Day to come around to try this. You may recall that I made my first Irish soda bread last year , but this was the first time I tried currants. I mean that literally. I'd never had currants before; I didn't even know what they were. According to Google, Zante currants--the kind I used; look for them next to the golden raisins--are a dried fruit made from "Black Corinth" grapes. So if you were thinking, hey, these look like tiny raisins, you're basically right. And now that I know, I need more currant recipes. As for this soda bread, I was surprised by the texture. I could've sworn my previous soda bread was drier and more crumbly but this one was somehow fluffy and crumbly. It a

I've been looking forward to trying the new Bear Naked cereals; I'm a fan of their straightforward granola. So if a cereal is called "Toasted Coconut Clusters" I expect toasted coconut clusters. Well, I got that and then some. Honestly, I would've been happy with some random grain flakes, oat clusters, and coconut flakes. But I feel like a lot of care went into developing this cereal. Everything smells like coconut, everything tastes like coconut. It has a nice hearty wheat and rice flake, nothing skimpy or small. The crunchy oat clusters actually have toasted coconut inside --I thought I was just tasting absorbed coconut scent. You know how that happens when elements of a cereal mingle in the box: all those flavors mix together. But that extra step is a big plus. So if you like coconut cereals and flakes that don't immediately go limp in milk, give this one a try. If they had a spoon symbol, I'd rate it sixteen spoons. Instead, uh, go with this: 👌💚

I've had this cereal on my list for a year at least and it's finally available in my area--I didn't have to make a special trip to Wegmans to get it. If you're not familiar with Nature's Path('s) Sunrise line, it's like Kix mixed with Rice Krispies and Corn Flakes. But replace some of those ordinary grains with brown rice, quinoa, amaranth, buckwheat and flax seeds. I like a variety of grains, and it's easier when the cereal does it for me. I've already reviewed the vanilla  and maple  flavors; the honey is also a good one. I don't know if I'm giving it a favorable review because I really really missed cereal during Lent or because going forty days without cereal turned out to be a great palate cleanser--either way I genuinely liked this. I especially liked the way the honey plus the flax seeds in the flakes combined for a honey-nutty flavor. ***** Next up: something new!

I did it; it's done. I went how long without cereal? Six weeks? (Basically; for organizational purposes my weeks are "off" here.) But yeah, here's how it ended: Monday: Blueberry Pie Oatmeal . I'm glad this was the last week of Lent because it's getting a bit too warm for my hot cereal tolerance. This oatmeal, though--totally worth taking a few extra minutes to cook down some blueberries. Tuesday: Peanut Butter, Oat, and Banana Smoothie . Like I said before, I'll be taking a break from peanut butter for the rest of the month. This was a delicious smoothie, though. I went ahead and used a whole banana (for one serving). Wednesday: I decided to try these Feta Eggs  because I had a little bit of feta that I didn't want to waste. I'd never had tomatoes in scrambled eggs before--but maybe a couple of times in restaurant omelets--so I must say I was surprised by the sweetness. Maybe more feta would've balanced that out. It wasn't bad, thoug

Ok, so here's what happened: I picked up a can of Crescent Roll sheets by accident--this never happens, I'm usually very careful--and I couldn't let them go to waste. I decided to head over to the Pillsbury and look up basically every apple recipe they had, which led me to this: Apple Strudel . It calls for regular crescent rolls but using a full sheet makes it easier. The trickiest part is rolling it up and transferring it to the cookie sheet without losing any of the filling. And as I tend to do, I took a picture of what was left: You can see that I didn't dust it with powdered sugar. I didn't miss it, but it would've looked nice for presentation purposes. Also, I managed to catch it before my super-hot oven burned it (approx. 22 min.) so the powdered sugar might've masked any burnt-taste issues as well.

Well, it's almost over and I must say, it's gotten easier as the weeks go by. I should wait until my post-Lent wrap-up to cover What I've Learned, though. So last week: Monday: Still working my way through the Damn Delicious Overnight Oats . This time I had Blueberry Lemon Cheesecake. And maybe blue yogurt and berry seeds aren't the best thing to eat before going to the dentist but I wanted something light. Tuesday: I made two more pancake sandwiches . That recipe made a lot of pancakes. I can still make one more meal out of them. Wednesday: Two more Banana Oatmeal Cups (see previous link). Again, it made enough to last several weeks and they're still delicious. Thursday: Something new-- Broccoli & Parmesan Cheese Omelet . And filling. I really can't eat that many eggs. Not with toast on the side. I had to share that omelet. Friday: Another new one-- Crunchy Peanut Butter Bulgur with Berries . I thought I'd try it because it had all the component

Before I forget, there's something I need to blog about. Healthy-ish Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars . I just wanted to take a stab at making cookies in bar form. Never did I think they'd go over so well. I really only thought of this recipe as perfect to use up my mini chocolate chips and a good portion of almond butter. So like I said, this was my first time making bar cookies. I was worried they'd come out doughy and the finished product didn't exactly quell my fears. Maybe if I'd eaten one while it was still warm it would've been gooey and I would've been disappointed. But I waited, and it was fine. Definitely thoroughly baked. The surprise was how much everyone loved them. All gave some variation of "I can't stop eating them." I think the almond butter is the secret. It elevated my bars from ordinary chocolate chip cookies to something...you just can't put your finger on it but you know you want more. I need to bake with almond butter a

You didn't think I'd get through a list without a making a Pearl Jam reference--just kidding. I guess I'm upbeat because there's only two weeks to go. It has been getting easier, though. Monday: more leftover oatmeal cups . These have really come in handy. Tuesday: I started with this recipe for yogurt and blueberry parfaits  but then decided defrosting my blueberries in the microwave would have to do. I made these cranberry granola bars for my sister and crumbled one over my parfait. It was basically the same amount I would've used of regular granola. Also, they're quite good. See? Sort of. I keep forgetting not to take pictures on foil. Wednesday: Cinnamon Toast PB&J . When all this is over, I don't think I'm going to touch peanut butter for a month. That being said, this was a nice treat. I haven't had cinnamon toast in the oven since I was a kid. Whenever we had a family hot cereal day my mom would always make cinnamon toast go with