Good, happy Sunday morning!
It has been the most beautifully cool weather as of late for sleeping. Windows open, gentle breezes, the sounds of rustling trees to lull one to sleep, and upon awakening, the happy twittering of birds in their nests.
And if I were Bob Ross, I would now paint happy little trees and such.
But I'm not...so I will have to settle for having a lovely, quiet breakfast on my screened-in porch. Which actually looks like a disaster, with my kids' soccer detritus, random gardening equipment, portable fire pit, winter leftovers, and a damned ficus tree that wants to shed strewn about the entire porch...one can hardly relax.
But I'm trying. And what I'm pondering on this beautiful Sunday morning is my utter befuddlement in attempting to pick out a breakfast cereal whilst grocery shopping last night. I have a list of "to-go cereals": Cheerios, Rice Krispies, Corn Flakes - cereals that I know aren't totally *the best* for me, but they're affordable and they go great with bananas, which is my fruit topping of choice. However, I was in the mood for something a little different this week, and I began to scour the top shelf, because, after all, we all know the healthy, "old people" cereal are up there (to all old people, please don't be offended, I'm referring to a stupid stereotype). I'm looking at boxes of granola, and I'll be damned if one of the top three ingredients isn't "brown sugar" or some healthy-sounding variant thereof. And then, cereals that sound healthy, with splashy phrases like "heart-healthy", "whole-grain", etc. are all over the top shelf, and as I look at the ingredient list, the words of Michael Pollan come back to haunt me (if there's more than five ingredients or if there are ingredients you can't pronounce - it's bad).
So I'm despairing a little, when I come across this...
I am strongly reminded of the "King Vitamin" cereal I remember seeing on the shelves in my youth...the one with the cheesy-looking older guy on the front? But, I'm older now and more open-minded, so I pick it up and look at the Nutrition Information - Whole Wheat Kernels, Whole Flaxseed, Salt, and Barley Malt.
Of COURSE I put it into my cart! It took quite a bit of willpower not to rip into it when I got home from the store, but I didn't.
And that's where I'm at this morning...on my quiet, disorderly porch, enjoying my coffee and Uncle Sam cereal with bananas. The taste reminds me of Bran Flakes, but denser, nuttier, and more compact, and now and then I get a little flaxseed between my teeth, and that makes me happy. Serving size is 3/4th of a cup, which looks really meager in my bowl until I pile on the slices of bananas.
Uncle Sam Cereal is a product of Attune Foods, which is a company that focuses on promoting digestive health. (And honestly, isn't that something we could all use a little more of?) Attune Foods was recently acquired by Post Cereals, and that makes me a little nervous (another example of big corporation taking over little companies), but judging by the reading I've done, Attune Foods is still pretty self-sufficient and does its own thing.
And that's good, because I'm Uncle Sam Cereal's newest fan.
It has been the most beautifully cool weather as of late for sleeping. Windows open, gentle breezes, the sounds of rustling trees to lull one to sleep, and upon awakening, the happy twittering of birds in their nests.
And if I were Bob Ross, I would now paint happy little trees and such.
But I'm not...so I will have to settle for having a lovely, quiet breakfast on my screened-in porch. Which actually looks like a disaster, with my kids' soccer detritus, random gardening equipment, portable fire pit, winter leftovers, and a damned ficus tree that wants to shed strewn about the entire porch...one can hardly relax.
But I'm trying. And what I'm pondering on this beautiful Sunday morning is my utter befuddlement in attempting to pick out a breakfast cereal whilst grocery shopping last night. I have a list of "to-go cereals": Cheerios, Rice Krispies, Corn Flakes - cereals that I know aren't totally *the best* for me, but they're affordable and they go great with bananas, which is my fruit topping of choice. However, I was in the mood for something a little different this week, and I began to scour the top shelf, because, after all, we all know the healthy, "old people" cereal are up there (to all old people, please don't be offended, I'm referring to a stupid stereotype). I'm looking at boxes of granola, and I'll be damned if one of the top three ingredients isn't "brown sugar" or some healthy-sounding variant thereof. And then, cereals that sound healthy, with splashy phrases like "heart-healthy", "whole-grain", etc. are all over the top shelf, and as I look at the ingredient list, the words of Michael Pollan come back to haunt me (if there's more than five ingredients or if there are ingredients you can't pronounce - it's bad).
So I'm despairing a little, when I come across this...
I am strongly reminded of the "King Vitamin" cereal I remember seeing on the shelves in my youth...the one with the cheesy-looking older guy on the front? But, I'm older now and more open-minded, so I pick it up and look at the Nutrition Information - Whole Wheat Kernels, Whole Flaxseed, Salt, and Barley Malt.
Of COURSE I put it into my cart! It took quite a bit of willpower not to rip into it when I got home from the store, but I didn't.
And that's where I'm at this morning...on my quiet, disorderly porch, enjoying my coffee and Uncle Sam cereal with bananas. The taste reminds me of Bran Flakes, but denser, nuttier, and more compact, and now and then I get a little flaxseed between my teeth, and that makes me happy. Serving size is 3/4th of a cup, which looks really meager in my bowl until I pile on the slices of bananas.
Uncle Sam Cereal is a product of Attune Foods, which is a company that focuses on promoting digestive health. (And honestly, isn't that something we could all use a little more of?) Attune Foods was recently acquired by Post Cereals, and that makes me a little nervous (another example of big corporation taking over little companies), but judging by the reading I've done, Attune Foods is still pretty self-sufficient and does its own thing.
And that's good, because I'm Uncle Sam Cereal's newest fan.
I know exactly what you mean. Shopping in the cereal isle is a daunting task when you start looking at labels. I admire your fortitude, and can't believe you found such a good one. Which store did you find it at? Looks like something I should try.
ReplyDeleteMakes me SO glad I've read Marion Nestle, et al. Reading nutrition information is as natural as breathing, but it's not for all...
ReplyDeleteI found it at Walmart, of all places. I'm kinda ashamed to admit it, though!!