Tag Archives: cereal bars

News: Lucky Charms Soft-Baked Treats Marshmallow Blondies

Lucky Charms Soft-Baked Treats Marshmallow Bliondies

If there’s any tangential breakfast product spin-off that needed another Darwinian evolution, it’s the cereal bar.

Following the halcyon days of the Milk ‘n’ Cereal Bar (which you can still buy at places like…Staples?), most modern cereal bars are basically just airy candy/granola bar hybrids. Which isn’t a bad thing—it’s still the only way to experience a different flavor of Golden Graham—but I’m generally in the mood to choose one of those two extremes, or split the difference with a Clif Bar so I can at least feel like I’m scaling a daunting crag whilst lying perfectly horizontal.

But the cereal bar’s next munchable mutation is far more exciting. General Mills—pretty much the only cereal company still making bars of mainline cereals—has launched new Marshmallow Blondie Lucky Charms Soft-Baked Treats, which have already been spotted at BJ’s, Walmart, and Sam’s Club.

Though I’m no-doubt excited about these sugar-drizzled blondies—their fossilized layers of marshmallows remind me of the swirling sugar stew that was Lucky Charms Oatmeal—they do look a lot like General Mills’ Fiber One Bars. So will these magically delicious blondies also be digestively rigorous? That remains to be seen. But whether or not Lucky will be keeping my intestines plucky, I’m all for buying a value-pack of these bricks and mortaring ’em up with ice cream ’til they hit the ceiling.

Review: Welch’s Strawberry Oatmeal Bar Baking Mix, from Betty Crocker

Betty Crocker Welch's Strawberry Oatmeal Bars Baking Mix Box

I’ve reviewed oatmeal before.

I’ve reviewed cereal bars before.

But not until today have the two joined forces for a tasty crossover that’s more satisfying than The Jetsons Meet The Flintstones, Scooby-Doo Meets the Harlem Globetrotters, and The Jimmy Timmy Power Hour combined. You’ll notice that I’ve never reviewed granola bars, either. That’s because raw oats are simply one step of effort too far away from pipin’ hot oatmeal or Cracklin’ Oat Bran. In my eyes, it takes a microwave or a mill press to turn plain grains into breakfast.

So it’s time to grow up, granola bars, because oatmeal bars have everything you do—just with a lot more gumption. Oh, and in this case: oodles of strawberry jelly, too. Continue reading

Review: Kellogg’s Cocoa Krispies Treats with M&M’s Minis

Cocoa Krispies Treats with M&M's Minis Box

Whether it’s ice cream, cappuccinos, pancakes, or Grandpa’s old 1972 Buick, everything’s better when you cover it in chocolate.

Heck, I was even gonna give you my complete, 5000+ item list of things that taste better when slathered in creamy cocoa, but I couldn’t read it because I covered the list in chocolate. Totally worth it, though: this list tastes delicious.

Rice Krispies Treats are no exception to the rule. Kellogg’s “new” Cocoa Krispies Treats—which have probably been released before—come in original and “with Milk Chocolate M&M’s Minis” varieties. Since that’s like IHOP selling Plain Waffles and Belgian Waffles with Maple Syrup for the same price, I predict that boxes of normal Cocoa Krispies Treats will slowly gather dust on grocery shelves until the zombie apocalypse, at which point they’ll be used and traded as valuable currency.

But I’m not here to talk about disappointing, underachieving, and plain Cocoa Krispies Treats. Today is all about his Harvard-bound, candy morsel-stuffed older brother. Continue reading

Review: Kashi GoLean Dark Chocolate Cashew Chia Plant-Powered Bar

IMG_4480I find the concept of breakfast bars to be fascinating. All the magic of cereal distilled and molded like sugary Play-Doh into portable, rectangular chunks? They’re the next best thing to carrying around a heart-shaped locket with Toucan Sam’s face inside.

At the same time, I yearn for a simpler era of breakfast bars. I yearn for the days when our only option was bits of actual cereal haphazardly Elmer’s glued together by a sweet, gelatinous white goo that could somehow legally be called “milk.”

But now we live in an era of protein and quinoa and whatever the hell “activated almonds” are. So I’ll happily review one more Kashi Plant-Powered Bar, but I’ll do it with a nostalgic yearning for a simpler time—a time when I accepted a dare to eat just the milk layer of a cereal bar and spent the rest of the dazed afternoon unsure what century it was. Continue reading

Review: Kashi GoLean Honey Pecan Baklava Plant-Powered Bar

IMG_4360From cereal to oatmeal, muesli, cookies, fruit thingies, crackers, waffles, and even pizza, the products available from the grain-loving folks at Kashi are spread all over the map like grocery store Carmen Sandiegos.

So while Kashi’s cereal usually gets the most buzz, it’s worth sharing the attention with some of the brands more interesting options for morning sustenance. And speaking of buzz, this one’s got a lot of honey.

One of four “Plant-Powered Bars,” Honey Pecan Baklava joins the ranks of Dark Chocolate Cashew Chia, Salted Dark Chocolate & Nuts, and Peanut Hemp Crunch.

I like to imagine these four Plant Power Bars forming a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turles-esque team of vigilante crimefighters when the grocery store closes at night.

I won’t serve you a heaping bowlful of words here, either. I promise to keep this review conveniently snack-sized. It might be a stretch to even call this a “breakfast review,” but hey: they’re in the cereal aisle. And when’s the last time you saw the word “baklava” next to your Cap’n Crunch?

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Review: Reese’s Puffs Treats Cereal Bars

IMG_4067Another cereal bar review?

You might be asking yourself, “has Cerealously abandoned the art of the bowl forever? Are we destined to have all of our breakfasts now be in the form of bars? Should I start squeezing my scrambled eggs into portable rectangles?”

But fear not, bowled souls. Though the breakfast cereal industry is likely greatly influenced by the success of on-the-go breakfasts, my own recent magnetism towards bars is mostly sparked by the demanding nature of university life. After all, pouring 2% on a crackling bowl of Rice Krispies in the middle of an exam probably won’t win me any new friends.

So what’s the bar-tender’s special tonight? Reese’s Puffs Treats. Continue reading

Review: Holiday Rice Krispies Treats Blasted with M&M’s Minis

IMG_4063With Halloween just 2 days in the grave, you know what that means: time for food companies to go hog wild on marketing for the secularly ambiguous “holiday season.”

Or should I say “nog wild?” It’s about time we got an eggnog flavored cereal.

Now I love Thanksgiving just as much, if not more than the next guy—Mashed Potato-ism is my formally declared religion—but since we’re unlikely to see any turducken flavored cereals in the near future, it’s worth cutting straight to the red and green.

And while I’m not sure if these Rice Krispies Treats are new for 2015, please don’t tell me. I want to preserve the Christmas magic, as if these Treats were marshmallowy embodiments of Santa Claus himself. Let’s review!

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Review: Count Chocula Treats Cereal Bars

IMG_3995Have you ever thought, “Gee, I love Count Chocula, but eating a bowl of it with milk in the middle of rush hour traffic sure is a hassle! I wish it were considerably more…rectangular!”

Well then it’s time to trick-or-treat yourself, because Count Chocula Treats have returned to save your morning commute from milk spills caused by unexpected brake-slamming.

Earlier this month, I mistakenly predicted that Count Chocula Treats would be a Canadian exclusive this season. While my neighbors to the north may still be the only ones getting Treats with orange chocolate, the cereal bars have finally made their way to American shelves.

What took you so long, Count? I guess when you’re an ageless, blood-sucking entity, you tend to lose track of time. Continue reading