Gluten Free Cereal

There are, obviously, more gluten free products out on the market now than there were 10 years ago, even 5 years ago. There are restaurants popping up and people advertising their GF menus. But as you well know, not all GF food is, well, delicious. I grew up, as many of us, on homemade meals. Going out to eat was a treat. So it’s trial and error? Yep. I can tell you a list of places I enjoy to eat, but when you go, you don’t care for it. So in this blog, I will try to tell you everything about the product that I list and if you are so inclined, you can try it for yourself!

There are so many products out there claiming gluten free….but are they? The calories are important too. Everything that is GF is not exactly ‘healthy’ for you. Some people gain weight on a GF diet and don’t understand why. Read the labels. It will help you make a better decision on what you eat.

So General Mills has advertised that some of the Chex® line of cereals is gluten free. Corn Chex®, Cinnamon Chex®, Rice Chex®, Honey Nut Chex® and Chocolate Chex® are all GF. The only one I did not care for is the Chocolate Chex®. Yes, surprise, surprise! The chocolate tasted fake to me. The Honey Nut Chex® tasted like Honey Nut Cheerios. The Cinnamon Chex® tasted like a not-overstated cinnamon toast. It is sweetened just right with just the right amount of cinnamon without you gagging. What I like about the Chex® brand is that they make it with the whole grain. Another thing I like is if you are watching what you eat and need an exchange calculation, it’s there on the label! And coming in at 120 calories, Cinnamon and Corn Chex®, add some fruit and it’s a delicious and quick start to the day.

Kellogg’s now has GF Rice Krispies. They are made with whole grain brown rice (don’t know what else they would be made from J) and come in at 110 calories for 1 cup. I did not see an exchange calculation on the label. The taste is another thing. I didn’t detect a difference in the brown rice Rice Krispies over the regular. But I did notice that the texture is different. It almost tasted stale when I tried them. When you put them in Rice Krispie Treats, they are fine. Of course what isn’t with marshmallows?!

And in this corner, coming in at 120 calories for ¾ of a cup is…..Fruity Pebbles! Yes, Fruity Pebbles is GF! YAY! Ok, it’s good news for the kids too! There is an exchange posting on this label too. The taste is just the same as the regular Fruity Pebbles. And I think they are! As far as I can remember, they have been putting a GF label on the nutrition facts side for a while. You could also try making Fruity Pebble Treats with marshmallows! YUM!

There are tons of GF recipes for Chex products on their website: http://www.chex.com/Recipes/GlutenFree.aspx. So have fun with your breakfast, snacks or whatever else you want to create with your cereal!

More products to come!

Be creative and Happy Eating Everyone!