REVIEW: Fiber One Protein Cranberry Almond Granola Cereal

A while ago, I reviewed one of Fiber One's new protein granola cereals: the Maple Brown Sugar flavor. It was okay, but not all I thought it was going to be. Oh well. Maybe I just had too high of expectations for the yumminess that is "maple brown sugar." Anyway, today I'm giving Fiber One's new cereal a second chance with their Cranberry Almond variety. I like such a flavor, with its berryish and nutty ways... I don't like Cranberry Almond as much as Brown Sugar, so maybe I won't hold this cereal to such high standards. I know I shouldn't hold any cereals to high standards, but hey! Whatevs! At the end of the day, I try to be as unbiased as possible. And now, I think all my words are sounding like mumbo-jumbo, so let's start the show!

A 15.8 oz. box costs around $3.39.

REVIEW: Kashi Heart to Heart Oat Flakes & Blueberry Clusters Cereal

I love Kashi cereals, and I'm always looking for ones to try next. So, when my friend relayed onto me how much she liked their "blueberry kind", as she so described it, I jumped at the chance to try the cereal I think she was talking about. That cereal would be Kashi's Heart to Heart Oat Flakes & Blueberry Clusters. 

A 13.4 oz. box costs around $4.09.

REVIEW: Bear Naked Banana Nut Granola

In one of my previous posts, I was tipped off by a reader that one of his favorite granola cereals was Bear Naked. So, I might as well give this brand a review! Now, keep in mind that my reader's favorite favorite was the Fruit & Nut flavor, but this granola review was more of a spur of the moment kind of thing. I was just hanging out at a friend's house, and I looked up at their refrigerator to see a package of Bear Naked granola right sitting there! It wasn't the Fruit & Nut flavor my reader yearned for- it was their Banana Nut flavor. But I guess that's close. Bananas are a fruit, and this granola has nuts in it too. Don't worry, Mr. Reader! I'll get to the Fruit & Nut someday. Till' then, I'll take your word on its deliciousness. But, for today, I'm reviewing Bear Naked's Banana Nut Granola. 

A 12 oz. package costs around $4.09.

REVIEW: Fiber One Protein Maple Brown Sugar Granola Cereal

Welcome to the wonderful world of Fiber One Protein Cereal, where you can fart while lifting weights for muscle mass! ...And now that I think about it, that is NOT such a wonderful world to be in. Well, at least this cereal fills you up, with a two-punch combo of protein and fiber. 

Fiber One already created protein bars a long while ago- and protein meal bars more recently, but they just started making protein cereal now. Which seems a little odd to me, considering Fiber One started out as a cereal company in the first place... riiight? I dunno. Maybe I should do my research a bit more, but I really don't care. As long as Fiber One is making some protein granola now, I don't mind! Seriously, trying a new granola from one of my favorite food brands is pretty exciting, so without further ado, let's dig in!

A 16.2 oz box costs around $3.39.

REVIEW: GoLean Crisp! Cinnamon Crumble Cereal

I've progressively been going through all the cereals that Kashi has to offer, whether it be super-protein packed cereal, deliciously fruit-infused cereal, or heart-shaped cereal. There have been hits, there have been misses. It's been a fun journey so far. And now I'm here to review their Cinnamon Crumble Cereal. I've had this cereal once before, but I never really gave it an in-depth taste-test, so now it's time to correct my errors and review this stuff! 

A 14 oz. box costs around $3.99.

REVIEW: Kashi GoLean Crunchy! Honey Almond Flax

Okay guys, major dilemma: I've been reviewing so many Kashi products as of late that it seems all of my witty Kashi review post openers have drained out of my brain. And it doesn't help that the name GoLean Crunch! Honey Almond Flax doesn't really jog the imagination. I mean, what am I supposed to say? This is like a cereal that the grown up Buzz from Honey Nut Cheerios would promote?

...Actually, that's not too bad. Yeah, I guess that works.

And anyway, what is WITH Kashi putting all these flax seeds in everything?! I suppose they ARE a good source of Omega 3's, but it's not like I care about that. Yeah, I'm a bit narcissistic, so sue me!

So, I'm hoping this Kashi cereal tastes as good as their Toasted Berry Crumble, which I found worthy of a perfect score. Fingers crossed!

A 14 oz. box costs around $3.99.

REVIEW: Quaker Cinnamon Oatmeal Squares Cereal

Hey, hey, hey, ladies and gents! Are you struggled with a terribly tough choice at breakfast every morning? A choice of "Cereal, or Oatmeal?" A choice that leaves you banging your head against the kitchen stove with your hands tugging on your hair, shouting, "I DON'T KNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW!"

Well, don't have a mental breakdown just yet, ladies and gents. Trust me, a breakfast is not worth the mental examinations. BUT, I'll agree: It IS a tough choice. That's why Quaker has released a breakfast product that gives you the best of both worlds!!! Oatmeal Cinnamon Squares Cereal is THIS product's name, and serving you both oatmeal and cereal is its game.

Although, to be completely honest, I don't really think that was Quaker's intention when marketing this product. They kinda brand it as more of a "Low Cholesterol!" and "Heart Healthy!" and "Diabetes Slayer!" type of cereal. Which was why I wasn't really even looking into trying this cereal until my dad bought it. I mean, come on- a kid like me don't got to eat this for breakfast- a foodstuff that can only be described as "That cereal found in Grandma's cupboards." But since my dad bought this stuff, and since we were all out of my preferred cereals, it was like, "Eh! Why not." So then I gots to reviewing.

A 14.5 oz. box costs around $3.04.

REVIEW: Nature Valley Oats 'n Dark Chocolate Protein Crunchy Granola

My previous taste-test of Nature Valley's new protein granola left me and my tummy full of tasty granola deliciousness, so of course I HAD to try another flavor on their line- Oats 'n Honey sounds good and all, but of course my heart belongs to a little ditty titled Oats 'n Dark Chocolate. Not only is it CHOCOLATE, but it's DARK CHOCOLATE! Annnnnd it's full of protein! It's like this granola was made for me!

An 11 oz. bag of granola costs around $3.98.

REVIEW: Kashi GoLean Vanilla Graham Clusters Cereal

Kashi GoLean Original is a stand-by cereal in my pantry, on account of the huge amount of protein found in one serving of the stuff.

...Well, admittely, 13g isn't THAT much- but for cereal, that's about as good as it gets.

With 13g of protein, and an admittedly mild enough flavor that you can't accuse any aspect of it to be all that wrong, Kashi Original is a solid cereal. But, but, butttttt... And I mean  DO mean but- sometimes it just gets a little boring. Anything can after awhile, you know. But when you get bored of Kashi's GoLean Original, what other cereal can you turn to for a huge amount of protein and a decent taste? Tell me! What? WHAT???!!! Why, Kashi's GoLean Vanilla Graham Clusters, of course! Just LIKE Kashi's GoLean Original, except with two less grams of protein. And the added taste of vanilla. And graham. And clusters. And the box is blue. And yeah.

A 13.2 oz. box costs around $3.99.

REVIEW: Kellogg's NutriGrain Fruit & Oat Harvest Blueberry Bliss Bar

Sooo... Is it me, or has Kellogg's been releasing an unusual amount of new NutriGrain products lately? For years NutriGrain has been nothing more than a line of commonplace cereal bars- but now they've got these NutriGrain Crunch thingies, and even these super-new Fruit & Oat Harvest Bars as of late. ...Oh yeah, and I guess they had to have released these NutriGrain Waffles sometime in between as well. What's up Kellogg's? NutriGrain not doing so well in the sales market lately? Or is it that they're doing SO well that you wanted to make more varieties to keep things interesting? I'm just curious. I'm also curious to see how these Fruit & Oat Harvest Bars taste, so I'll be trying the Blueberry Bliss flavor today. An 8.8 oz. box with five 1.76 oz. bars costs around $2.78.

REVIEW: Kashi GoLean Crisp! Toasted Berry Crumble Cereal

Sometimes, I'm nervous to try new Kashi cereals. Why? Well, let's be honest- plenty of Kashi products are healthy, but not all of them are very tasty. Kashi GoLean Original and Heart to Heart Warm Cinnamon are two decently healthy cereals, but just aren't all that mindblowing when it comes to taste. They're good, just not good enough to buy again. I mean, I only keep purchasing the GoLean just because it has so much protein to it. If it didn't, then nope- out from my pantry with youuuu!!!

And Kashi's GoLean Crunch!, a cereal much akin to their Toasted Berry Crumble, had a great crunchy texture, but was- like the two other aforementioned Kashi cereals -pretty mild in flavor. Another Kashi cereal I tried? Their GoLean Crisp! Cinnamon Crumble, which I don't have a review on but DID eat. THAT cereal was mild as well, and even shares the same title with Toasted Berry Crumble (You know, the GoLean Crisp! part anyway).

So I think it only made sense for me to be a bit on the wary side when purchasing Kashi's Toasted Berry Crumble. I only did so just because I HAD heard such good things about the cereal already. But I still had my doubts. Hopefully a taste-test would change that. A 14 oz. box costs around $3.99.

REVIEW: General Mills Chocolate Toast Crunch Cereal

I don't know what is IS about chocolate-flavored cereals, but they seem to be are just cause for celebration! A long-time example: Cocoa Krispies. I've ALWAYS preferred those over regular Rice Krispies- since as long as I can remember. A more recent example? Released just last year was Chocolate Frosted Flakes. ...Otherwise known as Choco Zucaritas, whatever the heck that means. Whatever- they were chocolate covered Frosted Flakes, and I was freaking out about them!

And then along came Chocolate Toast Crunch... Now, if I was jumping up and down eagerly telling all my friends about Chocolate Frosted Flakes like a geekwad, just imagine how I felt when I heard about Chocolate Toast Crunch, a chocolate version of Cinnamon Toast Crunch, aka THE BEST cereal in the world?!?!

Well, actually, I was a bit skeptical. I was excited, sure, but I'm sure you can see how there might be room for doubt. Let me explain: There has been Frosted Toast Crunch: Toast Crunch with a vanilla icing flavor; there has been Peanut Butter Toast Crunch: Toast Crunch with a peanut butter flavor. I can see both vanilla icing and PB working well with cinnamon. Plus, those two flavors are pretty unique. But chocolate flavor is such a far cry from cinnamon flavor, and is so overly used in today's cereal market. Cinnamon Toast Crunch is a FANTASTIC cinnamon cereal, but could it be a fantastic chocolate cereal as well, or would it only be as good as standard chocolate cereals like Cocoa Puffs? Chocolate is an easy flavor to make a GOOD cereal out of, but what about a great cereal? This is what I set about to find out today with this review. A 12.7 oz. box costs around $2.98.

REVIEW: Nature Valley Oats 'n Honey Protein Crunchy Granola

I like granola bars a TON, but I've never really had any actual, good ol' granola granola. Like, you know, the kind you have in a bowl of milk or as a topping on yogurt. I think this party has to due with the fact that, for all the calories granola has, most of them are pretty empty. There were always plenty of other higher-fiber, higher-protein cereal choices, with less sugar and fat not to mention, so I always avoided purchasing granola, even though I really, really wanted to. Another reason I never bought it was that I was never really sure WHICH granola brand to start off with. A lot of them- especially the "better for you" ones -are made by kinda obscure brand names, leaving me to wonder if they're any good or not. But now, Nature Valley has released a new protein granola cereal, which a decent 10 grams of the stuff per serving. Nice! And come on, Nature Valley hasn't let me down before, so why would they start now? I doubt they- the granola bar pantheon of the WORLD -would be unsuccessful in their endeavors of creating something as simple as a granola cereal. But I guess we shall find out! An 11 oz. bag costs around $3.98.

REVIEW: Kellogg's Krave Chocolate Cereal

Well, I snagged the chance to review Kellogg's Krave S'mores as soon as I was able, and I found time to review Kellogg's Krave Double Chocolate way back when as well. But when, you may ask, did I spare the time to review the traditional Krave Chocolate? When did I find time for the normal one, the good guy, the (some might even say) original flavor? (Even though both Chocolate and Double Chocolate came out at the same time). And I would say, "Never! Never have I reviewed the Chocolate version of Krave!" 

Well, until now, anyways.

An 11.4 oz box costs around $2.99.

REVIEW: General Mills Frosted Toast Crunch Cereal

I find Cinnamon Toast Crunch to be amazingly delicious- to me, it's the end-all-be-all of cereals. And Peanut Butter Toast Crunch is great too. And now they're coming out with Chocolate Toast Crunch! But before I get my chance to review that, I might as well go ahead and try out General Mills Frosted Toast Crunch. Described as "artificially flavored frosted vanilla squares dusted with cinnamon," one 12.3 oz. box of cereal costs around $2.99.

REVIEW: Kelloggs Krave S'mores Cereal

Did you know that Krave was a cereal originally released in the UK? Yup! And while they're getting flavors like Chocolate Hazelnut and White Chocolate Brownie across the pond, we're getting flavors like... S'mores. How sophisticated. But I can't say I wasn't excited about the release of this latest Krave flavor- The Double Chocolate variety was delicious, so why would this new flavor be any different? I watched and waited full of undying anticipation for Krave S'mores to one day appear on the shelves of my local supermarket, and suddenlt, out of the blue, there it was!!! ...Only it was sold out.
...Damn (hangs head).
Lucky for me, it wasn't long before I went out to a different store and found a full stock of S'mores on the shelves. An 11 oz. box costs around $2.88.

REVIEW: Kellogg's Frosted Krispies Cereal

Mmmmmm... Who doesn't love Rice Krispies??? They're crunchy, they make great marshmallow treats, and they transform your morning bowl of cereal into a symphony of sound. You know- snap crackle pop! Which are also the names of the three little elves (elves... right?) pictured on all the boxes of Rice Krispies. To be honest, Crackle was always my favorite. He had the most unique hat and hair, which totally overruled the nearly identical Snap and Pop in every which way. So now's time for me to try Kellogg's Frosted Krispies- which I'm guessing are similar to regular Rice Krispies but frosted. A 12.5 oz. box costs around $2.98.

REVIEW: Kashi GoLean Crunch! Cereal

When it comes to an everyday breakfast, GoLean Original is usually the Kashi cereal of choice. But when I told my dad I needed Kashi when he went out grocery shopping, he brought home a box of GoLean CRUNCH instead. So either the store was all out of the typical Original Kashi or I need to start being more specific with my food requests. But it's not all doom and gloom! I can get a review out of this cereal, can't I? So, time to taste-test!

A 13.8 ox. box costs around $3.12.

A 1 cup (53g) serving contains 200 calories, 30 of them being from fat, 3g of total fat, 0g of saturated fat, 0g of trans fat, 1g of polunsaturated fat, 1g of monounsaturated fat, 0mg of cholesterol, 100mg of sodium, 320mg of potassium, 38g of total carbohydrates, 8g of dietary fiber, 6g of soluble fiber, 2g of insoluble fiber, and 9g of protein.

Based on the nutrition information, this isn't THE healthiest cereal that Kashi has produced, but it still beats out a lot of other products out there. At least this cereal has a reasonable amount of fiber and protein. It's just- at 200 calories for 53g  -there ARE healthier cereals out there. Just sayin'. But this cereal isn't SO bad that I wouldn't eat it for breakfast or lunch, or plain as a snack, like little granola bites. And, yes, even though this cereal isn't specifically marketed as granola, as far as I'm concerned, that's what it is. GoLean Crunch! has a lot of similar qualities to granola- It's crunchy and hard, with different-sized clusters made up of cereal and rolled oats. One thing that makes Kashi's cereal different from typical granola, however, is the fact that these clusters have puffed rice pieces in them. A lot of them too. I honestly don't know of any REAL granola that has puffed rice pieces. I suppose they're there for filler, so that Kashi's granola stays reasonably healthier than others.

Eaten plain, this cereal is VERY hard and VERY crunchy. Well, except for the times when you'd have a cluster of puffed rice, which were airy and light and chewy. The taste is very mild and nondescript. There is a slight accent of warm cinnamon, but other than that, this cereal is more enjoyable for its granola-esque texture, not its flavorful taste. This cereal was supposed to have a touch of honey flavor to it based on Kashi's description, but I didn't taste any. The sweetness content in this cereal is very mild, but not so mild that I'd be reckoned to say it was boring or bland to eat. The oats gave the clusters a very hearty, oatmeal-like quality. By itself, the cereal was dry, and not sticky, like I'd expect granola to be by all the granola bars I've consumed.

I had some of this cereal for lunch accompanied by some ice-cold milk, and I was happily surprised to find that the cereal held up VERY well in the milk. It stayed consistently crunchy throughout (except for the puffed rice pieces, which became soft as all get out), but softened up just enough so that it wasn't such a feat to chew through. The clusters, for the most part, remained intact. The cereal pieces didn't split up from each other due to the milk getting in the way. I found this cereal to be sweet and tasty in milk, but of course I used some sweetener in my bowl of cereal to make it sweeter, so that might have had something to do with it. The cereal, however, did remain hearty in taste, and I don't think that's something you can produce with sweetener packets. In a way, this cereal somehwat reminded me of eating uncooked instant oatmeal. Which I really didn't mind, but some people might.

Overall, this was an enjoyable cereal, but I mostly only liked it for the texture. It didn't have much of a taste. I think this cereal would be better if it were given a more definite flavoring, but of course Kashi has released GoLean Crunch! varieties like that as well, so I dunno. This is a really good cereal choice when you want something akin to plain granola without as much sugar and fat and really enjoy a hard, crunchy texture. I DO prefer my cereal to be on the crunchier side, so I fairly enjoyed this one. Although I DO think this cereal requires some sweetener before consuming. This isn't a cereal I'd want to have in my pantry 24/7, but I could see myself buying it every now and again.
I'd give Kashi's GoLean Crunch! a 7.5/10.

Need other views from those who chewed? Crazy Food Dude also has this one reviewed.

What do YOU think of Kashi's GoLean Crunch? Do YOU prefer your cereal crunchy or with a more lighter, airier texture? Tell us your thoughts down below in the comments!

Till' then, this has been RiRi ri-porting!

REVIEW: Fiber One Honey Clusters Cereal

As a little kid, I LOVED Honey Bunches of Oats. And one of the reasons I loved it so much was the fact it tasted delicious and was quote, unquote, "healthy."

As I've grown up, however, I've learned that Honey Bunches of Oats is nothing but a mere cereal made by a commercial industry to appear healthy. In reality, cereals like Krave or Rice Krispies are just about as good for you. Geez, if I had known that, I could've spent my childhood enjoying THOSE cereals instead of wasting my time on Honey Bunches!!! Well, okay- I really DID like the taste of Honey Bunches, but you get what I mean. And I'm SURE there are some of you people out there- adults, not kids- who love Honey Bunches as much as the young "me" did, but unlike the young me, realize it's not the super-mega health cereal we are led to believe. So here's a review of a product that can be best described as a Honey Bunches of Oats replacement that's actually pretty healthy: General Mills' Fiber One Honey Clusters Cereal.

 A 14.25 oz. box costs around $3.98.

REVIEW: General Mills Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cereal

Alright, alright... Laaaaast review of a product I'm familiar with. I swear. At least for awhile anyway. 

But, let's face it- I probably talk about General Mill's Cinnamon Toast Crunch whenever I'm reviewing cereal. It's like the product I compare everything ELSE to. On a scale of one to Cinnamon Toast Crunch, how good is this product? It's like that. So I just HAVE to give Cinnamon Toast Crunch credit where it's due. I HAVE to write some sort of post for my favorite cereal- and possibly one of my favorite foods- ever, riiight?

Listen, it's not MY fault that Cinnamon Toast Crunch is older than I am. If I was a food reviewer growing up in 1984, I'm sure I would've tried this product when it first came out and loved it just the same. But since Cinnamon Toast Crunch has been around since I was born, in fact, I can't really say what I thought of it the first time I ate it, since I was probably too young to even remember trying it for the first time. But I love this cereal NOW, and I just feel compelled to share that love with everyone!

And anyway, you might say writing a review of Cinnamon Toast Crunch is useless, since everybody and their brother has at least had it ONCE in their lifetime, but who knows? Maybe there's someone living under a rock out there who hasn't tried it, and needs to know they MUST. Must, must, must. And if not, this review is just a good way to reaffirm everyone else that this cereal is superbly superb. So let's get to it! A 12.2 oz. box costs around $2.98.