Fruity Pebbles

Name: Fruity Pebbles
Variation: n/a
Manufacturer: Post

Review: Given how many times Post has repackaged this cereal with the "same fruity taste!" - there's one for every season: fall, winter, spring, and summer - this review is just a formality at this point. I bear no ill will towards Fruity Pebbles, unlike Rice Krispies, which is unforgivably bland. It's a beautiful-looking cereal - in fact, that's one of the things that's diminished by the selective color approach of the seasonal varieties. I even think it smells great! But, as a fruity cereal, I could take it or leave it. Now, Cocoa Pebbles, on the other hand...

Rating: 🥣
Leftover Milk: Fruity, but crunchy.

Third Anniversary Post

Welcome to the third anniversary of this blog! It may not seem apparent from all the Sunday reviews I've been posting, but from the back-end, it's clear to me that the workload really is finally letting up. (Consider that I've been able to spend pretty much all of October reviewing the different Monster Cereals, insted of being drowned in an influx of holiday novelties).

I could have stuck to a single review-per-week schedule, and potentially had reviews queued up and ready six months into the next year, but though a regular and reliable posting schedule is good for audience retention (like I even have an audience), I really prefer to post the reviews I write within a relatively short time frame, instead of sitting on a mound of content (like a greedy dragon), doling it out a little bit at a time.

Year 3 Haul

What this means is that, going forward, there may be busy periods and dormant periods as the market fluctuates. However, I should have a chance to continue reviewing the classics, and maybe even try out some cereals I normally ignore - like, I dunno, Honey Smacks or Honey Ohs! or Honey Bunches of Oats (why are they all honey cereals?), or something like that. We'll see. It's been a great run, but I'm not ready to retire just yet.

Cereal For Breakfast (A Defense)

Breakfast cereal is a huge market - it can't be denied. After all, breakfast cereals take up a whole entire aisle in the supermarket! Yet still, people love to disparage the idea of eating cereal for breakfast. Especially if you're not a kid anymore. They say it's like eating candy, or drinking soda for breakfast.

Listen, I don't pretend cereal is a health food. But I also try not to go overboard with it. (Tip: pour your bowl then put away the box - when you get to the bottom, you won't be tempted to top it off). Some cereals are obviously better than others, but in reasonable quantities (which is to say, not too much but not too little, either - up to two posted servings daily), it's simply not comparable to eating a Snickers or drinking a Coke. Plus, they're fortified with vitamins!

So go ahead, eat your bacon and eggs, dripping with fat and cholesterol, and douse your pancakes in butter and sugary syrup. And go on feeling smug about that person sitting next to you with a bowl of cereal. It doesn't have to be the perfect breakfast. It just has to be no worse than the alternative.

But here's the thing. I don't have a huge appetite early in the morning. A bowl of cereal is all I need to tide me over until lunch. And then I have only a simple bowl and spoon to wash, which is a nice and easy way to start the day. But there's more.

I sometimes complain about how quickly these companies turn over new novelty cereals (mainly because I'm a completionist, and it's hard to keep up with it all), but the reality is, nearly every week for the past three years I've had something new to try. And that's exciting! It's good to have something to look forward to. Even if it's something as simple as a bowl of cereal.

So, you see, for me it is the perfect breakfast, after all!

Kelce Mix

Name: Kelce Mix
Variation: Reese's Puffs, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Lucky Charms
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: I have no idea who "Kelce" is, or why he's important enough to have a cereal named after him. Frankly, I don't care. The less said about those two ugly mugs staring back at me from the front of the box, the better. Now, the cereal - this is a truly intriguing mix of three cereals I like, with very different flavors: cinnamon, marshmallow, and peanut butter & chocolate. The instant I saw it in the store, I wanted to see how it all tastes together. Notwithstanding my recent Monster Combos, I haven't had a good cereal mix since Cinnamon Toast Crunch Lucky Charms MIX! So let's dig in.

Right out of the box, this cereal presents a visual cohesion that belies the varied nature of its components. It's all shades of tan and light brown, with the marshmallows providing a nice pop of color. It's a surreal phenomenon, but I can identify the flavors of each of the individual cereals if I focus on them. Together, the taste is not unpleasant - though I feel like it could use more marshmallows. It's not as good as any of the cereals individually (I don't think it would satisfy a craving for any particular one), but the sheer audacity of combining them all together makes you feel like a bit of a maverick for eating it. I'm not going to say I love it, but I definitely like it. This has certainly been one of the more memorable cereal experiments I've tried this year.

Rating: 🥣🥣
Leftover Milk: Carries hints of the various flavors, but altogether relatively plain.

Sea Berry Crunch

Name: Sea Berry Crunch
Variation: Cap'n Crunch
Manufacturer: Quaker Oats

Review: I've been on the lookout for this cereal ever since the last box I bought (all the way back in January) was recalled (along with Cinnamon Crunch). So you can imagine my excitement - and relief - when I finally saw it back on the shelves late in the year. I thought it would just be like a blue version of Oops! All Red Berries. But then I read that it was "berry" flavored, so I've been eager to try it.

The "blue" is actually more of a turquoise, and it looks beautiful. Does it have more of a blueberry (as opposed to strawberry) flavor? Maybe. It's hard to tell; and you can't figure it out by looking at the ingredients, because all it says is "natural and artificial flavors". Regardless, it tastes great, as expected. I'm not sure I'd choose it over the regular version of Oops! All Berries, but I enjoyed having it as an alternative.

Rating: 🥣🥣
Leftover Milk: Sweet, and mildly fruity.

Monster Combos

Three years ago, the appearance of Monster Mash cereal inspired me to combine my own mix of the Monster Cereals together for a frightful concoction. The result was disappointing; there was just too much going on in the bowl. So I'd been thinking of trying out different combinations of these cereals, two at a time. And with last year's introduction of Carmella Creeper to the lineup - a caramel apple cereal - the possibilities show even more promise. Step into my kitchen laboratory, and we'll try some experiments!

Chocolate/Caramel Apple

I thought this sounded like a good combination - chocolate and caramel go well together, and it's in a similar vein to the classic fall treat, the candy apple. And it does taste good. Honestly, I think the chocolate draws out the caramel flavor better. I'm surprised General Mills hasn't done something like this yet, although Carmella Creeper is still pretty new. Maybe it'll be next year's version of Monster Mash. I'd like that.

Strawberry/Blueberry

Mixing the two berry cereals together seemed like a no-brainer, although their similarity means the combination lacks distinction. And though, as expected, the flavors complement each other well, it's not as fruity as I would have thought. It tastes mostly of corn. Even the milk is surprisingly plain. Once again, it's the marshmallows alone that carry this cereal.

Caramel Apple/Strawberry

Visually, the green balances out that vibrant pink, and the marshmallows kind of fade into the background. When I eat Carmella Creeper alone, the flavors don't really stand out, but pairing it with something else seems to make the caramel pop. This is like plain Carmella Creeper, but with a slightly fruitier balance. I'd say it's an improvement over either cereal alone.

Caramel Apple/Blueberry

As far as I can tell, this is the combination they use for Monster Mash Remix - although they probably use a different mix of marshmallows, and who can be sure what flavors they might add without telegraphing it with the proper dyes? On that note, the colors complement each other well - bright green contrasted with dark purple. And the flavors do, too - better than you might think, pouring caramel over blueberries. This is pretty similar to caramel apple/strawberry, but I think Boo Berry has a slightly better flavor than Franken Berry, so this is a little bit better. It's not a bad choice for a Monster Mash; although I would still prefer chocolate/caramel apple.

Strawberry/Chocolate

Chocolate-covered strawberries, anyone? The brown and pink make a nice contrast. I feel like the fruity flavor is more front-and-center, but there's a nice chocolate undercurrent. It's not a bad combination - it certainly makes Franken Berry more palatable. I don't think I like it as much as chocolate/caramel apple, though. Every once in awhile, I get a bite that seems to clash, but I'm not sure why.

Blueberry/Chocolate

Although conceptually very similar to strawberry/chocolate, I think blueberries and chocolate is a somewhat less common combination. But still good. The purple Boo Berry pieces are so dark, you can hardly distinguish them from the brown Count Chocula pieces. It's a shame it doesn't make as good a visual impression (looks do matter), because I think it tastes better than the mix with Franken Berry. Which was to be expected.

Caramel Apple/Berry

I did this with Count Chocula way back when, so I thought it would only be fair to give Carmella Creeper a chance. And it's not bad. I used two parts caramel apple (1 cup) to each part strawberry and blueberry (half cup each) for a proper balance of flavors. It's really not that much different from using Franken Berry or Boo Berry alone. And the mix of colors looks much more lively. I have no idea why they don't use this as their Monster Mash; I think it's just as good.

Berry/Chocolate

Although I did this once before, with all the other combinations I was mixing together, I figured I could stand to give it a second chance. And this time, like with my caramel apple/berry concoction, I mixed the chocolate 2:1 with the strawberry and blueberry, so it's equal parts chocolate and fruity. The blending of the Count Chocula and Boo Berry pieces does dull the visual impression a little - on the other hand, it has more of a gradient look. I taste the chocolate more than the fruitiness. That said, the fruitiness kind of clashes with the chocolate for some reason. I honestly can't say why this combination doesn't work better, but the success of Monster Mash clearly relies on the presence of newcomer Carmella Creeper.

Monster Medley

I'm calling this "Monster Medley" because Monster Mash was already taken. You know I had to do it. But yeah, there's a lot going on in this cereal. The flavors aren't bad, but it doesn't really coalesce into a single flavor experience. Even if you take the time to mix it up evenly, you're bound to get a different concentration of pieces in every spoonful. It looks interesting, though - with all those colors. And now, I'm kinda sick of the Monster Cereals. I don't think I wanna eat them again for a whole year... :-p

Boo Berry

Notice: The year I started this blog, General Mills came out with Monster Mash. The following year, they brought back Frute Brute. And last year they introduced Carmella Creeper. I originally didn't review Count Chocula, Franken Berry, and Boo Berry because I considered them the regular cereals, and the others the limited edition novelties. But I've been waiting for a "fallow year" with a lighter load on Halloween so I could properly review the classics. And now that time has come!

Name: Boo Berry
Variation: Monster Cereals
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: I know a lot of people who love Boo Berry, so I might break a few hearts with this review. Honestly, it's not a bad cereal. It's more purple than blue, but I like the low-key trans-friendly marshmallow colors. If I have to eat a bowl or two, it's perfectly fine. I just get bored with it quickly. Other than being blueberry instead of strawberry (a less common flavor for cereals), it's really no different than Franken Berry. And I'd rather eat Frute Brute. I don't know why Fruity Yummy Mummy is such a dark horse, because this lineup could really benefit from a citrus counterpoint to all these berry cereals.

Rating: 🥣
Leftover Milk: Blue, berry, and marshmallow-flavored.