Cinnamon Toast Crunch Secret Saja Boys Flavor

Name: KPop Demon Hunters Cinnamon Toast Crunch Secret Saja Boys Flavor
Variation: Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: Not to be outdone by rival KPop group Huntrix (who moonlight as demon hunters) and their peach mango takeover of Lucky Charms, the Saja Boys have hijacked Cinnamon Toast Crunch. And, like the Saja Boys themselves, this cereal is hiding a secret - it has a mystery flavor! Now, notwithstanding all of the unique flavors I've encountered in my years of eating novelty cereals, I'm not as confident at guessing mystery flavors as you might think. I may have been in the ballpark on Mystery Crunch (the word on the street is that the flavor is cherry vanilla; I guessed cream soda), but at least they gave us clues. Even if some of them were red herrings.

If this cereal is modeled after a Korean delicacy, I'll be up the creek without even a boat. Here are my impressions. The cinnamon flavor seems subdued, allowing the buttery taste to stand out. And there's definitely something else there, but I can't figure out what it is. Licorice? Peppermint? I asked my wife to try it and she offered this guess: lemon meringue. Could be, I guess. I'd counter with Key lime, but I've never actually had Key lime pie, so I don't know what it tastes like. I'm at a loss. The cereal is not at all unpleasant to eat, but I find myself comparing it unfavorably to regular Cinnamon Toast Crunch. Which is to say, the fun of the mystery aside, I probably wouldn't buy it again.

Rating: 🥣
Leftover Milk: As mysterious as the cereal itself.

[Experiments] Cinnamon Toast Crunch Strawberry Applesauce and Peanut Butter Apple

Description: Cinnamon Toast Crunch has been throwing so many flavors at us lately, it's hard not to want to mix some of them together. When Apple came out, it wasn't a far cry, knowing that Strawberry and Peanut Butter were both still on the shelves, for me to imagine them each together with this newest version of Cinnamon Toast Crunch.

Strawberry and apple together in a cinnamon cereal? That's a perfect formula for strawberry applesauce! So, how is it? The flavors are complementary. The buttery flavor of Cinnamon Toast Crunch kind of precludes it from giving you the full impression of eating applesauce, and I'm not sure it's enough of an improvement over each flavor alone to justify the effort of mixing them together. But it sure was fun to try!

Rating: 🥣🥣

Description: Now, Peanut Butter and Apple is more of a stretch for me - I put peanut butter on my bananas, not my apples. But in honor of Stephen Colbert, whose award-winning late night show was canceled this year under political pressure from a fascist federal administration, I wanted to give it a try.

The toasties don't distinguish themselves as much from each other, yet the flavors don't blend as well as strawberry and apple. The sweetness of the apple is subdued, and there's that impression of peanut butter sticking to the roof of your mouth, but without the full flavor of peanut butter. It's an odd combination. I feel that these flavors detract from each other more than reinforce one another. I'm not crazy about it. Sorry, Stephen...

Rating: 🥣

Addendum: On a whim, I tried mixing equal parts of Apple, Strawberry, and Peanut Butter all together in one bowl (because of course I did). And it was really good! The sweetness of the fruit flavors stood out, and there was still that occasional savory peanut butter flavor. Maybe I just needed to tweak the ratio (2:1) in favor of the fruit all this time!

Cinnamon Toast Crunch Apple

Name: Cinnamon Toast Crunch Apple
Variation: Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: Without having them side-by-side, I can't say how this cereal differs from Cinnamon Toast Crunch's seasonal fall variety, Apple Pie Toast Crunch. What does apple pie have, other than apples? I know it's not caramel, because you have to add Dulce de Leche Toast Crunch to get the Caramel Apple flavor. Regardless, if Apple Jacks is any indication (and it is, although I would pick Apple Cinnamon Cheerios, myself), this is a great flavor idea for a cinnamon cereal. I mean, some cereal novelties are pretty out there, while others are obvious. This one's a no-brainer.

I could smell the pleasant aroma of apples as soon as I opened the box. And it's a pretty box - in a complementary shade of green. The cereal is good. It's sweet, and the apple flavor blends with the cinnamon really well. I still don't know how it differs from Apple Pie Toast Crunch, but this version is more universal. I notice the box doesn't say "new" (I could believe this flavor has been floated before), or even "limited". Will it stick around? It's about the most logical choice of alternate for a cinnamon cereal as I could think of (even more so than chocolate, although I do like Chocolate Toast Crunch). Kellogg's (which manufactures Apple Jacks) better beware.

Rating: 🥣🥣
Leftover Milk: It's the applesauce-flavored milkshake you never knew you wanted!

Cinnamon Toast Crunch Root Beer Float

Name: Cinnamon Toast Crunch Root Beer Float
Variation: Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: Here's a novel flavor for the summer - and coming on the heels of Mystery Crunch, which I suspect was cream soda-flavored. What's next, Fruity Pebbles Orange Soda? Although I'd prefer grape soda. I used to drink root beer when I was a kid, but that's not really a habit that followed me into adulthood. I like the fireworks design on the box - it's festive, without being too patriotic (sadly, on the 250th anniversary of the United States' founding, there's very little about this country to be proud of). Eaten dry, this cereal has that unmistakable root beer flavor. I'm not sure how much of a "float" sensation there is, beyond simply adding cold milk. But the flavor is kind of subdued in milk, and the cereal isn't as sweet or cinnamon-y as Cinnamon Toast Crunch usually is. Honestly, I'm not crazy about it. I'd sooner pick up another box of Mystery Crunch, and I never liked cream soda half as much as root beer - so that's saying something.

Rating: 🥣
Leftover Milk: More of a root beer float than the cereal itself.

[Experiment] Cinnamon Toast Crunch PB&J

Description: As a full-grown adult who keeps a blog dedicated to breakfast cereals, I have somewhat juvenile tastes (notwithstanding my appreciation for dark chocolate). So as soon as I thought of mixing Cinnamon Toast Crunch Strawberry and Peanut Butter to imitate peanut butter & jelly, I had to rush out to the store so I could try it. It doesn't really taste like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. The flavors are there, but they're not as vibrant as you might hope. The peanut butter is mostly an aftertaste, and you don't really get bites of super sweet jelly. I don't feel like the "toast" flavor is receding into the background as much as it does with a real peanut butter & jelly sandwich. That said, it's still good. Both of these cereals are good on their own, and they taste good together. I think I set my sights a little high, but I definitely wouldn't say that this experiment was a failure.

Rating: 🥣🥣

Cinnamon Toast Crunch Peanut Butter

Name: Cinnamon Toast Crunch Peanut Butter
Variation: Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: I like peanut butter, so I was pretty excited when I spotted this new version of Cinnamon Toast Crunch. It's not something I would have expected to see, but Cinnamon Toast Crunch seems to be throwing everything at the wall to see what sticks lately. Some of their varieties have been hits, and some have been misses. But this one holds promise.

If the combination sounds weird to you, I can tell you that I have had peanut butter on French toast (also: waffles), and it's quite good. As is this cereal. You take a bite, and then that rich, peanut buttery taste kicks in. It's not super sweet, and by the end of the bowl it gets kinda dry - like you've just had a mouthful of peanut butter. But I like it a lot. I think it would be great mixed with something sweet and fruity like Cinnamon Toast Crunch Strawberry. I better get myself to the store before it's discontinued!

Rating: 🥣🥣
Leftover Milk: Swirled with peanut butter & cinnadust.

Cinnamon Toast Crunch Mexican Style Hot Chocolate

Name: Cinnamon Toast Crunch Mexican Style Hot Chocolate
Variation: Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: Cinnamon Toast Crunch shows off their south-of-the-border flare once again with an intriguing new flavor for the holidays. (Although it makes for an obnoxiously long title). I had to look up what constitutes "Mexican style" hot chocolate - there's a little more to it than just adding cinnamon. I'm interested to find out how this cereal compares to regular Chocolate Toast Crunch (which has been, inexplicably, discontinued recently).

First off, the toasties are very dark - suggesting a darker chocolate than usual. I know dark chocolate isn't to everyone's taste, but I'm a fan. Honestly, the best hot cocoa I've ever had has been dark chocolate. There's definitely something more going on here beyond just chocolate and cinnamon, though. It's actually a little bit spicy. Like CinnaFuego Toast Crunch, but (mercifully) dialed down to just a slight tingle on your tongue. The first bowl was a little bit strange, then it began to grow on me. But after eating it for days on end, I think it's beginning to irritate my throat. If nothing else, this has definitely been the most unique hot cocoa cereal I've ever tried.

Rating: 🥣🥣
Leftover Milk: Like a frozen Mexican style hot chocolate!

Jettas Mix

Name: Justin Jefferson's Jettas Mix
Variation: Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Cheerios
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: Like with the Kelce Mix from last year, I have no idea who Justin Jefferson is - but it's a pretty box, with holographic lettering. Unlike that other mix, this cereal combines limited edition varieties (new Cinnamon Toast Crunch Strawberry, and Frosted Lemon Cheerios) instead of a bunch of staples. But it's an intriguing combination of flavors - like a strawberry lemonade, but with a hint of buttery cinnamon. It tastes very refreshing. I think the lemon is more prominent than the strawberry, and the cinnamon adds an interesting flourish. The box says Justin Jefferson has a "sweet tooth" - but while this cereal is sweet, it runs fruity rather than chocolatey. As such, it's not what I would choose for my signature cereal, but I do like it. Makes a great dry snack, too.

Rating: 🥣🥣
Leftover Milk: Like a horchata mixed with strawberry lemonade!

Cinnamon Toast Crunch Strawberry

Name: Cinnamon Toast Crunch Strawberry
Variation: Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: I was intrigued when I spotted this new flavor of Cinnamon Toast Crunch on the shelves. The toasties are noticeably pink, and have a real strawberry flavor - I'm just glad it's not strawberries and cream. It's really good. It tastes a bit like if you drizzled strawberry syrup over your French toast. Add fresh strawberries to take it to the next level!

I wanted to try mixing this cereal with Chocolate Toast Crunch, because I think that sounds like a great combination, but I can't seem to find it anymore. Dubious novelties like CinnaGraham Toast Crunch, Cinnamon Toast Crunch Rolls (actually, those were decent), and Cinnamon Toast Crunch Waffle are all still available, but I can't find Chocolate Toast Crunch? That's concerning. It should be a staple!

Anyway, like most varieties of Cinnamon Toast Crunch, this cereal has a perfectly reasonable amount of sugar (a median value of 12g per cup - not low, but not high either). Although the fat content (4g per cup) trends toward the upper end of what's normal - which is probably why it still tastes so good.

Rating: 🥣🥣
Leftover Milk: Like a decadent, cinnamon strawberry milkshake!

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.

Cinnamon Toast Crunch Waffle

Name: Cinnamon Toast Crunch Waffle
Variation: Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: Making a good companion to French Toast Crunch, here's Cinnamon Toast Crunch reenvisioned as a waffle cereal! The cereal pieces are bigger and thicker - like Cinnamon Toast Crunch Rolls - but actually a little bit unwieldy to chew on. The taste is like CTC with a little bit of maple drizzled on top, but the predominant flavor is butter. It's like eating heavily buttered waffles. It's definitely the "butteriest" cereal I've ever had, and I'm not sure that's something I like. Plus, I'm not crazy about maple. It's been a minute since I've had Eggo Homestyle and Waffle Crisp, but - in spite of the quality of the Cinnamon Toast Crunch brand - I think I liked those waffle cereals better. But, if you really like the taste of butter, you might like these better than I did.

Rating: 🥣
Leftover Milk: Have you ever had a cinnamon maple butter milkshake?

Cinnamoji Toast Crunch (Cruising Edition)

Name: Cinnamoji Toast Crunch
Variation: Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: When Cinnamoji Toast Crunch first appeared on shelves, I thought it was a fun novelty, despite being only a cosmetic variation of regular Cinnamon Toast Crunch. When the Luchador Edition came out the following year, I hesitated to treat it as a separate cereal, but ultimately felt it was a novel enough concept. Now, a year later, yet another version of Cinnamoji Toast Crunch has turned up, and it doesn't even have a witty subtitle. The box features a car motif, and the Cinnamojis are decked out in sunglasses. I'm not opposed to General Mills mixing it up and releasing new Cinnamojis each year with different faces (although, honestly, I barely notice the faces), but I might have to draw the line on reviewing it every single time. I guess I'll wait and see what happens next year. In the meantime, you can refer to my previous review(s) for a rating.

[Experiment] CinnaRaisin Toast Crunch

Description: I'm embarrassed to admit that it was only recently that I realized Cinnamon Toast Crunch is basically designed to imitate a real toast treat - cinnamon toast. I'm more familiar with cinnamon raisin bread, so the second I figured that out, I thought to myself, I wonder how this cereal would taste with raisins in it? After all, it's not like raisins in a cereal are unheard of - take Raisin Bran, for example. That's a cereal I used to like to eat as a kid, despite the plainness of the bran flakes, all on account of the sweet bites of raisin.

I don't eat it much anymore, though, because a survey of nutritional content I conducted revealed that it's one of the cereals on the market with the highest sugar content, due to the raisins. Which makes me think that adding raisins to an already sweetened cereal (and not just plain bran flakes) isn't the brightest idea. Nor did it help that when I stirred the cereal, the raisins all sank to the bottom, and I had to put more on top just to get a good picture!

In any case, the cereal itself tastes great, and it almost perfectly emulates the flavor of biting into a piece of cinnamon raisin toast, with that occasional burst of sweetness. I would just recommend a light touch - think of the raisins as more of a garnish, rather than a mix-in. It's not that Cinnamon Toast Crunch isn't perfectly good enough all on its own, but I'd have to call this experiment a success.

Rating: 🥣🥣

Cinnamon Toast Crunch

Name: Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Variation: n/a
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: In the pantheon of classic breakfast cereals, Cinnamon Toast Crunch is a relative newcomer, debuting in the '80s when many of the standards (e.g., Lucky Charms, Froot Loops, Cocoa Puffs) debuted in the '50s or '60s. Could that be why I don't recall having it as a kid? Or was it just because the idea of cinnamon toast didn't really speak to me? After all, Reese's Puffs is one of my all-time favorites, and it debuted in the '90s. Regardless, that mistake has certainly been rectified since the start of this blog - given the sheer volume of novelty variations this brand puts out.

I've never really given it much thought until now, but Cinnamon Toast Crunch is more than just a plain cinnamon cereal. What makes it so good is that it's not just cinnamon, there's... I want to say a buttery flavor, that serves the impression that you're eating toast. The cereal pieces have an unusual shape - wide and flat, with ridges and a slight curve - but they're not unwieldy, and they have a pleasant crunch. I think that if I'd had more of a history with this cereal, I might have given it a three bowl rating, but for now I'll reserve that rating for the Chocolate alternative, which I like even better.

Rating: 🥣🥣
Leftover Milk: Sweet and cinnamon-y.

Dulce de Leche Toast Crunch

Name: Dulce de Leche Toast Crunch
Variation: Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: Fancy though it sounds, this is essentially Cinnamon Toast Crunch with a caramel flavor - and it's quite good. Much better than that abomination that was Tres Leches Toast Crunch. I'm not surprised you can find it year-round, and have been able to for some time now. It might even be my favorite alternate version of Cinnamon Toast Crunch - besides Chocolate Toast Crunch, of course. And if you have some Apple Pie Toast Crunch on hand to mix in, all the better! If I have this cereal a few more times, I might consider bumping its rating up to three bowls in the future, but for now, I'll just let it coast where it's at.

Rating: 🥣🥣
Leftover Milk: Sweet and caramelicious!

Apple Pie Toast Crunch

Name: Apple Pie Toast Crunch
Variation: Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: Technically, I've already reviewed this cereal, but I feel like the individual components were overshadowed in the Caramel Apple Toast Crunch experiment, and I've been meaning to give these two cereals their own spotlight (stay tuned for the other one).

Taken alone, Apple Pie Toast Crunch is very sweet and apple-y; it's reminiscent of pie filling and not just mashed apples, which is pretty cool. The sweet, fruity flavor dulls a little bit as you progress through the bowl and your tongue acclimates to it, but it's a fun holiday cereal that I enjoy. If you have some Dulce de Leche Toast Crunch to add to it, all the better! My rating of two bowls from before shall stand.

Rating: 🥣🥣
Leftover Milk: If your tongue isn't completely desensitized by the end of the bowl, it's sweetened with apple and cinnamon.

Gingerbread Toast Crunch

Name: Gingerbread Toast Crunch
Variation: Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: I'm not crazy about gingerbread, but I was excited when I saw this new holiday edition of Cinnamon Toast Crunch, because it's a clever idea, and on point for the brand (what's a holiday version of bread? Gingerbread!). Visually, it looks like regular CTC. Digging my spoon into it, I'm reminded of CinnaGraham Toast Crunch; my predominant impression being that this is CTC, but blander.

There is an unmistakable gingerbread flavor, which is pretty neat. But I'm not in love with it. Maybe it needs some frosting. As far as holiday versions of Cinnamon Toast Crunch go, I think I'll stick with Sugar Cookie Toast Crunch, or Apple Pie Toast Crunch. Or even Cinnamon Toast Crunch Rolls. There are a lot of options, and this isn't going to become one of my favorites. But it was a fun idea, at least.

Rating: 🥣
Leftover Milk: Gingerbread-y.

Chocolate Toast Crunch

Name: Chocolate Toast Crunch
Variation: Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: Chocolate Toast Crunch has an advantage over other "chocolate alternative" cereals (e.g., Chocolate Cheerios, Cocoa Krispies, Cocoa Pebbles, Chocolate Frosted Flakes) in that it's not just chocolate. The thing that makes Cinnamon Toast Crunch unique is its cinnamon flavor, and the chocolate variety maintains that flavor. The one other cereal that does this is Chocolate Lucky Charms, which preserves the marshmallows that characterize Lucky Charms. But marshmallows aren't as uncommon in breakfast cereals as cinnamon, and the combination of chocolate and marshmallows (as much as I love it) isn't exactly unique, whereas chocolate and cinnamon is almost unheard of. But most importantly, they taste good together. I always enjoy an opportunity to dig into a box of Chocolate Toast Crunch.

Rating: 🥣🥣🥣
Leftover Milk: A tasty blend of cocoa and cinnamon notes.

Tres Leches Toast Crunch

Name: Tres Leches Toast Crunch
Variation: Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: I had to look up the difference between "dulce de leche" and "tres leches", because it sounded to me like "tres leches" just meant more leche... As it turns out, "dulce de leche" is a milk-based caramel-like confection, while "tres leches" is a type of sponge cake soaked in three different kinds of milk (in varying densities, from evaporated to condensed to heavy cream). Sounds pretty decadent.

Choose your leche.

This cereal has a very strong smell out of the box - I don't know how else to describe it but "very milky cake". And the milky, creamy flavor follows through. Given the emphasis on milk, and the fact that you pour milk over cereal, I feel like "tres leches" was a pretty obvious choice for a cereal flavor, but I can't say that I like it. I don't actually like the flavor of milk - I prefer when a cereal makes the milk taste like something else. Most of the time, I can power through a cereal I don't particularly like, but I don't know that I want to eat even a second bowl of this - the milky milky milk flavor just puts me right off.

Rating: 🥣
Leftover Milk: Super sweet milky cinnamon.

[Experiment] French Toast Crunch Berries

Description: So I tried General Mills' Cinnamon Toast Crunch derivative French Toast Crunch, and (like with my real French toast) I felt that it could benefit from being paired with a fruity companion. And Quaker Oats' Oops! All Berries is pretty versatile, and well-poised to serve as an add-in to other cereals. The result of their combination is basically strawberry French toast - in cereal form!

I'm still not super fond of the texture of the French toast pieces (no matter how cute they are). The addition of the Crunch Berries is an improvement, but I don't know if it really comes together. When I tried using JoJo Siwa Strawberry Bop!, it was a little more cohesive, but not necessarily any better. I can't imagine going out of my way to have either one again.

Rating: 🥣