Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Weetabix

Browsing the cereal isle a few months ago I spotted an old friend
When I was in high school my parents imported a lot of different foods. Root beer from America, tiny cereal boxes from England, and Weetabix from England.
I never dared to dream that I would be able to find my dear old friend Weetabix in Texas. I had lived in America for 10 years, and never seen it before.
It turns out that I haven't spotted it before, because it's considered an "organic" product here. I don't buy organic stuff. Not because I don't think organic products are better. For some reason I don't believe the organic food box labels half the time. I mean, how can pasta sauce be organic? They still have to add preservatives to it to make it last. And organic laundry soap? I bet you could find some. Since I don't shop for organics, I don't usually go through the sections that have all the organic stuff. Well, at target, there's a small section in the cereal isle that has yummy cereal. Not that sugary air puffed stuff. This is where I spotted Weetabix. I think I in shock a little at first, then came sheer joy.
What is all the fuss about you ask? Weetabix has the wonderful quality of filling me up. Filling me up with just 1 serving that is. Have you ever looked on the side of a box (of anything really), and find out the only reason they can claim "100 calories per serving" is because the servings are the size of 5 crackers, 1 cup, or 1/2 tsp?
So for a measly 160 calories (including milk) I have a full belly for at least 3 hours. Plus, it's good for me. All that fiber, protein, and healthy fat is a great way to start my day. And it's just plain delicious.
There is an art to eating Weetabix though. It's real easy for inexperienced Weetabix eaters to ruin the whole thing, and make it taste like card board. Since I love all my readers, I will share my secret (and only) way to eat it right.
  1. Choose a shallow, but large enough bowl to fit 2 biscuits side by side (not too large)
  2. Place 2 biscuits side by side.
  3. If the cereal box has any loose crumbs, arrange those ON TOP of the biscuits.
  4. Sprinkle a little bit of "raw sugar" on the top. This is optional, but makes it oh so much better
  5. Now, before you get out the milk, make sure you have at least 10 minutes set aside to actually eat.
  6. Pour the milk NEXT to the biscuits. Do not, I repeat do NOT pour it over the biscuits.
  7. Pour quickly, and just enough to where the milk level is just 1/4" below the top edge of the biscuits.
  8. It might be tempting to let the milk soak in a bit, and then add more, but resist that temptation.
  9. Find a comfortable chair
  10. Enjoy the perfect mixture of crunch, sogginess, and sweetness.
I just want to stress the importance of eating both biscuits in one sitting. If you get distracted for any reason, and leave it sitting for more than a few minutes, you might as well use it to feed you chickens, to glue wallpaper to the wall, or make a cardboard box. Also, if you accidentally get milk on the top of the biscuits in the process of preparing, make a beeline to that comfy chair and eat fast, before onset of sogginess and cardboardness.
When I am standing in that cereal isle I have to mentally restrain myself. I want to grab all the boxes they have, just in case they decide to stop carrying it. At $3.49 a box, I can't really afford to stockpile 50 boxes of it, but I grab at least 3 each time, just in case. Weetabix is worth it's every penny, and 1 box lasts me 12 days. That's a lot longer than the $1 cereal boxes I get for my family!

7 comments:

Todd and Amyjoy said...

Jessica,
I understand! When we were in Norway we imported M&M's, and peanut butter. Root beer was a luxury that we waited for summer for.
Enjoy your weetabix!

Nancy Sabina said...

It's funny that you're just mentioning those because my bro-in-law who served his mission in Englad was just talking about them at the family reunion last week! He was discussing the difference between Wetabix and Shredded Wheat.

Bea said...

One of my fav's for breakfast. I usually add some soft fruit and not sugar but honey. It's yummie.

auntie B.

Julie Carroll said...

Reading your post makes me want to try some. After reading I typed in Weetabix in a google search and went to their website (mostly to see pictures of what they look like.. I was expecting to see shredded wheat, much different) and I saw that you can submit a photo and a little story about why you should be the next Weetabix family... I don't think that you win anything, but you do get your photo on their website. I think you should do it and let us know if you get on!!!!

Julie Carroll said...

Just kidding... there ARE prizes... here is the link

http://www.weetabix.co.uk/weetabixweek/

Good luck!

Lesley said...

I love cereal and eat it every morning. I'm going to have to hunt down some weetabix now and follow your instructions!

Rebecca said...

Weetbix are really big in Australia. But I can't stand them. I'm glad you could find them!

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