Grape-Nuts: addicted to the crunch

by Stefania Butler, Posted Dec 30th 2005 @ 5:03PM

I am a crunch addict. I much prefer crispy tacos to soft. Quickly-cooked veggies to overdone. I even like my pasta so al dente that the toothsome bite is still...toothsome. I think this is why one of my favorite breakfast cereals is the no frills, no hype, no-prize-in-the-box-havin', old stand-by: Grape-Nuts.

Neither grape nor nut, Grape-Nuts are clusters of whole wheat and malted barley so rock-hard they could easily be used to provide traction for your tires during an ice storm. According to the Kraft website, Grape-Nuts are so named because its inventor, Charles William Post, said that "grape sugar was formed during the baking process (huh?) and described the cereal as having a nutty flavor." No matter what it's called, I love the "danger factor" involved in eating Grape-Nuts—with every bite I wonder if I am going to crack a tooth.

Some people like to heat it up and eat it like oatmeal but not me. That takes all the fun out of it. I like it cold, with a splash of milk, and sometimes, depending on my mood, a little sugar. Yep, forget the healthy, soggy fruit, gimme some sugar instead. I also like Grape-Nuts spinkled over Yoplait cherry or strawberry yogurt. It has to be Yoplait for this even though I much prefer other kinds of yogurt for regular eating. Crunch, crunch, crunch! "What's that you say? Sorry, can't hear you, I'm eating Grape-Nuts!" [photo credit: Matthew Klein]

Filed Under: Food Oddities, Raves & Reviews, Ingredients
Tags: barley, breakfast, cereal, crunchy foods, CrunchyFoods, grains, grape-nuts, oddities, post, west coast, whole grain, WholeGrain, yogurt, yoplait

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Reader comments (Page 1 of 1)

12-30-2005 @5:30PM Huffy said... Oh my, yes!! Another Crunch Princess here, and one who just this morning had a big ol' bowl of Grape-Nuts for breakfast! Cold with a couple glugs of half & half, and yes, more than "a bit" of sugar.

When I get to jonesing, you better not offer me the house brand; it *must* be Grape-Nuts, not Nutty Nuggets or Crunchy Clusters or some other similar abomination. And in truth, I'm so crunch-consumed that I really don't like any of your so-called "nursery desserts" such as pudding, tapioca, junket, or [gasp, call me a rube!] creme brulee. Ice cream's a different story . . . and I'm not sure why.

Huffy
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12-30-2005 @9:10PM teDDi said... MY favorite cereal is "All-Bran" and Blueberry Morning. As well as Honey Smacks. I MUST try these Grape Nuts, sounds so yummiful.

I am hearting cereal.
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12-31-2005 @1:25AM Kelley Ritchey said... I've never been infatuated with Grape Nuts. It's not an aversion to the crunch, but the taste. On the crunch criteria, it ranks up there.
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12-31-2005 @8:52AM christine said... at the mackenzie river pizza company in montana, they make a salad of romaine lettuce, shredded carrot and red cabbage, pears, huckleberry vinaigrette and grape nuts. so good!
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