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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]