I love cereal and I often have a bowl for a snack, but I never find that it does a good job filling me up. Because of this I rarely have cereal for breakfast, assuming that I am going to be hungry in an hour.
Every morning Eric eats a gigantic bowl of Nature’s Path Spelt cereal, chia seeds, and raisins that holds him over for 4-5 hours. I have cereal envy! If I can make it happen, I just may have to design my own custom cereal.
So, this morning I set on a mission to do justice to the cereal bowl…
My mission was to create a bowl of cereal that had the following elements:
- High in protein (over 25 grams)
- High in fibre (over 15 grams)
- Good dose of Omega healthy fats
- Antioxidants
- Fruit
- Super Crunchy texture
- Light sweetness and an array of flavours
Is it possible? And would it hold me over all morning long?
The first thing I did was make a list of the foods that I wanted to include:
- Nature’s Path Spelt Cereal (love this cereal because it’s 100% spelt flour and just 4 grams sugar per serving)
- Raw Buckwheat Groats- For the crunch, protein/fibre + other nutrients
- Eden Organic Soy Milk– I’ve been using this lately for breakfast because it has 12 grams protein per cup! It is also organic, no additives, and uses non-GMO beans. With that said it doesn’t taste great because I got the unsweetened variety.
- Vega Choc-o-lot Protein Powder– I had the fun idea of sprinkling some of my favourite protein powder onto the cereal for an extra vitamin and protein boost.
- Fruit– For light sweetness, texture, and nutrients (Today I used strawberries, kiwi, and raisins)
- Homemade granola– for the insane crunch!
- Sweetened Shredded Coconut– just a pinch on top for sweetness, aroma, and flavour
- Chia seeds– Antioxidants, protein, fibre, healthy fats, calcium, iron, etc.
[print_this]
High Protein & High Fibre Cereal
Staple Ingredients:
- 1 cup Nature’s Path Spelt cereal (or cereal of choice)
- 1/4 cup buckwheat groats (soaked overnight, drained, rinsed) *See note below
- 1 tbsp chia seeds
- 1/2-1 teaspoon (not tbsp like I wrote prior) chocolate protein powder (I used Vega choc-o-lot)
- 1.25 cup high-protein non-dairy milk (I used Eden organic soy with 12 grams PRO per cup)
Before I even poured the bowl, I calculated the nutrition info to see if it was where I wanted it to be. After a couple tweaks, I was able to come up with one powerhouse cereal bowl.
Nutritional Info Per basic Bowl (above):
- 532 kcals
- 15 grams fat (1 gram sat fat, mostly healthy fats)
- 222 mg sodium
- 75 grams carbs
- 15 grams fibre
- 9 grams sugar (cereal and protein powder)
- 28 grams protein
Now add on your desired toppings!
I added:
- ~ 1/2 tbsp Raisins
- ~1 tbsp Granola (I used my favourite granola)
- A pinch of Sweetened coconut shreds
- Fruit to equal 1/2 cup (I used 3 strawberries and 1/2 kiwi)
Buckwheat Note: Apparently, raw buckwheat groats can cause GI discomfort in some people Please proceed with caution when using! Toasted buckwheat (Kasha) might be a better option for some.
[/print_this]
The chocolate protein powder was fun! I’ve never had it on cereal before but I loved the chocolaty and sweet flavour it brought to this bowl.
I also loved the combination of chia seeds, protein powder, soy milk, spelt flakes, and buckwheat. The chia seeds created a doughy VOO mixture at the bottom of the bowl that I loved. This was probably one of the most satisfying bowls of cereal I have had in a while. It was SO flavourful and had so many amazing textures!
But how long will it hold me over? I have my doubts, but time will tell. I’ll be sure to report my findings. :)
Are you a cereal fan?
I usually eat a bowl of Kashi with almond milk and I’m fine for the morning. As long as something has some fiber in it I tend to stay full for a while. If I eat a bagel that’s another story. My stomach will start growling within the hour.
Great idea to make your own cereal! My husband eats cereal daily and would love that concept.
That cereal looks AMAZING! I love the doughy stuff at the bottom you were talking about. I’ll have to give this a try. yum! I’m a huge cereal fan. I love soaking chia seeds in my cereal milk overnight and then adding in my homemade granola and apples. It does the trick every time!
That bowl of cereal looks so indulgent but healthy. I wish cereal held me over longer then an hour. I end up just snacking on the dry cereal instead of making a bowl of it. :)
Ugh I’m with you! My sister can eat a LOW fiber cereal for breakfast and be filled up! It just does such a sucky job of holding me over so I always opt for it for a snack as well. I can’t wait to see if you discover a mix that actually does the trick!!
I love love love cereal. I often find it more sustaining as a snack than breakfast. I love Grapenuts…there are 7 grams of fiber, 6 grams of protein and 5 grams of sugar per serving (I Just looked it up, lol). I typically by the off-brand which has less sugar and add fruit. I definitely recommend Grapenuts!
I love cereal but I also can eat 5 bowls and not feel satisfied, so I haven’t bought any in a long long time!
Well at least it looks tasty!
I go through phases where I will eat an entire box of cereal in a few days and then other times it takes a month to get through one box!
Wow! That is one power bowl of nutrition goodness! I love cereal but always have the same problem with being hungry shortly after. I can’t wait to try this mix – it looks amazing! I’m going to eat it with MANGO! mmm and maybe some banana and coconut. :)
Cereal is one of my favorite foods, but I can never eat it for breakfast. I just need a more filling breakfast, I am known to have cereal for lunch or dinner on many occasions though ;) I make sure to eat my cereal with yogurt to help keep me full.
I love cereal! I think it’s great that you played around with ingredients to make it more filling.
My only problem with cereal is that it doesn’t take long enough for me to eat it, so I end up going for seconds… or thirds ;)
Amazing stats on the cereal. It looks super yummy too. I really want to try making my own flaked type cereal. I’ve made some cereal like grape nuts but not as hard. It’s so good :)
I LOVE cereal — I usually use good ol’ fashioned Cheerios in a snack baggie as an emergency snack at work, for when I’m craving crunchy and in danger of reaching for a bag of chips! I definitely go through phases though; I went through a period of eating cereal twice a day as a meal (using similar mixes to the one you made today to amp up the nutrients), and then didn’t eat a single bite of cereal for three months! I know you go through similar “food phases,” but I was wondering the other day how long it usually takes you to break out of them…. I had the best intentions of going back to a powerhouse baby arugala salad I used to LOVE, bought all the ingredients when I had a craving, and I’m 99% sure they’ve degraded to a pile of green mush in my fridge because suddenly, the thought turned my stomach. Any tips on getting BACK to a food you’ve burned out on, or do you just say “screw it!” and come up with some new delicious treat?
I usually go through phases! If I get sick of it I try something new and then I usually find myself craving it again after a couple weeks.
I love cereal with texture, you know the kind most people refer to as cardboard. I could eat 10 bowls of any other cereal and still not feel full. Coffee is another must for me, without it, my breakfast doesn’t seem as filling.
You are the only person in the world would could come up with a gourmet cereal! :) It looks incredible. I’ll be interested to see if it keeps you full – seems promising!
I used to love cereal – but I abandoned it when I realized that I always ate WAY more than a serving and was eating an unhealthy amount of calories for breakfast. I miss it though – I’m thinking that it might be time to re-integrate it into my diet, but add ingredients so a “serving size” fills me up and meets my nutritional needs!
Can’t wait to hear the verdict :-) That’s my problem with cereal too. Oatmeal on the other hand, holds me over pretty good in the morning. The cereal does look tasty, I never thought of putting kiwi in the mix.
I’m the same way when it comes to cereal – cold cereal alone just doesn’t hold me over for very long, but I love eating it! I’m a serial (haha) cereal mixer, meaning I always include at least 2 kinds of cereal + toppings. I love Kashi Cinnamon Harvest and Autumn Wheat both for their flavor and nutritional stats. I fill my bowl about halfway with one of them, and then top it with homemade granola, banana slices (or other fresh fruit), wheat germ or ground flaxseeds, and a bit of dried fruit and nuts. Unsweetened vanilla almond milk seals the deal, and my hunger is usually satiated for about 4 hours or so.
Your bowl is beautiful! I love the red strawberries & green kiwis.
Now I’m craving cereal ;).
I love your term ‘serial cereal mixer’ :)
I LOVE cereal! And I actually do, all the time, exactly what you’ve done here! I typically have about 1 serving of cereal, with blackberries, blueberries, a chopped strawberry or 2, about 1/3 of a sliced banana, and sometimes I even slice some grapes or grapefruit. Then I top it with a tbl of protein powder, cinnamon and/or cocoa powder, either chia seeds or hemp seeds and about a cup’s worth of almond milk. It’s sooo yummy! The protein powder makes the mix very creamy! And the cereal adds a wonderful crunch, while the fruit gives it such a pop of flavor! The sweet fruit mixed with the creamy almond milk is the perfect combo! This generally tides me over for a good 3 hours or so. I find it to be the perfect breakfast for me. However, I generally eat breakfast at about 8-9 and my lunch break is between 12-1, so it works out perfect! Using the soy milk for added protein is an awesome idea. That’s the ONLY thing I don’t necessarily like about almond milk (the lack of protein). I may try some soy milk. But…I don’t want to just choose any brand. May have to do my research.
I hope it worked out for you!
I agree almond milk is so low in protein. I do love and prefer its flavour though!
Mmm…My new cereal combo that I have been eating for the past few weeks is equal parts raw oats and plain puffed millet with ground flax, cinnamon, almond milk and a scoop of almond butter. This is the only way I like oats, since cooked oats make me feel sick, and I’m not a fan of overnight oats. Keeps me satisfied for 4 hours!