I know breakfast cereals are mostly rubbish, but...

[CharlotteCollins]

...are there some that are ok?

I got rid of them this summer and since then the DCs and I have been having much nicer breakfasts, tbh. We eat a variety of good things now: porridge, yoghurt/fromage frais, stewed fruit, fresh fruit, toast, omelette, even kippers yesterday.

But I have kept bran flakes and muesli, which the DCs eat occasionally but I eat often. I think they're not as bad as the more processed ones - is that right?

Still, the DCs are missing cereal occasionally - and although I have the time to cook a little, it would be nice to have something that needs no preparation some days.

Are there any which are better than the rest? Weetabix, for example? Hoping someone with more knowledge than I have can help me!

Some cereals contain quite a lot of added sugar

All Bran (6g per serving)
Alpen muesli contains 10g per serving (not including the fruit sugars).
Weetabix is not so bad with only 1.7g per serving. But hey a little of what you fancy does you good, so they say

Cereals like Cheerios and Co co Pops are so refined that the manufacturers have to add sugar and salt to make them palatable and fortify them with the B vitamins, iron, folic acid lost in the processing.

Stick to what you are serving and make your own muesli or granola. Try buckwheat pancakes with fruit and yoghurt (or smoked salmon) for a treat. They are easy to make. You could use black treacle as a sweetener.

'There are no bad foods, only bad diets'. It's wrong to demonise anything as 'bad'. If your whole diet contains plenty of fruit, veg, wholegrains etc and is relatively low in sugar and so on then a bowl of any sort of cereal is not going to make a big difference either way.

I have tried to ban most cereals, but we still have Weetabix, rice crispies, shredded wheat and Cheerios and chocolate weetabix as a treat.

I buy a cheapo muesli which has no added sugar and then add more fruit and seeds (and nuts for me but the DCs don't like them). So I'm kind of making my own.

There must still be "better" and "worse" foods, surely, Cogito? The over-processed stuff doesn't seem a great start to a busy child's day, regardless of what else he or she is eating later.

I think I'll stick with bread or toast as my can't-be-bothered breakfasts.

"Relatively low in sugar" - yes. Well, the stuff I give them is... can't speak for their father, or for their friends, friends' parents or indeed teachers.

Maybe not as 'healthy' as it could be, but I make my own granola from a recipe by Nigella Lawson. At least I know what is in it- I tend to use it as a topper for a banana or the like . It is lovely, and incredibly easy to make. ( I first did it as an edible present, and ended up eating the lot!) I'm sure it must keep well- but don't know as it disappears very quickly :)
recipesfrom4everykitchen.blogspot.co.uk/2008/11/nigellas-cranberry-almond-honey-granola.htm

My lot like Spiced Apple Granola by Rude Health.

Probably is quite sugary but no more than toast with chocolate spread and a banana sliced on top which is another favourite

There's something wrong with that link, goodbook. Sounds good, though - tasty and easy to make is just what I need.

What's wrong with good old porridge oats? Have mine with mixed berries and some pineapple - you can either heat it up with water/and or milk - or can put all in the fridge with some yogurt overnight and will have absorbed all of that in the morning ready for breakfast. Oats are supposed to be very beneficial in lowering cholesterol too. Really filling and tasty too.

Sorry about the link - here it is written out!
Nigella’s Cranberry, Almond & Honey Granola
From Nigella Christmas

Wonderful sprinkled over yoghurt or as a great muesli cereal with some milk...and a perfect host/hostess gift in a lovely container.

Hands-on time: 3 minutes
Total Baking time: 40-45 minutes
Makes 1.5 quart/litre jar
Stores for up to a month.

Ingredients:
8oz/225g rolled oats (not instant)
2oz/60g sunflower seeds
2oz/60g white sesame seeds
2 tsp ground cinnamon
½ cup runny honey
¼ cup light brown sugar
2oz/60g whole natural almonds
2oz/60g blanched almonds
½ tsp Maldon salt or pinch of table salt
1 tbsp sunflower, rapeseed or grapeseed oil
5oz/150g (2-2 ½ cups) dried cranberries

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 330°F/170°C.

1. Line a large shallow baking sheet (with rim) with aluminum foil

1. Mix everything except the cranberries in a large bowl. Easiest to use two spatulas to blend the sticky mixture.

1. Place the mixture on the prepared pan and spread evenly. Turn with a spatula half-way through the baking process. As Nigella says “the object is to get the granola evenly golden without toasting too much”.

1. Let it cool completely (remove the foil from the hot baking sheet) before tossing with cranberries.

Store in an airtight container.

as far as sugar and so on goes, Weetabix is your best bet. Anything with honey and dried fruit in it is very high in sugar.
I eat like you do, I soak oats overnight in almond milk, add some seeds, chia, a spoonful of natural yoghurt and frozen blueberries in the morning.

yes peas thats true- thats why its a topper or a treat, but in my mind its everything in moderation with a balanced diet - there are other benefits to honey and dried fruit.

Mmm... that recipe does sound good, goodbook. I might give that a go tomorrow.

that much dried fruit is the equivalent of eating a bag of sweets. Just saying

More goodness in there than a bag of sweets, though, no?

Trouble with weetabix is that to my mind (and my DCs) it tastes pretty bleurgh without a bit of sugar sprinkled on top.

Shredded wheat is the only processed cereal that has no sugar, just wheat.

The only ones I've found with no added sugar are Shredded Wheat and Ready Brek.

No added sugar mueslis aren't bad but have a lot of dried fruit so lots of fruit sugar.

Shredded wheat tastes only marginally better than shredded cardboard.

We have plain cornflakes, shredded wheat, rice snaps, bran flakes, rice-wheat flakes (like plain Special K) and the supermarket own version of cheerios.

I look at the sugar content and choose one of the lower ones. Remember that ones that have "no added sugar" might still be very high in sugar if they have dried fruits in. Whether you are OK with that or not is up to you!

Mine have coco pops though which are not only packed full of sugar but also nutritionally dire and don't even fill you up. Hey ho.

nutritionally dire and don't even fill you up

YY, have often thought that... but not as pithily as you put it!

I guess it depends on your relationship with sugar. I've recently become more conscious of it and the fact it is addictive and not good for you. I would have thought sultana bran was healthy for example but those sultanas are 50% sugar so not that healthy at all. No added sugar doesn't mean much if it has honey or fruit in it as they are the same thing

That is true peas -I don't actually have much 'refined' sugar in my diet apart from my breakfast cereal. And I don't have granola every day either - usually oat bran and yoghurt.I rarely eat out, and make most things myself as I grow all my own veg and a lot of my fruit. The worst sugar in my mind is the stuff you don't know you are eating when you buy already prepared stuff.( DH is allergic to aspartame, and its in almost everything , along with a ton of other sweeteners ). But life would be sad if you couldn't enjoy a treat occasionally :)

I like shredded wheat, the raisin one though.

Agoodbook I agree with you, hope you don't think i was picking at your granola, I was speaking generally