Cracklin’ Oat Bran is an old classic for most. However, many of today’s hip and fashionable youths are likely to be turned off by the name. For me, it was just a case of unfamiliarity. I’m quite a fan of cereal and I like to think I’ve enjoyed my fair share of varieties, but this one, in part because of the name, is one I never got around to trying. This despite Matt telling me it was maybe his favorite cereal and general championing of the stuff. Having gotten around to trying it, I can surely say I was a fool. A FOOL, I tell you.
Cracklin’ Oat Bran isn’t some bag of dry, dusty flakes like one might imagine. An oat based cereal in the ranks with Cheerios and Honey Bunches of Oats, the cereal consists of condensed oats in a “squared zero” shape, flavored with cinnamon and nutmeg. When I say condensed, I don’t mean Cheerios condensed, light and airy. This stuff is dense. Each bite of Cracklin’ Oat Bran is like three bites of cheerios. It’s easily the most filling cereal I’ve ever eaten, probably due in part to its high dietary fiber content. A single bowl will almost certainly fill you up for a while. It has a delightfully full crunch, and the taste is equal parts nutty, oat-y, and sweet with a hint of cinnamon and brown sugar. It’s almost more delicious than the sugary cereals I used to eat as a child.
Since Cracklin’ Oat Bran is so dense, it really puts up a fight against the milk. It takes a while for the cereal to get soggy, if it does at all. If mixed occasionally, the cereal will become soft on the outside with a satisfying crunch inside. It also turns the milk brown with its brown sugar, cinnamon goodness. If you’re into soy milk, it’s almost even better with that, at the risk of sounding like a hippy. There are, however, a few downsides to Cracklin’ Oat Bran that prevent it from being the greatest cereal of all time.
First, even though the cereal is a great source of dietary fiber, it does have some saturated fat from the palm oil it uses. For the environmentally conscious or the calorie-counters, that might be the proverbial nail in the coffin. Another thing is the price tag, which amounts to a bit over $5 with tax. I guess oats are not as well subsidized as corn, or something. These two details vary in importance from person to person, however. Either way, Cracklin’ Oat Bran is my new favorite cereal, and well worth a try. If you have kids, your best bet is to just give it to them without telling them the name. Maybe try “Happy Delicioustime Cereal,” or “Bieber-bits.”
