We used to have the most epic cereal cabinet when I was a kid. Most mornings, I would walk straight downstairs, pull the stool out of the corner and park it right in front, then climb up and pull down all of my favorite boxes; Cheerios, Kix (remember Kix?) Cracklin’ Oat Bran, Rice or Corn Chex, a chunky granola that my frugal father dad always splurged on, GrapeNuts, and those little stuffed Mini-Wheats that has strawberry jam in them. I would pour a bit of each into my bowl, then eat them in such a way so as not to mix them up too much, diving my spoon down through the layers, pushing little chunks down into the milk like rockslides from a cereal canyon crashing into a milk river below. It was glorious.
I stopped eating breakfast cereal for a long time in college, about the same time that I started learning more about our commercial food system and the practical horror that is packaged food…but true love dies hard. So it’s no surprise that, over the the past few years (especially when I was pregnant,) my longing for breakfast cereal has returned, my curiosity piqued, and I’ve occasionally found myself stalking the cereal aisle hunting for old taste memories.
But you know – none of the cereals that I remember loving as a child are as good as I remember them! Maybe it’s because I don’t have all 7 of my favorites in the bowl at the same time? Maybe they were never that good in the first place? Or maybe it’s that I know too much about how cereal gets into boxes now?? Regardless, the cereal aisle now no longer feels like a place of magic, wonder and possibility.
Strolling through the other day, just to see if anything new, different, FUN had popped up I got a crazy idea: to make my own damn cereal. To pump it with good stuff, great texture, and a little bit of a responsible-adult-who-still-likes-to-party-sometimes attitude. I loaded my cart with some of the commonly overlooked cereal suspects (the inexpensive bags of puffs on the bottom shelf,) then came home and got to work. Golden Smack Breakfast Cereal was the result – a not too sweet, crunchy cereal that literally smacks you with turmeric-maple goodness. It doesn’t need any accompaniments and friends, I think I’m in love all over again.
Honestly, the vaidyaas would have a bone to pick with modern breakfast cereal.
First, the fillers and sugars and the refinement of it all. But further, it’s typically eaten with cold milk (horrible for digestion!) and then, we put berries and fresh fruit on top (again, digestive nightmare!) and THEN, if you grew up in the 80’s sometimes you were still inclined to put more refined sugar on top (my mother never allowed this but I watched in awe as other kids did.)
So how do I get around this and call this an Ayurveda-inspired recipe?
A few things, first I recommend eating a breakfast cereal without any refined sugar. We also are looking for a cereal devoid of seed oils, fillers and additives. What’s that? You’re having a hard time finding one? That’s no surprise, actually – that’s why I made you this recipe!
Second, how you eat your cereal is really critical, from an Ayurvedic perspective. Full disclosure, I warm the milk a little bit so that it isn’t ice cold from the fridge. Just room temp is fine. I do this because cold milk is very heavy, dense, sweet, cloudy and clogging for the body. But, by warming it up we change it’s properties, allow it to be a bit more easily digestible.
Another way to help the digestibility of milk? Add warming spices – like turmeric + cinnamon. These two spices help to keep digestion warm, productive, and clearing and assimilating — all critical jobs that we want our bodies to execute with ease. And guess what?! I’ve put these two tiniest ingredients into this cereal to help us digest challenging milk with ease.
From an Ayurvedic perspective, summer is a pretty damn good time to enjoy a bowl of cereal; the crispy, dry nature of breakfast cereal is exceptional for reducing pitta dosha, and milk (if consumed wisely) is also cooling for the body. This is particularly true if you’re abiding by these two little digestive tips I indicate above. Even though our energy needs are highest in the summer, our metabolism is at it’s lowest and so keeping digestive fire strong is ridiculously important.
Pittas and kaphas will both benefit a great deal from the virtues of breakfast cereal in the summer, and while pittas could enjoy room temp dairy milk, kaphas are going to want to stick to a plant based milk instead. Vatas, you’re good with dairy milk too but definitely make sure it isn’t ice cold!
This cereal has become (dare I say) the hands down favorite of my husband who never lost faith in breakfast cereal, frequently adds a box of cinnamon toast crunch or honey nut o’s to our grocery cart, and thinks it’s practical blasphemy to eat more than one kind of cereal at a time. (Nutshell, we are different cereal creatures.) But we agree that this cereal is SO GOOD. It’s crunchy, sweet, golden with turmeric, cinnamon and maple, and dare I say exotic. It’s clustery and crunchy, with pops of almond and sesame – like good granola meets honey smacks meets Honey Bunches of Oats. The recipe couldn’t be easier, and the payoff is worth the tiny lift to stir things up in your bowl, and to make breakfast simply exciting again…so I hope you give this one a shot!
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