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Cereal more than a breakfast food.

© Bob Ewing

Snow. Last Sunday it snowed. Heavy, almost blizzard like gusts of snow fell, off and on, all day. A chilling reminder of what is soon to come. Or is it. Last year, we had little snow during the Winter and a near drought during late June and July. Drought was all too common around the globe. So perhaps an early snow isn't such a bad thing after all. The lack of snow also may be bad news for farmers and gardeners alike. Some plants and crops require a heavy snow blanket to keep them warn throughout the Winter. The lack of snow can also contribute to an increase in forest fires.

Morning, noon or night, there are times when a bowl of cereal is exactly the right food. Whenever I need to replenish my food stocks, I keep an eye out for cereal sales. Dry cereal, especially if you put it in airtight containers, keeps for some time and can be eaten dry. Best of all, it needs no cooking. I don't use milk, at last cow's milk that is. Instead I, sometimes use apple juice but more frequently organic soy milk. Soy milk comes in several flavours but for cereal I prefer the natural or plain. On hot cereals such as porridge the vanilla flavour is delicious.

I have my favourites. Shredded wheat, muffets, raisin bran, bran flakes head the list. My partner enjoys Cheerios which i do eat but find them a little too sweet especially the honey nut variety. I avoid the heavily sugared types and do not add anything other than soy milk or apple juice. The apple juice is more than sweet enough as is the vanilla soy milk. For winter morning breakfast, especially when it is dark and windy outside, hot cereal is perfect. I like porridge made from organic oats and Red River Cereal as well as Cream of Wheat. I have tried other grains such as couscous for breakfast and while it was okay, I think I'll save it for supper.

Cereal is more than breakfast or an emergency food item. It has a long social history and many of us can fondly recall a favourite cereal character. In fact, cereal is so ingrained in our culture that it has its own fans. A large chunk of television ad time is devoted to selling us and our children various brands from the sugar-coated to the bran-filled.

Next week we will visit the wonderful world of potatoes and discover the many varieties that ee never see in our local supermarkets.