Can you believe the cereal aisle at the supermarket? Aren’t we spoilt for choice? So many cereals, so little time. You’d spend nearly an entire day there if you had to read through every nutritional panel on every box of cereal let alone work out what the best price was on each box. If you’re wanting to still eat a good healthy breakfast, this is how to save money on breakfast cereals and still eat healthy.
What do we eat for breakfast
According to statistics, the United Kingdom is the highest consumer of ready to eat breakfast cereals, followed by Canada, Australia, the United States then Mexico.
You might be surprised at what people from other countries eat for breakfast. Protein rich ingredients like eggs, meats, cheese feature in some countries while a simple croissant and coffee is the standard fare for the French.
Here in Australia we enjoy a range of breakfast options including ready made cereals, pancakes, hot cooked breakfast of eggs, bacon, sausages etc or a simple piece of buttered toast smothered with Vegemite.
Super foods and juices are becoming all the norm these days which suits the busy person on the go and can be blitzed and drank while making your way to work.
Save money on breakfast cereals
I can remember as a child Mum would buy a variety of breakfast cereals based on what we wanted and we’d get tired of them easily then we’d get in trouble for not eating them. Luckily she knew how to use them up in baking.
But there are ways you can save money on buying the different cereals while still enjoying a variety. Here’s how.
Oats
If you buy the homebrand packet of oats (currently around $1.00 per kilo here in Australia), you can eat such a wide variety of breakfast dishes plus the come in so handy for other meals PLUS oats are a great beauty and health treatment for so many ailments.
They can be eaten as porridge by mixing with hot water, boiling on the stove or cooked in the microwave. Add your toppings like fresh fruit, stewed fruit, nuts, other grains and seeds, yoghurt or just a drizzle of honey.
They can be made into overnight oatswhere you mix the uncooked oats with milk or a combination of milk and yoghurt and put into the fridge the night before and you’ve got a thick cool breakfast treat ready to go. You can layer with more yoghurt, fruit, nuts, seeds etc as above. The choices are endless.
You can make your own toasted or untoasted muesli mixing whatever nuts, seeds or dried fruit in or make granola. Bake oats into breakfast bars, muesli bars, breakfast cups and a wide variety of different baked goods that are great for breakfast or healthy snacks.
They truly are a delicious, cheap and versatile ingredient and I always keep them in my pantry.
Corn flakes
Home brand cornflakes are another ingredient that is not only cheaper to buy than the brand names but it’s also versatile in so many other dishes.
If it’s the frosty flakes you like, just add sugar to plain corn flakes. Honey and nuts? Add honey and nuts of your choice. You can always top with fresh fruit and just about anything else you like.
Corn flakes are one of those standard pantry items I love to keep for baking like in myCrunchy Corn Flake White Chocolate Chip Cookies. There’s also a childhood favourite with Honey Joys. They make the perfect crumb coating for fish or chicken too.
Rice Krispies/Bubbles
This puffed rice treat is pretty flavourless on it’s own but wow! Doesn’t it have a variety of uses besides being a delicious breakfast cereal that the kids love.
Add sugar, fresh fruit, flavoured milk (like chocolate flavour) or anything else you like.
You can’t go past rice krispies for a favourite no bake sweet treat. LCM Bars are a standard lunch box treat for school lunches here in Australia. There millions of recipes using rice krispies and I’ve used them many times to make treats for my children.
Whichever is your favourite breakfast, always look at the homebrand version in it’sunflavoured version. Add your own flavours and toppings. Look at using the cereal for other meals and dishes. Let’s not forget about how valuable oats are for your beauty regime. I can’t image making a corn flake mask or scrub but you never know!
