Granola Taste-Off

When Nature's Path sent me a big ol' box of their Kirkland (Costco) line of granola, I knew I had to turn the taste-testing over to my stepsons.  A couple of years ago they decided that they wanted to eat granola every morning for breakfast.  And they've stuck with it, except for the occasional surprise pancakes when the mood strikes me.

I'm pretty stubborn about not buying any granola or cereal, though.  I've seen how quickly teen-aged boys can decimate a box of cereal and I'm terrified of what the future will do to my grocery budget.  Can every kid eat bowl after bowl of cereal for breakfast and snacks?  I myself really don't care for most cereal and find that it never really satisfies me.  So I'm very much in favor of my homemade granola, made with our favorite ingredients for super low prices.

But when Mike saw the big box of granola on the counter and he couldn't eat it (it has wheat), he had to buy some Cascadian Farms granola that was on sale.  He was pretty jealous of the giant, free box of granola.


Here's what the kids had to say about each of the two different granolas, my thoughts on the nutrition and whether they liked it better than the usual homemade granola:

Nature's Path Organic Ancient Grains Granola with Almonds
"Very crunchy.  Tastes like honey.  Really filling.  Looks fluffy.  There's nothing I don't like about it.  I would like this for breakfast every day.  I don't want to mix it with yogurt or fruit, just plain."

Nutrition (in 3/4 cup): 6 grams of fiber, 5 grams of protein, 9 grams of fat and 9 grams of sugar.  Pretty darn good!

Verdict: Tastes better than Liz's homemade :(

Cascadian Farms Organic Maple Brown Sugar Granola
"Too crunchy.  Feels really, really dry.  No chunks of nuts.  Tastes a little stale.  Tastes like it has peanut butter in it (that's good). Not too ornate, I like that it's kind of plain."

Nutrition (in 2/3 cup): 3 grams of fiber, 5 grams of protein, 4.5 grams of fat and 14 grams of sugar.  A bit too sugary, I think.  And lacking in fiber for an oat-based product.  The 2nd, 4th and 6th ingredients are all sugar (sugar, brown sugar, maple syrup).

Verdict: One boy says it's better than mine just because it's something different.  Other boy says mine is better.


Now I have to explain to Mike why all of his granola is gone...