Grits or oatmeal?

Grits, I hate oatmeal.

Froot Loops!

Cinnamon Toast Crunch was my favorite as a kid, hands down.

Grits, but I love oatmeal too.

Alas, the carbs do not love me so they are only an occasional indulgence!

I loved cream of wheat mixed with american cheese and brown sugar. I know it sounds a bit disturbing, but I loved it.

I also loved Lucky Charms so much that my brother used to buy me my own box for Christmas.

@jamielynn2328 How did you ever think of that? I love cream of wheat and I love cheese, but together? That’s an original!

My weird eat is that I love to pile grits on buttered toast. i think they are delicious together. Sure, starch on starch with fat in between. I don’t eat that since childhood.

@Sarcasm my middle son LOVES cinnamon toast crunch! yeah, it is good. i have to admit.

I liked Cream of Wheat. But I had to have salt in it. I remember when I had my tonsils out when I was 8. That & ice cream was all I could have.

Never had grits
Oatmeal!

does anybody understand the salt and pepper in grits? for some reason, those two seem out of place. but my wife does it all the time. perhaps because grits are corn?

@teh_kvlt_liberal oatmeal with raisins, brown sugar and almonds. oohwee!

Never had it that way, but that sounds good
Mmm….

Grits. With cheese. And salmon croquettes and scrambled eggs. And buttermilk biscuits with butter and peach preserves.

i could not wait till morning to eat cocoa pebbles. i know. it’s a fred fintstone thing, but fred was bigtime on saturday mornings back in my day. the milk at the end was so choclatey if you get my drift.

@aprilsimnel i love you. the salmon and eggs part with biscuits. OMG! i love you. please cook it for me.

Hot white rice, milk and sugar.
When I made it for my wife, she wept. It was something her grandmother made for her, but she couldn’t remember what it was.

I like oatmeal as long as it’s maple flavored.
I’ve never eaten grits before…
And my favorite cereal is Cherrios, and Frutty Pebbles. (Flinstones kind)

@Tink1113 go flintstones!

hey, anybody remember cap’n crunch? i don’t think it even exists nowadays, but i loved that %^$#!

Waaaaaal, my biscuit bakin’s a bit on the rusty side, but I s’pose I’ll give it a go. Just gotta get one of those Smuckers Scooby-Doo jelly glasses. Those’ll make ‘em just the right size.

Alton Brown would be proud of me, he would.

@aprilsimnel oohwee! i am so feeling that breakfast vibe!

GET IN MY KITCHEN!

I think they still have Cap’n Crunch
Crunchatize me, Cap’n!
I feel like making some breakfast food now : /

@charliecompany34 Cap’n Crunch was good, but ever since they made the peanut butter flavored one, I didn’t like it anymore. But it’s still around.

@Tink1113 oh wow. i do remember the PB version. it was ok, but that’s when i fell off the cap’n crunch wagon too. weird.

If grits is coarsely ground maize, then I don’t know it: I grew up with cornmeal porridge, made with finely ground corn, milk and sugar. Oatmeal was Quaker Oats; most prepared breakfast cereals were a fairly uncommon treat in the nineteen fifties.

what were the names of those cereals in the 70s with a “space” or martian-like character on the front of the box?

I hope I never have to choose. There is nothing quite like properly prepared steel-cut oats for breakfast, and sometimes grits fill a need nothing else can satisfy.

@filmfann It sounds like arroz con leche, did it contain cinnamon?

I hate Cap’n Crunch. It’s scrape-y. Rice Chex with strawberries. There’s the stuff!

I would like oatmeal over grits.

I used to LOVE Golden Grahams, and still do on occasion, but I like less sugar now.

Now, I like Quaker Oat Squares or Life.

I don’t like anything super sweet. Yick.

@aprilsimnel : I know! Cereal should not shred the roof of your mouth, imho.

@charliecompany34 – That was Quisp, one of my favorites as a kid. There was also Quake.

As for this discussion, I like both. Oatmeal needs to be eaten as soon as it’s done being cooked. I like grits after they’ve been cooked and allowed to chill and gel overnight. Then, slice them and fry them. Serve with maple syrup for best flavor!

@cc34 Grits are only good with salt. (And pepper and cheese and eggs). I remember the family horror when I had a friend sleep over, and she put sugar and milk on her grits!!!!!

@aprilsimnel I want to have breakfast with you too!

And in Italy or Italian American households the fried version would be called Polenta.

Anybody else rememer Alton Brown’s program on grits vs. Polenta?

@Buttonstc yup! sure do! love his show. polenta is better…

@Marina right! she was eating grits as oatmeal or cream of wheat. seems grits must be accompanied with savory seasonings instead of the sweet.

@Marina – I’ve had grits with sugar and milk, too. But if that’s what’s happening, I’d rather the Cream of Wheat. I prefer the smoother texture with milk and sugar.

My favourite brekkie, though, is a full traditional English. Which, now thanks to you guys and your breakfast talk, I’ll probably have this Sunday at Chip Shop.

I have a recipe for smothered shrimp over creamy grits. Poignant pleas, offers of excess lurve, perhaps a bout of actual tears may convince me to post it.

@aprilsimnel i agree. grits are, well, gritty. cream of wheat is easier on the tongue. my advice to all: wash the bowl right away, never allowing the meal to set. hell to clean up at the end of the day.

@pdworkin please do post. i love shrimp.

Hmmm, @charliecompany34, I don’t seem to detect desperation in that request :)

I have to go find it so I can cut and paste. It’s long. It’s also really, really worth the trouble, I promise.

@tedibear39 RIGHT! OH WOW! i do remember! thanks!

@pdworkin maybe not desperation, but curiosity. hit me!

I didn’t like oatmeal when I was a kid, but I do like it now, either with brown sugar and milk well, in England I had it with cream and it was to die for. But not healthy. or the Mexican way, where lots of warm milk is added as is sugar and cinnamon.

I did look forward very much to Cream of Wheat with raisins in it due to a tale about my mother when she was very young we called them flies

I very much like grits with butter and an over easy fried egg oozing all over it, or grits and cheese, or grits and red-eye gravy, or grits and cheese and tabasco sauce.

However, I dearly love to have scrapple for breakfast, with maple syrup. It is just really hard to find down here in South Texas.

As far as cold cereals go, I go for the standards plain with milk: corn flakes, Rice Krispies, or Cheerios, but my all-time favorite is raisin bran with nuts. My brother was addicted to Trix, my sister to Sugar Puffs, and I generally had Instant Breakfast once it existed. Anyone here remember Metrocal? A sort of early Slim Fast.

@Darwin i remember my dad eating oozing eggs and was repulsed, but now, some 30 years later find myself eating the same. now all i eat is eggs over easy to dip in toast. who knew?

scrapple? hmmmmmmmmm…

Yes, scrapple!

Hmmm…as a child, I remember loving Cocoa Pebbles (at my dad’s house) because they turned the milk into chocolate milk. I also liked most other sweet cereals. However, I thought ‘froot’ flavored things were ick. Still do, as a matter of fact.

I briefly was able to eat hot, cooked oatmeal before it started grossing me out again. (I like granola, or cold instant oatmeal with applesauce.)

Now, I like Kashi GoLean Crunch, Quaker Oatmeal Squares, Apple Cinnamon Cheerios, Multigrain Cheerios, (regular) Cheerios, Raisin Bran Crunch, and Rice Krispies (on occasion).

I really like cold cereal, can you tell? (Cold cereal is great, too, if you live in a hot state like I do, where you get really cold winter about 10 days a year or so.)

Also, whenever I visit my Grandma, we like to make breakfast for dinner. Usually blueberry pancakes, scrambled eggs and bacon. Delicious. And I still think blueberries are better than chocolate chips in my pancakes.

Shrimp Stock:

1/8 cup peanut oil
¾ pound Shrimp Shells
1 rib Celery (coarsely chopped)
1 small carrot (coarsely chopped)
1 small onion (coarsely chopped)
2 cloves garlic (chopped)
1 quart water
1/8 cup dry white wine
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 sprig parsley
1 sprig thyme
2 each black peppercorns
1 each bay leaf

Heat oil in a stockpot over medium heat. Add shrimp shells and saute 3 to 4 minutes, stirring until the shells look dry. Add celery, carrots, onions, and garlic, continue to saute for 2 to 3 minutes. Add water, wine, tomato paste, parsley, thyme, peppercorns, and bay leaf. Bring stock to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 1 hour. Strain the stock through a fine mesh strainer. Return to the heat and boil until reduced to ½ quart. Will keep 2 to 3 days refrigerated. Stock can be frozen for up to 6 months.

Creamy Grits
Makes 8 servings

4 cups water
1 cup stone-ground or quick grits
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon white pepper
¼ cup butter
¼ cut heavy cream

Bring water, salt, pepper, and butter to boil in a saucepan. Gradually stir in grits, cover and cook over medium heat for 25–30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add cream and cook over medium hear for 5–6 minutes longer, being careful not to burn. Serve hot

Sea Island Smothered Shrimp on Creamy Stone-Ground Grits Makes 8 servings
4 slices bacon (Diced) 1 cup all purpose flour 1 medium Vidalia onion (diced)
4 cloves garlic minced
1 tablespoon paprika
2 pounds shrimp (medium) Peeled and deveined
3 cups shrimp stock (from above)
3 tablespoons fresh chives (chopped)
½ cup scallions thinly sliced
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Rinse the shrimp and pat dry. Dredge shrimp in flour, shaking off excess, in a large skillet fry the diced slab bacon until brown. Add the Vidalia onions and sauté 2 minutes. Add garlic and paprika; stir and add the shrimp then cook 3 minutes or until shrimp turn pink. Add the shrimp stock and chives; stir and reduce the heat and simmer 10 minutes. Add scallions and cayenne pepper, stir and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Spoon the grits into center of warm soup plate them spoon the smothered shrimp over grits!

I always enjoyed mixing Kix and Cocoa Puffs together to create my own heaven in a bowl.

As a kid, I was big on Cocoa Puffs and Lucky Charms. I ate those well into college, where the cafeteria had a huge cold cereal section. There’s nothing like Cocoa Puffs and a salad for dinner!

I’ve never had grits, but I’d be willing to try them. I do love oatmeal though! I buy a box of plain quick-cooking oats, stir in homemade applesauce, and top with milk. I always make the oatmeal with a bit less water than the directions call for, so it’s nice and thick.

When I was a kid, my favorite breakfast by far was pancakes. I still love ‘em, especially with cinnamon syrup. I make the syrup while the pancakes are cooking, then pretend like I did it for my kids. My parents used to tease me as a kid because whenever we went out to eat I’d either order pancakes or shrimp. Nothing else would do.

My grandma used to make Cream of Wheat for me when I spent the weekend with her. I’d roll out of bed, stumble to the table, and sit down to a bowl of thick, plain Cream of Wheat. She’d have a tiny pitcher of milk and a small crystal sugar bowl with an itty-bitty spoon in it. The place setting, with a pretty placemat and matching napkin always made me feel like I was having a special meal. I’d dump a generous amount of sugar and milk on my Cream of Wheat, sit back, and let my Grandma plan how to spoil me for the rest of the day. Every time I eat Cream of Wheat I think of her!

These days, my most typical breakfast is a bowl of Multigrain Cheerios, followed by the applesauce/oatmeal. Luckily, I never get tired of Cheerios. Although once in a while, I’ll have a bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch or Pops!

And yes, Cap’n Crunch is still going strong. My daughter loooooooves original Cap’n Crunch. The stuff doesn’t tempt me at all.

I’m from Georgia. Which is why its practically a sin against nature that I can’t stand grits! I like oatmeal, but grits are just something that I don’t have any desire to eat!

@MissAusten LOVE Cap’n Crunch! Had some this morning! Also… Fruity Pebbles! I wish I could get Berry Berry Kix around here…

Oatmeal (brown sugar cinnamon).

Loved: Honeycomb

Hated: Kix

Ultimate favorite: pancakes with blackberries and a side of sausage links.

I love pretty much all hot cereals – they’re one of my favorite comfort foods, any time of day. Cream of Wheat was my all-time favorite (with a little milk and some of my favorite jam mixed in), but now that I’m gluten-free, no cream of wheat for me… so sad…

Grits is at the top of the list now (with a little salt and lots of butter), but oatmeal comes in a close second (with brown sugar and fresh fruit – preferably blueberries).

Hot cereal I prefer Wheatina, which is not found in all parts of the US, currently I have to buy it out of state. I prefer oatmeal to grits, but grits are ok when you add cheese and sausage and really doctor ‘em up, but then they become so unhealthy.

Cold cereals I kind of rotate: Special K, Honey Smacks, Grape Nuts, Wheat Chex, Puffins original, Captain Crunch, Raisin Bran, Corn Pops, Lucky Charms. When I was young I really liked Fruity Pebble, which I do not like as an adult, and most of what is named above except for Special K and Raisin Bran, which I had not tried until I was much older.

@Buttonstc I eat polenta for dinner.

Then again, I’ll eat cereal for dinner :). I don’t have many rules about when you should eat what food.

@sdeutsch – How do you feel about Cream of Rice? It is very similar to Cream of Wheat but not exactly the same in flavor and texture, and it is gluten-free. All it contains is rice.

Here is another site that confirms that Cream of Rice is gluten-free.

Oatmeal rather than grits—more fiber, fewer carbs, more tracer nurients, and just as good with butter.

i used to like Life cereal, but now it’s too sweet for me—i almost exclusively eat Spoon-sized Shredded Wheat with Bran, varying occasionally with Raisin Bran.

hmmmm, looking at my two answers, i see that i am succumbing to a geezerly obseession with fiber…. :-(

I don’t like oatmeal!

There. I said it. And you can’t make me eat it, neither! Nyah!

@Darwin I just saw Cream of Rice in the store the other day, but I haven’t tried it yet. I was a little dubious because it seems like it would be more bland than cream of wheat, but I’m going to buy some next time – it’s certainly worth a try!

@sdeutsch – I find it very comforting. It makes my stomach feel good. Sometimes I go all out and make a Venezuelan inspired creation out of it, with milk, sugar and vanilla extract.

First of all, oatmeal with raisins and brown sugar.

Second of all, I LOVE cereal and I still eat it whether it’s Saturday or not. I’m 21 and I still eat the sugary kids cereals. Fruity Pebbles, Cocoa Puffs, Trix, Apple Jacks, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Honeycomb, Lucky Charms, etc etc etc. I love them all. I also really like Honey Nut Cheerios, Rice Chex (with lots of sugar), Rice Krispies (with lots of sugar) and Cinnamon Life. And by “lots of sugar” I mean I put enough on it to make it look like snow on mountains. I add a banana or strawberries to the plainer cereals.

Third of all, I love breakfast period. It’s my favorite meal of the day. Eggs, toast and jam (or english muffin and jam.. mmmm), hash browns, and crispy bacon is another favorite. Sometimes my grandma makes homemade tortillas, scrambled eggs, and bacon. If you put everything in the tortillas it’s like a breakfast burrito. And just bacon in a tortillas is a lot better than I thought it would be.

I love breakfast.

@Darwin Oooh, that sounds excellent – I’ll have to try it with the milk, sugar and vanilla. My best friend is from Venezuela – she’s introduced me to all sorts of good gluten-free treats (arepas being my favorite), but she’s never mentioned the cream of rice. I’ll have to ask her about it!

@sdeutsch – Your friend would know it as a variation of Chicha.

I’ve never had grits.

Cream of wheat with a bit of brown sugar and milk. Or, Quaker Oats with a bit of brown sugar and milk, please.

my first encounter with grits occurred in Cambridge, Mass., when i was 17 yo. So much for their being a Southern food! (or should i have said “its”? i would have said that “grits” is plural, until i realized that it wouldn’t really clang on my ear if someone said, “Grits is better than oatmeal” —it kind of feels like a quantity noun, like butter or water, because of its texture and the way it’s treated, once cooked, as a glop or a semi-liquid.)