Healthy, Cheaper Cereals?

I have a bowl of cereal almost every morning. My favorite is Cheerios but I've been venturing into Special K since it's usually at a good price. What can you guys suggest for a healthy, affordable cereal?

And by affordable, I mean...I'm a college student, every penny counts. Inching close to $4 is really pushing it.

If I know I'm eating my best in the morning it'll make me feel better throughout the day. :}

Thanks for any help with this!

Cereal is just not worth it IMHO. I usually buy those big tubs of 1-minute oats from the grocery store. They are much more nutritional then the cereal and make a nice base for plenty of variations.

UD

What types of variations, if you don't mind me asking? I love oatmeal in the morning but only if it has some type of sweet taste, and I have about 5 minutes to make breakfast 4 days of the week because of class. Cinnamon works but not all the time.

I add in fruits like bananas, etc, or I mix it with fat free cottage cheese, unsweetened cocoa and couple packets of stevia to sweaten it. I usually pre-cook a big batch split it in to servings then in the morning I just add whatever I am in the mood for.

UD

I would definately recommend the oatmeal.  Buy a big tub of quaker quick oats (or old fashioned).  They're a really good deal, if you're looking for a bargain.  A 42 oz container costs $4.79 and has 30 servings, so each bowl of oatmeal would only cost 16 cents!  A serving of cheerios costs 27 cents, and is far less nutritious than the oatmeal.  

For more flavorful oatmeal, I add cinnamon but I'm sure you could add some splenda or sugar to sweeten it even more.  I know some people stir in cocoa powder or even diet hot chocolate mix.  You could also make the oatmeal with milk (or chocolate milk) for a bit more flavor.  Currently, I like mixing in flax seeds, cinnamon and slivered almonds for extra protein and a nice, sweet nutty flavor.  You can add chopped fruit too (apples, strawberries, blueberries, etc) or dried fruit (raisins, dried pineapple, etc).  Trail mix stirred in tastes really good, especially if there's chocolate in it (it melts and tastes so good!).  As was said before, cottage cheese or yogurt stirred in tastes great and adds protein & calcium.  

Other cereal ideas:  Kashi Go Lean or other Kashi cereals, fiber one, special k protein, grape nuts, all bran, shredded wheat, weetabix, total

I always get Go Lean!  It's always on sale for some reason (between $2-$3) and it's so filling I don't have to eat much of it for breakfast, so it lasts forever.

I buy store brand bran flakes - plenty of fiber, fairly low cal, and cheap - and either add raisins or homemade granola to it.  I also add half a serving of Fiber One.

I also buy store brand oatmeal to mix half and half with the flavored oatmeal packets.  Yeah, I know the flavored stuff isn't that great for you, but its quick and easy, and mixing it with the plain stuff cuts the sugar in half (which is how I like it anyway).

Another cheap healthy breakfast is eggs and whole grain toast with a glass of milk.

Well, you could try the store brand versions of your favorite cereals if you are trying to save money- I think they'd taste very similar, if not the same. Lately, my favorite cereals are Kellog's Smart Start Anti-Oxidant and Post's Banana Nut Crunch. These cereals are usually 4 bucks a box, but sometimes on sale for 3 something. I used to think cereal was pricey until I realized that if I have the recommended serving size (usually 1 cup) each morning, one box will last me well over a week... which means my breakfast will cost me about 40 cents. Not too bad if you ask me.

Just a tip: Sometimes a bowl of cereal isn't so filling, so I add a few extra nuts, raisins or a banana. If I feel like it, I will sprinkle in ground cinnamon to make it even more delish.

Mo.

You have my vote on the oatmeal. I will never, ever, ever, end my love affair with the breakfast of champions :)

However, if you're into the cold cereal thing (which I usually go to as a midnight snack type deal) then I'm all about shredded wheat, or Quaker 'Muffats' cereal. Both are awesome and have one ingredient- whole wheat. You can add some kind of sweetner if you wanted to (sugar, honey, agave), and/or some fruit, and/or some nuts/nut butter, etc. etc. etc.

Check out the store brands and generic brands.  They are nutritionally the same, but much cheaper.  I found a Total look-alike - store brand whole wheat and brown rice flakes, enriched with vitamins, for only $1.99.  So for 2 bucks I got the same thing as Total for half the price.

hotnhealthymo made a good point about serving size.  It lasts longer if you measure it.

That said, my breakfast of choice is oatmeal with raisins and cinnamon, made the old fashioned way with rolled oats.

Original Post by kuitsuku:

I have a bowl of cereal almost every morning. My favorite is Cheerios but I've been venturing into Special K since it's usually at a good price. What can you guys suggest for a healthy, affordable cereal?

And by affordable, I mean...I'm a college student, every penny counts. Inching close to $4 is really pushing it.

If I know I'm eating my best in the morning it'll make me feel better throughout the day. :}

Thanks for any help with this!

Not sure where you live but I buy bran flakes at Aldi's. You can get the store brand at other places. They are like Wheaties. High in vitamins, whole grain. Look for the kind with low sugar and sodium.
Look for cereal with "Whole" as the first ingredient. Whole, wheat, grain and so on.

Make your own:

http://www.mrbreakfast.com/display.asp?catego ryid=4&subcategoryid=8&recipeid=1439

I have rolled oats in the morning - 1/2 c oats with 1 cup skim milk (you can use water). Cook in the microwave for about 4 minutes (watching after a minute and a half to be sure it doesn't boil over). Then I add 1 tbsp peanut butter and 1 tsp maple syrup. It's about 350 calories and keeps me going all morning.

I second generic bran flakes. About $2 per box. Every morning I eat 2 cups w/ a banana and I'm FULL for hours. And you can't beat all that fiber :)

Kashi is cheaper than most of the other cereals at my store, which is interesting given that it is also probably one of the healthiest.

Walmart sells a cereal called Uncle Sams that is whole wheat flakes and flaxseed. It has 10g of fiber, Omega-3 fatty acids, and less than 1 g sugar. In addition, it is low in sodium and perserative free. I like it's toasty whole grain taste, especially if I mix in into a container of low-fat yogurt and add some berries.

Original Post by adolphs:

Kashi is cheaper than most of the other cereals at my store, which is interesting given that it is also probably one of the healthiest.

Must depend on where you live.  I have never tried Kashi because I refuse to spend $7 on a box of cereal.

Original Post by susiecue:

Original Post by adolphs:

Kashi is cheaper than most of the other cereals at my store, which is interesting given that it is also probably one of the healthiest.

Must depend on where you live.  I have never tried Kashi because I refuse to spend $7 on a box of cereal.

 Whaaa?  $7??  Kashi is $3 here.  Most other cereals are $4+.  I've never seen ANY box of cereal for $7.

Well, I'm in Canada so that may have something to do with it.  Maybe it's marked up because it's an import.  Or maybe because they can put it with the "health food" type cereals at the end of the cereal aisle.  Even when it's on sale, I don't think it goes cheaper than $5.  You could get a box of raisin bran (even the brand name kind) that's about ten times bigger for the same price.

My beloved Alpen is $5 a box, so I stock up when it's on sale as I find even that expensive.  Mostly, I buy big bags of oats and make oatmeal.