The Breakfast Cereal Gourmet

Since I featured the cornflake squares the other day I thought it was very fitting to feature this cookbook. Seemingly, a bowl of cereal is mostly consumed in the mornings before one is dashing off to start their day. Perhaps a weekend bowl while reading the news or watching TV, or a cereal snacker throughout the day. Cereal can enjoy it's place on the comfort food list.  

Much has changed in the world of breakfast cereals since it's introduction many years ago; including it's ingredients, consuming, and marketing. The notorious Cereal Café in London is not only a sign of the times; it proves breakfast cereal has a mainstream consumption and following and it is not just for breakfast anymore. Throughout the years cereal has been baked, twice baked, shredded, squared, granolaed, sugared, marshmallowed, healthier, sweetened, nutted, dried fruit and coconut added, seeded, fibre added, and vitamin and protein laden. One might say that throughout the years, cereal has been put through the mill! 

This cookbook is not disproving what cereal has become but rather to look outside the box; so that it may be enjoyed in everyday cooking and or baking. Cereals crunchiness makes it an ideal as a crust, topping, layer, stuffing or coating. Crushed or ground, cereal can work great as a substitution for flour, breadcrumbs, nuts, or cornmeal. Cereal just may give food great texture and change foods taste in interesting ways. Offering 31 recipes, from restaurants, chefs, and authors across America at the time of printing, a few caught my eye. Asian Grilled Chicken Salad, Curried, Pilaf, Hazelnut Chicken with Mustard Sauce, Caramelized Onion Tart, Black Bean Burger, and Peanut Butter Krispy Cocoa Chews.

The cookbooks heavy thick cardboard covers remind me of a box of cereal. Pages are adorned with retro pictures of cereal boxes and adverts. There are interesting facts and bite sized cereal history details to marvel at... and yes the first use of cereal on the culinary map was the rice krispie treat! 

Here is a lovely recipe to try...  

Pan-fried Ricotta Cakes with Shaved Proscuitto and Herb-Almond Oil

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Serves 6 

Ricotta Cakes:

2 1/2 cups whole-milk ricotta

1/2 cup finely ground Parmesan cheese

2 1/2 cups finely ground Rice Krispie cereal

2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

4 egg yolks

Salt and black pepper

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

4 ounces finely sliced proscuitto

1. In a large bowl, place the ricotta, Parmesan cheese, 1/2 cup of the Rice Krispie cereal, and garlic and mix well. Add the egg yolks and season to taste. 

Form into 6 equal patties and dredge in the remaining Rice Krispie cereal. Chill until ready to use.

2. Julienne the proscuitto and refrigerate until ready to use. Reserve the olive oil until time to finish the dish. 

Herb-Almond Oil:

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme

2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley

1/3 cup toasted ground almonds

Sea salt 

In a blender or food processor, place the olive oil and herbs, and blend well. Add the almonds and salt, and set aside.

TO FINISH:

Heat a very large sauté pan with the reserved 2 tablespoons olive oil until very hot. Add the cakes and cook on each side until golden brown about 5 minutes. Remove the cakes from the pan and place each on a plate. Top with julienned prosecution and drizzle around the sides with the herbed-almond oil. Serve warm. 

Please note: When sharing a recipe from a cookbook I type it word for word, how it is written in the cookbook. There is a typo with the word Prosciutto, unfortunately it has been misspelt... the u has been put before the i, rather than after it. An unfortunate mis-print.  

Have a great weekend everyone! - JD 

Rose Water and Chocolate Cereal Squares

Everyone has ate a crispy rice cereal square or two and possibly even made them. I remember my mother telling me stories about her parents, my grandparents, travelling to the UK where relatives would do all sorts of different variations of the crispy cereal square otherwise known as the rice krispie square. She said relatives would use everything imaginable into this pleasurable homely treat. When I was in grade school one of my classmates would have a rice krispie square scattered with raisins. My mum would sometimes add peanut butter when melting the butter or spread homemade icing across the top. It truly is a quick and versatile treat! Remembering those thoughts lead me to make my version of the rice krispie treat. Rose water and chocolate. A bit more sophisticated than raisins or peanut butter. And since Mother's Day is approaching this is a fun treat that the kidlets can make.

Rose Water Rice Krispie Square

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6 cups of crispy rice cereal or rice krispie cereal

1 package of jumbo marshmallows or 4 cups of regular marshmallows

1/4 cup of butter

1 1/2 teaspoons of rose water

drops of red food colouring

2 - 1 ounce squares of chocolate, melted 

  

First you want to butter the bottom and sides of 13x9 baking dish. 

Melt the butter in a large sauce pan over low/medium heat. Once the butter has melted add the marshmallows. Stir until marshmallows are completely melted, remove from heat. Add the rose water. Stir to combined. Then add the drops of red food colouring. I did not give a measurement as it's far easier to eyeball how "pink" you want the squares to be. 

Once the desired colour is reached add the crispy rice cereal to the melted mixture. Stir to coat evenly. Pour out into the greased dish. Spread evenly and flatten with a moist knife. Let cool. When cool you can melt 2 squares of good quality dark chocolate and drizzle on top. Let the chocolate set then cut into 2 inch squares. 

One and a half teaspoons is the perfect amount of rose water to give just enough flavour without over powering and the dark chocolate cuts down on the sweetness. It is almost turkish delight like. I enjoyed the chocolate pink morsel very much. Unfortunately the picture does not show how pink the square actually is. Knowing that the possibilities are endless what ingredients would you try?  - JW