Cereal nation and Annie's mac
Salon has an interesting piece today on the role of cereal in the American diet, of interest to me particularly due to my dad's long career as a food scientist at Quaker. Their basic claim is that it's our national grain, kind of like rice in Chinese cooking. Not sure if I'm ready to cede that yet--white bread seems like a good runner up. But the main problem is that it's not actually all that healthy. Some of the nutritional information here seems a little suspect--is a slice of pizza really a healthier option? What about cereals relatively low in sugar and high in fiber? But it's an interesting argument.
Bonus: There's a link to another article on Annie's Mac and Cheese, which has found a place in our home as of late. Basically, it's the same as Kraft, and homemade is a better alternative if you're trying to avoid the processed food universe. Still, the Velveeta creaminess of Kraft is hard to get at home, in my experience. The background on Annie's is interesting, however.