Repurpose your Leftover Cereal

Repurpose your leftover cereal

The first cereal was produced for the public in 1863, and even now, the market is continuing to grow at a fast pace (and is projected to keep going)! The variety of cereals on the shelves, and ease of making it the first meal of your day, can lead to a nice collection of leftover cereal in your pantry.

Do you have too much leftover cereal gathered that you want to get rid of? Stale cereals that you don’t want to throw out? A mix of the ends of a few different boxes? Every cereal box is layered. The top half with the freshness and crunch, the bottom third that can get a little stale, and the pure sand-crumbs at the bottom.

 

Here are my favorite ideas and hacks for repurposing an overflow of leftover cereal, from any part of the box.

 

Monkey Snack Mix:

Turn your leftover cereals into a sweet and salty snack. It can be great for lunch, after school, a party food, and pretty much any time you would eat popcorn- you would love this.

The guidelines are easy, and wide. Mix different shape and textured cereals in a bowl and get creative. Add pretzels, chocolate chips, nuts, chopped dried fruit, mini crackers, and whatever you have in your pantry that tastes good.

Microwave ½ stick of butter, 2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce, and some salt and garlic powder. Heat until melted. (Spice it up with more of your favorites spices!)

Mix and stir in the cereal mix. Microwave for ~5 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes. Spread on a baking sheet to cool, and store in an airtight container.

 

Banana Cereal Pops:

Make these kid friendly and healthy ice pops in under 10 minutes! Cut bananas in half and stick them on a popsicle stick. Spread your favorite yogurt on a plate, and leftover cereal on another plate. Dip the banana in yogurt and then roll it in your cereal “sprinkles”. You can dip each side of the banana in a different cereal for a more exquisite final product. Optional: drizzle maple syrup over your pops.

Lay pops out on a baking sheet and freeze for an hour until hardened. Enjoy immediately or transfer to an airtight container to store in the freezer.

 

Turn it into flour for pancakes:

Starchy, more substantial cereals like cheerios or bran cereals would work best for this. Blend your cereal until it resembles a flour, like what can often be found at the bottom of the box. Measure 1 cup of cereal flour and add 2 eggs, 2 ripe bananas, cinnamon, 1 tsp baking powder, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and a large splash of almond milk and blend again. Heat oil in a skillet and spoon the batter into the pan. Fry into mini pancakes!

 

The ultimate topping bar:

If you have a small amount of cereal you want to use up, toppings are the way to go. Use them to top your yogurt parfaits, ice cream or nice cream sundaes, hot desserts along with some fruit, and a sweet drizzle. You can also crush your cereal and use them for the sweet crunch for a fruit crisp.

 

Turn into bread/panko crumbs:

Cornflake-like cereals are most popular but you can use any cereal! Don’t crush the cereal too fine, the more surface area the more crispiness! Use these crumbs to coat your chicken nuggets, or coat them on vegetables and bake them. Pair with a Buffalo sauce or smoky ketchup! Check out the “Cornflake Crumb Chicken” recipe on prepandrally.com

 

Bake them into a dessert:

Use any and all cereals to make PB cereal bars, or bake them into your cookies, cakes, or cupcakes! You can also make rice krispy treats with any cereal you have, and Rice crispies and pebbles add a nice crunch in cookies. Crush up those cereals and make a chocolate bark, or make a sweet crumb topping for muffins, there are endless amounts of desserts to mix these into!

 

Check out the Peanut Butter Crunch Bar Recipe on prepandrally.comand this recipe I made that can totally handle various cereal mix ins: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIdcqWdxe7E

 

Make it into a pie crust:

Crush your cereals and mix with some brown sugar and cubed, room temperature butter. Mix with your hands and press into a round or tart pan. Use your sweet cereals for a sweet pie and your grain/bran cereals for a savory pie or quiche.

 

Reduce waste by repurposing your cereals in recipes that will actually be consumed and enjoyed!