Hot Cereal

I can see my breath in the air, so yes, it is cold outside. Yes, the familiar red box sits in my pantry, ¾ full, likely called upon during last winter’s cold spell. If today were a school day in 1976, mom would be in the yellow linoleum-walled kitchen, not yet dressed for work as a Spanish teacher at Clute Intermediate School, solicitously peering into a pot boiling water, preparing to gradually add the ¾ cup of Cream of Wheat powder and whisk it in one consistent motion. The key to minimizing “lumps” is to stir it frequently while the cereal is simmering. Mom made perfect cereal 90 percent of the time, which did not bode well for me. I searched for the lumps – they dissolved into perfection in my mouth.

I discovered a few revelations about Cream of Wheat when I inspected the box this frigid morning. The figure, a black chef holding single-handedly a bowl of steaming cereal while smiling enthusiastically, has been the trademark since 1893 (you can find anything on the internet.) The box is indeed a cardboard box, just as it was 117 years ago when funds were so low that Tom Amidon had to “cut cartons by hand, label the packages himself, and crate them in wooden boxes made up from waste lumber.” The history of the cereal is worth a look at www.creamofwheat.com.

Cream of Wheat is good. It is a top-seller, despite its allegiance to a little-known grocery company – B&G Foods. I dare say eating Cream of Wheat cereal is part of our national heritage. It is time for me to enjoy a bowl, garnished with sugar and milk, and I hope a few lumps.