I’ve learned to regard any diet version of a guilty pleasure food with a healthy dose of skepticism. I’ve just been burned too many times (looking at you low-carb chocolate). I’m down with mashed cauliflower as a substitute for potatoes from time to time, and Halo Top low-calorie ice cream is actually pretty spot on (if you can afford it). But sweet breakfast cereal seemed like one of those things we’d just have to accept as mostly bad for us and consume in moderation, leaving the Sunday morning cartoon and cereal binges of our youth behind.
That notion was rattled a bit upon discovery of a new-ish line of kid- and adult-friendly low-carb keto cereals from a company called Magic Spoon. Packaged in brightly-colored boxes, Magic Spoon claims to be the first keto-friendly low carb, high protein cereal for adults, but with flavors like fruity (think Froot Loops) cocoa (Cocoa Krispies), frosted (Frosted Flakes), and blueberry, they are definitely making a play for kids, too (or at least the kid inside us).
As it turns out, this old dog can still be surprised once in a while because I genuinely liked it. All four flavors I tasted worked well—frosted and fruity were my favorites—with a formidable, and mostly normal-tasting sweetness and a crunch that held, even when submerged in milk for a few minutes.
By comparison, Magic Spoon cereal averages just three net carbs per bowl versus 20 or more from sweet cereals, like Frosted Flakes or Froot Loops. One serving also contains 12 grams of protein (mostly from whey protein). For reference, an egg has just six. How do they do it? The cereal itself is made with low-carb, gluten-free tapioca flour and whey protein, while each cereal gets its sweet blast from a trinity of low-glycemic sweeteners: monk fruit, stevia, and allulose.
Does it taste exactly like the sweet cereals many of us grew up on? The short answer is no. And I contend, sadly, that there will never be anything that tastes as good as O.G. sugar, but the Magic Spoon formula is darn close, and the full line of sweet cereals is worth trying out for a lower-carb, sweet snack, reminiscent of the good old days.
Magic Spoon Variety Pack (4 boxes), $39 from Magic Spoon
The Magic Spoon variety pack includes Frosted, Fruity, Cocoa, and Blueberry flavors.Buy Now