Diet Food Reviews
Diet Trash: Quaker Breakfast Cookies
I love Quaker - really I do. Quaker Rice Snacks is one of my top healthy crunchy snacks, and even though oatmeal is not my favorite thing in the world, I do enjoy the Quaker Instant Oatmeal. So I had high hopes for Quaker Breakfast Cookies - at least until I actually got hold of them.
I am not sure what I should have expected. They do use the word cookie after all - so I should have known something was up. The more I thought about it, the more I wondered - what exactly is a "breakfast" cookie? I tried the Oatmeal Raisin variety, and let me tell you - it is no different from a regular cookie. The term "breakfast cookie" is really no more than a marketing gimmick. An AzCentral article quoted Ann Mukherjee, vice president of marketing at parent company Pepsi, as saying "Despite their name, Quaker Breakfast Cookies are not a breakfast replacement but a midmorning snack." [link] That alone wasn't enough to make me consider this diet trash though. It was the 180 calories per 48 gram cookie that really put it over the top for me.
Instead of reaching for a Quaker Breakfast Cookie for breakfast, which certainly wouldn't fill me up, try a bowl of Quaker Instant Oatmeal (160 calories) or any cereal such as Kashi Organic Promise Strawberry Fields Cereal (120 calories for 1 cup). If it is a sweet snack you want, you are better off with Weight Watchers Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Icing (80 calories, less fat and sugar) or Kashi Trail Mix Granola Bar (130 calories).
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Quaker also makes some Fruit & Oatmeal Breakfast Bars that are pretty good: 130 calories, 2.5g fat, 9g sugar, 20% daily calcium and other things.
The boys like the Apple Crisp flavor, I go for the Very Berry Muffin. I can buy 6 boxes of 8 for about $8 at Sam's Club.
First, let me agree that I would not eat a Quaker Breakfast Cookie for breakfast. Regular oatmeal is more satisfying to me.
That being said, these cookies are a healthier, high-fiber alternative to regular cookies. They are delicious, especially when warmed in the microwave. My favorite is the Oatmeal Chocolate Chip:
180 calories
Fat (6g)
Cholesterol (5mg)
Sodium (190mg)
Potassium (100mg)
Total Carb (31g)
Fiber (5g)
Sugars (14g)
Protein (3g)
Vitamin A (15%)
Calcium (30%)
Vitamin E (15%)
Riboflavin (15%)
Vitamin B6 (15%)
Iron (35%)
Thiamin (15%)
Niacin (15%)
Vitamin B12 (15%)
Weight Watcher Points: 3
Tanya, I would suggest that you try the Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Breakfast cookie. It is a healthier version of any other "cookie" that I've ever eaten and makes for a great snack when I'm jonesing for chocolate but know that the choices in the office vending machine would not be a good choice. As for not being filling - I question that. Obviously, YMMV, perhaps you typically eat a larger breakfast than I do. I feel that if it were combined with a glass/cup of Milk/Coffee it could be satisfying enough. If not, pair it up with an apple, banana, or a handful of grapes.
I happen to have an off-brand box of oatmeal in my office and it appears to be of similar nutient quality (depending upon your requirements) as the "cookie" and I don't find the oatmeal to be any more filling.
Cinnamon Roll flavor:
160 Calories
2 g Fat
0 Cholesterol
240 mg Sodium
?? potassium
32 g Carbs
3 g Fiber
13 g Sugar
4 g Protein
20 % Vit. A
10 % Calcium
?? Vit. E
20 % Riboflavin
20 % Vit. B-6
20 % Iron
20 % Thiamin
20 % Niacin
?? Vit B-12