The cereal aisle is my favorite place in the whole entire grocery store and I like to think of myself as a cereal connoisseur. Therefore, when I spotted Kashi Island Vanilla Cereal on the shelves, I knew a review was in store. Kashi says, "Island Vanilla cereal marries the smooth taste of real vanilla with pure wheat biscuits for a calming flavor oasis. So relax, pour a bowl, and unwind."
Each bite is lightly compacted into a woven whole wheat biscuit and sweetened with a touch of organic evaporated cane juice, evaporated cane juice syrup, vanilla bean and vanilla extract. The sweetness and vanilla essence of each bite is very faint and I am not sure if I can taste the 9 grams of sugar that are packed into each serving. Adding a splash of milk brings out the natural sweetness a bit more, but overall, it's still pretty faint.
Because of the lightly woven nature of Kashi's concoction, the cereal gets soggy pretty quickly. However, to me, the softness of the cereal is preferred when compared to the strands of loose and wheat-y nuggets that are encountered straight from the box. I am a huge fan of Kashi products, however, Kashi Island Vanilla Cereal let me down.
Each serving of 27 good sized Kashi Island Vanilla Cereal (Organic) Biscuits provides 190 calories, 1 gram of total fat, 6 grams of fiber (23% of the daily value), 9 grams of sugars and 6 grams of protein. The ingredients list is relatively short and includes Organic Whole Grain Wheat, organic evaporated cane juice (and syrup), organic vanilla bean, organic vanilla extract, organic corn starch and natural flavors.
Since I wasn't really a fan of the taste, never again will I shell out $4.00 for Kashi Island Vanilla Cereal (no matter how intriguing the name may be) ... Well, actually, if there is a major sale, I might purchase this again because and try to dress it up (maybe with a drizzle of peanut butter, a scoop of Breyers Free Ice Cream, etc.).