Taste Tests are my Favorite!

So the cultural concepts of Change and Stick it to The Man have progressed in a direction I was not expecting.

Oatmeal.

Really. There's a Revolution afoot and I can only thank the grocery store end cap for alerting me to the problem. If we are to believe the packaging (and why wouldn't we? they teach us to read it for a reason!) old fashioned instant oatmeal is ruining everything! What with their paper envelopes and recycled/recyclable boxes and having to pull out a measuring cup for the water...they are hastening our downfall.

As luck would have it, there is a better option! WHOLE rolled oats. Not the broken bits you find in those large, paperboard canisters. TINIER boxes to reduce packaging. And...take a breath...envelopes that also function for measuring the WATER!

But are their claims true? Well, I tested it today. And here are the results:

Number of Servings:

Old Fashioned Instant---> 10

Revolting Instant (isn't that what you call one who is stirring up a Revolution?)--> 5

Cost per Bowl:

Old Fashioned Instant---> $0.39

Revolting Instant--> $0.27

Size of Box:

Old Fashioned Instant--> bigger box, thicker paperboard

Revolting Instant--> claims to be up to 35% less, but you have to buy 2 of them, so it actually comes out to 30% MORE packaging for the same number of servings.

Easy of Preparation:

difference is so slight as to seem equal

Taste: oh. yum. this is why I do the research for you!

Old Fashioned Instant--> classic, yummy, nothing wrong with it, comes in dozens of flavors

Revolting Instant--> dear me, quite good, and I hear it comes in dark chocolate...

Results: Oh, good golly. Did I just spend my morning comparing oatmeal? I did. I even called the grocery store claiming to be writing an "article" on healthy, warm breakfasts for kids. (The man was very helpful, by the way.) So I guess the conclusion is I have a complete lack of shame and no meaningful work to do on a Friday in October. Hope we all learned our lesson here.