Monday 21 October 2013

Shreddies Clusters




It’s a fact: my mom was addicted to Shreddies. There wasn’t a morning in the ‘80s or early ‘90s that you wouldn’t find her sitting at the kitchen table in her housecoat, scarfing down a bowl. One time, we ran out of Shreddies and she tore screaming out of the house. Eventually we found her huddled in a corner of the backyard, gnawing on a window screen (I guess it was a texture thing) so my dad sent her away to a cereal detox place.

I haven’t shown her these Shreddies Clusters for obvious reasons, but dang! Anyone could get addicted to these lil’ mountains o’ chocolate. You get the nutrients of Shreddies, the goodness of corn (syrup) and the salty crunch of nuts. They’re like a caker “super food.”

No doubt I’ll be seeing these gems on a bazaar table soon. That’s right! Bazaar-o-Rama is coming back! I try to shake off my loneliness by travelling around to church bazaars throughout November then post my highlights. Last year, I made friends with numerous senior women wearing eyeglass strings, purchased deformed knitted slippers and even ate a raisinless bran muffin. Who knows what high-jinks are in store for this year? Stay tuned.

1 package (6 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate chips
3 tablespoons light corn syrup
1 tablespoon butter or margarine
2 cups Shreddies
½ cup chopped nuts

Melt chocolate chips, corn syrup and butter in small saucepan, stirring until smooth. Add Shreddies cereal and nuts, stirring until coated. Drop and shape into small clusters, a spoonful at a time, on aluminum foil. Refrigerate until set. Make 2 ½ to 3 dozen (1 ½”) clusters.


Source: Country Favourites Cookbook, Mitchell’s Corners Public School

13 comments:

  1. Shreddies look like Chex, and these look delicious. I might have to add them to my Christmas cookie sampler this year.
    And oh, your poor mother. Have you always been this naughty? We definitely need a guest post from Ma Francis, if for no other reason than to defend herself!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I prefer Chex, acutally. They're lighter and crispier. Shreddies are like the Triscuits of cereals. A little dense.
      If my mother had a computer, I'd be a dead man for this post. I should do a guest spot with her, though. We'd be like the Kathie Lee and Hoda of the caker world.

      Delete
  2. I await this year's Bazaar O Rama with bated breath (not to be confused with baited breath). I really enjoyed your posts from last year. Also,I agree with veg-o-matic. Mother Francis should be allowed to tell her version of this sad tale of a seemingly innocent Shreddies addiction that spiralled out of control. Why do I get the feeling Brian's version contains a certain degree of embellishment?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, you factual people. Always mucking it up for us embellishers. Okay, so she wasn't addicted to Shreddies. She just ate them. A lot. And I didn't catch her eating a window screen in the back yard. It was a wicker basket.

      Delete
  3. Brian,
    It was probably the Shreddies commercials that finally put her over the edge.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZ9Zu2qh0Vo

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hold on, Polly. Am I getting this right? Elderly women actually KNIT Shreddies? And here I thought they were made in a factory like all other food.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Yep, just like those deformed knitted slipper at Bazaar-o-Rama.

    I was bored this afternoon and ended up watching about 5 or 6 youtube videos, Shreddies had some pretty wild commercials. Check out all the underlying sexual innuendo in the Tarzan one:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kZvY5e0Neo

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You know, Tarzan could be the spokesperson for a lot of things: thongs, hair remover, coconuts. But Shreddies? That's a bit of a stretch.

      Speaking of, google Shreddies. Apparently, they're a brand of underwear that...er....masks odours. I'm not making this up!

      Delete
    2. Kinda gives a whole new meaning to Shreddies Clusters

      Delete
  6. Yum! You need to gift your Mom with some of these STAT.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Are you kidding? And single-handedly send her back the cereal detox place?

      Delete
  7. Oh Brian, I am so happy that you are reprising your Bazaar-O-Rama! I enjoyed your findings last fall and am looking forward to this year's installment. What's on your wish list?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sara, my wish list is short and sweet: 1) baked goods that don't leave an after taste 2) a hair dryer and 3) peace for all humanity. I don't think I'll have too much trouble finding all of these at a church bazaar.

      Delete