Last week for British Isles Friday, Heather reviewed The Shepherd’s Crown (Terry Pratchett’s last book), Sim shared her fantasy flight to Heathrow (it involves Colin Firth, of course), and Tina reviewed The Girl on the Train (which wins for the most reviewed book on British Isles Friday, so far).
I have no idea when I developed a fascination for Weetabix, the whole wheat breakfast cereal beloved or hated by the British. Frankly, I think it was the name, Weetabix, that was the first attraction. The closest thing an American company produces to Weetabix is the Big Biscuit variety of Shredded Wheat, only Weetabix is flaky rather than shredded.
My breakfast choice at home is usually a somewhat sweet breakfast cereal topped with yogurt cheese (strained nonfat plain yogurt). I knew I wouldn’t be making yogurt cheese during our trip to England, so I decided to swap the parts of my breakfast. Sweet yogurts were ubiquitous in even the smallest food shops. So, my English breakfast was sweet yogurt topped with crushed Weetabix to add a bit of substance.
When I got home, about this time last year, I discovered that the nearby international grocery carries Weetabix. I invented a breakfast for fall that was healthier than either my American routine or my English one.
Locally-made apple or pumpkin butter sweetens yogurt cheese with much less sugar than a commercial yogurt. Weetabix has much less sugar than my normal American cereal. My fall breakfast: apple or pumpkin yogurt cheese topped with Weetabix. It captures the season and my love affair with England in one simple dish while reducing the amount of sugar in my day.
Have you been able to transport a British food into your normal routine?