Special: McDonald's Breakfast Items

Via one of my occupations, we were provided with breakfast food from McDonald's all last week.  So, in a small departure from standard cold cereal, I'll post my reviews about a some of the items I tried, starting this week with the...

Sausage Burrito

Nutrition Info: Calories-300; Fat-16g; Cholesterol-115mg; Sodium-830mg; Carbohydrates-26g; Fiber-1g; Sugar-2g; Protein-12g

The image here from the McDonald's website is highly idealized, and I'm sorry I didn't have a camera handy for the burrito I ate.  First it should be noted that this is tiny, about five inches long and about one inch in diameter.  The tortilla was the best part of this thing; it was soft and chewy like a flour tortilla ought to be.  By mistake or not, there wasn't any cheese on mine, but I'm sure it's the same slice of processed American cheese that goes on all their items.  The egg(s?) was a flat yellow strip with green and red squares of bell peppers.  Unfortunately, the bell pepper was the only apparent seasoning.  While this may singe more northeastern tongues, all it did for my southwest-trained palette was add an unwelcome sweetness to what ought to be zesty.  The sausage itself could've just been leftover hamburger for all the spice it carried.  The burrito did come with a packet of McDonald's brand picante sauce; squishing out, it had the texture of a fruit jelly but fortunately enough spice to make the burrito finishable.  Pardon the TMI, but like all bad mexican food, it's trip through my digestive tract was short and swift.  There are so many other items on the menu that will do less harmful things to your body and taste buds, there is absolutely no reason to ever pay for this.

Final Grade: D-

Chocolate Cheerios

Cheerios are a classic, despite being very plain.  Cheerios are so plain, overprotective mothers let their toddlers snack on Cheerios.  That said, almost everyone I've ever asked about it agrees that they almost always add something to their cheerios: sliced fruit, honey, or three table-spoons of pure cane sugar.  Well, General Mills understands, and since everything is better with chocolate, we now have Chocolate Cheerios.  

The Facts:

Ingredients: Whole Grain Corn, Sugar, Corn Meal, Corn Syrup, Whole Grain Oats, Canola and/or Rice Bran Oil, Cocoa Processed with Alali, Color Added, Salt, Dried Corn Syrup, Corn Bran, Barley Malt Extract, Trisodium Phosphate, Vanillin, Vitamin E (mixed tocopherols) and BHT Added to Preserve Freshness.

Notable Nutrition Info (per 3/4 cup dry): Calories: 100; Total Fat: 1g; Sodium: 170mg; Potassium: 60mg; Carbohydrates: 23g; Protein: 1g.  The complete Nutrition Facts can be found here.

So how was it?

Not bad.  This is definitely the standard Cheerios recipe mixed with some cocoa and a sugary glaze.  There are dark- and light-colored pieces, but trying each alone doesn't really reveal why since they all taste about the same.  The glaze gives the pieces a glossy sheen, also different from the matte tan of plain Cheerios.  The texture matches regular Cheerios, including the crunchiness that lasts most of the way through the bowl without becoming too mushy to finish.  The chocolate flavor is very light compared to other chocolate cereals like General Mills' Cocoa-Puffs. 

So was it worth it?

The chocolate is probably too light for kids, who would probably ask for the box with an orange cuckoo bird.  For adult palettes (the ones the box art seems marketed to), the lighter chocolate flavor doesn't overpower the oat and corn of the original Cheerio.  Still, like original Cheerios I don't think it's quite right alone; some sliced strawberries or a banana would perfectly top this off.   

Final Grade: B