Lucky Charms Three Ways

So I bought some Lucky Charms. I'm not entirely sure why. People had been talking about them, I guess, and I'm highly suggestible. Plus, they're magically delicious, and all that. (Say no more!) The 11.5-oz box was $3.99 at Pac N Save -- not great, but not terrible, either. Certainly worth a try.

I'm not 10 anymore. Nor am I 11, or 12, or 13, or any of those numbers with 1s in front of them. Not hardly. I'm also not a Leprechaun. Mostly. So I may not be Lucky Charms' target audience. But I do love cereal, and can recognize a good cereal when I see one, whether it's got raisins, nuts, or swirled "marshmallow" charms. For the record, Lucky Charms has neither raisins nor nuts.

In order to give my new cereal a proper shake, I tasted it three different ways: dry, with milk, and with milk mixed with Joe's O's. Here's what I thought about it:

Dry
Lucky Charms makes for a pretty decent snack food or desert. Stick your hand in the box -- of, if you prefer to be sanitary, pour a handful into your palm, and dig in. Just resist the urge to eat only the marshmallows. It's easy to get carried away here, so control your consumption by pouring your desired amount into a bowl, or do as I did and rely on your wife to tell you when it's time to put the damn box away.

With Milk
This is the classic, the way your mom used to do it: Fill a bowl with some milk and some Lucky Charms, and have a ball. The only problem is that Lucky Charms is too damn sweet, and ultimately too populated with "marshmallows," to make for a very satisfying breakfast cereal. It still feels like desert. I personally am not down with opening my morning to such an overwhelming taste of sugar, much as I love sugar. For kids only.

With Milk and Cheerios (or Joe's O's)
I'm on to something here. This is the way adults can eat Lucky Charms and not feel like a drop-out. The plain O's of the mix-in closely match the toasted oat cereal pieces already in Lucky Charms, essentially reducing the proportion of marshmallow pieces in the overall mix. You're diluting the sugar without changing the appealing taste or texture of the cereal, and also increasing its healthiness just a smidge. It's so damn sophisticated!

Take this knowledge, dear friends, and go out into the world. If you stumble across a box of Lucky Charms in the cereal aisle and feel tempted, snatch up a box of Cheerios while you're at it and do your thang guilt-free. As long as the box is around, you're also permitted to say "They're always after me Lucky Charms" in a terrible Irish accent ad nauseum. It's fun.