Wheatena

This is the modern box of Wheatena

  

             When I was a little girl, when all the other rural and suburban little girls were eating "Lucky Charms", and "Cap'n Crunch", "Quisp" and "Quake". my father and mother were buying Wheatena.    Wheatena is a whole grain cereal which actually tastes rather nutty and good.  It is generally served hot, and my Dad added a bit of brown sugar.     Once in a great while my mother would make Wheatena muffins.  To make the cereal, you bought the orange box, boiled some water on the stove, and added a pinch of salt and dropped a measured amount of the cereal in.  In a few minutes the cereal cooked and expanded and had a wonderful smell.
             In the past year as I have been considering things to place in the pantry, I have been looking for Wheatena.   Many stores no longer carry it.  I did find it in the Harris Teeter chain, and it was fairly reasonable.   The new box, still orange, is above.     I also did some research in the course of looking for it.
Wheatena originated in New York City in 1879.  George Hoyt,  ground this wheat cereal and sold it in sanitary boxes rather than in bulk, and it caught on.  He sold the cereal franchise to a physician who was interested in nutrition, named Dr. Frank Fuller, who in turn, sold it to A.R. Wendell who then incorporated "The Wheatena Company".  In the 1960s, the Uhlmann Company bought it, and in 2000 it was eventually sold to Con Agra Foods.   Then on Halloween of 2001,  William Stadtlander and his company bought it and marketed not only Wheatena, but Maypo and Maltex also.
            I know that Wheatena is now available within the United Kingdom, and I know that US buyers are able to buy it on Amazon.com .    I have not noticed it in Canada, but I'll bet it can be found there also.
            Today, I thought of this because I do pay attention to the key search words that people use which bring them to our blog, and someone was looking for Wheatena.
             If you have a chance to try this, please do.  It's a healthy cereal with plenty of roughage, and it really prevents hunger until lunch, as it's slowly processed by our systems.  When prepared with water (some prepare it with milk), it is only 165 calories per serving, and is quite filling.

                               http://caloriecount.about.com/calories-wheatena-i8143

  In addition, a box kept in a cool dry place lasts a long time, and therefore is a good buy for those of us who seek being prepared.  I keep some enclosed in a freezer bag in a freezer also.  It is a nice change from oatmeal or cream of wheat for those of you who enjoy a hot cereal from time to time.  One can also add things to it, like nuts, raisins or pieces of fruit.   My father occasionally added dried dates and blackstrap molasses or honey to his bowl.

This is the manufacturer's home page:

 http://www.homestatfarm.com/

They also have a STORE LOCATOR feature.

If there is no store within your zip code or fairly nearby, they can direct you to a supplier who can
sell Wheatena to you via mailorder.