Thank You!!!

This has been a very successful year for us here at General Mills and we owe it all to you! We want to thank you for following us through this exciting new process and really appreciate all of your support. If it wasn’t for you guys out there, Candy Cereal would not have gotten off the ground!

Every time that we asked questions you all responded with the answers that we needed. This was really a group effort. I urge you all to stay with us and keep following the General Mills blog! There will be more in store in the future and we want to make sure that you all are the first ones to know about it. In fact we had so much success with the blog, we want to make it even better for next time around. Below is a survey asking some questions about our blog. Tell us your likes and dislikes and we will take them into consideration in making the General Mills blog the best way for you all to know about what is happening. It is also a way for us to learn more about you as our best consumers! Tell us what you think!

How easy was it for you to access this blog?

Did you learn a lot about General Mills from this blog?

Was the blog appealing to look at?

How did you first find out about this blog?

Have you read blogs before, if so which ones?

What was your favorite part about the blog?

What did you not like about the blog?

If you could change add or take away something about the blog what would it be?

Thank you all so much!

It Has Been a Sweet Year

Our annual numbers have come in and it looks like General Mills has had a record-breaking year. It has been a long and exciting year and General Mills has brought a lot of new things to the table, literally. Perhaps the most exciting and successful, our latest launch of Candy Cereal.

Teaming up with America’s favorite candy turned out to be the recipe for success in the General Mills factory. We kept you all smiling with our Milky Way, Twix, Three Musketeer and Snickers inspired creations. Who doesn’t love candy for breakfast? By the looks of things, it is safe to say that you will be hard pressed to find an American who doesn’t.

Supermarkets nationwide were shocked when Candy Cereal nearly disappeared off the shelves. The day it was first introduced, supermarkets all over the country were running out of General Mills cereal so fast that there were on the phone calling in for more by noon! People couldn’t get enough of the sweet taste of candy in morning.

In celebration of the success of Candy Cereal, General Mills will be generously giving away free recipe books with every general Mills purchase. With the holiday coming up, there will be plenty of people to cook for and General Mills is glad to give some inspiration to your kitchen.

These recipes include great dessert and appetizer options that are perfect for entertaining guest around the holidays. They also include some great meals on the go for you and your family in this busy time of the year.

We at General Mills just want to thank you and your families for always choosing us first when it comes to nourishing your families. Now we want to help enrich them some more. So go out and enjoy Candy Cereal with a early Christmas present from us!

Can you feel it in the air? Christmas is just around the corner. For most, this is the busiest time of the year. Work gets hectic and there is so much to do for the holidays. All the shopping, preparations, cooking and cleaning for entertaining holiday guests; it can be exhausting. It is easy to get caught up in your own world at times like this.

Here at General Mills, we are asking you to take a second and think about those less fortunate this holiday season. Think about people who don’t have the luxury of a steady job or paycheck. Those who can’t afford to buy presents for their loved ones, or people who don’t have much family to turn to for the holidays.

With your help, General Mills wants to make Christmas brighter for those less fortunate. We also know that in these hard economic times it may seem more difficult to give to charities. We understand you if you can’t give a ton, but we aren’t asking for much. It doesn’t take a whole lot to make a difference in some people’s lives.

In the next few weeks, representatives from General Mills will be visiting your local supermarkets collecting donations for your own local charities. In exchange for your kindness, we will reward your donations with free boxes of our Christmas Cereal.

“It feels really good to give back, especially around the holidays,” says Carol Smith of Pleasantville, NY. “I have to admit, I get a little caught up in my own stuff around Christmas time with all the shopping and the parties, but I’m fortunate to have what I do have and really enjoy making someone else’s Christmas better.”

There is no better time to help out those who really need it than the holidays. The holidays are all about being together with family and loved ones. Some don’t have that, so General Mills wants to be part of their family and we need your help. We can make a lot of people’s holiday better by coming together and donating a little time and a little money.

So please, be a part of our family this Christmas at General Mills.

Add a Little Sweetness

Tired of the same old recipes at your Christmas get together? Are you looking for a little something different to spice up your menu? General Mills has the solution to that problem.
We have been putting together special recipes with our new Candy Cereal. It is the perfect ingredient to make your Christmas even sweeter. These creations will become instant classics at your Christmas parties.
Take a look at some of the things we have been cooking up for you and your loved ones at Christmas.

Marshmallow Milky Way Bars

3
tablespoons butter or margarine
1
bag (10 1/2 oz) miniature marshmallows (6 cups)
7
cups Milky Way cereal

1.
Butter 13x9-inch pan.
2.
In large microwavable bowl, microwave butter and marshmallows uncovered on High about 2 minutes, stirring after every minute, until smooth.
3.
Immediately stir in cereal until evenly coated. Using buttered back of spoon or hands, press mixture firmly in pan; cool. For bars, cut into 6 rows by 4 rows. Store loosely covered.
On the Stove: Butter 13x9-inch pan. In 3-quart saucepan, melt butter over low heat. Add marshmallows; stir until marshmallows are melted and mixture is smooth. Remove from heat. Immediately stir in cereal until evenly coated. Using buttered back of spoon or hands, press mixture firmly in pan; cool. For bars, cut into 6 rows by 4 rows. Store loosely covered.

The Real Snickers Doodle Cookies

1 1/2
cups sugar
1/4
cup butter or margarine, softened
1/3
cup vegetable oil
1
teaspoon vanilla
2
eggs
1 1/2
cups Gold Medal® all-purpose flour
1
cup quick-cooking or old-fashioned oats
1
teaspoon baking soda
1/2
teaspoon salt
3
cups Snickers cereal
1
cup white baking chips (6 oz)
Additional 1 cup white baking chips, if desired

1.
Heat oven to 375°F. In large bowl, beat sugar and butter on medium speed until blended. Beat in oil, vanilla and eggs. Stir in flour, oats, baking soda and salt. Stir in cereal and 1 cup white baking chips. Drop dough by slightly rounded tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheet.
2.
Bake 9 to 11 minutes or until light brown. Remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack; cool.
3.
If desired, drizzle cookies with additional white baking chips. In small microwavable bowl, microwave 1 cup white baking chips uncovered on High 1 to 1 1/2 minutes or until chips can be stirred smooth. Drizzle over tops of cookies. About 3 dozen cookies.


Double Caramel Twix Bars

6
cups Twix cereal
1
bag (14 oz) caramels
3
tablespoons water
2
cups miniature marshmallows
1/4
cup miniature semisweet candy-coated chocolate candies for baking
Chocolate Glaze
1/4
cup semisweet or milk chocolate chips
2
teaspoons shortening

1.
Butter 13x9-inch pan. Into large bowl, measure cereal. In medium microwavable bowl, microwave caramels and water uncovered on High 2 1/2 to 4 minutes, stirring after each minute, until smooth. Pour over cereal; gently stir until well coated. Add marshmallows; gently stir. Press evenly in pan, using buttered back of spoon.
2.
In small microwavable bowl, microwave glaze ingredients uncovered on Medium (50%) about 1 minute or until mixture can be stirred smooth; drizzle over bars.
3.
Sprinkle bars with candies. Refrigerate about 1 hour or until bars are firm and glaze is set. For bars, cut into 9 rows by 4 rows. Store loosely covered.
On the Stove: Make as directed above--except in heavy 1-quart saucepan, heat caramels and water over low heat, stirring frequently, until smooth.

You can't go wrong with these sweet holiday recipes!

A lot of things are going on for

the holidays here at General Mills. There is has been tons of positive feedback and much excitement focused on our new cereal that has just recently hit grocery stores across the country. This got us here at General Mills thinking of a whole bunch of fun holiday ideas.

The first thing that we were thinking is that we should do some caroling! Our new spokesperson “candy man” Lamar Odom and others will be participating in some Christmas caroling. The singers will be bringing around free boxes of cereal to each home.

With all the recent success of the cereal, we wanted to reach out and thank all of you that have been so supportive. You have really helped General Mills make this launch the best we have ever seen!

Another fun idea we had was to hold our first annual gingerbread cereal house-making contest. Using at least one box of gingerbread cereal, the person who builds the best gingerbread house will win courtside tickets for the Los Angeles Lakers. The winner will also score a meet and greet with Lamar Odom the candy man after the game.

We really want to thank all of you out there for helping this cereal become an instant favorite. We couldn’t have done it without you guys. And this Christmas we want to give back to you and your families as much as you have helped our family here at General Mills.

So be on the lookout for carolers and get your box of gingerbread cereal and get cracking on the gingerbread house! The candy man will judge the gingerbread houses. So make sure there is plenty of candy and it is totally edible because he is probably going to eat it!

It's Christmas Time in the Cereal Isle

Can you feel it in the air? The air is getting colder and the snow is on the way. Lights are going up on every house on the street and smoke is coming from the chimneys. The smell of pine and gingerbread fills the air and you know what is around the corner. It’s Christmas time!

Here at General Mills we are getting into the holiday spirit a little differently this year.

With the recent launch of our candy inspired cereal, we were trying to think what kind of Christmas spin we could put on it. And then it just clicked. Gingerbread cereal! As a special Christmas edition of our new cereal, we will be flavoring our cereal with a Christmas flare.

Who doesn’t love gingerbread cookies around the holidays? You can find our special holiday edition on the shelves starting December 5^th.

Come check out your local grocery stores on Saturday December 5^th to come and try the new gingerbread cereal for yourself for free! That’s right, General Mills will be giving out free samples of the cereal outside the stores all day.

So bring the family down to your local grocery and taste the holiday goodness for yourself.

Tis’ the season of giving everyone! With every box of gingerbread cereal sold, General Mills will be donating 75% of the proceeds to your local soup kitchen. Christmas time is the best time to give to those less fortunate and we hope to spread come Christmas cheer with our new cereal!

The "Candy Man" Lamar Odom Loves Candy for Breakfast

Lakers power forward Lamar Odom has teamed up with General Mills to show America a new take on the breakfast of champions. As most of you probably already know, Lamar Odom is known as the Candy Man. The man loves his candy and that is not an exaggeration. Everything from candy bars to Skittles, he has got to have it.
Perhaps the most alarming thing about his so called “candy addiction” is that he is a professional athlete competing on the highest level day in and day out. He has people wondering how on earth he could be performing like he does running on just sugar. This information had doctors and dentists up in arms. Hearing that a professional athlete fuels his body on mini candy bars and gummy bears, they had plenty to say about it. They connected his candy addiction to his erratic performances on the court.
When confronted about his sugar intake Lamar couldn’t help but laugh and say, "The games I played well (against the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference Finals) were the games where I ate candy for breakfast.”
Candy for breakfast? What a novel idea Lamar! General Mills has got you covered. With our help you can get all those health care physicians off your back about your increased sugar intake.
Lamar is now the official spokesperson for General Mills Candy inspired cereal campaign. When he found out there was going to be a cereal that incorporated all his favorite candy flavors into a complete breakfast, he couldn’t help but take to the idea. I mean the man loves his candy, but I bet he loves his tooth enamel as well. Now he can have his candy and he can eat it too. Who needs Wheaties? Candy cereal is the new breakfast of champions!