15 Dessert Recipes to Use Up Your Leftover Cereal (2024)

Whether you go for the sugary sweet stuff or stick to the healthier variety, cereal is a definite pantry staple. But what’s a girl to do with that last little bit left in the bag that’s not enough for an entire bowl, but feels so wasteful to throw out? Make dessert, of course! That’s right. You can totally whip up a delicious dessert featuring your leftover breakfast go-to that’s just as good as a slice of molten chocolate cake. Whether you choose an easy no-bake s’mores bar or a full-on ice cream cake, the possibilities are endless. And since National Cereal Day is March 7, now is the perfect time to try. Here are 15 easy dessert recipes to use up your leftover cereal.

Cereal Pops

15 Dessert Recipes to Use Up Your Leftover Cereal (1) These treats are like a party in popsicle form. The sugary cereal-flavored milk and touch of ice cream make them perfect for a delicious mid-day snack or the perfect dessert… or both. (via Paper and Stitch Blog)

Cereal Milk Baked Donuts

15 Dessert Recipes to Use Up Your Leftover Cereal (2) You can never go wrong with donuts, especially when they’re baked instead of fried. So pull out your donut pan, and whip up a batch of vanilla cake donuts, topping each one with a cereal-infused glaze and crunchy cereal bits. These would also be great with a chocolate peanut butter flavor. (via American Heritage Cooking)

Cereal Macarons

15 Dessert Recipes to Use Up Your Leftover Cereal (3) You may think you know what a good macaron tastes like, but you’ve never had one like this before. The tops are covered with crushed cereal before baking, and they’re sandwiched around cereal milk frosting. Take care of all those almost-empty boxes in your pantry, and make several varieties of this fancy confection. (via The Busy Spatula)

Cereal Cannolis

15 Dessert Recipes to Use Up Your Leftover Cereal (4) Save yourself some extra time, and pick up pre-made cannoli shells at your local Italian bakery. The star of this show is the filling. Dip each end of the shells in melted chocolate and fill with a mixture of mascarpone, ricotta, powdered sugar and a dash of lemon and vanilla. Add cereal bits to each end and dig in. (via Paper and Stitch)

Milk and Cereal Smoothies

15 Dessert Recipes to Use Up Your Leftover Cereal (5) Indulge in an easy-to-make, kid-friendly smoothie tonight after dinner. Don’t forget to sprinkle some of the crunchy stuff over top before serving. (via A Spicy Perspective)

Cereal Yogurt Bark

15 Dessert Recipes to Use Up Your Leftover Cereal (6) This bark is one of the simplest (and most colorful!) desserts you could possibly make. Get help from your kiddos for a fun after-school activity, then freeze until after dinner for a majorly rewarding dessert. (via Hello, Wonderful)

Peach Cobbler Ice Cream Cake

15 Dessert Recipes to Use Up Your Leftover Cereal (7) Whip up this ice cream cake for those first warm days of summer. Layers of sweet peach and vanilla are stacked between crushed cinnamon cereal and topped with sliced peaches + more cereal. A ring of fresh whipped cream is the perfect finishing touch. (via Life Made Sweeter)

Peanut Butter Crunch Cereal Bars

15 Dessert Recipes to Use Up Your Leftover Cereal (8) This no-bake dessert will become your go-to potluck offering. These bars are loaded with peanut butter, brown sugar and two types of cereal, and that spells crowd pleaser. (via Sweet Peas and Saffron)

White Chocolate Lucky Charm Cookies

15 Dessert Recipes to Use Up Your Leftover Cereal (9) Cookies and milk are the epitome of easy desserts, and this recipe is no exception. With marshmallow cereal baked right into the cookies, you might as well make a double batch right from the start, because there’s no way these are going to last more than a few minutes. (via The Recipe Rebel)

Fruity Pebble Ice Cream Cake

15 Dessert Recipes to Use Up Your Leftover Cereal (10) We don’t know about you, but we’re thinking this would be perfect for our next birthday cake. It’s a grown-up dessert — you’ll need to bust out your springform pan — with a decidedly throwback main ingredient. Saturday morning cartoons, anyone? (via The Gunny Sack)

Lucky Charms Blizzard

15 Dessert Recipes to Use Up Your Leftover Cereal (11) Any excuse to eat out of a mason jar, amirite? Put that half-empty box of cereal to good use to make this frosty treat, which is basically a milkshake with sugary, crunchy, marshmallow-y cereal mixed in. Why didn’t we think of that? (via Boys Ahoy)

Samoa Cereal Bars

15 Dessert Recipes to Use Up Your Leftover Cereal (12) Take a nod from your favorite Girl Scout cookie flavor, and channel it into these no-bake bars. Made with peanut butter, rice cereal, shredded coconut and caramel sauce, these bars will give those Samoas a run for their money. (via Life Made Sweeter)

Cinnamon Milk and Cereal Cake

15 Dessert Recipes to Use Up Your Leftover Cereal (13) This dessert is like a traditional tres leches cake, but it’s made with sugary sweet milk that has absorbed all the yummy flavors of cinnamon cereal instead. Say hello to your new favorite after-dinner treat. (via Mariah’s Pleasing Plates)

Cupcake Puppy Chow

15 Dessert Recipes to Use Up Your Leftover Cereal (14) This totally addictive snack will have you reaching for handful after handful. The combination of almond and butter extracts gives the cereal an impeccable cake batter taste, and the white chocolate and sprinkles make each bite taste like a delicious cupcake. (via Sally’s Baking Addiction)

S’mores Bars

15 Dessert Recipes to Use Up Your Leftover Cereal (15) Now you can have s’mores any time you want without leaving the comfort of your own kitchen. Made with only four ingredients, these bars come together in a matter of minutes. When that craving hits, this recipe will save the day. (via Crazy for Crusts)

From Your Site Articles

  • 18 Homemade Cereal Bar Recipes Kids Will Love - Brit + Co - Brit + Co ›
  • 12 Easy Peach Cobbler Recipes Inspired By Southern Cooking - Brit + Co ›

Ashley Tyler

A South Florida native, Ashley is a new mom who is just trying to figure it all out while still finding time to blog at TWO TYLERS AND A BABY. There, she shares bits of her everyday life, DIY projects, recipes and everything in between.

15 Dessert Recipes to Use Up Your Leftover Cereal (2024)

FAQs

What can you do with old cereal? ›

Table of Contents
  1. Use as a bread crumb substitute.
  2. Stir cereal into pancake batter.
  3. Sprinkle on yogurt, pudding or ice cream.
  4. Make a snack mix.

Can you eat cereal as a desert? ›

If a cereal has more than 8 grams of sugar per serving, it is a dessert and should not be eaten on a regular basis. If your child wants to eat cereal in the morning, consider choosing a cereal that is lower in sugar. Zero to two grams of sugar is ideal.

What food items are made from cereals? ›

Refined cereals include cake, desserts, white bread, white pasta, muffins, sweet or savoury biscuits, refined grain breakfast cereals, white rice, pancakes, waffles and pizza.

What is the top cereal in 2024? ›

Cheerios came out on top, with Cream of Wheat, Honey Bunches of Oats, Lucky Charms, and Frosted Flakes rounding out the top five spots.

Can I turn cereal into flour? ›

“All you need to do is put the cereal into a food processor and blend until it becomes powder. Then use in the same way you would regular flour. It can be used for biscuits, many types of cakes and even pasta!”

How do you reuse stale cereal? ›

Refresh your cereal

If your cereal is soft or stale, place them on a baking sheet and place it in the oven for a couple of minutes at 170 °C to crisp up again. You can then eat it normally with milk or use them in one of our delicious recipes.

Can deer eat cereal? ›

Just like humans, deer have their preferred foods. They will go first to their favorite foods and then move to second-best choices. Amongst the many kinds of cereal that a food plot can offer, deer prefer oats, so they happily graze on fresh oats before moving to other cereals like wheat and rye.

Can you eat dry cereal? ›

You absolutely can. It is very enjoyable that way. There are so many ways you can eat it -dry, sprinkled on fruit, oatmeal, like a trail mix. Just try to make it healthy - and there are so many healthier choices out there now, that aren't just straight artificial colors and sugars.

What's the healthiest cereal? ›

This article will cover the 14 healthiest cereals you can eat.
  • Ezekiel 4:9 Sprouted Grain Cereals. ...
  • Nature's Path Organics Superfood Cereals. ...
  • Barbara's Shredded Wheat Cereal. ...
  • Arrowhead Mills Spelt Flakes. ...
  • Cauliflower “oatmeal” ...
  • DIY peanut butter puffs cereal. ...
  • Love Grown Original Power O's. ...
  • DIY flax chia cereal.

What are the 20 types of cereals? ›

Some of these are mentioned below.
  • Oats: Out of all the cereal types, oats are the most versatile as they can be made in several ways, both sweet and savoury. ...
  • Wheat: One of the most famous and highly eaten cereals in India is wheat. ...
  • Rice: ...
  • Barley: ...
  • Quinoa: ...
  • Millet. ...
  • Rye. ...
  • Sorghum.
Mar 25, 2023

What are the 5 main cereals? ›

The important cereals are - wheat, paddy, sorghum, millet (Bajra), barley and maize, etc.

What are the 6 main cereals? ›

The cereals most commonly cultivated are wheat, rice, rye, oats, barley, corn (maize), and sorghum.

Why do millennials not eat cereal? ›

They aren't eating it for breakfast and they think it takes too much time for breakfast. On top of that, Topper points out that millennials are more concerned than other groups with getting sufficient protein and fiber in the morning, and they aren't likely to see cereal satisfying that need.

What is the #1 bought cereal? ›

1. Cheerios: 139.1 million (in the US AND Tops in Massachusetts)

What's the number 1 cereal in the world? ›

Here are the 10 largest cereal brands, according to Zippia's research: Cheerios: 139.1 million boxes sold. Frosted Flakes: 132.3 million boxes sold. Honey Nut Cheerios: 129.3 million boxes sold.

Should I throw out expired cereal? ›

The good news is that you can still eat cereals after their 'best before end' date if they don't look, smell or taste out of the ordinary. As long as you store them properly and according to the instructions on the label, you can still finish the old box of cereals before starting a new one.

Can you use stale cereal for rice krispie treats? ›

Recipe Notes

** Any brand is fine, but be sure the cereal you use is fresh. Stale cereal will make for stale-tasting Rice Crispy Treats. To make a half-batch of Rice Crispy Treats, simply divide all ingredients in half and use an 8×8-inch baking pan.

Can stale cereal be saved? ›

What's even better is all you need is your oven to make it happen. As the video reveals, you'll spread your cereal out on a baking sheet before placing it in the oven for 5-10 minutes at 300°F. And, once it's done, you'll be met with a fresh crunch that'll be extra toasty and delicious right in time for your breakfast.

Is stale cereal OK to eat? ›

Stale food is usually just a quality issue

It's probably hard to get past the missing crunch when you bite into a stale chip or a handful of cereal. But if you can move beyond the diminished taste and texture, eating stale food will pose no inherent danger to your health. “Cereals don't really go bad.

References

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Pres. Lawanda Wiegand

Last Updated:

Views: 6042

Rating: 4 / 5 (71 voted)

Reviews: 94% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Pres. Lawanda Wiegand

Birthday: 1993-01-10

Address: Suite 391 6963 Ullrich Shore, Bellefort, WI 01350-7893

Phone: +6806610432415

Job: Dynamic Manufacturing Assistant

Hobby: amateur radio, Taekwondo, Wood carving, Parkour, Skateboarding, Running, Rafting

Introduction: My name is Pres. Lawanda Wiegand, I am a inquisitive, helpful, glamorous, cheerful, open, clever, innocent person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.