Green Thumb Sunday: Hibiscus, Tastes Better Than Grape-Nuts

When I was little, we went to Disney World in Orlando. This was a big deal to me, as it is to all kids. We had a camper at the time and stayed at the campground that Disney operates on the property. It was a wonderland all to itself, with trails to ride my bike on, campfire movies, giant swimming pools and tons of other kids to play with.

One morning, we were getting ready to go to the theme park. Mother had us up for breakfast in time to catch the first shuttle to the monorail system so we could ride the "train in the air" to the park. So I got up, got dressed and ran out of the camper to the picnic table. I was so excited I could hardly stand it.

And there it was. Sitting right before me. A giant bowl of Grape-Nuts.

For those of you unfamiliar with Grape-Nuts, it's a cereal made of chopped up nuts and bolts, shards of beer bottles, reclaimed chunks of asphalt and concrete, and bits of rocks and boulders that have been chiseled off into the box. Or at least it seemed that way to me. I took one bite and promptly spit it out on the ground, declaring, "This is terrible. I'm not hungry anyway. Let's go."

That wasn't the thing to say, unfortunately, as it initiated a standoff at the picnic table between my parents and me. See, I had pitched a fit in the grocery store to get those Grape-Nuts and swore up and down that I liked them and would eat them, even though my parents tried to tell me that I wouldn't like them. Now they were in front of me and I refused to eat them. Wasting food was not tolerated in my house, even when we weren't in my house.

So the standoff began, early that morning in the RV park at Disney World. No Grape-Nuts, no Disney: it was a simple decision. So I sat there, with the Grape-nuts in the bowl in front of me. And they sat there waiting on me to eat them. And it went on. And on. And on. And on. And on some more. Lunch came and went, still no movement. Early afternoon came, and there the Grape-Nuts sat. Late afternoon, early evening, almost dinner time. There I sat, with this now eight-hour old, completely hot bowl of Grape-Nuts and milk, though the cereal still wasn't soggy. Until...

They gave in. The bowl was grabbed up and thrown in the trash, along with the whole box of Grape-Nuts. I was sent to bed after having no breakfast, no lunch, no dinner, no snacks, no nothing all day long. I had completely missed out on a whole day at Disney World, doing nothing but sitting there at that table. I had done it. I won. But, really, I lost. Of course, this became legendary in the family lore as "The Grape-Nuts Incident" and to this day my Mother reminds me of it often, attributing my current hardheadedness to this specific situation.

I thought I was in for the same kind of incident when The Wife brought in some dried hibiscus flowers she bought at Trader Joe's grocery store. "Try 'em, you'll like 'em. They're tangy," she said. Great. Here we go again. I can either try one and be done with it or refuse and possibly create "The Hibiscus Incident." So I tried one. And, by gosh, they were good. I had another, their chewiness enhanced by their tart sweetness. It was hard for me to believe that this delicious treat was related to the hibiscus growing outside of our hotel room in Palm Springs, California. They are a delicious treat, and I've since found out that some folks use them to enhance the flavor and color of punches and lemonades.

So go ahead, try them. There's nothing to fear. They're much better than Grape-Nuts, which I still haven't eaten.

And never will.

Green Thumb Sunday

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Comments

[Aiyana]

Grape-Nuts are my favorite cereal--I loved them at three years old until today. Yum Yum! I didn't know hibiscus was edible. I'll have to try them. If you liked them and hate Grape-Nuts, maybe I'll hate hibiscus. You have me curious enough to try!
Aiyana

[Nina]

I have a Hibiscus on my porch, but I don't think I'll be "eating" it, you are a brave man.

GrapeNuts aren't that bad, especially if they are hot......maybe you should try them again :-) That did sound like something that would have happened at my house too.....hope you finally made it to Mickey land.

[Wicked Gardener]

Your parents really stuck to their guns. I had a very similar "banana incident" but even I would have eaten a banana for Disney.

[Teresa]

Dried hibiscus? Well, that's something new to lure me into Trader Joe's. And that is one of the best 'family lore' stories I ever did read;
you certainly were pig headed.