Try This Tasty Sprouted Whole Grain Cereal The Next Time You’re Looking for a Healthy Breakfast Cereal
It’s becoming easier than ever to find healthy, organic whole-grain cold cereals at the grocery store. Just a few years ago, eating whole grain for breakfast generally meant some type of bran flakes. But today, there are dozens of options, from cereals made with exotic grains like kamut, spelt and quinoa, to low-sugar, low-fat versions of breakfast granola.
One of my favorite cold cereals is Ezekiel 4:9 sprouted whole grain cereal. Once you get past the goofy Biblical name and scripture references on the box, you’ll find an excellent whole grain cereal that is high in protein and fiber and low in fat.
Ezekiel 4:9 is made with sprouted grains and 
beans, specifically wheat, barley, soy and lentil beans, spelt and millet. The recipe is an ancient one, going back to the Old Testament (it was actually a recipe for making bread, not cereal — Ezekiel 4:9 also offers a line of sprouted grain breads as well) and the company, Food for Life, modified the basic Biblical recipe to make a line of sprouted grain products.
But how can sprouted grains make a crunchy cereal? After all, aren’t sprouts green?
Apparently you can sprout grains and then dry them and make a cereal or bread from it.
According to Food for Life, sprouted grains are more nutritious and release more healthy enzymes. I can’t vouch for this, but the cereal itself is nutritionally solid.
Because it’s made with beans and several whole grains, it’s a complete protein on its own, which is not common in many breakfast cereals. It also has an excellent vitamin and mineral profile, without having a single synthetic vitamin added to the cereal (unlike many mainstream, fortified cereals.)
Also, because the grains aren’t ground into flour, the Ezekiel 4:9 cereal doesn’t have the same effect on blood sugar that more refined, flour-based cold cereals suffer from. The high fiber and truly whole-grain ingredients in the cereal reduce it’s glycemic load and reduce it’s impact on blood sugar.
So how does it taste?
If you’re expecting something sugary, this won’t be the cereal for you.
Ezekiel 4:9 tastes remarkably similar to Grap-Nuts, and even has a similar texture. Like Grap-Nuts, the flavor is slightly malty and very crunchy.
The cereal comes in three varieties, Golden Flax, Original and Cinnamon and Raisin. There is no added sugar, which means that you may need to sweeten the cereal up slightly with some fresh fruit like bananas, apples or blueberries or even some additional dried fruit like cherries or cranberries.
The cereal is also very easy to digest, and I find that I don’t have some of the same bloating issues with Ezekiel 4:9 that can come with higher-fiber bran cereals made from whole-grain flour.
I checked the Food for Life website, and there is actually an explanation for this. Apparently, when you sprout the grain, the carbohydrates in the grain are converted into maltose, which is ordinarily done by the body during digestion. This pre-digests the nutrients for you.
If you’re not a big cold breakfast cereal person, try including some Ezekiel 4:9 into your homemade granola, or kick it up a bit with some dried fruit for a portable trail mix snack.
In terms of cost, a 16 oz box will run you between $5-$6 dollars — definitely not inexpensive. But like many organic whole grain cereals, you pay for what you get. The cereal itself is pretty satisfying, so a 57 gram serving usually does the trick when combined with some skim milk.
If you can’t Ezekiel Bread 4:9 at your local grocer, try a health or organic food store.
Nutritional Information – Ezekiel 4:9 Sprouted Whole Grain Cereal (Golden Flax)
Serving Size: 1/2 cup (57 grams)
Calories: 180
Fat: 2.5 grams
Saturated Fat: 0 grams
Trans Fats: 0 grams
Cholesterol: 0 mg
Sodium: 190 mg
Potassium: 190 mg
Total Carbohydrates: 37 grams
Dietary Fiber: 6 grams
Sugars: 0 grams
Protein: 8 grams
Vitamin and Minerals*
Vitamin A: 0%
Calcium: 0%
Thiamin: 15%
Niacin: 15%
Folic Acid: 6%
Phosphorus: 15%
Zinc: 8%
Vitamin C: 0%
Iron: 10%
Riboflavin: 6%
Vitamin B6: 10%
Panthothenic Acid: 15%
Magnesium: 15%
Copper: 10%
I have eaten this ceral for over one year now. I was researching for a gluten free ceral when I found your post. I don’t usually respond to such, however, I was offended by your remark about the goofy biblical name and scripture on the box. Since you are prescribing healthy foods, I suggest you take a dose of the Holy Word for yourself…….trust in what it says….that is whay you have the ceral to talk about.
have a great day…
I love the reference to the Bible and the fact that this might be somthing close to what was eaten in those times. can’t wait to see if my health food store has it.
Just be aware that the “original” bibical recipe for Ezekiel bread also included human (and then cow) dung as an ingredient. So you might not want to take this too literally. Which, of course, is generally good advice when reading the Bible in general.
Thanks for stopping by!
I do not think you should call biblical ANYTHING goofy. If you look up the biblical verse as suggested by the name of THIS bread & cereal then perhaps you’ll be wiser than you once were!
your words quoted from above, “One of my favorite cold cereals is Ezekiel 4:9 sprouted whole grain cereal. Once you get past the goofy Biblical name and scripture references on the box, you’ll find an excellent whole grain cereal that is high in protein and fiber and low in fat.”
This is excellant tasting, good for you, smart bread – nothing “goofy” about it.
The idea of eating bread that isn’t full of yeast was God’s idea & credit to him is not “goofy”.
Theresa, thanks for sharing your “righteous indignation” over my choice of words to refer to the name of a for-profit, secular cereal.
You’ll notice that I also offended Judy a few months ago over the same thing. Like you, Judy suggested that some “churchin’” and time spent reading the Holy Scriptures would help set-me straight, and make sure that in the future, I don’t refer to the names of cold cereals as “goofy.”
While I don’t really feel like I need to justify the choice of words I used to describe the name Food for Life chose for Ezekiel 4:9 cereal and bread, I pretty much explain everything else on this site, so why not this?
Here’s the deal: I still think the Biblical reference in the name of a sprouted grain gain cereal is “goofy. Notice, I did not say the Bible was “goofy”, Jesus was Goofy, or Ezekiel was “goofy” — although some biblical scholars maintain that Ezekiel may have had a medical condition that caused him to hallicinate, possible epilepsy or something called Geschwind syndrome. So while Ezekiel’s peers might not have called him “goofy”, they might have thought he was “crazy.” And they may have been right. Or they may have been wrong and he really was prophet receiving the inspired word of God. Just really depends on how you personally view that 2,000+ year old book.
I have read the story of Ezekiel numerous times. I’ve also read the original “Biblical” recipe for Ezekiel sprouted grain, unleavened bread, and it’s not quite as “pure” as the stuff that Food for Life markets in your local grocery store. And I quote:
And thou shalt eat it as barley cakes, and thou shalt bake it with dung that cometh out of man, in their sight. And the LORD said, Even thus shall the children of Israel eat their defiled bread among the Gentiles, whither I will drive them.” (Ezekiel 4:12-13
Now, there is some dispute over whether that means: Whether The Lord instructed Ezekiel to mix human feces (later it was downgraded to cow dung) in with the bread, or whether that was merely the fuel that Ezekiel should use to cook the bread over — but in either case, Food for Life clearly skipped that part of the Biblical recipe for their 21st century version of the recipe.
There also is a school of thought that says this is a symbolic recipe and simply another “test” from God to Ezekiel (She/He/God was very fond of testing people with all kind of uncomfortable things — including regular plagues – in the Old Testament, as I’m sure you already know.)
Clearly, the Food for Life people didn’t take this recipe literally (thank God), since it contains several ingredients (including yeast) that were not present in the Divinely-concocted recipe.
What I actually find kind of offensive is not that the Bible would inspire a healthy recipe or food, but that a for-profit company would take religion and try to use it as a marketing pitch. Clearly, Food for Life wants to appeal to Christians with this name. I also have issues with companies that make Biblical action figures or introduce for-profit products that use Christianity or any other religion to pander to people’s personal spiritual beliefs in order to make a profit. Talk about money changers in the Temple.
Anyway, I’m going to cut Food for Life some slack, because they make a really good bread and cereal that I think is tasty and healthy. They could have just as easily called it “Food For Life Sprouted Grain Cereal” and skipped the whole “goofy” Biblical reference in the name. But then, they probably wouldn’t have attracted Christian buyers who unwittingly believe that they are buying a food from God each time they pick up a loaf of Ezekiel 4:9 bread or Ezekiel 4:9 cereal.
I hope this clears things up here. I’m certainly not interested in starting a Holy War over a bowl of sprouted gains and legumes, although no doubt there are some out there who would.
Cheers … Matt
As to the question of dung being in the bread, this is rediculous. Any easy study of the method of baking bread during this time period would yield the answer. Some peoples would use either human or animal dung to fuel the fire. To the Israelite, baking over human dung was not Kosher. Animal dung, however was fine. How anyone with any study would get the idea of mixing in ANY kind of feces to make bread I don’t get. Also, can someone tell me how sprouted grains correlate with this verse? Nowhere is it mentioned. Many times it helps to study historical recrords and archaelogical findings to fully understand details in the Bible.
What about the seemingly high carb count? What are the thoughts on this?
My husband bought 2 boxes and we hate it. Anyone have a recipe so I can use it up?
In my opinion this is the best cold cereal that you can buy. It is my favorite. I used to get it at our Kroger grocery store but they quit selling it. That ticked me off.
I found that mixing Ezekiel 4:9 with freshly juiced apples and letting it soak for an hour or longer softens it some but retains the chewyness.
By the way if you understood what the Word of God says in Ezekiel it is not speaking of mixing human dung or animal dung into it. The dung was used to cook the bread.
If someone wants to call the name of the cereal goofy that’s their opinion. There are much more weighty matters in this life to weigh in on so I would not waste your God given energy on this one.
East this 6days of week for breakfast and sometimes before bed. I sleep so much better. My bowls are better than normal. I scoop one/half cup of EZEKIEL 4:9 Golden Flax into bowl. Add 1/4 cup of walnuts broken up into bowl. Then I add 1/4th cup of my choice of either: dried black currant berries, or dried canberries, or raisins, or bannana, or any fresh or dried fruit. That’s how I vary the taste each day. It is toally good for me. I love the Lord’s suggestion that was taken into account by the Food for Life company. Sooooo glad, they produce a quality product. The cost where I live is about 4.85 and well worth it. Oh, yes, I use vanilla soy milk by Silk I taking my time in eating and enjoying all the nuts and nutty grains along with the sweet from fruit makes it perfect. P. S. The 7th day off the cereal I have Ezekiel 4:9 bread toasted; with a frozen blend of blueberries, strawberries, bananas, and apple blended. P.S. If you like your cereral soft let it set in bowl of milk a while for second choice…….. That’s all I have to say and I am sticking to it.
Try this recipe- protein pancakes
1/4 cup Ezekiel cereal
1/4 cup oats
1 cup liquid egg whites
1/4 package of sugar free/fat free pudding mix (Vanilla)
Cinnamon (as much as you like)
Blend all ingrediants (I use the magic bullet)
Spray pan (Smart balance Omega) pour onto a pan- stove top Medium heat. about 5 minutes.
If you have a real sweet tooth add a packet of TRUVIA natural sweetner on top while still warm.
This comes out to be about 35 carbs (0 sugar, 5 grams fiber) 31 grams Protein, and about 2 grams fat. Try it 45 minutes before working out!
If you want to add healthy fat, use Natural (creamy) Almond Butter on top (1 tablespoon)
I love Ezekiel cereal. It is the most healthiest cereal on the market. This is because the grains are sprouted. Use raw milk with the Ezekiel cereal, with some bananas, and you will love it too! The Cinnamon Raison and Almond are my favorite!
Wow, all I was looking for was unique recipes and instead we have all these serious comments taking offense to a little offhand comment about a goofy name. Well take it from me, the name is goofy. Utterly goofy. Coming from England, this product would be laughed off the shelves! It doesnt matter though, sadly I cant get this cereal here.. Does anyone know of a an alternative I might try the recipe with?
ps: Thank you Matt, and dont take these morons too seriously, eh?
Ha! ALL biblical references are not only ‘goofy’, but irrelevent, pointless and complete fantasy. I can’t believe this discussion is taking place over CEREAL! You bible-bashers need to get a life. THERE IS NO GOD. Wake up and smell the coffee!
Yuck – just bought a very expensive box of the cereal and every other bite tasts like mold.
were I can buy Ezechiel products and Manna bread and Healthy Food
were I can buy Ezechiel products and Manna bread and Healthy Food in London UK