Flyby Tries: Nature’s Cereal

When you’re sitting on a three-hour-long Zoom, there’s nothing better than pulling out your phone to dive into the never-ending TikTok rabbit hole. While trends may come and go (anyone remember Dalgona coffee?), this “Nature’s Cereal” has taken TikTok by storm, endorsed by Lizzo herself — so of course, I had to try it and tell you whether it deserves to be a trend or in the trash.

What is it?

The surprisingly simple recipe consisted of coconut water, fresh berries, and ice. Considering this is exactly what you put in a smoothie (just unblended), I was skeptical from the beginning. I used VitaCoco water, strawberries, and blackberries in my “Nature’s Cereal.”

How it went

While tasty — I mean, it’s berries and coconut water — I think this dish ranks just behind “my.harvard during Shopping Week” but before “Wellness Days” in terms of uselessness. The coconut water did make things a little interesting, but it tasted exactly as I expected: good, refreshing, but nothing special. It’s literally fruit.

The bar was so low that it was underground, at approximately the depth of the inbound level of the Harvard T station. The flavors barely exceeded my expectations. They would have been at the outbound level of the Harvard T station: better, but still underground.

If you actually loved Nature’s Cereal (really???), here are some other subpar similar ways to enjoy your favorite dishes. (disclaimer: don’t actually try these at home)

Nature’s Soup

Love tomato soup? Cut up some tomatoes, throw them into a bowl of cold water, and munch away. Don’t even bother heating it up unless it’s over an open flame — there are no stoves in the wilderness.

Nature’s Tea

Heat water in a kettle, and once it starts screaming like your brain in Lamont at 3 a.m., pour that boiling hot water straight into your mouth and munch on a teabag from Berg. A tea fit for the queen.

Nature’s Birthday Cake

Celebrate the spring break we never had! If you can’t harvest your own wheat to make your own Nature’s flour, just pour some regular flour down your throat and wash it down with some chunks of butter, egg, and sugar. Still less awful than missing out on spring break.

Nature’s Steak

Round up the blockmates for a good old-fashioned paleolithic hunting trip! Chase your prey with crudely fashioned flint knives and spears, before chowing down on your meal like the wolves from Planet Earth. It’ll be the River Run of your dreams.

Overall, I’d give Nature’s Cereal 2/5 stars, only because I’m angry about the level of hype this has gotten. Just have a smoothie instead. Or literally anything else.