Red and Blue Cereal Party

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #CerealAnytime #CollectiveBiasHoney Bunches of Oats Honey Roasted has been one of my favorite cereals for as long as I can remember. It has followed me from my childhood years, to college, through boyfriends and breakups, getting married, starting a family and I still love it. Now I have it in my pantry and my family and I enjoy it often. I’m always on the lookout for new cereal flavors to add to our list of favorites and I was able to grab two new ones: Kung Fu Panda Po Power cereal and Honey Bunches of Oats Gluten Free Chocolate. Lets just say Honey Bunches of Oats Gluten Free Chocolate is more like dessert, which is why this box is moving to the top shelf in the pantry. There is also a new Honey Bunches of Oats Crunch O’s that just came out, they must it must be very delicious because it was out of stock at my local Walmart. I guess you could say we are big cereal fans in our house, because it wouldn’t be uncommon to find us eating cereal more than just for breakfast. We also love regularly hosting game nights and having our friends over for dinner and board games. If you have younger kids running around, you know how hard board games can be to incorporate all family members. I decided to host a dinner and have a few “Minute To Win It” style games to combine our love of cereal with our love of games for a memorable game night appropriate for the whole family. Initially this party was all about involving the kids, but this cereal themed bash turned out to be more fun for the adults than I ever imagined. Let me walk you through all of the details so you can re-create this fun cereal-inspired dinner and game night for your own family.

Red Team, Blue TeamBecause I planned this game night with some of our best friends in mind, I knew I could get away with making things a little over the top. I decided to make it feel like a real game show by separating our families into two teams, the red team and the blue team. If you’re having new friends over (especially for the first time) you may want to forgo the whole team thing as it may bring out your competitive nature too early in the relationship.

Initially, I envisioned us in the  90s style game show fashion of high waisted mom jeans, tucked in extra large T-shirts and bright yellow name tags. That idea was shot down real quick as people were only willing to wear the colored shirts. Sometimes you’ll take whatever you can get, right?  Luckily for me, I was able to coordinate the tablescape with our team shirts by separating the table and food into the red team and blue team.

Red Decor, Blue Decor

I love symmetry, and this tablescape was all about the symmetry. I used two of the same, bowls, platters, colors, etc. for each side of this red and blue masterpiece. The mac and cheese (look for my recipe below) was placed in the middle since I only made one dish, but guests were encouraged to eat from both sides, again don’t make it awkward by segregating.TIP: Try to use symmetry for all of your party tablescapes, it makes everything look more aesthetically pleasing, especially when there isn’t a distinct line down the middle.

Red Food, Blue Food

I served a kid-friendly menu of popcorn, white chocolate dipped cookies sandwiches, fresh fruit, cereal cups, mac and cheese (using Honey Bunches of Oats in the topping), fruit cups (strawberries and blueberries), color coordinating candies and a mixed berry mini cheesecakes (using Kung Fu Panda Po Power Crunch cereal in the crust).60 Second Challenge Games

These games made the party so fun and so different than basic board games. I’ll give you a brief overview of how we played each one, you can also print out the instructions here.

Fill Your Mouth

This game is simple, roll the dice and put that many pieces of Berry Colossal Crunch into your mouth. Who ever put the most into their mouth (without chewing) in 60 seconds wins.

Three-In-A-Row

Players tossed Berry Colossal Crunch  into a veggie tray (across the table) to get three in a row in under 60 seconds. This game was harder than it looked because of that shallow middle spot, it look me almost three minutes to complete this challenge on my turn.

Stick It To Me

Players go head to head and throw Kung Fu Panda Po Power cereal at their teammate who is wearing a shower cap topped with shaving cream. Whomever sticks the most cereal after 60 seconds wins.

Mac and Cheese with Honey Bunches of Oats Almonds ToppingIngredients
6 cups uncooked macaroni pasta
1 1/2 cups whole or 2% milk
4 tablespoons blonde roux (equal parts butter and flour cooked)
4 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon salt
1/4 teaspoon powdered mustard

Italian Topping

1 1/2 cups Honey Bunches of Oats Almonds cereal
2 tablespoons Italian seasoning

Instructions:

Bring about 4 quarts of water to a boil over high heat in the pasta pot. Add the pasta and a tablespoon of salt. Cook until the pasta is al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain and set aside.Begin making the roux by melting the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the flour until it bubbles and cooks together.Whisk in the milk, salt and mustard until there are no lumps for 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in 3 1/2 cups of the cheese until it has melted and the sauce is creamy. Taste and adjust the seasonings as desired. Remove the sauce from heat.Combine the pasta and cheese sauce, mix until evenly coated. Pour pasta into a casserole dish and set aside.Place the Honey Bunches of Oats cereal into a bag and crush with a rolling pin. Add in the Italian seasoning and mix until fully incorporated.
Evenly sprinkle the crispy topping over the prepared mac and cheese.
Finish by adding the remaining 1/2 cup of cheese to the top. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

Easy Cheesecake with Kung Fu Panda Po Power Cereal Crust Ingredients:

 

Instructions:

Crush the cereal in a baggie with a rolling pin.Combine crushed cereal, butter, pecans and cinnamon and mix until fully incorporated.Pack down 1/2 cup of the crumbly crust into 6 miniature trifle dishes. Beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer until smooth, then slowly add the sugar and lemon juice. Add sour cream and beat mixture until well blended.In a clean chilled bowl, beat the whipping cream until soft peaks form. Slowly beat the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture.Spoon filling mixture onto the prepared crust. Chill for 4-6 hours before serving.Top with fresh berries and a color coordinating flag to garnish.
All of the cereals found in this post can be found at your local Walmart in the cereal isle. You can also earn $0.50 when they buy any Post Cereals at Walmart with Ibotta. So make sure to share it with your cereal loving friends! What are your favorite games to play for your game nights?