- I tried 5 versions of TikTok’s “Nature’s Cereal” trend to see if it was really worth all the hype.
- I wasn’t a fan of the pomegranate seeds, and some of the liquids were either too sweet or too thick.
- But it was a yummy treat, and I would do the pineapple juice and coconut water recipes again.
- You can find more stories on the Insider homepage.
I generally don’t think of a bowl of fresh fruit for muesli, but Lizzo convinced me to embrace the healthy breakfast trend.
The TikTok account @natures_food made “natural grains” only with fresh ingredients in February. The 30-second video shows how he breaks open a pomegranate, sprinkles various berries and pours fresh coconut water over the fruit vegetables.
Since then, it has received over 5 million views, and even caught Lizzo’s attention, who released her own version of the recipe and urged her followers to do the same.
There are already several attitudes about this trend floating around on TikTok. So I decided to try the fruity bowl in five different ways. Read on to see how it went.
Before I started, I spoke to a nutritionist to find out how healthy this breakfast dish really is
@Natures_food’s original recipe called pomegranate seeds, blueberries, blackberries, and fresh coconut water straight from a coconut, and the creator claims it helps digestion and increases energy levels.
According to Sarah Rueven, a registered nutritionist and founder of Rooted Wellness in NYC, this dish is a great way to start the day.
“Berries are loaded with nutrients including antioxidants, vitamin C, phytonutrients and fiber,” she told Insider. “Fiber aids digestion, supports a healthy gut microbiome, and lowers cholesterol levels.”
I tried the original recipe first and it was just as fresh as you’d think
Coconut water is the liquid in the original recipe.
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The original recipe calls for fresh coconut water, but I chose a box to save money and time.
The Creator suggested eating this bowl first thing in the morning, so I put it together quickly before I even had a cup of coffee.
I would make a few changes next time but it was a refreshing meal.
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The fruits all had different sweetnesses. They also had different textures and I’m not a huge fan of pomegranate seeds so their crunch blew my mind a bit.
My coconut water was also room temperature and I think the bowl would have been more refreshing if it had been colder.
Although the subtle notes of coconut balanced the sweetness of the fruit, it was still a very sweet breakfast that I’m not used to the first thing in the morning.
Rueven told Insiders the coconut water base is a great way to prioritize morning hydration.
“Coconut water is 95% water, so it’s an extremely moisturizing drink that also contains electrolytes,” she said.
Next, I tried Lizzo’s version of the food trend
Shortly after @natures_food posted the first “Nature’s Cereal” recipe, musician Lizzo joined the trend, posting both her own taste test and videos of her followers trying the bowl.
The singer mostly stuck to the original recipe, but swapped blackberries for strawberries and added ice cubes.
I appreciated Lizzo’s addition of ice cubes.
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I preferred the strawberries to the blackberries because they seemed to combine better with the blueberries and pomegranate seeds.
The ice cubes that were added were also a smart choice as they made a huge difference in how the coconut water tasted.
Overall, I found Lizzo’s version to be even more refreshing and less sweet than the original recipe.
I also tried replacing coconut water with creamy coconut milk, but it wasn’t for me
I was excited to try the coconut milk version because I thought it was more like granola.
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Another version that is making its rounds on TikTok is replacing coconut water with coconut milk.
I tossed some pomegranate seeds, blueberries, strawberries, and blackberries into a bowl and poured them off with a generous helping of canned coconut milk and a few ice cubes.
This recipe was the closest thing to granola because of the milk, so I was excited to try it.
It wasn’t appetizing at all.
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After one bite, I knew I wasn’t a fan of the coconut milk version.
I was looking forward to a creamy bowl of fruit, but instead the coconut milk was a bit lumpy and the fruit tasted kind of weird.
According to Rueven, coconut milk also makes the dish heavier.
“Canned coconut milk has a thick consistency and is used as a substitute for cream in curries and soups,” she said. “It’s also higher in calories and saturated fat compared to coconut water.”
The TikTok I was inspired by used a carton of coconut milk, not a can. Maybe it would have been better that way. Even so, I preferred the lighter versions with coconut water.
The original creator also made a pineapple juice version, and it quickly became my favorite
I’m a fan of pineapples, so I was excited about this variant.
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The account @natures_food has published another variant of the bowl of fresh pineapple juice.
I don’t have the skills or tools to extract the juice from a fresh pineapple, so I bought canned pineapple juice instead.
I love everything that is flavored with pineapple so I was very excited to try this one. I tossed the seeds and mixed berries (minus the strawberries) into a bowl and added the pineapple juice.
This time I used less pomegranate seeds and more blueberries because I still wasn’t a fan of the crispy texture.
I wish it was healthier because it was really tasty.
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This version definitely met my expectations and quickly became my favorite. The pineapple juice really brought out the flavors of the fruit without being too sweet.
Unfortunately, due to the high sugar content of the juice, Rueven does not recommend eating this version on a daily basis.
“Fruit juice has a very concentrated amount of sugar, which makes this grain sweeter and more likely to raise blood sugar levels, which will inevitably lead to a mid-morning energy crash,” she told Insider.
For added variety, I also experimented with an orange juice version
I thought it would be fun to experiment with a different juice.
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After experimenting with different liquids, the last thing I wanted to do was try orange juice.
I threw in a handful of fruit and added a few dashes of orange juice.
The flavors didn’t work.
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After a few bites I was not sold with this variant.
The orange juice overwhelmed the fruit and the whole thing was too sweet for my taste.
I took another bite, but couldn’t finish the rest because my mouth tingled with the tartness.
The recipes with coconut water and pineapple juice are definitely worth trying
Glad I tried this trend and I look forward to adding it to my breakfast rotation.
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Overall, this fruit bowl – or “deconstructed smoothie” as some people call it – is a delicious treat.
Trying to try a different variation of the bowl each morning forced me to include more fruit in my diet. I don’t always eat fruit every day so it was nice to know I got these nutrients.
Of all the different versions of “natural grain”, the coconut water and pineapple juice recipes were by far my favorites.
Both versions were refreshing and not overly sweet compared to the orange juice version, and I prefer my fruit to float in a thin liquid rather than the lumpy consistency of canned coconut milk.
Overall, I’m a fan of this trend, but it’s not enough for breakfast
My breakfast is usually made up of carbohydrates and protein, so I was hungry after eating just the fruit for about an hour each day.
Rueven agreed that more is needed to create a full breakfast.
“A bowl of berries for breakfast is a great way to start the morning,” she said. “Instead of eating this bowl on its own, combine it with some protein like eggs and fat like nut butter or avocado to round out this meal and make it more satisfying.”
In the future, in addition to protein and fat, I will probably also incorporate “natural muesli” into my breakfast rotation to prepare a filling, satisfying meal.
