It is absolutely crazy how time has flown by since launching our custom gluten-free cereal business on October 5, 2009. Obviously none of this could have been possible without you! I’d like to thank you as the most amazing customers, readers of our blog & ambassadors of all things gluten-free for a great year.

As a sign of Custom Choice Cereal’s (and my personal) appreciation and to celebrate this special day, you can enjoy free shipping on all orders of 2 or more bags today with the code “1stbday”!

As always, if you have suggestions how we can improve what we are doing, want to ask a question, or even just wish us Happy Birthday, please feel free to leave us a comments below!

“If you are like me, a good Gluten Free cereal is hard to find. I like my cereal to have good nutritional value, good protein, fiber, low fat and above all flavor. No worries, I recently found a cereal that allows you to pick and choose the ingredients to create your own special mix. The company is called Custom Choice Cereal and it is made in a dedicated Gluten Free facility. [...] When I purchased my cereal, I was amazed as to how quick I received it. I got it within 3 days – NC to WA! not bad!”

Lisa wanted to hear more about the idea and concept behind Custom Choice Cereal and did the obvious: she called us at 919-484-9757. We encourage you to do the same because it allows you to get an even better understanding of who we are. We must admit that it’s also always fun for us to hear from you! And before we recap the call here we just let her speak for us:

“I had a really great conversation with Hajo, the founder of the company, and was thrilled to hear that he decided to start this company for a friend from college that was gluten intolerant and had a hard time finding good, healthy cereal. I love to hear the stories of companies that realize there is a need for better quality Gluten Free food for a friend or family member.”

Thank you, Lisa! Check out what else the Gluten Free Foodie writes in her article and watch out for the special discount for your next order!

• “First of all, y’all know I’m a cereal-a-holic!
• Second, I love to find Gluten Free products for my Readers that really need them! My older daughter had a gluten intolerance as a child. I know first hand what a drag living a Gluten Free existence can be without great tasting foods.
• Third, I love healthy “good for ya” products that taste great too!

BINGO! We hit the Jackpot!!!!“

You can ‘hit the jackpot’ as well because her review is combined with a giveaway! Don’t miss out on yet another chance for you to win your perfect gluten-free breakfast treat! In case you need any more motivation that our cereal is truly awesome and that a gluten-free diet does absolutely not have to be taste-free, here is some more feedback from Leslie:

“I received a nice big 12 oz bag of this wonderful, crunchy, flavorful cereal! The flakes are nice and big and the nuts are big whole pieces! I love that the bag has a zip top for resealing! That means no messy spills in the pantry and I get fresh cereal down to the last flake! Woot!”

What are you waiting for? Go ahead and create your gluten-free cereal mix!

“Well, with Custom Choice Cereal, I can have it all. I can choose as many ingredients as I want and create the perfect mix for me!”

We pride ourselves in the simplicity and intuitiveness of the ‘mixing process’ of custom gluten-free cereal blends. It was therefore a delight for us to read that Laura completely agreed.

“The first step to trying out Custom Choice Cereal was to create my blend. The website is really simple to use. You don’t have to be internet savvy to figure it out. Your choose either a granola or corn flake as the base, then you can pick from dozens of fruits, nuts or seeds, many of which are organic. Then you check out and you’re done. Its that simple. Even more impressive than the simplicity of the process was the price.”

Even better for you: Laura teamed up with us to give you yet another chance to benefit from a giveaway. Check out what she has to say about her custom gluten-free cereal blend, let her know which ingredients you would add to your personal cereal, and maybe you win your perfect breakfast treat!

“We are not on a gluten-free diet, but we have sampled many gluten-free foods. Quite often, the taste is not appealing to my kids – at all. It’s gotten to the point that when I serve new foods to them they usually ask me if there is gluten in it. And then they tell me that they want an extra serving of gluten. But neither of them asked about the gluten in our Custom Choice Cereal blend. They didn’t even notice that the gluten was missing. The whole bag is gone. And I’m not going to tell them that it was gluten-free.”

This is the best proof there is that we succeed in our mission to bring tasty cereal to the gluten-free breakfast table! It also encourages us to continue serving the celiac community. Sweeps4Bloggers goes on by saying

“Custom Choice Cereal is a nutritious gluten-free option that is delicious even for my picky gluten-loving children. [...] I loved being able to add in the ingredients and get the nutrition facts as I was choosing. Custom Choice Cereal would be fabulous for people who need Gluten-Free, but it can definitely be enjoyed by others as well. It’s just good cereal!“

We appreciate that you apparently read our blog post all the way to here. As a little reward we saved the best until the end: the site is not called “sweeps for bloggers” without reason! Check out the review, complete some of the actions you are asked for, comment about it, and you have a chance to create your personal gluten-free cereal. What are you waiting for?

“It was really fun being able to pick and choose what I wanted in my cereal. A very creative choice on Custom Choice Cereal’s part. I think that the kids would enjoy helping mom pick out the cereal. And the excitement when it comes in the mail. Thumbs up to Custom Choice Cereal.”

We were very happy to see that Lisa recognized that we “understand the very specific needs and concerns of being on a gluten-free diet”. Hey, that’s what we’re here for, and it is a big part of our mission to enable everyone to enjoy great tasting gluten-free cereal with exactly the ingredients they love!

The review is combined with a giveaway, so you have a chance to win your personal gluten-free cereal. Have a look at Lisa’s review of her custom cereal blend and jump to action! The giveaway ends on June 4th.

1. Create your personal cereal
2. Give it a cool name and place your order
3. Tell your friends about your cereal (hint: mention the mix ID)
4. Win a free bag for every 5 friends who re-order your mix

Sounds easy? It is pretty easy! Don’t wait and start mixing now!

Custom Choice Cereal celebrates this by offering (on average) a 21% discount on the ingredients making up our Irish flag above. Don’t wait and start mixing your Irish gluten-free cereal now!

We debated which ingredient to showcase for a while, as all of our naturally gluten-free ingredients are very tasty, nutritious, and satisfying. The walnut emerged victorious, however, in large part because it is so commonly associated with the holidays.

Why are walnuts so commonly associated with the Christmas season? The answer is not immediately clear. It may be because walnuts are the oldest known tree food, dating back to 7,000 B.C. Perhaps it is because walnuts came from ancient Persia, where they were reserved for royalty and traded along the Silk Road between Asia and Middle East.

Whatever the reason, we are proud to offer walnuts as a free ingredient for the remainder of the month!!

Captain Henry Hall began commercially cultivating cranberries in 1816, after he noticed that his cranberries grew faster when sand blew over the bog. The ingenious Captain Hall began fencing his cranberries bogs and spreading sand over the crop regularly. Modern cranberry bogs are beds layered with sand, peat, gravel, and clay. Cranberries require plentiful fresh water to grow, and are harvested in the early Spring season.

Undamaged cranberry vines can survive indefinitely, and it is rumored that some cranberries vines in Massachusetts are 150 years old! Although it is highly unlikely that humans can survive 150 years through a diet rich in cranberries, the fruit can aid in the prevention of kidney stones, lower LDL cholesterol (“bad” cholesterol), raise HDL cholesterol (“good” cholesterol), and promote gastrointestinal health.

Most importantly, cranberries are also the inspiration for the name of the classic Irish rock band, The Cranberries, whose timeless hits “Linger” and “Zombie” have been playing repeatedly in the Custom Choice Cereal office lately.

Don’t forget – Custom Choice Cereal is offering cranberries as a free ingredient if you order before November 28, 2009!!!