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A peek inside General Mills

I spent a little over 24 hours in Minneapolis last week. It has to be the shortest trip I’ve ever been on, and at the same time, the most jam-packed.

I’ll just warn you, turn away now if you don’t like looking at other people’s trip photos. But, stick around if you want a little peek behind the scenes of a baking giant. I’ll keep the commentary short.

General Mills hosted about 50 bloggers to come to their international headquarters in Minnesota for their first ever Eat & Greet.

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They’ve been around forever, but I guess they’re kinda new to social media and were putting their foot in the door with this event. I’m not completely sure how they picked who they picked to attend, but I’m glad their PR company invited me. And actually when they said we would be visiting the Betty Crocker test kitchens, well… I was sold.

They flew us in on Wednesday in time to attend a reception dinner at the Mill City Museum that evening.

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The museum, which actually used to be an old mill, was downtown and right on the Mississippi River.

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Across the way you can see a hint of the Pillsbury Mill Building.

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Inside was set up for dinner and socializing.

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I didn’t know anyone. No one. So I was happy to meet another food blogger. This is Jenny from Picky Palate and so super sweet.

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Before dinner we were able to tour the Museum. Lots of cool General Mills and Betty Crocker memorabilia. Anyone have one of these Easy-Bake Ovens from 1972 or a Betty Crocker mixer?

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There was an interactive journey chronicling flour milling and its impact on Minneapolis through an eight-story Flour Tower Elevator Tour which was pretty cool. Don’t have pictures of that. I know… you’re disappointed.

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Here we are making each other pose with pancakes.

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Photo ops, taste-testing, flour feeling and then home to the hotel.

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The next morning. Early. We packed our stuff and headed off to General Mills. I have to say everything COMPLETELY exceeded my expectations.

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We were greeted by the Doughboy right when we walked in the door.

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The entire building or buildings I should say were beautiful. They had graphic details like this everywhere. Who else wants a word wall? Me. I do. I do.

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They had memorabilia exhibits, including Betty, the Green Giant, Wheaties and on and on.

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These old advertisements make me smile.

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As soon as everyone was in the building, we had a quick bite for breakfast.

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This is Anna from Cookie Madness, Megan from Megan’s Munchies, Jenny from Picky Palate and Nicole from Baking Bites.

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Yes. Yes. Yes. Betty Crocker Kitchens, here we come.

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This is a view of just part of the kitchens from an observation floor above. There are 19. Nineteen. Nine. Teen. Kitchens.

And excuse me, but look at that view.

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The Trix Bunny and Lucky Charms guy took pictures with everyone. Hi Amy!

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Doing double duty here. Filming Jenny with her new Flip camera (everybody got one) and trying to take still pics at the same time. And, she’s trying to grab as many box top coupons while keeping her dress from flying up. Guess we were both doing double duty.

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Then, this next part was like getting free samples in the grocery store… but on steroids. New cereals and …

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gluten free cereals to sample…

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Nut Clusters, Yoplait Smoothies, Parfait Delights, Fiber One Muffins.

Why did they even serve us breakfast. I was stuffed.

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These two were always nearby hamming it up.

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Bruschetta…

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Oh … if you watch the Food Network you should know who this is. Ask Aida was there to answer questions. This is the best photo I have where she’s also smiling. Sorry for the blurriness.

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More sampling and photo taking with Mel, A Dramatic Mommy.

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A little blogging in between. Not me. I didn’t even bring a computer.

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Here’s that pesky rabbit again. He thinks he’s being funny with the bunny ears. Okay, so it was pretty cute.

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Did I mention, we were also allowed behind the scenes of the brand new photography studios?

This was my favorite part. I could have spent the whole day… week… month here.

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As you enter, you’re greeted by a gallery of images. Photographers are given free license to create artwork using general mills products. These were just a few I was able to snap a pic of.

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Next was the prop room. How they can choose just the right white plate, I don’t know.

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Here’s sweet Megan with Hungry Girl. You know, the NYT Best Selling author of 200 Recipes Under 200 Calories. Okay, please say you don’t know who she is. I didn’t. But it’s probably because I eat at McDonald’s.

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And finally, lights, camera, action.

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Their proofing system is pretty amazing. They can look at photos on the fly. That’s a still camera on the right, not a video camera by the way. It takes a 98 meg file. That’s ginormous!

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This is the food stylist’s tool kit. Love it!

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Food bloggers getting tips from a food photographer. They even handed us their business cards. Big mistake.

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The photographers take all the photos for all the recipes, magazines, cookbooks and packaging.

And hearing the stories of how they’ll choose just the right brownie for a single shot, it’s no easy task.

Their work is beautiful though and here’s their website portfolio to prove it.

After the photo tour, we started wrapping things up. Lunch, the company gift store, and then a shuttle to the airport by 2:00 p.m.

General Mills was incredible. The people, the campus, the culture. If you live in Minneapolis, run and apply for a job. Now.

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In addition to their programs and products, they have an on-site restaurant, cafeteria and Caribou Coffee for employees.

They have a grocery store, childcare services, banking services, doctor’s office, dry cleaners, hair salon, photo lab, fitness center and gas station, all on the premises.

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Seriously, it’s like being in a mall.

And any minute, I expected to turn the corner and find a Lucky Charms Leprechaun Land amusement park complete with rainbow roller coaster.

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But alas, there was only this outdoor seating and some pretty amazing views.

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Here’s the store that carries all the General Mills products. I even spotted some Teriyaki-flavored Chex Mix. Cool.

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In addition to the corporate store and convenience store, they also have the cutest gift shop.

You can find all kinds of gifts from baby toys…

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… to even squirrel underpants. Gotta love this place.

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244 comments on “A peek inside General Mills”

  1. Wow!! I feel like moving to MN now. LOL What a great trip. Thanks for sharing the pics.

  2. THAT LOOKS SO AWESOME!

    (Sorry, but that just required all caps and you know it.)

  3. That was the biggest free advertising I've seen for General Mills.

  4. I say you had the best 24 hours EVER!!

  5. That was an awesome trip for you. how Cool! My fave pic was the squirell underpants. Too cute.
    Thanks for sharing this with us.

  6. One word; AWESOME! Can't wait for more!

  7. wow!
    raspberry frosting?
    want it.
    got a recipe for it you want to share?

  8. oh, btw, I had a Easy Bake Oven circa '72 :)

    Can't wait to get one from my daughters.

  9. Thanks for sharing!! Taking your photo tour was amazing. I can't imagine (but would like to know) what it was like to be there… IRL! Surreal, perhaps? I've recently started following your blog and I love it! I'm SO jealous of your trip. I'm not even an avid baker/cook and my heart was pounding looking at those kitchens and equipment! Wow.

  10. OH…MI…GOD…squirrel underpants?! I would have given my husband's right arm (lol) to have gone…you are soooo lucky! You so deserve it! Glad it was such fun…

  11. I didnt know the general mills factory was here in minneapolis!! i totally want to apply there now!

  12. Yum GF cereal! My mom totally had one of those orange Easy Bake Ovens and I used it when I was a kid. I loved it!

  13. OMG!! I know jealousy is not a good trait, but I can't help it. That trip looks like it was so much fun! Thanks for sharing such great photos!

    Maybe one day, my sister and I will get to do something like that.

  14. How awesome!!! I'd be lying if I said I wasn't jealous!

  15. That looks like a lot of fun, though part of me feels bad liking the look of the huge corporate kitchens, etc.

  16. When I read "trip photos" I wasn't sure I would make it through the post. But, I ENJOYED touring GM with you. Great shots, great detail. I'll be coming back to check out links. My favorite pic was the Cheerio nose ring. All teenagers should do that, so when you get tired of the look, you eat it, instead of leaving a hole in your nose. Thanks for sharing!

  17. Looks very cool =]
    a friend of mine (Omri) sent me your blog like a week ago.
    I read all of it, and I got addicted to it.
    It's amazing! you're so creative! I really think you should write a book with all the reciepes and the pictures of your cooking-art ideas..
    I really love your blog!

    (and I'm only 13…)
    Sorry for digging so!

    shir_flora_winx@walla.com

  18. Bakerella, you need a searh function! I love your blog, but I am looking for super hero cupake ideas. Can you point me in the right direction?

  19. how awesome!!! Looks like a really fun time!! :)

  20. How fun! I would love it and it would be a dream come true for me. I don't have the mixer but my mom in law has the toaster and it still looks and runs just like new!
    We love Betty Crocker and my dd that is only 18 wanted an old 80's cook book for her birthday. Of course we found one for her and she was over the moon with it.

    thanks for all the fun here on your blog. Love it!

  21. I drive past the Mill City Museum pretty much every day, it's on my way home! It's sooooo pretty over there!!!

  22. WOW!! What an awesome experience. SO COOL!

  23. What wonderful pictures! I especially love those GIANT pancakes. How fun are those?

    And I was so happy to see that shot of Rockin' Mama in your collection. I met her at BlogHer 2008…she is so nice!

    stephanie@metropolitanmama.net

  24. Wow! What a great trip. THe pictures are amazing.

  25. You got to meet Lucky AND sit at a giant table made of pancakes?! What a great visit. Thanks for all the pictures!

  26. So excited to see all your MN pictures! I live here and actually WORK at one of the many amazing Caribou Coffees (My boss thanks you for the ref.!) It was cool feeling so "at home" in your blog!

  27. What a wonderful experiance this must have been….Your a baking legend in the blog world…not surprised that they invited you…thanks for all the pictures…I felt like I was there….

  28. Thanks for sharing your speedy adventure. It does sound like a great place to visit and work!
    (~~)
    Julie

  29. awesome…looks like so much fun… this is the first time iam visiting ur blog and iam loving it

  30. Minneapolis is a nice large city in the U.S Minnesota, the state capital known as Twin Cities. The city is abundantly rich in water with over twenty lakes and wetlands. the place was nice and sharing this place is a great experience.

  31. Thanks for sharing – how fun was that?!? Glad you had a great time! Stefanie

  32. I love love love reading your blog! I am such the baker too so its SO fun and enjoyable to see someone else enjoying it as much as myself! If we lived closer I would love to be your bestest friend! Thanks for sharing your trip. That looks amazing. Oh and I TOTALLY now wish I could work for GM. That sounds like a dream job!

  33. You have one of my favorite blogs ever. I love your recipes, your photographs & your blogging. Keep up the good work! :)

  34. How wonderful for all of you to have such a great experience. It does sound like a great place to work. I'm so glad you got to enjoy and then to tell us all about it. Thanks.

    Love you vacation photos! Really, especially the one blurry one as that's how most of mine turn out.

  35. WOW! Those are some awesome pictures. I'd love to visit the General Mills headquarters someday. There's a General Mills factory in downtown Buffalo and when you drive down there it often smells like Cheerios – it's pretty much my favorite part of going downtown!

  36. I'm so glad you enjoyed your visit! If my husband didn't work for Target Corporation (also headquartered in Minneapolis), he'd probably want to work for General Mills. We go through cereal like nobody's buisness!

  37. I was glad to meet you! I had so much fun and hope to see you again in the future :)

    http://www.themommy-files.com/

  38. Looks like you had a great time! I FINALLY decided after browsing your blog FOREVER, to comment. I used to drive by GM all of the time on the way to work! I didn't realize all of that was packed into that place!

  39. How fun! Looks like you had a fantastic trip! Oh, that prop room. I could spend hours in there looking at all the beautiful dishes and props! Those General Mills employees look like lucky ones. Their campus is phenomenal.

  40. I absolutely -loved- seeing these pictures. I just moved away from Minneapolis recently, and seeing all you're wonderful photographs was an amazing treat. I hope you really enjoyed your short visit there :)

  41. you are a hoot. I have a feeling we'd be good friends. Love your blog and all of your fun stories. You crack me up.

  42. How very cool!! They'd have to roll me out of there after eating all those delicious samples.

  43. OH BAKERELLA, I am soooo jealous. What a fabulous trip! We're headed to the Minnesota State Fair this week and Yum! is on our agenda! I can hardly wait. Thanks for sharing!

  44. My hubby had an offer to work for GM right out of college–can you beleive they even employ chemical engineers? He didn't end up working there but we did live in the Twin Cities for awhile. The Mall of America did have a General Mills "play area" for awhile–would've been about 10 years ago.

  45. Thanks for sharing your trip with us it looks like so much fun and quite a learning experience!

  46. This is so cool! I'm from Minnesota and have never been there. Maybe I need to play tourist the next time I go home. :) Thank you for sharing this!

  47. Id like to know when and where I can find that Cookie Crisp Sprinkle! or the gigantic box of Frankenberry! Im going to have to visit this place strickly for their cereal selection.

  48. Thank you for such an amazing recap! What fun! I just got home from their Table Talk event–I would have loved to have gone last week and met my favorite fellow food bloggers in person. We were cooking in the test kitchens today but I was the only food blogger there!:) I think they need to bring you, Jenny, and I back, give us a list of ingredients, and just let us go wild. :)

  49. How fun! It's looks like a great time. I loved your pictures from outside the factory – I used to see that view daily!

    Liz

  50. oh how cute!! thanks for the insider pictures, and thanks times 2 for links to new food blogs i can check out :)

    http://www.sunnysideuprecipes.com

  51. That prop room….

    drool.

    I WANT!

  52. What an absolutely amazing trip!

  53. I read your blog and Picky Palate. It is so funny that you 2 hooked up together. You both do a great job.

  54. Wow, that is so cool you got to see all that! Thanks for the photo tour too! So jealous. And Franken Berry! I miss that cereal sooooo much! (there are no decent sweet cereals in Australia, where I live, though I am Canadian). We manage to find Count Chocula when we go home for a visit though.

  55. That looks so cool! You look like you had fun!

  56. Ahhh…oh so close to meeting such an inspiration! I work at General MIlls HQ and saw those "Eat & Greet" signs all around and was hoping that maybe it would be a public "eat and greet" aka – you would get to mingle with the broader employee base. Oh well, it was really fun reading your post and seeing all those sights that I walk by every day. It is a GREAT place to work and I am very blessed to work there! Thanks for visiting and hopefully you can come back again!

  57. jealous jealous jealous jealous

  58. What a great report and fun experience! Thanks so much for sharing!!

  59. That was so cool!

  60. That was so cool!

  61. Man, that is so cool! Totally jealous

  62. hey you got a picture of Dawn Meehan (http://mom2my6pack.blogspot.com/)! She's another blog i read almost daily :)

    She's the one taking the picture of the bruschetta.

  63. I cannot beleive you got to meet hungry girl and didn't know who she is, I visit her website almost daily, you should,too. It is really fabulous information. She is a life saver for anyone on weight watchers. Or anyone trying to lower calories and raise portions. A real GEM.

  64. SO. AWESOME! I live in Wisconsin so that's not too far from the twin cities. And that looks like the most fantastic place to work! :D

    I wanna be a photographer there!!! :3

    I loved the squirrel undies. It's a good idea. I mean, really! You gotta house-train your squirrel somehow. xD

  65. You look so beautiful! How fun to share in your experience!!

  66. That sounds like so much fun!!!

    I am sorta kinda jealous. Ok, I am.

    How was the GF food? My mom is GF only so I am always curious!!

  67. Looks like a fun place to visit and work! I'm glad you got invited :)

  68. OMG that looked like so much fun. Thank you for sharing. I love General Mills, hmmmm… Chex! Drool.

  69. OMG, what a fun trip!! I'm totally jealous!!

    Thank you for sharing!!

  70. WOW…. sounds like u had so much fun… i wish if i were with u…

    do they allow visitors or only employees???

  71. Wow! What a fun recap to read!

    I am from MN and just had my wedding at Mill City Museum last month! It is such a fun area with the river right in the back and the Stone Arch Bridge.

    Thanks for sharing!

  72. What an awesome opportunity! That place looks cooler to work at than Goo.gle!!

  73. OH MY! what a great opportunity! looks fantastic, go Bakerella! thanks for sharing!!!

  74. What an awesome trip! Would love to get on their list the next time they do something like that ;-) Thanks for sharing your experience!

  75. Amazing! And Franken Berry? I can't find that anywhere. That cereal totally reminds me of childhood!

  76. Wow! Its cool to see what goes on inside there! I live just south of Minneapolis and have never had the opportunity to go tour the campus. Thanks for sharing your pictures & experience! :)

  77. wowowow!!! I want to be there so bad!! That looks like an amazing trip, glad you had fun!

  78. Oh my gosh, I would be in pig heaven if I could work there!!!

  79. SO cool! Um, I had an easy bake oven from 1992 :)

  80. I'm sorry, but that food photographer looks like George McFly in "Back to the Future".

    Looks like it's a vacation destination, not an office.

  81. OMG! Can you say JEALOUS?!?
    This isn't open to the public?? I'd be on the next flight!!!!!!
    So much American cultural history there!!

    Thanks for the AWESOME pics!

  82. looks like so much fun!!
    i'm a MN girl ;)

  83. What a great adventure. And, a camera that takes a 98MB file?! YIKES! That's some kind of big!!!!!

  84. Wow – that is so great! It's amazing the things that go on that we have no idea about. :) Lucky you! Thanks for sharing. I love looking at other people's trip photos. :)

  85. That looks like such an amazing time. Great adventure, glad you enjoyed it! :) Great pictures to by the way!

  86. Wonder if they have any openings? Although that would be a pretty long commute… cool trip.

  87. Your trip looks amazing. What a great opportunity!

    Just out of curiousity, have you ever made an Elvis Fluffernutter Cake?

  88. Oh my goodness. I would LOVE to work there. How fun. Thanks for sharing your adventure with us!

  89. I remember visiting the Betty Crocker exhibit on a field trip in school.
    Thanks for the travelogue!

    I'm still trying to figure out the need for squirrel underpants

  90. How exciting! Thanks for sharing! Looks like you had a great time packed into those 24 hours!

  91. Thank you for sharing this with us! What fun… Looks like the Best tour event ever!

  92. Oh how fun! I live just minutes from there but had no idea it was so neat inside.

    I've been wanting to check out the Mill City Museum too. I have some photos from that idea (for a wedding at the Guthrie) on my blog if you want to see more of the area.

    http://tadacreations.blogspot.com/2009/08/real-photos.html

    ~Angel

  93. Love, love, love General Mills test kitchens. What a great company. I know a home economist that worked for them and "invented"(?) Snickerdoodle Cookies way back. She's in her 80's and still so proud she worked for GM. She has lots of sweet stories.

  94. Wow that is insane! I would love to visit there… How cool! :) Thanks for the inside peek!

  95. Great photos! The fact that you got me not blinking is testament to your superfly photography skills ;).

  96. Great photos! I drive by the GM headquarters on my way to work every day. Cool to see what the inside looks like :)

    The Mill City museum and surrounding area is really nice, too. I am glad you got to go to Yum! They really do live up to their name.

  97. I remember going on an annual field trip in grade school to the General Mills Betty Crocker Test Kitchens. It was the highlight of my school year, the boys loved our trips to the Tonka Truck factory in Minnetonka.
    Being from St. Paul, I know many who work there and LOVE it. It is it's own zip code, you never have to leave the campus…sort of like the Target HQ.

  98. wow!!! That looks amazing! Thank you so much for sharing, I wish I could visit!

  99. So glad I got to meet you!

    I talked to someone at MyBlogSpark and asked how they picked who would go. She said that General Mills poured through like 2,000 blogs and picked the ones they felt were the most influential. Totally agree with you. Me….well, it was a fluke that I got there, but I am SO glad I did! I learned to much, which will help with the new blog I have been working on!

    Alright, now I am off to make some "Apple" cake pops for Back to School. Thanks for that little gem! :)

  100. My uncle worked at General Mills and retired from there a few years ago. He was one of the team that created and tested Bisquick. He enjoyed his time there.

    Thanks for sharing your photos. It truly does look like a great place to work or visit.

    Connie

    P.S. Love your blog!

  101. Ok, first off, my sister did have an easy bake oven from the seventies, and she just sold it in a garage sale, it was still in working condition even!! Second, I didn't know who the "200 calorie" author was either, so don't feel bad lol. Looks like a super good trip, thanks for sharing the photos!

  102. Glad you had fun! I live about 25 minutes North of Minneapolis. Sorry, it was a very cold weekend! We haven't had much of a summer here.

  103. That looked amazing! Love the squirrel underpants at the end. lol!

  104. Wow, that was one jam packed day. Love it, Love it, Love it. Thank you for sharing photos. Indeed, it would be a great company to work for.
    gourdsrmylife@yahoo.com

  105. They look like one great company–and how much fun you guys had! Thanks for sharing!

  106. Loved every word, and enjoyed the tasty pictures in their gallery. Glad you shared!

  107. How amazing!!

    I can't wait to come back to your post and check out all the links too.

  108. Whoohoo! You and Jenny are my two favorite foodie blogger's! :D Glad you got to meet! Wow! Their facilities are amazing! Thanks for sharing your adventure with all of us!

    Blessings!
    ~Miss Rachel~

  109. How fun! I'm so glad they chose you to go.

  110. That looks like so much fun! I want to go!

  111. omigawd i envy you so much right now. that would be so freakn awesome

  112. I want….to live there.

  113. What a phenomenal experience!! You met lots of great people and had a great time – awesome.

    And your comment about Hungry Girl made me laugh out loud, haha :-D

  114. Looks like it was a blast! Thanks for sharing it with us!!!

  115. I live in China right now, but I grew up just a couple miles from the GM headquarters. Your pictures and story made me homesick. I have taken the GM tour of head quarters and the Mill City tour, both are great!
    My best friend in Mpls works at head quarters and I am so jealous of her job. This company knows how to treat employees well!!
    I am so glad you got to go!! Keep up the good work!

  116. What a fantastic experience!! Love the pictures and learning about what you saw!!

  117. This has inspired my next trip. Do they do tours to the public?
    Thanks for the Gluten Free pictures! It's hard to look at all that fun and remember "OH yeah.. I cant touch that stuff."

    My brother works at one of the General Mills plants in Missouri.

    So Cool !

  118. Wow, what an amazing time, loved your post.
    Will enjoy browsing your many featured bloggers too.

  119. Absolutely, undeniably, beyond jealous! I have seen several shows on "food artists", but this would have been the icing on the cupcake (hehehe)

    Love your blogsite!

  120. Wow, that looks like such an awesome place to visit! Who would have thought??? I would love to be able to take a peek into the props room!!! Thanks for sharing your photos!

    P.S. LOVE the squirel underwear!

  121. I love your pics! Thank you for sharing your experience! I bet you had a great time!

  122. My best friend has worked for General Mills for the last 27 years…a wonderful company to work for with outstanding benefits.

  123. Awesome, it makes me want to go there – and kind of makes me want to work there!

  124. Great visit!

    I don't know why, but I have an incredible craving to buy some of those squirrel underpants!

    Dee :::off to figure out HOW I'm going to get my squirrels dressed!:::

  125. How fun!

  126. Great pictures, just like we were along for the adventure!

  127. That looked like a lot of fun! Thank you for showing it to us.

    For the record, I work at McDonald's….I had no idea who she was either! LOL

  128. Great pictures! Looks like an amazing company!

  129. Oh what FUN that looks like!! Thanks for taking us along!
    Kudos to General Mills for hosting such a fun event!!

    ~TidyMom

  130. Look at how much fun you had. I wanna go there.

    And yes I still YOU READ that right… I STILL HAVE MY 1972 Easy Bake Oven. My dd has even used it. Still works. Oh the wonderful memories I have from cooking with my Easy Bake Oven! And yes mine is the same color as the photo!

  131. What a fun trip! I feel like I was there with you by looking at the photos and reading all about it.
    Thanks for sharing your trip with all of us!

  132. What fun pictures…thank you for sharing your trip with us!

  133. What a place to work!

  134. That was nice to get get a peek of what you saw behind the scenes. Thank you for sharing….

  135. Thank for share this beautifuls pictures, General Mills look amazing….

  136. wow you are pretty and can bake!! Life isn't fair… :)
    Love your website and your pictures. Thanks for motivating to bake and try new things!
    All the best!

  137. What a fun experience, great recaps and awesome photos! Wish they would have picked me! ;)

  138. Thanks for sharing! You chose great photos, and, as usual, your commentary was great!

  139. I am pretty jealous. My husband works there and you have seen more than he ever will. Consider yourself very fortunate to have been able to see what you saw. Ever since they redesigned the test kitchens and campus in general it has been off-limits for tours.

  140. That is so freaking cool!!! I am so jealous! So glad you got to go and thanks for sharing your pics with us!! (I'm still jealous though…)

  141. What a blessing to get to tour GM! Thanks for sharing! I now have a reason to visit Minneapolis.

  142. It's "peek," not "peak"

  143. Excellent post. Love the photos!

  144. WoW! What a great time. I would have LOVED to be there.

  145. Wow! Looks like a GREAT place and experience! Thank you for sharing it with us! I love places and tours like that!

  146. You are one lucky girl! I love the photo studio & food styling session the best =)

  147. Oh, thanks for sharing that trip! TOTALLY JEALOUS!!!

  148. What a fun trip! Thanks for sharing it with us. I would LOVE to go there.

  149. One more hip-hip-hooray for Minnesota!

  150. oh my god you met HungryGirl!? I'm so jealous! well, I guess I'm ALWAYS jealous because you go to the coolest places (Pioneer Woman's ranch) and make the most delectable recipes! Keep on baking, Bakarella!!! I always love reading your new blogs :)

  151. I loved looking at your pictures from your trip!!! It looks like an amazing place to be invited to! =) What a lucky blogger you are….;)

  152. I'm moving to Minneapolis right now. I want to work at General Mills. I'll empty the trash, clean the toilets, whatever!

    BTW, do you have a list of all the bloggers who were invited to attend? It'd be cool to check out all of their blogs.

  153. It looks like such a wonderful trip. I think it's so cool that you got to see so much behind the scenes stuff!! Thanks for sharing the fun with us.

  154. That was such an interesting read. Thanks for sharing!

    I'm amazed to see the General Mills facilities – I had no idea they were so extensive! I'd definitely apply for a job if I lived near there!

    Glad to see that they're coming out with gluten-free cereals and how can I get a hold of those squirrel underpants? lol

  155. I loved reading about your whirlwind tour of General Mills. What an experience!

  156. What fun! Congratulations for being chosen to attend such a great event…did you bring the Bunny home with you?

  157. I am so so jealous! It looks like you had a blast!

  158. That looked awesome! I would love to go see the museum parts of General Mills. Old advertisements make me smile too.

  159. oh That was SO COOL!!! IM SO Jealous!! I want to go!!!!!!
    I would love to see all the different food we dont see every day too… like teriyaki chex mix!!! Yum!

  160. What a fun experience! I find it hard to believe that some of the women actually eat what they make. Since I started blogging I gained 12 pounds and I don't blog about food everyday.

  161. That looks like the most fun! Do they do public tours?

  162. I'm jealous! Looks like you had a fantastic time! Being from MN (not currently living there), when I was in 8th grade we toured GM for an end of the year school trip. I'm sure there have been many changes since then. I'd love to tour it again.

  163. AWESOME!! Thanks for taking us with you on the tour!

  164. That looks like so much fun!

  165. Ahhhh! What a great experience. General Mills rocks!

  166. eat and greet! ahha what a fab idea. sounds like you have tonnes of fun!

  167. wow, looks like you had a fabulous time! You write a great travel blog you know, really enjoyed every word and every photo!

  168. Thanks so much! What an amazing trip!

  169. I love it! I originally come from a PR background, so to see the two (baking & PR) come together so nicely is right up my alley!!! What a progressive sounding company and such a beautiful environment!
    Nicky
    http://sabakersdozen.blogspot.com

  170. What a huge place !Thanks for sharing .

  171. Wow!!! What a great andventure!!! It seems you had a great time.

    Thanks for sharing. Some times I think I was born in the wrong country. :-(((

    Cheers from Spain.

  172. Easy-Bake Ovens … in Italy it was sold under the name of "Il dolce forno" (the sweet oven). I did my first baking with it. It had a major downside: you couldn't bake rising sweets or you had to destroy them to take them off the oven. I still have it somewhere.
    Btw I'm a '83 class, so here it was sold in the 80's as well.
    Everything cooked unders a lightbulb's light. Ahahah!

  173. What a fantastic trip! Wish I DID work there!

  174. that looks like it would have been fun. I would have been in love in the photo area and using all the props(dishes) they have.

  175. What a great trip!!

    Thanks for sharing the inside scoop.

  176. Looks like you had a ton of fun! I live in Minneapolis, and the Mill City Museum is on of my favorite places of the city. Everything about it is just so amazing, and I can't even explain why. Thanks for sharing your travels with us!

  177. Wow – what a great post. Just had a read through and want to come back later when I've got an hour to chase those links!

  178. I am so Jealous! You are super lucky to have been able to go to the general mills place and have the vip tour.

  179. Thanks for sharing!! Really cool pictures and descriptions!! How lucky (talented) are you?!

  180. I must say this is a great blog post, I want to work at GM now. At first I thought it said general motors, and I kept thinking why in the world would bakerella go there. DUH! General milllllsss…duh!

    What a fun happy place, love all the vintage stuff. My first cook book was betty! love that book!

    Happy bloggin!

  181. Looks like so much fun. i just love your blog. I'm excited to make cute cowgirl cookie jars for upcoming birthdays. and i love that you found jenny from picky-palate. she is my other fav. blog :-)

  182. FUN!!!!

  183. Your trip to GM looks incredible. What a jam packed day. I want to officially move and work there. It sounds so ideallic.

  184. Wow!!! I really want to go now. Looks like you were in heaven lol

  185. Oh wow! That was awesome. I'd love to go there, especially if it means I could get my hands on some of that Frankenberry cereal.

  186. I really enjoyed reading about your experience, it seems that you had a great time!

  187. Wow! What an amazing experience!! Thanks for sharing!

  188. Bakerella, I will make an exception and absolutely devour your vacation snapshots if it means seeing General Mills up close like this!

    The history! The Americana! The dough boy. Sweeet.

  189. Looks like such fun!!!! Thanks so much for sharing all those pics :D

  190. Oh I wanna go there! I'm so happy you shared your pictures. It's nice to see the behind the scenes magic!

  191. ohhhhhh…looks like a grand time! their photos are unbelievable–i want to dash downstairs and bake something just so i can take some pictures (and i'm a BOOK blogger…nothing to do with food!!)! thanks for the behind-the-scenes of your special trip!

  192. Oh my gosh. That was amazing. I wish I were a big blogger and could be invited. Do they do tours for regular people too? Looks like I might have a reason to go to Minnesota.

  193. I am so happy to see those gluten free cereals, as I have changed sooo many recipes to provide goodies for my best friend suffering from Celiac disease. Always puts a smile on my face when new things come out that I can swap for cookie crumbs and such.

    Looks like General Mills did a fabulous job at hosting their first eat and greet, and looks like you met some awesome blogging Betties while you were there!

    P.S. Your blog is enlightening and perfect for a young and simple but snazzy baker like myself. Thanks a bundle :)

  194. thats so cool. Lol squirrel underpants??

  195. this looks like pretty much the coolest tour I have ever heard of in my life!!! What an awesome time, I would have loved this. By the way, love your blog, thanks for all the "sweet" inspiration! I know, I'm a dork! :)

  196. Looks amazing! What a neat place!
    Thanks so much for sharing your trip, it looks like a great adventure.

    { Lindsey }
    http://greatfullday.blogspot.com

  197. What a great experience. Looks like you had a fantastic time. GM looks like a great company to be a part of…

    Thanks for sharing!

  198. That looks like it was so much fun! Thanks for sharing an adventure. It is fun to see what goes on all around us that we (or me, at least) are so clueless about.

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