Breakfast Porridge

My go to Breakfast Porridge bowl the moment the weather starts to cool off! Made from a combination of grains cooked in milk with a pinch of salt and a dash of cinnamon, topped with any warmed fruit, toasted nuts, and brown sugar your heart desires.

What is porridge?

Porridge is usually made by cooking grains (often oats) in milk or water until soft and thick. It can then be topped with anything you want from fruit to sugar, nuts, and more milk! I make mine using a combination of quick cooking oats and cream of wheat!

What grains are best for porridge?

Porridge is really a personal preference situation but I love doing a combination of grains that includes oats! The main thing you want are shorter grains that will give more of a plump thick texture and if you’re doing a mixture, they should have similar cooking times! I like using quick cooking oats and cream of wheat because I find regular rolled oats too big and chewy. That being said you can quickly pulse rolled oats in a blender and you will find yourself with the same texture as quick cooking oats and they will also cook much faster! You can also do 100% cream of wheat or 100% oats! I’ve also recently loved adding farro from trader joes but it does take a little longer to cook so I recommend cooking it for 5 minutes first and then add in the oats/cream of wheat.

Can you make porridge ahead of time?

Yes! I actually love cooking 3-4 portions of porridge at a time and then store the extra in a heat safe container in the fridge. The next day it will seem quite thick but you can heat it up in the microwave with a little water or more milk and it will come back to life!

What are the best toppings for porridge?

I love topping porridge with the holy trinity aka something sweet, something crunchy, and something fruity. In this case I used cranberry sauce with mixed berries, brown sugar, and toasted pecans but you could use any fruit you want, swap the brown sugar for maple syrup or honey (or nothing) and then swap the pecans for any nuts, seeds, or even granola!

Tips for the best Porridge

• Make sure that whatever grains you use have similar cook times. If not, plan accordingly and start cooking the longest one first!
• If you only have whole rolled oats but want the texture of quick cooking, simply pulse them a couple of times in the blender.
• Use a heavy bottomed pot! Because of the natural sugar in milk, it can burn quite easily therefore using a heavy bottomed pot over low or medium low heat will keep it from burning while the porridge cooks.
• I like to use cows milk but any non-dairy milk alternatives will work too!
• For the toppings, have them ready before hand or work on them while the milk heats up, once you add the grains you want to whisk continuously and they will cook quickly!
• If the porridge gets too thick while cooking, simply whisk in more milk or water over low heat until it reaches your desired consistency.
• Porridge is great because you can really make it your own and add in anything you want such as hemp seeds, barley, farro, oats, cream of wheat, quinoa, etc!
• I love topping porridge with the holy trinity aka something sweet, something crunchy, and something fruity. In this case I used cranberry sauce with mixed berries, brown sugar, and toasted pecans. That being said, you can use any fruit you want, swap the brown sugar for maple syrup or honey (or nothing) and then swap the pecans for any nuts, seeds, or even granola!
• For my Cranberry Sauce: In a dutch oven or heavy bottomed large pot add in 1 kilogram of rinsed cranberries, 1 tablespoon of cinnamon, 100-115 grams maple syrup, and 250 milliliters orange or apple juice. Heat over medium low heat, stirring frequently until all the cranberries have burst and the mixture is nice and thick. Add more maple syrup as needed for sweetness.

Additional Breakfast Recipes to try!

• Maple Tahini Chocolate Chunk Scones
• Banana Walnut Buttermilk Pancakes
• Lemon Ricotta French Toast

Ingredients

• Milk: Milk is my preferred base liquid for porridge but non-dairy milks or water will work too!
• Salt: A pinch of fine sea salt into the milk enhances all of the flavors and is like seasoning the porridge!
• Quick cooking oats: I like the texture and consistency of quick cooking oats but you can also pulse rolled oats in a blender for a similar result.
• Cream of Wheat: Cream of wheat is something I grew up on and gives that really thick porridge like texture!
• Cinnamon: A dash of cinnamon gives the porridge that warm delicious flavor that you crave once the temperature outside starts to drop.

Toppings!

• Cranberry Sauce: I like to make my own cranberry sauce and keep a big container in the fridge in the winter.
• Mixed Berries: Frozen mixed berries mixed with cranberry sauce and warmed up is truly one of my greatest joys. I like to use frozen raspberries and blueberries.
• Pecans: Lightly toasted pecans give a little crunch to the porridge and a delicious nuttiness. However, any nuts, seeds or granola will work!
• Brown Sugar: Dark brown sugar on porridge is super nostalgic for me and I love the warm flavor it adds. Maple syrup would also work or you don’t need to add sugar!

How to make breakfast porridge

• Start by having all of your toppings ready to go! See tips section for my favorite toppings!
• Toast your nuts, heat your fruit, or whatever you want to add on at the end!

Porridge

• In a heavy bottomed pot, add in 500 milliliters of milk. Season with a pinch of fine sea salt and heat over low or medium low heat until simmering.
• While the milk heats, stir your grains and cinnamon together.
• Once simmering, pour the grain mixture into the hot milk and start whisking. It should take 5-10 minutes for the mixture to cook and become thick.
• To thin it out add more milk or water over low heat until you reach your desired consistency!
• Pour the hot porridge into your serving bowls and top however you want!
• My favorite is a dollop of cranberry sauce (recipe is in the tips section!) mixed with raspberries and blueberries (quickly warmed), toasted pecans, brown sugar, and an extra drizzle of milk or cream.

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