Porridge Appreciation

January 2021

Breakfast is probably my favourite meal of the day, whether a simple bowl of cereal or a decadent brunch, I often leap out of bed in anticipation. 

Spring, autumn and winter, my go-to is porridge.  I love the comforting creaminess and the way I can feel it warming me from the inside, and I get excited by the endless topping possibilities so I’m sharing a few of my favourites. 

Bay, my mum’s plum jam, nut butter and dukkah.  Infusing the milk with bay leaf whilst the oats soak imparts herbal notes which add a depth of flavour, and the sweetness of the jam is balanced by the savoury, toasted flavours of the dukkah.

Custard.  I recently discovered that custard in porridge works exceptionally well – it’s great for balancing any tart fruits whilst also using up fridge leftovers. 

Mince pie.  Following on from my custard discovery, I upped the festiveness over Christmas and added leftover mincemeat along with custard to create a seasonal breakfast bursting with winter spices.  I did think about adding some kind of crumble to add a crunchy texture, but haven’t tried it yet.

Apple, tarragon and treacle.  I’m a big fan of herbs in desserts and traditionally sweet dishes.  A recipe for an apple and tarragon cake piqued my interest, but not a huge fan of cake, I decided to use the flavour combination for porridge.  The anise flavours of the tarragon complemented the apple excellently, and a little treacle balanced the tartness.

Blackberry, rosemary and honey.  Again, experimenting with herbs in a sweet dish.  Aromatic rosemary accentuates the blackberry flavour, with honey adding a little sweetness.

Cranberry and pistachio - a colourful creation for brightening up grey mornings, and great for using up leftover cranberry sauce after Christmas.  Cinnamon stick infused milk gives a real warmth to this breakfast, and the tart cranberries pair well with the rich, sweet, nuttiness of ground pistachios. 

Fig, sweet ricotta, blood orange marmalade and pistachio - this was a case of using up the odds and ends left lurking in the fridge but it ended up resulting in the most delicious porridge! The blood orange marmalade balanced the sweet ricotta beautiful to give a slightly sweet but refreshing and zesty flavour, which combined wonderfully with a ripe, syrupy fig and the crunch of pistachios.  This felt like a truly decadent breakfast but took only minutes to prepare.