The end of September brings more than just cold weather, winter fashion trends and generally quite miserable moods (summers over, brace UK 7 month winter). End of September brings Autumnal colours in nature and in food. I love Autumn firstly because its cold enough to eat porridge without getting those sweats you do when its 25 degrees and your eating piping hot porridge and its just a beautiful time of year, where the trees are all different shades of orange and it’s dare I say almost christmas. But back to porridge, I truly think porridge is pretty underestimated in the breakfast front;queue avocado on toast pic. I think most people from an early age were probably force fed lumpy bland porridge (I was) and its engrained this bitter taste in the mouth, “i’m not going to eat that” mentality.
However if you’re willing to let go of your unpleasant childhood memories and trust these porridge tips may seriously up your breakfast game.
1. Rolled porridge oats (I tend to buy the cheaper versions, you can go all ‘oat’ and buy the expensive brands from whole foods but at the end of the day when all the other ingredients are mixed in I can never taste the difference.
2. Coconut Milk. Yes i’m one of those ‘hippies’ who drinks almond milk because it’s cool, I’m not really I just prefer nut based milks. Coconut milk is so sweet, it hardly tastes like coconut and just sweetens up the porridge without adding any extra sugar and its low in calories.
3.Frozen blue berries and rasberries. I find fresh berries SO expensive, however the frozen packets tend to be around £2 for 400g and last so much longer. I don’t defrost the berries because once mixed into the warm porridge they soften up.
4.Nuts and seeds. I tend to add pumpkin seeds and flaked almonds to give the porridge a bit of crunch, because if you’re like me I love my meals to have different textures. 5.Peanut Butter. Just add it in and you’ll thank me.
5. Added extras- cacao nibs, Chia seeds, Flaxseeds just add more substance.
Try it out and maybe we can give porridge a good rep again…
Laura
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