Oatmeal or Porridge

A wonderfully healthy and comforting dish is oatmeal (or porridge, as M calls it). It’s so simple to make and it’s great at any time of the day. I like how you feel good about yourself when you eat a bowl of oatmeal while at the same time you get the sneaky feeling that health food shouldn’t taste so good.

It’s also easy to vary it depending on your tastes. You can add raisins, currants, prunes, apricots, or other dried fruit or even slices of fresh apples or bananas or a bit of jam or some apple sauce. You can add nuts or a few tablespoons of peanut butter. You can spice it with cinnamon or cloves or ginger or any other spice (some people like a savoury version with salt and pepper). You can cook it with milk, soy milk, cream, water, or any combination thereof, and you can add extra liquid when you serve it. You can sweeten it with honey, white sugar, brown sugar, or agave. And so on. Once you have the basic recipe down, it’s up to you how you play with it. I think one cup of oatmeal to three cups of liquid is just right for a creamy porridge and do stir it often as it simmers on the stove.

Ingredients:
1 cup oatmeal
3 cups milk (or a combination of milk and water)
1 cup raisins
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
milk or cream, to serve with as needed
honey or agave, to serve with as needed

Instructions:
1. Simmer the oatmeal, milk, raisins, sugar, and cinnamon over low heat, stirring frequently, for about 5-7 minutes.
2. Serve with milk or cream and honey or agave, to taste.