As we’re still in the midst of National Breakfast Week, what could hit the spot more on a cold winter’s morning than porridge?
Whenever I tell people about my Primal diet, often the first question it raises is “What do you do about breakfast?”. People, listen-up! If you think dissing grains means no more cereal-style breakfasts, this Primal No-Oats Porridge is simply going to blow you away. It’s amazing! It looks like porridge, it tastes like porridge and its porridge-like texture (sorry Sarah!) is so authentically ‘porridge’ you might even doubt its healthy credentials. A quick check of the ingredients should reassure you.
Although there are no high-carb oats in this porridge, it is still relatively high in carbohydrates when you include banana in the recipe. I love the addition of banana - after all, porridge is renowned for being comfort food - but you may prefer to leave it out if you’re trying to lose weight by restricting your carbohydrate intake to 50-100 grams per day and you’re a three-meals-a-day kind of person.
Personally, I’m not. I only have two meals a day with maybe an occasional snack of nuts, cheese or a little fresh fruit in-between. Anyway, I find this breakfast so satisfying and sustaining that I really don’t need to eat anything else until my second (and last) meal of the day, which I always try to eat late afternoon and definitely before 6pm in line with my body’s circadian rhythms. Eating my breakfast late morning (around 11:30am) and my main meal of the day late afternoon (around 5pm) generally leaves me feeling contentedly full without ever feeling fat. I should add that after our evening meal, come rain or shine, we also do a brisk 2.5 mile walk every day!
If you still think a 37 grams of carbohydrate ‘hit’ seems excessive for one meal, leave the banana out of the equation altogether and top your porridge with a handful of fresh berries instead. Also, a sprinkling of sesame, sunflower or pumpkin seeds, chopped walnuts or toasted coconut chips would be good to ring the changes. I haven’t tried it yet, but since I love toasted coconut flakes I might just have to knock up some porridge made with coconut milk! There’s lots of opportunity to get creative here!
Apart from the 15 minute wait for the chia seeds to ‘gel-up’, Primal No-Oats Porridge is a really quick and easy Primal Pronto breakfast to prepare. Whether you like your porridge fruity, nutty or basically pure, sweet and creamy, it’s now a healthy, no-grain option that’s definitely back on our breakfast menu. Enjoy!
Primal No-Oats Porridge (Serves 1)
Ingredients
1 tbsp organic white chia seeds + 3 tbsp filtered water
1 tbsp Sukrin organic almond flour
1 tbsp organic ground almonds
1 tbsp organic tiger nut flour
1 tbsp organic cold-milled golden flaxseed
Small pinch of sea salt
170ml organic almond milk, preferably homemade (or organic raw cow’s milk)
½ large or 1 small organic banana, sliced (I like to cut mine on the slant) - optional
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Sukrin Gold (or organic pure maple syrup / organic raw ‘runny’ honey) - to serve
A little extra milk or cream - to serve
Instructions
Mix the chia seeds with the filtered water and set aside in a refrigerator for 15 minutes.
Place the almond flour, ground almonds, tiger nut flour, flaxseed, vanilla extract and sea salt into a medium saucepan with the almond milk.
Bring to the boil over a medium heat, whisking continuously until the mixture thickens.
Take the pan off the heat and gradually whisk-in the chia seed mixture, then the sliced banana (if using).
Re-heat the porridge over a moderate heat whilst stirring for 2-3 minutes more - until the banana slices soften and the porridge is really hot - and then turn into a warm serving bowl.
Sweeten to taste with Sukrin Gold, organic maple syrup or raw honey, add a splash of creamy milk (either nut milk or full-fat raw organic cow’s milk/cream) and/or decorate with nuts, seeds or fresh fruit (e.g. fresh berries, slices of kiwi, fruit puree etc.).
Carbohydrate 14g Protein 9g - per serving (without banana, sweetened with Sukrin Gold)
Carbohydrate 37g Protein 10g - per serving (made with banana)
N.B. Please allow extra carbs if serving with other fresh fruits, honey or maple syrup.
