It packs a punch, fills your belly and satisfies you well into mid-day, Irish porridge is not only healthy but great tasting too!
Recently I spent a few days in Ireland touring the countryside. I stayed at a quaint little Bed-N-Breakfast (there are bed-n-breakfasts everywhere in Ireland) in the town of Killarney. Each morning I went down for a full breakfast and on my first day discovered porridge. I had never eaten it before, but I was curious.
The porridge came with a variety of toppings: apricots, blueberries, raisins, dried cranberries, nuts, seeds and of course warm whole milk. Oh, and instead of using white bleached sugar, they provided pure cane sugar to add a touch of sweetness.
What I discovered was that porridge is delicious! It was just sweet enough to satisfy my sweet tooth, robust with the flavors of fruits and nuts and creamy smooth! Porridge quickly became one of my favorite breakfast foods. In fact, I had it every morning while in Ireland.
When I returned to the States, I decided to make my own porridge. I found some quick Irish steel cut oats at the grocery, bought a few of my favorite fruits and nuts and gave it a run. To truly do it the Irish way, steel cut oats should be slow-cooked in milk overnight. I am not one to take that much time with cooking, so I opted for the quick version. If you use quick steel cut oats, your porridge will be ready in about 15 minutes. (NOTE: the recipe calls to mix with water, but I used milk to get it as close to the Irish version as possible.)
The result was a close second, hard to compare it to the true Irish porridge with all the ambiance over there?! However, I have added it to my weekly regimin of breakfast meals!
~Wendy Anguiano
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