Perfect Porridge

Prep: 30 mins
About: vegan
Makes: 1

A warm, cosy, straightforward kind of porridge to hug you in the morning. It's a mix of a recipe from BBC Good Food by Anna Glover and from Jamie Oliver's Ministry of Food.

The amounts and times in this recipe are super loose.

INGREDIENTS

Spiced Apple

2 apples (any; I prefer golden delicious)
1 - 2 tbsp sugar (I use brown)
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp water
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

Porridge

188ml soy milk
50g rolled oats
Tiny sprinkle of salt
1 banana
One serving of raisins
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp poppy seed

Kitchen stuff

Two small saucepans, preferably with lids
Weighing scales
Measuring cup
potato masher

How To

Check the washing machine. Remove any wet clothes. Load dirty clothes and set going. Whenever you get to a pottering point in the recipe, put clothes on the laundry line
Put the apples, cinnamon, sugar, lemon juice and water in a small pan. Briefly mix, cover and cook over a medium heat.
As soon as you start off the apple, prepare ingredients for the porridge. Measure out the porridge oats, salt and soy milk. Mix, cover and bring to a medium simmer.
Now, prepare the porridge flavours: chop a banana into coins, chunks, or mash if you prefer. After about 5 minutes, or when the porridge is blepping away like a treacherous bog, pour in the banana. Measure out the poppy seed and cinnamon and add it also
Now, start watching the apple. The water and lemon juice should be bubbling with enthusiasm. Mash the apple as soon as it is more-or-less mashable
Once it is mashed, its all ready to serve. Put the porridge in a bowl, with the apple on top, and sprinkle on the raisins.

About

I've found over the winter that I just don't want to eat if it's not warm, so this solves that problem. It's fairly textureless, easy to eat without thinking too much, and contains three-or-four bits of fruit depending if you count the lemon.

The liquid (lemon and water) will not cover the apple in any way, and that's ok! The quantity is genuinely tiny, but it works and if you increase it too much the apple comes out watery. It's really there to evaporate and cause steam for the apple to cook in.

Jamie Oliver's book also offers 3 other sets of topping to go with the basic porridge recipe: I love this idea!