Caramelised Pear and Walnut Porridge | The Secret Garden

 ‘Tha’ doesn’t want thy porridge!’ Martha exclaimed incredulously.
‘No.’
‘Tha’ doesn’t know how good it is. Put a bit o’ treacle on it or a bit o’ sugar.’
The Secret Garden
Frances Hodgson Burnett

Porridge for breakfast is memory that is forever buried in my mind. Oats cooked with honey and bananas, sometimes even on the old wood fire stove that sat in the middle of the house I grew up in. I’m not sure exactly at what point I decided I didn’t like porridge, but at some moment throughout the years I must have come to the conclusion that I hated it. Much like Mary from The Secret Garden I would push it away with barely a spoonful eaten if I had the misfortune of having it placed in front of me at breakfast time.

It was only a few years ago that I began searching for an easy breakfast in the morning that the prospect of porridge suddenly became appealing again. I generally get up for work at about five am most morning, which is quite tough during the winter months. Summer was easy, I’d just make a smoothie, but the cold months of winter left me wanting something far more nourishing before I’d step outside into the frosty mornings.

Porridge is a great option for an early morning, while this particular recipe does take a little longer to cook, you can instead simply use quick oats to speed up the process. Obviously you don’t need to top them with caramelised pears every morning - there’s many more options, such as honey, brown sugar, nuts, apples, bananas, or basically anything that you want.

Porridge
Serves 2
Ingredients
1 cup steel cut oats
2-3 cups of coconut milk + 1/2 cup coconut milk
2 pears, sliced however you want really
Small handful walnuts, chopped roughly
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp brown sugar
Vanilla pod or vanilla essence
Sea salt

1. Place the oats into a medium saucepan along with the 2 cups of coconut milk (leaving the extra cup to add in if the porridge thickens too much) and vanilla essence or vanilla pod - ensure if using the vanilla pod that you open it before putting it in the porridge to ensure the inside flavour comes out.

2. Place on the stove on a medium heat and remember to keep an eye on it, stirring every few minutes. Porridge will quite easily overcook and stick to the pot if you don’t stir frequently. Add in the extra coconut milk during this time if the porridge thickens to much before cooking thoroughly.

3. While the porridge it cooking, you can caramelise the pears and walnuts. Heat the butter in a small frying pan until it is foaming. Add in the pears and cook until browned before turning to the other side and repeating the process.

4. Once the pears are nicely browned scatter the brown sugar over them evenly, keeping them in the pan and on a low heat. After a few minutes the sugar should dissolve in with the butter - turning into an almost thick syrup. Make sure you use a wooden spoon to keep it all moving in the pan during this time so it doesn’t burn - plus it’ll coat the pears nicely.

5. Add in the remaining half cup of coconut milk, it will sizzle quite a bit, but that’s fine, just keep it moving in the pan. Add in the walnuts at this point also and gently mix the pears and walnuts around so they get coated in the caramel.

6. Serve the porridge immediately with the pears and walnuts spooned on top, and the caramel drizzled over.