Saturday, February 16, 2008

Coconut Date Porridge



I've been on a coconut kick lately, if you haven't noticed by my past few posts. These days I use coconut oil more than I do olive oil, because it's such a creamy, silken oil to work with. I like it better for high-heat cooking, more than any other oil.

This morning, I was in the mood for porridge. I'd recently gotten some bulk medjool dates for a pie crust I'll be making soon, so I thought I'd try this out.

Now, normally I work recipes from scratch, but I had to showcase this hot cereal mix. Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Mighty Tasty Hot Cereal is just amazing. I was gifted it by a friend awhile back, and I fell completely in love. Not only is it a easy mix to prepare, but the mix of brown rice, corn, buckwheat and sorghum gives the bowl a rich, gooey feel on the tongue. Paired with coconut oil and dates, I think I might just be in porridge heaven.

Coconut Date Porridge

1 cup Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Mighty Tasty Hot Cereal
3 1/4 c. water
2 Tb. coconut oil
2 Tb. dark maple syrup (B grade, or No. 2)
12 pitted medjool dates, chopped, 1 Tb. reserved
1 1/2 cups coconut water
1/4 tsp. cinnamon, for garnish
pinch salt

In a pot, bring water and salt to a boil. Add cereal and mix in, then immediately turn the heat down to low. Cover, and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. It should make about 2 1/2 cups.

Add coconut oil, maple syrup, dates, and coconut water into pot, and incorporate thoroughly. Divide into two bowls, and garnish with reserved dates and cinnamon.

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I actually made this as one serving for myself, so I did the mixing in my own bowl. As I pushed the tablespoons of coconut oil and maple syrup into my porridgey mass, I found this:

Coco-maple love! :D

When I showed this picture to Jeremy, he gave me a funny look and asked me if it was an egg! It kinda does look like a teeny quail egg or something, I have to admit. :) Too bad it was a couple days late for Valentine's Day. It would have been so perfect.

As a side note: Last time I made this hot cereal, I made a HUGE batch of it plain, and put the leftover bits in the fridge. That night, I was feeling like having polenta, but I had all of that ready-made, so I scooped spoonfuls out (it was quite firm) onto a cookie sheet and drizzled them with olive oil, and baked until they turned golden. I served them with a hearty red wine and herb marinara, and it was delicious! A great alternative to normal polenta, and spooning them out rather than cutting chunks or rounds gave them an extra rustic feel. Perhaps I should make that again tonight and post it here... Hmm...

Also! I joined another blogroll the "Great Cooks!" Blogroll from Simple Daily Recipes. I've been going through the other blogs, and I'm getting SO many ideas for new recipes! I'm very excited. I love Blogrolls! :D

5 comments:

LisaRene said...

Isn't it funny how we get on food "kicks". We all seem to do it and the only solution is to keep cooking with the ingredient until the urge passes.

Porridge is a favorite of mine and your manner of serving it baked is a favorite of my husbands.

Love the little heart in the "egg" as it does look like an an egg!

I was curious about the Great Cooks Blog Roll. Are there any vegetarian/vegan members? It seemed like it was mostly targeting moms and kids???

Unknown said...

I haven't seen veg blogs yet, but all the more reason to join the blogroll! We need to keep things diverse, you know?

A good thing about the GCBr is that there are tons of Indian-style blogs, which have vegetarian recipes in them. I've been finding lots of fun things to make in those blogs.

I can't be too picky with what blogs I look at, because my diet is so specialized, you know? I just look at the more mainstream recipes as things that can be tweaked to fit what I can do. :)

LisaRene said...

I agree, Indian food is often vegetarian and so full of flavor. Actually I'm taking a vegan Indian cooking class tomorrow night, can't wait!

I too enjoy tweaking traditional recipes to fit my style and make them my own. You have certainly mastered that, your creativity is quite apparent!

Unknown said...

Thank you!! I really appreciate that sentiment. I have so much fun experimenting - even if it doesn't always work. :) (Even then it usually tastes okay though. heh)

Anonymous said...

I LOVE IT!

The O.N.E. Coconut Water gives a very special touch!