No Cook Porridge Cereal

My daughter and I just sooooo love porridge in the morning. Porridge and oats are so good for you. Porridge is rich in fibre which is good for bowel function  ( including soluble fibre which is also good for helping reducing cholesterol levels) and is rich in vitamins and minerals. It is also classified as a low glycaemic food which means that it releases sugars slowly  and so keeps you satiated longer.

My new job means that some mornings I am at work ridiculously early and so need to have my breakfast there. I have tried eating before setting off but I end up ravenously hungry all day. I have since realised that sticking to normal eating patterns is the best way forward.

I have tried taking the little sachets of quick cook flavoured porridges ( and my what a selection there is of them, a lot  are very sweet and some taste very artificial) but I started to think that I would be better off making my own mixes and taking them to work.

 I had a quick look to see what there is on the internet and I found quite a lot of interesting posts about precisely this.  Having read this article  How to make perfect porridge from The Guardian I decided to opt for pin head or steel cut Irish oatmeal as it seems to give better flavour and texture.

Once in the supermarket it was quite difficult to see which oats were going to be the ones I wanted as most of the boxes didn't have transparent windows.  In the end I went for The Oatmeal made by Rude Health  which is a mixture of pinhead and medium grade oatmeal. I'm hoping this will give a creamy porridge with some texture.

 Today I thought I would prepare a no cook overnight porridge oats and having looked online, this is what I did:
Ingredients:
1 cup of pinhead/ medium oatmeal
2 cups of milk
A sprinkle of cinnamon
A sprinkle of ginger
A teaspoon of runny honey
Some chopped dates

I placed all the ingredients in my new microwaveable mug which has a handy clip-on ( no spill so far) lid and will leave it  overnight. Hopefully the oatmeal  will absorb some of the liquid and will soften to a slightly chewy texture- I do hope so as it will be my breakfast tomorrow. All I need to do  now is to remember to pick it up in the morning. I will take some extra granola and raisins to sprinkle on top just before serving.

If all else fails and it is still sloppy in the morning I will  probably microwave it for a couple of minutes- to turn it into a hot porridge.

Later this weekend I will have a go at using the oatmeal to make a proper hot porridge and I will let you know how it goes!!