no matter how old my boys become, this time of year always seems to remind me of dreaming up breakfast ideas for their first day back to school (school starts early in these parts…).
i like to think this purple porridge is the kind of novelty they would have gotten a kick out of back in the day. Wholesome and visually dazzling, it also packs a tasty punch!
bursting with benefits
of all the delicious fruit available to us, blueberries are a star among stars boasting one of the richest sources of anthocyanins among common fruit —
anthocyanins are the pigments in blueberry that give this porridge it’s gorgeous purple hue! beyond its visual delight, these pigmented beauties have been shown to confer a number of health benefits in human populations including a reduction in risk of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes as well as providing neuro-protective benefits: link to overview of health benefits.
serve warm or cold
this porridge will keep well overnight in the fridge in a covered container/ jar (save the toppings for serving time); if it’s warm where you are, serve the oatmeal cold straight from the fridge – refreshing and delicious – add a drizzle of milk if you like or top with a dollop of yogurt; if preferred, you can simply reheat to enjoy warm, garnishing as desired.
- ❀ 1 cup (85 g) old fashioned rolled oats, certified gluten-free as required
- ❀ 1 tsp cinnamon powder
- ❀ ¼ tsp Chinese five-spice powder
- ❀ ½ cup (75 g) chopped apples (i peel the apple for this part) + slices for topping
- ❀ 4 Tbsp unsweetened apple sauce
- ❀ 1 cup (140 g) frozen blueberries, partially thawed (take the blueberries out of the freezer as you begin this recipe to give them time to start releasing their beautiful juices as they thaw)
- ❀ 2 Tbsp hemp seeds
- Tasting Notes:
- ❀ select any variety of apples you like just make sure to use frozen blueberries for this recipe (the thawing process creates that beautiful purple coloured juice)
- ❀ if you've not tried Chinese five-spice, i enthusiastically recommend it - it's difficult to reproduce the medley of flavour it contains in a singular spice (star anise, fennel, clove, cinnamon... warming & delicious combo) - that said, you can sub ginger, nutmeg, cardamom etc. or simply add more cinnamon as desired.
- ❀ substitute ground flaxseed or chia for the hemp seed, as desired.
- Add oats to just under 2 cups of water (450 mL) in a pot on stove -- to the pot add: cinnamon, Chinese five-spice and diced apples, stirring together; bring the mixture to a boil.
- Reduce heat to simmer for about 5 minutes before stirring in apple sauce, 1 Tbsp of hemp seeds and blueberries. You will notice that the partially thawed blueberries will quickly add a beautiful purple colour to the oatmeal while leaving many of the berries intact.
- You can adjust thickness of oatmeal by adding milk or water to desired consistency. You can also add nuts as desired.
- Taste the oatmeal to determine whether to add touch of maple syrup or honey to desired sweetness.
- Serve oatmeal in individual bowls/ jars (8 oz /237 mL mason jars pictured) and top with apple slices, a couple blueberries and remaining Tbsp of hemp seeds, as desired. Yogurt is also a nice addition.
- This oatmeal will store well overnight in fridge (in a covered container or place wrap over mouth of bowl) -- you can enjoy reheated or cold the next morning as desired (if resting in fridge overnight, leave toppings for the morning).
- This recipe will make approximately 4 x 1 cup servings of purple porridge :)
Kelly your recipes always make my mouth water! So glad to see you’re still in the kitchen creating beautiful things xoxo
such a sweet note, thank you friend, x
Can I pick up from you?
haha, that would be nice wouldn’t it? (i want that too:) thank you for the compliment, cheers.