Teff Grain, Flax Seed and Oatmeal Breakfast

After I started experimenting with cooking Scottish oats for weekday breakfasts and combining them with flax seeds in granola, it was a natural extension to explore mixing other ingredients into my oatmeal. Here is an especially tasty combination with fine teff grain to add body to the porridge and flax seeds to add a little texture. Dried apricots, hazelnuts, and maple syrup finish it off with sweetness and crunch. Will including the nutritional powerhouse of teff grain and superfood of flax seeds in your daily breakfast bring you health and superhuman powers? Maybe not. But taking the extra few minutes in the evening to start a warm bowl of oatmeal for the following morning, and infusing your house with the fragrance of buttery, toasted grains in the process, will make you feel cared for, which apparently accounts for a great deal of the healing power of placebos. A good breakfast when you'd like a little extra insurance for getting through a demanding day.

Teff Grain, Flax Seed and Oatmeal Breakfast

1 serving

porridge
1/4 cup Scottish oats (or use rolled oats, or a mixture of rolled and steel cut oats)
1 scant Tbsp teff grain (or substitute chia seeds)
1 scant Tbsp flax seeds
1 tsp butter
small pinch salt
1 cup boiling water (divided)

toppings
dried apricots
hazel nuts
maple syrup
splash of milk

1. The evening before, heat a small saucepan and set a kettle with 2/3 cups water. When the pan is warm, melt the butter. Then add the grains, and cook, stirring, for about five minutes, until they are toasted and very fragrant. Turn off the heat. Carefully add 2/3 cups boiling water (it will splatter), stir, and cover.

2. The next morning, add 1/3 cup water to the pan and reheat (for a richer porridge, use 1/3 cup milk). Let the oatmeal and teff mixture simmer for about five to eight minutes until it is the desired tenderness and thickness. Serve warm, sprinkled with the toppings and a splash of cold milk.

For a family of two adults and two kids, I triple the recipe:
3/4 cups oats
1/8 cup teff grain
1/8 cup flax seeds
1 Tbsp butter
pinch salt
3 cups boiling water

You can of course cook this all at once if you have more time in the morning. Simply add all of the boiling water to the toasted grains and cook for about 15 minutes.


Other whole grain breakfast recipes
Buttery Five Minute Oatmeal Breakfast
Homemade Granola
Rye Waffles with Clementine Syrup
Swedish Oatmeal Pancakes
Gluten-free Waffles
Buckwheat Blini
Buckwheat Crepe