It’s not evident, but this buckwheat porridge is riddled with prunes. Sticky, black and plump. My mama always said prunes are good for the bowel.
Mum and Dad thought of things like that. Drinking water is good for headaches. Prunes or figs for moving things through the body. A bowl of oats before bed to sleep better. Soggy weetbix with mashed banana when we were ill (or had teeth extracted for braces). Dark, fruit & nut chocolate (definitely Dad) in the car for energy during long drives.
I never recall my Mum ‘treating us’ to junk food, or teaching us to eat our emotions. With treats, like icecream or her Sante biscuits one was always enough – we were rarely allowed a second helping. Nothing was totally banned in our house – I was even treated* to McDonalds a couple of times a year. Sweets, chips, soft drinks – they were just never in the pantry. Orange juice was a luxury – only one glass (on the odd occasion) with dinner, then it was only water. I first tried fizzy drink (pop) when I was about 15. I hated it, and have never drunk it since!
*Gee, that would be punishment now!
Instead we were offered a huge variety of foods, all sorts of vegetables, grains, spices, curries… of which we had to try a little of everything. Mama had this great trick of chopping the vegetables up finely and tossing through pasta or rice and serving it in a bowl. What a way to prevent picky eaters picking!
I don’t think this is superior, or the right way. I just appreciate it.
Thanks Mama for getting me into prunes at such a young age. And yes, they are indeed great for the bowel.
Buckwheat Porridge with Prunes & Caramelised Pear
Serves 2
Recipe based off this Barley & Buckwheat Porridge post from the end of last summer
1/2 cup whole buckwheat (groats)
1/2 cup water
1/2 milk
salt
1 tsp cinnamon
handful prunes (dried plums), chopped
1 pear
dash of butter
In a dry pan over medium heat, toast buckwheat groats until fragrant. Remove from heat and place in a saucepan with the water, the milk, cinnamon and salt. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Towards the end, add the chopped prunes. Add more milk as necessary to make a creamy porridge.
Meanwhile, core and slice pears into 1/2″ thickness. Heat butter in a large frying pan and arrange pears without overlapping. Let cook on one side, flip each slice over and repeat until both sides are golden brown and beginning to caramelise.
Serve pears atop the buckwheat porridge with a splash of cold milk.
Gosh – none of this is untrue but heaped together in one essay it sounds rather virtuous. Should I have a halo – if so, should I be polishing it?
Haha yes. You should be proud, and know that I will be passing all of the above on to my own children, instilling a truly healthy appreciation of food – as much as is possible with kids
So wonderfully presented. This is one of the more delicious recipes for porridge I’ve seen!
Your mum and dad are awesome for introducing you to real food and keeping food-like products away! Their labor is paying off. Thanks for sharing your stories and delicious recipes with us!
Thank you Abby. Yes it’s definitely something I plan on passing onto my children – real food, real flavours, real variety.
thanks for liking my cake recipe, have to say this looks amazing! will definitely be trying it instead of normal porridge sometime soon