Warm Apple Cinnamon Oat Porridge with Walnuts
- Sweet
- Quick
- Stovetop
- Oven
Creamy oats simmered with grated apple and cinnamon, finished with honey and toasted walnuts. A warm, satisfying breakfast bowl that comes together in one pot.
- Total
- 18 min
- Prep 5 · Cook 13
- Serves
- 2
- Difficulty
- Easy
You'll practice: Simmering · Toasting spices
Instructions
-
Coarsely chop the walnuts and toast them in a small dry frying pan over medium heat, stirring often, until fragrant and lightly golden, about 3 minutes. Tip them onto a plate to cool.
~3 min
Toasting in a dry pan drives off moisture and browns the walnuts, deepening their flavour; stir often because nuts scorch quickly once they colour.
Toasting spices Toast nuts in a dry pan over medium heat, stirring constantly, and pull them off the moment they smell fragrant and turn golden, as they darken fast.
-
Grate the apple on the coarse side of a box grater, stopping when you reach the core.
~2 min
-
Combine the oats, milk, grated apple, cinnamon and a pinch of salt in a small saucepan. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally so the oats do not catch.
~3 min
A gentle simmer keeps the milk from boiling over or scorching, while the salt lifts the sweetness of the apple and cinnamon.
Grating the apple releases its juice straight into the pot, so the oats absorb apple flavour as they cook rather than just sitting next to fruit slices.
Simmering Keep the milk at a bare tremble, not a rolling boil, and stir the base often; milk scorches easily and a burnt taste spreads through the whole pot.
-
Lower the heat and simmer, stirring often, until the oats are soft and the porridge is thick and creamy, 6 to 8 minutes. If it tightens too much, stir in 50 ml of the milk.
~8 min
Stirring releases the oats' starch so the porridge turns creamy rather than gluey, and the extra milk loosens it as the starch thickens.
Simmering Keep the milk at a bare tremble, not a rolling boil, and stir the base often; milk scorches easily and a burnt taste spreads through the whole pot.
-
Stir 1 tbsp of the honey into the porridge and taste. Divide between two bowls, drizzle with the remaining 1 tbsp honey and scatter over the toasted walnuts.
~2 min
