Red Velvet Porridge

Now I have a confession...I'm actually not a massive fan of red velvet (sorry!). I just think it's a bit gimmicky, and if I'm going to have a chocolate cake, I'll just have a chocolate cake without the red food colouring in it. Anyway, sorry - rant over!

I do love the colour of red velvet - that bright red. So I wanted to capture that in a porridge, without using food colouring obviously. There was an option to use beetroot, but to be honest I'm not feeling beetroot in my porridge. Maybe one day, but not today. So, I really like this version I've come up with. Using berries to get the colour is wonderful because they compliment the chocolate really beautifully as well. They are quite tart so I've added a dash more honey/maple syrup to this porridge. Of course, this wouldn't be red velvet without the cream cheese frosting, so I've put my own version below and personally, it's my favourite part of the porridge!

Serves 1

Ingredients

Porridge

• 1/2 cup oats

• 1/2 cup milk

• 1/2 cup water

• Pinch of salt

• 1 tsp honey

• 1 tsp cocoa powder

• 1 large handful of berries (strawberries and/or raspberries)

• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Topping

• 2 tbsp cream cheese

• 1 tbsp yoghurt

• 2 tsp maple syrup/honey

• Chocolate spread/Nutella/Melted chocolate (I use a Wholearth chocolate peanut butter)

• Chocolate chunks

(Notes on substitutions found below the method)

Method:

1. Place the berries in a microwaveable cup/bowl and place them in the microwave for 1 minute. Remove and max them a little to release their colour and juice. Then microwave for 1 minute more.

2. Mix most of the berry mixture with the remaining porridge ingredients, reserving about 1.5 tsp of berry liquid for later. On the hob: place the ingredients in a saucepan, bring to boil and simmer for 4-5 minutes stirring regularly to make it rich and creamy. In the microwave: place the ingredients in a microwave proof bowl, then microwave on high for 1 minute, give it a good stir for 30s minutes. Put back in the microwave for 2-3 minutes stirring regularly to make it rich and creamy.

3. To make the cream cheese 'frosting' mixture, combine the yoghurt, cream cheese and 1 tsp honey.

4. Drizzle over the leftover berry liquid. Then top with the cream cheese mixture, chocolate spread and chocolate chunks.

Notes and substitutions:

• Oats: I use regular porridge oats, but you can use any type. Just adjust the cooking time.

• Milk: Any milk works, including soy and nut milks.

• Honey: This can be replaced with any sweetener of your choice

• Cocoa powder: Of course you can use cacao powder too.