Friday 4 November 2011

Oatmeal and all that

How do you like your porridge? Do you even like it at all?
Not only are there many ways to eat the meal there are multiple ways to describe it. In Samuel Johnson's dictionary, oats were defined as "eaten by people in Scotland, but fit only for horses in England." The Scotsman's retort to this is, "That's why England has such good horses, and Scotland has such fine men!" Daily consumption of a bowl of oatmeal can lower blood pressure, it has been claimed, because of its soluble fibre content -but then again you need to eat everything in balance! Don't you?

Personally I prefer my porridge the simplest way possible. Water, oatmeal and salt. (Yes, I know the argument about using less salt but...I like the taste!) Some people like it with a dash of cream, or milk. Some like it made with milk instead of water...and some people EVEN add other things like: jam/marmalade/fresh fruit.

Here's a little secret, though. The BEST porridge I have ever enjoyed was at a little hotel in a tiny place called Kentallen, on the west coast of Scotland. The Holly Tree Inn served porridge with cream and Glayva ( a whiskey liqueur) and I really shouldn't have been driving afterwards!!

How do you like your porridge?

3 comments:

  1. I like my oatmeal with raisins, a splash of milk and a dash of salt. It needs the salt for the flavor.

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  2. I know this is late, but I just had to put my vote in for brown sugar and a bit of milk. My parents always put a pat of butter on theirs, but I prefer just the sugar. And you have to be very careful in pouring on the milk so as to not dislodge the crust of melting sugar atop the porridge, Yum.

    I must say, cream and Glayva sounds like an excellent idea, LOL.

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  3. Must try some butter. Not sure if I ever have but I love salty butter!

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