Breakfast Millet and Berries

I am very pleased to report that my Mummy and Daddy have finally understood the benefits of eating…. birdie food! When I woke up this morning, I was very happy to find Mummy cooking millet. Now before you rush into any conclusions, please rest assured that this wasn’t because our pantry was so bare that Mummy had to raid the container of parrot food, this was all part of our attempt to introduce more wholegrains into our menu and experiment with the ones we had never used before.

Despite the fact that millet had never been cooked in the Bistro kitchen before, we were rather surprised to find out that it is one of the oldest grains to be cultivated for human consumption. Even today, it is a staple meal ingredient for people living in various parts of the world from China to Egypt, most likely due to its high nutritional content, as well as the fact that it can grow in harsh climate and soil conditions which are unsuitable for growing other types of grains.

These lovely little yellow beads have a beautifully sweet flavour – no wonder Jerry loves his millet sprays so much 🙂 – and are very nutritious due to their high content of protein and fibre, as well as vitamins and minerals, most notably iron.

We’ve found that millet can take quite a while to cook, so this is not a suitable quick breakfast option, but it’s definitely worth trying if you have the time. It also proved to be a good summer breakfast option, as it’s a lot lighter than a traditional porridge and it cools quickly when mixed with cold milk.

Millet is probably a wonderful candidate for pressure cooking but, since we didn’t use this method today, we are unable to comment on it. However, as we still have half a bag of uncooked millet in the pantry, we will report on the pressure cooking method sometime soon.

Breakfast Millet and Berries

½ cup dry millet, well rinsed in hot water

1 ½ cups water

1 cup cold milk

2 tsp honey

2 tbsp chopped lightly roasted almonds (or toasted almond flakes if you have them)

4 tbsp lightly toasted coconut flakes

200 g fresh berries (we used a mixture of blackberries and raspberries, but any berries will do)

Bring the water to the boil, then add the millet and simmer, covered, for about 30 – 45 minutes, until the water is absorbed. Check regularly and add more water if necessary. Test the grains after 30 minutes and stop the cooking process when they have reached your desired consistency. Let it rest, covered, for about 10 minutes.

Divide between serving bowls.

Spoon milk, honey, almonds and coconut flakes over the millet and mix gently to ensure everything is combined.

Top with berries and serve. Serves 2.