triple-coconut quinoa porridge

I’m ashamed to say that breakfasts are sort of an afterthought in this household. If there was a candid camera sneaking around here in the mornings, we’d be in the hall of shame for certain. I start my mornings, early, with a glass of water and lemon (thanks, Winnie!). I shuffle out in my bathrobe and sit, glass of water in hand, while I sift through various emails, make a list of things to do for the day, and generally try to wake up. Each morning, I compile relevant press links for a client, put together a social media strategy for the day. I do it early on because I like to free up the rest of my day to work on books, on writing, on having some flexibility with my schedule. And it’s perhaps because mornings are so packed with activity, that everything: exercise, breakfast, showering, often falls by the wayside.

Lately, in particular, as I was rushing to the finish line with Marc Murphy’s book (it’s been submitted! fireworks! fanfare! celebratory cocktails!) breakfast was, well, it didn’t exist period. I’d realize by about 11am that I was so hungry I couldn’t see straight, and I’d lunge into the kitchen and try to make myself a smoothie (very good), a piece of toast (good, but was getting old), or a few slices of cheddar cheese with an apple (also very good). But did I make myself a proper breakfast? No.

Since we’ve moved into the new apartment, and while our kitchen was unusable, our go-to breakfast has been cereal. For Andrew, it was Heritage Flakes with blueberries, while I stuck, firmly and stubbornly, to Grape Nuts. But the real issue here is that we are a weekday-breakfast-fail household. And while I wish with all my heart that we change our ways, our mornings are proving to be too demanding.

And this is where Megan Gordon’s lovely book comes in. It inspires me, nudges me, guides me to do better when it comes to arguably the most important meal of the day. And while the book is full of really lovely recipes I can’t wait to finally make*, one recipe, in particular, has really stuck out to me, because it is entirely composed of some of my favorite words: coconut, quinoa, and porridge. Also, triple, as in coconut. In this breakfast porridge that is sure to make regular appearances around these corners, Megan uses coconut milk, unsweetened coconut flakes, and finishes the porridge with a drizzle of coconut oil. And I love the use of quinoa here. More often, you see quinoa is served as a savory side, but it does equally as well as a breakfast ingredient. I’ve been a big fan of quinoa for a few years now, and I’m glad that it’s become easier to find. Only just a few years ago, I’d have to go to a health food store to get it, and now it’s available in stores like Trader Joe’s.

I’ve been reading Megan’s blog for years. I followed her journey from San Francisco to Seattle. I watched from afar how she built her delicious granola business, batch by batch, and I couldn’t be happier for her. I was so thrilled for her when she got engaged. This beautiful book is a natural extension of her work with, and understanding of, whole grains.

What I intend on doing is to make this porridge once a week and eat it for a few days. That way, if I have to resort to a smoothie one day and cheddar and apple the next, it’s not quite so bad. As I write this, there’s a double batch of this porridge in my fridge, so I’m already mending my ways.

*I’m sorry to be so late to the game here as I spent the last few months without a kitchen and then another frenetic month trying to finish testing recipes for a cookbook. If you’re dying to know what it was like to live without a kitchen – here you go.