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On a cold winter morning nothing warms me up like a bowl of oatmeal with brown sugar, cinnamon, and raisins. Having been raised in a state where it’s cold for half the year oatmeal has long been a part of my morning routine. However, since regular oats are no longer safe for me to eat, my morning oatmeal has been put on the back burner. Although oats are naturally gluten free, they have become so cross-contaminated with gluten they are considered unsafe for gluten sensitive individuals. Thankfully, some farmers and companies go through the extra effort to grow and process oats in a gluten-free environment. All this extra effort, however, result in extra high prices for gluten-free oats.

Although I do use gluten-free oats on occasion, I’ve been experimenting with some other gluten-free grains to make a hot breakfast cereal with. One of these is millet. I feel that millet is one of the most under used of the gluten-free grains and I’m not sure why its not more popular. It is fast and easy to cook, inexpensive, nutritious, readily available at your local health food store and it has a delicious, almost oat-like flavor. When cooked for about 30 minutes or so, millet develops a consistency reminiscent of cream of wheat. With its mild flavor even the pickiest of eaters will enjoy it. There is endless room for customization to suit your taste so try it with different spices, dried fruit, fresh fruit, and sweeteners. I usually make several servings at a time and place the leftovers in individual containers for a quick, nutritious breakfast any day of the week. Enjoy!

Gluten and Dairy Free Millet Breakfast Porridge

  • 1 1/3 cups millet
  • 3 cups water
  • 2 cups non-dairy milk
  • Cinnamon, to taste
  • Vanilla, to taste
  • 1/2 raisins
  • Brown sugar or other sweetener, to taste

In a sauce pan combine the millet, water, non-dairy milk, cinnamon and vanilla. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cover. Cook for 20 minutes, add the raisins or dried fruit of choice, and then continue to cook for 10 minutes more or until a thick porridge-like consistency is reached.

Spoon into bowls and add brown sugar or other sweetener to taste.

Makes 4 servings