Cauliflower is such a versatile vegetable, I have fallen for it big time. How is it that it can be such a great pretender? How can it be cooked in a variety of different ways and each time taste and feel so unique? I’m thinking mash, or rice, or this porridge, even. Important note to self, always make sure there is cauli in the fridge!
It’s a good idea to start the day with protein. You will find yourself more satiated and energised for the day ahead, plus you may also have fewer cravings, which will be useful if you are trying to lose weight. But, like I said in my first post, there are times when you’d simply rather not, thank you. Occasionally you may feel the urge for that comforting, creamy bowl of oats with just a hint of a sweetener, though not so much. Btw, do you feel that your taste buds are changing as you progress along your AIP journey? Are you finding that foods you once thought of as sweet now seem to be whoa, too sweet? I certainly do. There’s very little sweetener in here, and I’m happy to keep it to a bare minimum. However I do think the porridge needs those 3 tablespoons of honey, any less and it tastes a little too cauliflower-y and a lot less creamy!
Do you feel the pull of Autumn in the air at all? Though it’s still lovely and warm here in Vancouver, the days are drawing to a close by 8pm now and what with school starting, I’m thinking it’ll soon be time to retrieve a small selection of woollies from the cupboard, pack away my sandals and prepare some warming, creamy porridge. You’re lucky I’m giving you this recipe as it happens, because my daughter told me not to. She wanted to keep this one all to ourselves … we need to work on some sharing skills, clearly!
I love having my small food critics on hand when I bring out a new recipe, seeing their reaction as it comes to table and watching their faces as they take that first mouthful. They really tell it like it is. My boy is still crazy for the Peach and Ginger Oatmeal but my daughter, on the other hand, has switched allegiance, the turncoat. This is the one that does it for her!
cauli porridge
I like to have a lidded glass bowl of ‘riced’ cauli in my fridge so I can quickly measure it out for this porridge, or for cauli rice for that matter. That way, I can have my shower and get dressed whilst it simmers happily. In truth it doesn’t take that long to prepare this veggie in the food processor, the trick is to put the florets into your processor with the ‘S’ blade and pulse about 8-10 times or so until the cauli is the same consistency as rice. Pulsing puts you in control, if you just press the on button, you risk ending up with purée!
(serves 4)
Print the recipe here
4 cups (1 medium head) cauliflower
1 tbsp coconut oil
2 1/4 cups (560ml) coconut milk (I use this one)
3 tbsp honey
large pinch salt (I use this one)
Put all the ingredients into a large pan and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down to a simmer and cook till the cauli is softened and creamy, approx 20 mins.
rosemary plum compote
make this compote while the porridge is simmering away to eat it warm, or prepare any time in advance and keep, covered in the fridge until needed.
(serves 4-6)
450g ripe sweet prune plums, quartered and stones removed
1 stalk rosemary, halved
1 tbsp honey
1 tsp vanilla extract (I use this one)
Put ingredients into a medium pan on a medium heat. When liquid begins to ooze from the fruits, turn the heat down to low, making sure the rosemary is covered by the plums and continue cooking approx 10 mins until the liquid is slightly syrupy and the fruits softened but not completely falling apart. Set aside. Taste for sweetness and flavour from the rosemary, you may like to take it out at this stage or leave it in until you are ready to serve, as I do.
PS. For more breakfast inspiration, you may want to think about getting a copy of the e-book “85 Amazing AIP Breakfasts“!
This plum compote looks fabulous! I absolutely adore rosemary so this is a must try for me 🙂
Thanks Sophie, that’s great to hear. Let me know how you get on?!
Ooh, this looks amazing! I could never stomach the paleo porridges with dessicated coconut! I have to try this after years of not eating porridge! Cauliflower and I are now truly best buddies!
Hi Kathy, good to hear about your love affair with cauliflower 😉 I hope you enjoy the porridge!
You’re porridges look amazing – can’t wait to try them!
Thank you Annemiek, that’s so lovely of you to pop in and tell me. I really hope you enjoy! 🙂
is there a low fodmap alternative to the cauliflower you think would work here? thanks so much!!
Hi Kay, have you seen the other breakfast recipes I have here? The AIP Pumpkin Porridge is a low fodmap recipe in itself and the two ‘oatmeal’ recipes can be made low fodmap by changing the fruits. I made a really successful blueberry/cinnamon oatmeal the other day by using the recipe for Peach and Ginger Oatmeal but adding 1.5 cups blueberries instead of the peaches and 1 tsp cinnamon instead of the ginger (or obviously you can use ginger if you prefer). Hope this helps you 🙂
Thank you for making such innovative porridge recipes! I was just coming on here to look through your recipes and adjust them for low FODMAPs as I just made a huge batch of spaghetti squash. Even the AIP (no-nut) ones that use a lot of coconut don’t go over well for me, even though I tolerate coconut well, despite it being a FODMAP, so thank you for recipes that are full of vegetables!
Hi Natalie, it’s my pleasure to share. Thanks for letting me know 🙂
I made this porridge the other day, and I admit I was skeptical about how it would taste, even though we all enjoy cauliflower. After tasting it, I can happily say that it was really good! I made a compote from black raspberries since that’s what I had on hand, and really liked the subtle complexity that the rosemary added. This porridge was even better the next day, eaten cold for a snack! Thanks for your lovely recipes, and the beautiful photographs that inspire one to make them.
Thanks once again for your encouraging comments, I really appreciate them. And I’m so pleased you love the porridge too. Yum, I love the sound of the black raspberries compote with rosemary, thanks for that 🙂
It’s interesting that you mention using the ‘S’ blade on the food processor to make the cauli ‘rice’, as I’ve always used the shredder side of the disk….
This looks so great and a wonderful way to add a veggie to breakfast but I am wondering if you can recommend a substitute to the coconut milk. My son has a sudden aversion to it.
Hi Annie, if you are strict AIP why not look into Tigernut Milk? I haven’t used it myself because I don’t believe it’s GAPS-friendly but a lot of AIP-ers are using it now and rate it highly. Take a look at Erin’s post here http://enjoyingthisjourney.com/tigernut-milk-horchata-de-chufa/ .
Hi Kate. Just wanted to pop in and tell you that I’ve made this recipe several times now. I think I finally perfected it to my personal taste. I use I can of coconut milk (gum free) which is I think 400ml as I prefer the porridge to be thicker. If I need to thin it out at all, I splash in some of my homemade nut milk. (I am no longer strict AIP) I use a whole bag of frozen blueberries which turned out a bit less than 450g. To the compote mixture I also add a squeeze of lemon. Also in the porridge and compote I use a combination of grade b maple syrup (not scd legal) and honey. My only problem with this dish is that I have a hard time only eating one serving! Question, do you think regular plums would work in this? It is stone fruit season now so plums are a plenty! I don’t really know the difference actually. If so, should they be peeled? Is the weight in the recipe before or after removing the pits?
I was reading up a bit about those tiger nuts you mentioned and I think you are right, they are likely not scd and/or gaps legal. They are technically a tuber and it looks like most of their calories come from carbs. The reason I’m saying this is in case anyone else is reading and wondering for themselves. I cannot eat any starchy food, which is frequently in AIP recipes (like sweet potatoes, arrowroot, tapioca, cassava, plantain, etc)
ANYWAY Love your site and this recipe
Hi Deana, use any plums you like and taste them as they’re cooking so you can adjust the amount of sweetener, if necessary. I don’t peel them, life is too short for that and the weight is before removing pits. So glad you’re enjoying the recipe, thanks for letting me know 🙂
So, one thing I noticed is that this recipe is quite good cold, or rather “cool” (from sitting out a bit). It almost has a texture of rice pudding. Maaaan I used to LOVE rice pudding! My mom had a recipe with raisins and probably some specific spices that was really good. She is no longer on the earth, so sadly the recipe isn’t either 🙁 I wonder if your recipe was tweaked to add a bit more honey and some raisins (or not if trying to be scd compliant), spices, and gelatin if it would work. If I decide to experiment I will let you know. Have you ever tried a cauli-rice pudding? That’s kind of s British-ey thing right? Or is that bread pudding…
Yeah, the recipe is great at room temperature too and there’s also the one I wrote for Autoimmune-Paleo which is written to be eaten just warm, http://healingfamilyeats.com/warm-porridge-with-lemon-and-berries-aip/. Let me know how you get on with your tinkering, I’m all for a caul-rice pud (I have been thinking about working one but also have other things I’m prioritising) and yes, rice pudding is very British, as is bread pudding. And bread and butter pudding too, they are two different things over there 🙂
I just made the compote with maple syrup instead of honey and it is ridiculous. So delightfully tart, and the heady rosemary/maple/vanilla flavors are fabulous. I imagine it is stupendous with the cauli- porridge, which I have also made and love. For this week, I made a butternut squash/apple porridge from AIP Lifestyle and perhaps the flavor mixture with the compote is a bit rich, but that’s a nice problem to have when trying to follow this diet. Thank you for the stellar recipes.
Thanks so much , I’m so pleased you enjoyed it 🙂