I’m not used to wearing a coat at tax time, but this weekend I had to break out the long johns. That freaking groundhog wasn’t kidding. Spring is playing hide and seek, and the only upside is that we get an excuse to cozy it up with all our winter faves, cocoa and soup and porridge!

As you well know from my reviews of Gojo in Nashville and Ghion here in Birmingham, I’m obsessed with Ethiopian injera and want to make some of my own. Don’t worry–you’ll read about it when I do. In preparation I bought a value 4-pack of teff on Amazon. In case you’ve never heard of this crucial gluten-free injera ingredient, teff is a teeny tiny whole grain grown primarily in Ethiopia for like…thousands of years.

Since I bought 4 bags but am super intimidated by injera, I was looking into other uses, and conveniently on the bag there was a suggestion for porridge–toast the grains, add water and butter, boil. The nutty, aromatic grain is perfect for breakfast, chock-full of nutrients, particularly iron and magnesium. Dress it up like oatmeal, though the consistency is more like Cream of Wheat or harina de maíz. Here I followed Bob’s Red Mill’s suggestions by adding dates, salt, honey, walnuts, and a little cream. Perfect for a springy winter’s day. dsc_0308 dsc_0309 dsc_0310