Pear & Blueberry Millet Porridge
This is such a nourishing fruity porridge which uses millet to ring the changes from oats. The blueberry and pear pair beautifully together and the ghee (clarified butter) really brings the flavours together. This recipe makes a brilliant porridge for the whole family and is a winner for anyone who is experiencing digestive discomfort and needs to be gluten-free. Sweeten with a drizzle of maple syrup for older children and adults.
Millet is highly nutritious and contains plenty of phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, and folate as well as antioxidants and polyphenols which help to nourish a healthy balance of bacteria in the gut.
Millet is one of the best grains to give babies in the first few months of weaning because it is very easily digestible and is perfect for very sensitive tummies. It naturally contains amylase which helps with starch digestion – the issue that many tricky weaners have a problem with. I also developed this porridge for babies with reflux and complex allergies, as millet is one of the least allergenic grains and very few babies are allergic to pear or blueberries.
This recipe is also a perfect first step for the “milk ladder” when attempting to introduce cow’s milk back into a child with milk intolerance or allergy from around 12 months. The ghee is lactose-free and very low in milk proteins such as casein and whey. A nutritional therapist or paediatrician will advise if your child is ready to try a reintroduction. Start with 1/8th teaspoon ghee.
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Pear & Blueberry Millet Porridge
Ingredients
- 1 tsp Ghee (or unsalted butter)
- 30 g Millet Flakes
- 1 Pear (peeled & cored)
- 40 g Blueberries (halved)
- 120 ml Milk (of choice)
Instructions
- Melt the ghee in a small saucepan and add the millet flakes. Cook for a minute and then add in the pear, blueberries and milk and cook on a medium heat for 6 or 7 minutes until the pear is soft.
- For very small babies blend up using a stick blender and add a little extra milk if needed.
Notes
- Millet flakes can easily be found in health food shops and online. There are also special baby millet porridges available, but these are often more expensive and if you are making this porridge for the rest of the family then it’s better to have a packet of millet flakes at the ready.
- Swap millet to oats, quinoa flakes or buckwheat flakes if you prefer.
- Dairy-free – swap ghee to olive oil, coconut oil, tallow (rendered beef fat/beef dripping) or goose fat. Use breast milk, infant formula, fortified almond, coconut or oat milk or a light fresh unsalted chicken stock depending on how sensitive your child is to dairy.
Great recipe I will definitely try this one collecting ideas for when my baby starts weaning in a couple of months.
I have pre ordered the weaning book.