A bowl of oats and a cup of coffee are two welcome hand-warmers on a frosty morning. This recipe goes even further, combining the two so you don’t have to juggle the crockery.

Cardamom, more earthy and slightly less sweet than cinnamon, imparts a lovely warm spice to porridge, and coffee adds a rich depth. The result is a bowl of the best of all breakfast worlds. Feel free to sub in your favourite seasonal fruit as a topping, or add a handful of nuts to change the texture.

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• Time: 15min
• Cost: $5
• Feeds: 2

Porridge ingredients

• ¾ cup oats (or two sachets microwave oats)
• 4 tbsp chia seeds
• ⅓ cup desiccated coconut
• 2 tsp cardamom
• 2 mugs freshly brewed coffee (or 2 cups water and 2 tsp instant coffee)
• Coconut milk powder sachet (enough for two serves – 500ml)
• 6 dates, finely chopped
• 1 banana, chopped (optional)
• Pinch of salt

Topping ingredients

• Neutral oil
• 3 tbsp maple syrup or honey
• Handful nuts (walnuts, almonds, pumpkin seeds, etc)
• 1 pear or other fruit
• Coconut chips to garnish

Method

At home, combine all dry ingredients, except the oats, in one zip-lock bag.

At camp, prepare the coffee. Tip the oats into a pot and toast on medium-low heat for about 5min, or until they start to smell nice and nutty. Pour in the coffee and all other ingredients, stirring well so the powders are absorbed. 

Bring to a boil, then turn the heat all the way down and cook for a further5+ minutes, stirring regularly, until the porridge has reached your desired consistency. 

Meanwhile, finely slice the pear and heat a little bit of oil in another pan. Gently fry the pear with 2 tbsp maple syrup and the nuts/seeds for a few minutes, until the liquid thickens slightly. 

Remove from the heat and sprinkle some coconut chips over the mixture.

Taste the porridge for sweetness. If you added dates and banana it should be good; otherwise stir in the remaining maple syrup.

Serve with the caramelised pears and nuts.