Quaker Caramel Fudge Porridge (Ocado) By @Cinabar

I don’t eat porridge very often, so I rarely buy a whole box, unless I’m using it for baking, of course. I just had a fancy for some chocolatey porridge and spotted this Quaker Caramel Fudge Porridge online and added it to my basket. The porridge is made in the container, you open the lid, add hot water, leave it for a few minutes, then stir and eat. Super simple.

 The flavour caught my eye as it is caramel fudge, and the moment the hot water hit the oats, it smelled lovely. There were sweet toffee and chocolate tones, and I couldn't’ wait to give it a try. The taste test was also really positive, provided, of course, you have a sweet tooth. If you don't, I’m not sure you would buy a flavour like this anyway. The porridge mixed up nicely and even had fudge pieces in it, which was a nice touch. The chocolate was good, and all the caramel-like tastes came through. This isn’t an every-day porridge but does make a nice treat at the weekend as something a bit more indulgent.

Quaker Oats Fruit & Oat Squeeze: Red Fruits (Waitrose) By @Cinabar

I am always looking for things I can have for breakfast at my desk, that will fill me up to lunch time. I usually go for a simple cereal bar, or as it has been cold recently an instant porridge sachet. When I was shopping in Waitrose this drink caught my eye, and so I bought one to take to work. It is called a Fruit and Oat Squeeze and is made by porridge specialists Quaker Oats.
The first instruction on the packet of this drink, well porridge drink, is to shake well. Given it feels like quite thick contents shaking didn’t seem to be having much of an impact. I decided to squeeze the pack a bit to help mix it up. I unscrewed the top and gave it a taste test. Before I come to the flavour let me talk about texture, it is thick and has the feeling of a thick porridge, which for reasons I’m not sure about I didn’t quite like in this format. I don’t think it was because it was cold, as I’ve even overnight oats before and not been bothered about the temperature, but there was something in this squeezy cold porridge format that meant I didn’t get on with the texture. I think I got the thought of baby food in my head, and couldn’t get passed it! It is a shame because the flavour actually works quite well. It has a yoghurt tang, and surprisingly sharp berry flavour which gives it a nice juicy taste. I liked the acidic raspberry taste, and the hint of strawberry worked well with it too. It also kept me full to lunch time, which is a bonus, it stopped me from raiding the works chocolate tin! Having said that I still prefer instant porridge, besides it is warming in this cold weather.

Overnight Oats - Red Apple - Quaker Oats (@Morrisons) By @Cinabar

I love porridge, and have switched to having this for breakfast, call it the call of Autumn. I like to take the pots where you just add water and stir, simple for me to take to work and eat while browsing my email. I noticed that in the same section were some pots of Overnight Oats, which are very on trend at the minute so I thought I’d see what all the fuss is about.

It turns out that I don’t plan breakfast too well, and it took me a few days to remember I needed to prep these in the evening. The pack suggests that the oats should have milk added to them for between 2 and 12 hours and be refrigerated, you then eat it cold in the morning. I added the milk to the dry mix and left it to soak. The next morning I took it out, and sat down to give it a try with my morning coffee. The first thing to note is that this does need to be eaten at home as the soaking overnight can’t really be achieved at a work office, neither can the transportation of it after its been soaked.
I was a little wary of how this was going to work, but was pleased to see it had a least become moist and wasn’t solidified! The texture was much better than expected, and although it wasn’t a smooth as porridge, it was still much closer than I thought it would be. I could still pick up on a powdery edge to the texture, but it was mild. I liked the flavour, the Overnight Oats had been flavoured with Red Apple, and this gave it just enough natural sweetness to make it enjoyable. I have to admit though this was far tastier than I imagined, and it is a major trend, I’m not really a convert. Give me a hot bowl of hot porridge any day over this.

Space Oats Porridge @QuakerOatsUK By @Cinabar

Recently the lovely folk from Quaker Oats sent us some porridge to try. I have to admit it came at a particularly bad time in the Foodstuff Finds household and for one reason or another got a little over looked. Things have settled down here now and we finally got a moment to explore the goodies inside the hamper. These aren’t just any oats, these are space oats!
In honour of the fact that Buzz Aldrin enjoyed a bowl of oats on the morning he walked on the moon, Quaker Oats sent some of their porridge oats into space!
The sachet of porridge is the regular porridge apart from this respect. I decided to have myself a hearty breakfast and make myself a bowl of it. I really liked the fact that you can use the plastic sachet inside the sleeve to measure the milk in, there is a fill line, that means you don’t have to have the necessity of a measuring jug, which is handy if you are using the work microwave.
I’d forgotten how much I enjoy a bowl of Oats. The measure of milk was spot on for the texture, and I didn’t need to adjust it in any way. The porridge was creamy and satisfying, and I added a little jam just to give it an extra special feel. I was surprised to find that for the first time in ages I had made it to midday without being hungry. Usually at around 11.30am in our office the subject turns to what everybody is having for lunch, and we all wish away the last half an hour until our lunch break talking about food.
Big thanks to Quaker Oats for sending us the lovely samples of Space Oats, my morning was out of this world. ;-)

Special K Multi-grain Porridge with Red Berries [review by @NLi10]

This is part 3 in a round up of various porridges I've eaten recently.  Part one was the 10K hours apple & cinnamon porridge  and part two was the Dorset Cereals Raspberry Porridge.

Part three is actually about the porridges that started it all off.  Kelloggs got in touch and asked whether I'd like free cereal - specifically small sachets of porridge.  Thinking I could make these easily at work I said yes, only to discover that I needed a lot more than just a kettle!  See the Dorset review for all the details, but essentially you need a microwave, fresh milk and some patience.

Here is the mix pre-taking it downstairs to be microwaved.  Note that this time I didn't follow the timings exactly as I watched it like a hawk and every time it went to bubble over the top I stopped and let it shrink again.  I still need to invest in a bowl...

And here is the finished article.  Again it looks like a tiny portion and while isn't as filling as the other two is enough for a light breakfast or a nice evening snack.  The flavour isn't as strong and certainly isn't as sweet (and given the nature of the product neither of these are a surprise) but the texture is very satisfying and not mushy.  It's a nice porridge and like the others gives the office a good homely smell that confuses visitors.

Being the cheapest of the options, and the healthiest I think this is easy to recommend for people looking for the basic option. The simplest of the three to make and easily the most flavourful was the 10K but at three or four times the cost it's not something you'd have every day.  The one I'd probably automatically go for though is the Dorset as it's just a little bit more like a treat.  As i'm essentially only eating these on days I work late it pays to have a little incentive to keep you going and the extra fruit (and probably sugar) is most welcome.

That said I'm working my way through the Special K three flavours too (the plain is plainer, and the honey and almond is sweeter) and enjoying them all.  I was not really a big fan of porridge in the morning as hot breakfasts are better on a plate than a bowl, but after these I may be willing to slot them in as a pre-bedtime snack cereal if I can find space in the cupboard.

Dorset cereals - raspberry porridge [review by @NLi10]

In a continuation from the previous porridge reviews I have managed to collect all the necessary ingredients (sachet & milk) and all the required equipment and utensils ( microwave, spoon, bowl - well I've used a mug, that's the same right?) so can try the sachet prodigies as afternoon work snacks.

Here we see the small portion you get in one sachet.  I'm aware of these oats and seeds cereals being much more filling than they look so I'm using exact measures.  Well as exact as 2/3 of a sachet of milk allows for.

This brings back memories of childhood eating of cereals directly from the bag in the box by pouring the milk in.  Only the Kellogg's selection box size packs allow for this, but it's still a nicely indulgent thing to let kids do and it reduces washing up.

I put the ingredients together and microwaved it for the required amount of time.  And this happened.

Oh dear. Mini volcano! What appears to have occurred is that the high, straight sides of the mug are not as conducive to heat removal as the slopey bowl they suggested.  I will have to find a microwave safe plastic bowl for work for future cooks.

At this mid point it looks more like porridge and does have a nice raspberry smell and a pleasing texture.  I mix and re microwave as directed.

Here is the finished brew, including a shot of the newly cleaned microwave so that any people I work with don't blame me for any communal mess.

While it took longer to sort out than suggested and created far more washing up than the previous bowl based 10K porridge, as mentioned at the time this was a lot cheaper. 

The flavour is not quite as strong and distinct as I'm used to with Dorset products, but it was still more than acceptable and was of a good size for a snack. I got a box with around 10 of these in so I'm pleased that it's really good. The fruit in it was noticeable and I liked the idea that some of the flakes were plain and some had flavour as this created a variety in between mouthfuls.