Teff Porridge with Dates and Honey

[sonia]

Spring in Portland can be cold and damp, so I set out to make teff muffins. You know how Bob's Red Mill has been changing their packaging lately? I opened my new package of teff flour and realized it's whole grain teff, not whole grain teff flour. Links are to Bob's Red Mill site in case you also like to shop by visual recognition.

I put sorghum flour in my muffins instead, since that's what I had handy. Came out edible, but somewhat sandy and crumbly.

Now I have a bag of whole grain teff. It's a very fine grain, which is why I couldn't tell the difference from flour by how the bag felt. This recipe is from the back of the bag, and doesn't show up on the Bob's Red Mill site for some reason.

Teff Porridge with Dates and Honey

1 cup whole grain teff
3 cups water (might want extra boiling water at the end)
1 Tbsp unsalted butter (I used olive oil)
1/4 tsp ground cloves
3/4 cup pitted dates, halved crosswise (or chopped smaller)
1/4 tsp sea salt
3 Tbsp honey, plus additional for topping
1/4 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Yogurt, cream, or milk (optional)

Time:
Half an hour total, including getting everything out and waiting impatiently for 5 minutes at the end.

Tools:
Heavy 2 quart saucepan with lid

Methods:

• Heat saucepan over medium heat.
  
• Add teff and toast, stirring frequently, until the grains begin to pop, 3-6 minutes.
  
• Add water, butter, and cloves. Stir well.
  
• Bring to a gentle boil. Cover and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  
• Stir in dates, salt, and honey.
  
• Cover and continue cooking until teff is tender and porridge is desired consistency, 5-10 minutes.
  
• Stir in more boiling water if mixture becomes very thick before teff is cooked through.
  
• Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes.

Serving:
Ladle into bowls; top with walnuts and yogurt, milk, or cream. Drizzle with honey.

Storage:
Keep extra porridge in a container in the fridge. It sets up stiff, the way I remember cream of wheat, and tastes sweeter when it's cool. Claims to make 8 servings. I don't know if I would call it that many, but it's certainly a gracious plenty.

Notes:
Do you know how to tell if teff is cooked through? I do not. And I did not read the whole recipe closely ahead of time and it wasn't noted in the ingredients, so I did not have boiling water available at the end. So, I stopped cooking it fairly soon after adding the dates, when it thickened. It is tasty, especially with extra honey drizzled on top. I skipped the walnuts and dairy toppings. I would probably chop the dates smaller next time, despite the extra hassle.