Even if you don’t subscribe to the popular maxim hailing it as the most important meal of the day, it’s always a fine idea to eat a good breakfast. Whereas the wrong breakfast will see you smash your daily sugar allowance before you’ve started work and raid the snack drawer by 11am, the right one provides the energy and nutrition you need to knock the first half of the day out of the park.

Porridge is the right kind of breakfast. Those wholegrain oats are packed with vitamins, minerals and fibre, and provides slow-release energy that will see you chugging through to lunch. Plus, the milk gives you a decent protein hit. But it’s hardly the most inspiring meal and its high carb content means that it can cause a spike in your blood sugar levels. Thankfully, there’s a simple solution that will help to regulate your blood sugar while also making the dish more delicious. Adding cinnamon to a carb-based meal can prevent blood sugar spikes, according to a study in the journal Nutrition And Metabolism. Even better, add half a scoop of protein powder to your porridge mix along with a handful of blueberries for an antioxidant boost and you’ve got a quick, tasty muscle-building meal.

Alternatively, try one of these delicious, healthy recipes, starting with this protein porridge from Multipower ambassador Healthy Jon which will fill you up while priming your body to burn fat and build lean muscle.

Vanilla Protein Porridge Recipe

Serves: 1 Prep time: 5min Cooking time: 5min

Ingredients

  • 1 cup oats (around 250ml)
  • 1 cup milk (around 250ml)
  • 1 tbsp vanilla whey protein
  • 1 tsp honey
  • ½ a vanilla pod
  • 1 cardamom pod

To make

  1. Add oats, milk, protein powder and honey to a saucepan.
  2. Cut the vanilla pod in half and scrape out the seeds, then add them to the pan.
  3. Open up the cardamom pod and cut or crush the little black seeds as finely as you can, then add them to the saucepan.
  4. Place on a medium heat and stir for 5 minutes, then serve.

Nutritional Information: Calories 535, fat 7g (of which saturates 2g), carbohydrate 69g (of which sugars 9.8g), fibre 8g, protein 30.2g

Energy-Boosting Porridge Recipe

Ingredients

  • 50g porridge oats
  • 200ml milk. Milk is packed with muscle-building protein and calcium, which helps your body to metabolise fat efficiently.
  • 1tbsp manuka honey. Manuka honey contains methylglyoxal, an antibacterial agent that helps the body to fight infection.
  • 2tbsp pecan nuts, halved. Pecan nuts are high in heart-healthy monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, as well as providing another hit of protein.
  • Handful of blueberries. Blueberries offer pterostilbene, a compound that helps the body break down fat and lower LDL (“bad”) cholesterol.

To Make

Put the milk and oats in a pan. Cook over a medium heat for eight to ten minutes, stirring occasionally. Top with the remaining ingredients and serve immediately.

More Protein Porridge Recipes

Fat burner

Ingredients

  • 50g porridge oats
  • 200ml skimmed milk
  • ½ apple, cut into chunks
  • 2tsp grated ginger
  • 2tsp cinnamon
  • 1 scoop of diet whey protein

Calories: 428; Protein: 33g; Carbs: 62g; Fat: 5g

Energy booster

Ingredients

  • 50g porridge oats
  • 200ml semi-skimmed milk
  • ½ banana, sliced
  • 1tbsp honey
  • Handful of blueberries
  • 1 scoop of whey protein

Calories: 558; Protein: 38g; Carbs: 86g; Fat: 8g

Muscle builder

Ingredients

  • 50g porridge oats
  • 200ml full-fat milk
  • 1tbsp peanut butter
  • Handful of coconut chunks
  • 1tbsp natural yogurt
  • 1 scoop of whey protein

Calories: 624; Protein: 41g; Carbs: 56g; Fat: 27g

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