World Porridge Day

There’s a rich and delicious food that’s made from the most healthful of grains, Oats. It’s warm and filling, thick and toothsome, and is the foundation of breakfast for people all over the world. But where did Porridge originally come from?

Well, World Porridge Day celebrates the history and origins of this rich and delicious breakfast, and all of the health benefits they bring to those who indulge in them.

Come along as we explore the origins of this dish, and how it’s gone out to change the world and bring health and flavor to people everywhere.

It’s time to learn about World Porridge Day!

History of World Porridge Day

Porridge, it so happens, is the traditional national dish of Scotland, and has been keeping the people of this country healthy for hundreds of years. Every year in the Scottish Highland village of Carrbridge a competition is held, the World Porridge Making Championship, to determine the porridge champion who best exemplifies the flavor and experience of this food.

But the Scots have always been known for having a progressive worldview and to care deeply about people everywhere. As such, Carrbridge has come together with Mary’s Meals to help provide rich nourishing porridge to children all over the world.

Mary’s Meals works to spread food to children all over the world and works in far-flung places like Malawi to help keep children fed throughout the school year. More than one and a half million children in 16 of the world’s poorest countries benefit from their efforts, the meal encouraging children to go to school and build their education so they can lead themselves, their communities, and their countries out of poverty.

Malawi, Haiti, Romania, Kenya, the Philippines, Bosnia, India, Liberia, Thailand, and Ecuador are just some of the places that Mary’s Meals work to make World Porridge Day make a difference.

The first World Porridge Day was held in 2009 and it has been making children healthier and happier ever since. In 2016, Stoats Porridge Bars were the official sponsors of the day. 

How to Celebrate World Porridge Day

Get on board with the celebration of World Porridge Day by participating in various activities:

Eat Some Porridge

First, start your day off with a big bowl of porridge to make sure you get the best beginning you can hope for. Try out these ideas or come up with some creative ideas of your own:

• Oat Porridge with Fresh Berries. This is a delicious and nutritious way to get vitamins, minerals and a bit of sweetness in the morning. Add some coconut milk to the mixture to make it even more nutritious and tasty.
• Apple Pie Oatmeal. A delicious take on this American classic, fresh apple chunks and some cinnamon-sugar sprinkled over the top makes a delightful combination.
• Peanut Butter Nutella Oatmeal. Add some creamy chocolate peanut buttery goodness to oatmeal with these nut butters. The nut butters do add quite a bit of sugar, but they balance it out with some power-packed protein.
• Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal. Pumpkin is a super nutritious food and can easily be added to oatmeal in puree form. Don’t forget the pumpkin pie spice (nutmeg, cinnamon and clove) and a little bit of brown sugar. Yum!

Then start considering how you can make a morning like that a reality for people everywhere. You can work together with Mary’s Meals to create celebrations and fund-raisers to help feed these children all over the world.

Host a World Porridge Day Party

Gather friends, neighbors, family members and coworkers for a porridge party. Keep the party simple by cooking up some tasty porridge that will serve as the meal. Then, take some time to talk about the efforts of World Porridge Day and ask guests to consider making a donation to the cause. Perhaps they might want to donate the amount of money they might have spent on a meal if they had gone out for dinner instead of coming to the party.

Volunteer to Feed the Hungry

There are often local areas you can volunteer to work in as well, places like soup kitchens and homeless shelters where food is being made for the less fortunate. You can even make porridge based cookies and flapjacks to share with others, which will serve to make someone happy and bring the humble oat to the table.