Coconut amaranth & millet bowl with warm berries

Amaranth is a highly nutritious pseudo-grain with a history reaching back to the Aztecs some 5000 years ago. Toasting amaranth before cooking mellows out the flavour.

Coconut amaranth & millet bowl with warm berries Credit: Chris Middleton

• serves

  4

• prep

  5 minutes

• cook

  45 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Amaranth blends well with milder-tasting millet and creamy coconut, and retains a pleasing, almost crunchy, popping texture when cooked.

Ingredients

• 100 g (3½ oz/½ cup) amaranth 
• 100 g (3½ oz/½ cup) hulled millet, rinsed and drained 
• 1½ tsp ground cinnamon 
• 1 tsp ground ginger 
• a pinch of sea salt flakes 
• 400 ml (13½ oz) tin coconut milk

Warm mixed berries 

• 225 g (8 oz/1½ cups) frozen mixed berries 
• 1 tbsp rice malt syrup 
• shredded zest of 1 orange 

To serve 

• toasted flaked coconut
• coconut milk or coconut yoghurt (optional) 

Instructions

Stir the amaranth in a frying pan over medium heat for about 3 minutes or until fragrant. 

Combine the toasted amaranth with the millet, cinnamon, ginger and salt with 500 ml (17 oz/2 cups) water in a large saucepan over medium–high heat and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes or until the water is absorbed. Add the coconut milk, stir well, then cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for a further 10–15 minutes or until thick and creamy and the grains are tender. The amaranth will still have a nice bit of texture and bite to it. 

Meanwhile for the warm mixed berries, combine the berries, rice malt syrup and orange zest in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to the boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 2–3 minutes or until the berries just begin to break down. 

Serve the amaranth mixture into bowls and top with the warm berries and toasted coconut. If you like, add a drizzle of coconut milk or a dollop of coconut yoghurt. 

This recipe is from Breakfast Bowls (Smith Street Books). Photography by Chris Middleton. 

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.

Amaranth blends well with milder-tasting millet and creamy coconut, and retains a pleasing, almost crunchy, popping texture when cooked.