Who said healthy food is boring? From smoky pork burgers to buckwheat pizza, try these two Mindful Chef recipes to nourish your body with essential nutrients — without giving up on taste.
Buckwheat pizza, mushroom, sundried tomato & pesto
Who said pizza couldn’t be healthy? Our buckwheat flour and chia seed base packs omega-3 – and pairs deliciously with garlicky tomato sauce, balsamic mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes and walnuts. We add creaminess with basil pesto.
Ingredients (Serves 2)
- 120g chestnut mushrooms
- 15 tbsp buckwheat flour
- 1 baby cucumber
- 1 red onion
- 1 tbsp vegan basil pesto
- 20g walnuts
- 2 garlic cloves
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 2 tbsp chia seeds
- 2 tsp oil
- 400g chopped tomatoes
- 40g rocket
- 60g sundried tomatoes
- Medium handful of fresh thyme
Macros
158g carbs • 43g fat • 38g protein
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 220C / gas mark 7. Place the chia seeds in a mug with 50ml cold water, stir and leave for 3 mins until the water has been soaked up and it has become gel-like.
2. Finely chop the garlic. Heat a saucepan with 1 tsp oil on a medium heat, add just half the garlic and cook for 30 seconds (do not burn the garlic) then pour in the chopped tomatoes. Mix together and simmer for 20 mins to reduce.
3. In a medium-sized bowl add the buckwheat flour (reserve 1 tbsp flour for later) and a pinch of salt. Slowly pour in 70g cold water and the soaked chia seeds. Mix well and knead with your hands into a soft dough. (It might seem dry at first but keep kneading until smooth but if still too dry add 1 tbsp cold water). Dust a chopping board and your hands with the reserved flour. Divide the dough into two balls. Place one ball onto the floured chopping board and flatten with the palm of your hand into a pizza base shape. Roll as thin as possible using a rolling pin. Repeat with the second dough ball.
4. Heat a dry frying pan on a high heat. Add the pizza dough, fry for 2 mins on each side until taking on colour. Repeat. Place both pizza bases on a large baking tray.
5. Thinly slice the mushrooms and red onion. Heat the same pan used to cook the pizza bases with 1 tsp oil on a medium heat. Add the mushrooms and onion and cook for 8 mins. Finely chop the thyme leaves and roughly chop the sundried tomatoes, then add these to the pan along with the remaining garlic and half the balsamic vinegar. Cook all together for a further 3 mins.
6. Spoon the tomato sauce over both pizza bases, top with the mushroom mix, then sprinkle with the walnuts. Place on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and place in the oven for 5 mins.
7. Cut the baby cucumber in half lengthways and thinly slice. Place the rocket leaves into a serving bowl, add the cucumber and mix. Drizzle with the remaining balsamic vinegar. Remove the pizzas from the oven, drizzle with pesto then serve.
Smoky pork burgers with apple and tahini slaw
Our heritage pork burgers are anything but boring – we stuff them with grated apple, smoky paprika and garlic, and pair with a fresh slaw, drizzled with tahini and lemon. On the side? Crisp parsnip fries.
Ingredients (Serves 2)
- 1 apple
- 1 baby cucumber
- 1 egg
- 1 lemon
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1 tsp dried garlic
- 200g carrot
- 2 spring onions
- 2 tbsp tahini
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 2 x 150g pork mince
- 400g parsnip
- 40g rocket
Macros
122g carbs • 41g fat • 58g protein
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 200C / fan 180C / gas mark 6 and boil a kettle.
2. Peel and cut the parsnips into thin fries. Place on a baking tray, drizzle with 1 tsp oil and season with sea salt and black pepper. Mix to coat well. Place in the oven for 20-25 mins, turning halfway through, until golden and turning crispy.
3. To make the pork burgers; cut the apple in half and grate just half (including the skin), gently squeeze out the juice with your hand then place the squeezed apple into a medium sized bowl, followed by the pork mince, smoked paprika and dried garlic. Season with sea salt and black pepper, crack the egg into the bowl. Mix well to combine.
4. Shape the pork mince into 4 mini burgers using your hands. Heat a medium-sized frying pan with 1 tsp oil on a high heat, add the pork burgers and cook for 2 mins each side until golden. Transfer to a baking tray lined with parchment paper, cook in the oven for 15 mins or until cooked through.
5. To make the tahini dressing; in a medium sized bowl mix together the tahini and the juice from half the lemon to form a smooth sauce (add 2-3 tbsp warm water if too thick).
6. For the slaw; thinly slice the spring onions, peel and grate the carrot and grate the remaining apple. Place all into the bowl with the tahini dressing, season with sea salt and black pepper and mix well.
7. Dice the cucumber into cubes. Divide the rocket and cucumber between two plates and drizzle with 1 tsp olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice. Place the pork burgers on top of the salad, serve the parsnip fries and apple tahini slaw alongside.