Mind Food Recipe: Omega Seeds and Ancient Oat Bircher from Lauren Lovatt

We eat to fuel our bodies, right? But what about feeding our minds?

The lovely Lauren Lovatt (who you might recognise from our January Brunch Club) knows the importance of food and our mental health, from her own journey. After years of running restaurants, hosting pop-up events and starting the Plant Academy – Lauren has released a new booked titled Mind Food, which is brimming with fantastic recipes to support good mental health, such as this one below for Ancient Oats Bircher, designed specifically to feed your mind.

Serves: 2

Time taken: 5 minutes, plus overnight

200ml (scant 1 cup) hemp milk

60g (1/3 cup) chia seeds

100g (1 cup) gluten-free oats

1 tbsp rose water

2.5cm (1in) vanilla pod, scraped or ½ tsp vanilla extract

¼ tsp Himalayan pink salt

1 tsp ashwagandha (optional)

1 pipette CBD (optional)

Add all of the ingredients to a medium glass jar or bowl and whisk with a fork. Leave to sit for a few minutes and then whisk again – this will prevent the chia seeds from sticking together. If you have time, repeat the process for best results.

Place the oat bircher mixture in the fridge overnight and enjoy the next morning topped with fresh fruit, hemp yoghurt and bee pollen.

TIP – Have you heard of ashwagandha? The name comes from the Sanskrit and is said to impart the ‘strength of a horse’ as it is regarded as one of the most powerful healing substances in Ayurveda. Ashwagandha most commonly comes in powdered form and is a nootropic, which means that it can improve cognitive function and provide a lot of neurological nourishment. Plus, its unique make up is said to help serotonin production for an improved mood and resilience to stress.

Images: © Sara Kiyo Popowa