3 Superfood-Packed Dinners You Can Make in Less Than 20 Minutes

Photo: Yuki Sugiura
After a long day of work or a grueling fitness class, chances are the last thing you want to do is spend 30-plus minutes putting dinner together—even if you're mindful about what you eat. Hey, hanger is real.

Superfoods Superfast (1)Nutrition guru, yoga expert, and mother of four Julie Montagu feels you. Her new cookbook, Superfoods Superfast, is filled with nutritious meals that can be made in under 20 minutes—yep, that quick.

Some of her favorite "superfast" superfoods? Quinoa, avocado, chickpeas, sunflower seeds, and fresh produce. These ingredients can all be prepped in a flash and are loaded with the nutrients needed to fuel a busy lifestyle (not to mention leave you with a little extra time to squeeze in an episode of Casual). She's built an entire index of recipes revolving around these foods—among others—and is sharing a few of her go-tos right here. Weeknight dinner plan? Solved.

Keep scrolling for three quick recipes, loaded with superfoods. And if you start salivating, fear not—you'll be digging in in no time.

tabbouleh with edamame and pomegranate

Tabbouleh with Edamame and Pomegranate

Serves 2

This is Montagu's heartier take on traditional tabbouleh, making it more of a meal than just a salad. The fact that her hero foods—mushrooms, edamame, pomegranate and cashews—give this dish an extra burst of color is a serious bonus. (Cue: fawning comments from friends when you share your creation on Instagram.)

Ingredients
3/4 cup uncooked bulgur wheat
1 Tbsp coconut oil
1 large tomato, chopped
1 small onion, diced
1 1/2 cups button mushrooms, halved
Large handful of flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
2 Tbsp lemon juice
Seeds of 1 pomegranate
Scant 1/2 cup cashews, chopped
1/2 cup cooked edamame beans

1. Bring a pan of water to a boil and add in the bulgur wheat before lowering the heat and simmering for 15 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, heat the coconut oil in a frying pan and cook the tomato, onion, and mushrooms over a low heat for 7 to 10 minutes.

3. Drain the cooked bulgur wheat, if necessary, and combine with the mushroom mixture in a large bowl together with the parsley, lemon juice, pomegranate seeds, cashews, and edamame.

4. Mix together with a spoon and serve.

portobello burger
Photo: Yuki Sugiura

Portobello Mushroom Burger with Red Pepper Sauce

Serves 4

Montagu loves a good veggie burger, but for her, it's all about toppings. This burger is simple, juicy, and satsifying. (And just wait until you try the sauce.)

Ingredients

Red Pepper Sauce

2 red (bell) peppers, seeds removed and sliced
Coconut oil, for brushing
1 garlic clove, crushed
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
Juice of 1 lemon
Small handful of slivered almonds
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/8 tsp chili powder

Burgers

4 good-sized portobello mushrooms, stems removed
Coconut oil, for brushing
1 large onion, thinly sliced
2 tsp coconut palm sugar
Large handful of arugula
4 gherkins, sliced in half
4 buns of your choice

1. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Brush the red pepper slices for the sauce with coconut oil and roast on a baking sheet for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes.

2. Meanwhile, brush the mushrooms with coconut oil and fry in a large frying pan over a medium-high heat for 5 minutes or until browned and soft. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add the thinly sliced onion to the same pan and cook for 5 minutes until soft. Add the coconut palm sugar and stir until dissolved and the onion caramelizes. Remove from the heat.

3. Once the red peppers have cooled, add them to a food processor or blender along with the rest of the ingredients for the red pepper sauce and blend until smooth.

4. Now, lay your lovely roasted mushrooms on the buns and slather on the delicious red pepper sauce. Top with equal amounts of the caramelized onion, gherkin halves, and arugula.

noodle soup
Photo: Yuki Sugiura

Speedy 'Pot Noodle' Soup

Serves 2

Soba noodles and the fresh veggies in this soup make it a hearty meal—plus everything cooks quickly. The key superfood used here is snowpeas, which contains 128 percent of the recommended daily allowance of vitamin C per cup. Take that, orange juice!

Ingredients
2 cups, plus 2 Tbsp vegetable stock
1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and minced
1 garlic clove, minced
5 1/2 oz uncooked soba noodles
1 cup fresh beansprouts, plus a few extra to garnish
Small handful snowpeas, chopped
Juice of 1 lime
1 tsp red pepper flakes
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Zest of 1 lime, to garnish, optional

1. Bring the vegetable stock, ginger, and garlic to a boil in a large saucepan over a medium-high heat before adding the noodles and lowering the heat to a simmer. Stir the noodles and then add in the beansprouts and snowpeas. Continue to stir until you can see that the noodles are thoroughly cooked. Squeeze in the lime juice and chili flakes and season to taste.

2. Stir again before removing from the heat and serving in bowls, garnished with a few more beansprouts and lime zest, if using.

Adapted from Superfoods Superfast: 100 Energizing Recipes to Make in 20 Minutes or Less by Julie Montagu by arrangement with Quadrille Publishing, distributed by Chronicle Books, Copyright © 2016 by Julie Montagu.

Looking for more quick and tasty dinner recipes? Check out these healthy dishes that can be made in 15 minutes or less. Or, whip up this 5-ingredient vegan ice cream for a good-for-you, post-dinner treat. You totally deserve it.

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