Experience the vibrant taste of summer with this MIND Diet–inspired Taco Bowls. This recipe offers a delicious, nutrient-dense meal aligned with the principles of the MIND Diet, designed to support long-term brain health through smart, intentional food choices. While especially refreshing during the summer months, this dish is versatile enough to enjoy year-round.
Quick to prepare and easy to customize, it’s an ideal option for families—each person can build their own bowl to suit their preferences. A splash of your favorite hot sauce can add just the right amount of heat.
This bowl brings together a powerful combination of brain-supportive nutrients: magnesiumfrom quinoa, black beans, and avocado helps support cognitive function and stress regulation; lean turkey provides vitamin B12, essential for nerve health and memory; and a colorful variety of vegetables delivers a rich array of flavonoids—including quercetin, kaempferol, and myricetin, as well as the carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin, known to protect against age-related cognitive decline.
Juice of 1-2 lime (about 2-4 tablespoons lime juice)
1 tablespoon honey
Directions
Start by measuring out spices into a small bowl. Set aside. Next, chop your corn (if using from a cobb), tomatoes, bell pepper, and romaine lettuce. Set aside.
Combine the Quinoa and 2 cups of the water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 15-20 minutes, or until light and fluffy.
While the quinoa is cooking, heat the oil in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Add the ground turkey and brown for 5 minutes, lightly mixing with a wooden spoon. Mix in the spices- garlic powder, ground cumin, smoked paprika, chilli powder and salt. Add the remaining ¼ cup of water and cook for another 5-7 minutes, or until the turkey is fully cooked through. Remove from heat.
In a small bowl whisk together the oil, lime juice and honey. Set aside.
In a large serving bowl add the quinoa, ground turkey, black beans, corn, tomatoes and bell peppers. Top with dressing and toss together.
Top with cilantro, avocado and tortilla chips.
Recipe Note
Created by Laura Morris CPT and Jennifer Ventrelle RD
This recipe was created by Laura Morris, a multifaceted professional chef, certified nutrition consultant, and personal trainer, along with Jennifer Ventrelle, NeuroReserve medical advisor and a registered dietitian and Assistant Professor at Rush University. Jennifer is also the lead dietitian for major prevention studies like the U.S. POINTER Study on cognitive decline. Together they co-authored the published book ‘The Official MIND Diet’ – a comprehensive “instruction manual” on how to seamlessly integrate the MIND diet into our everyday lives. They have also created MIND Diet programs to help others make brain healthy living and eating a core piece of their routine, with step-by-step guidance. These delicious dishes and tools they created not only aid in reducing the risk of Alzheimer's but also support weight loss goals.
We at NeuroReserve are committed to equipping you with the diet and nutrition you need for lasting brain health. As you make progress with your diet, our product RELEVATE can help fill in the gaps where your diet falls short. RELEVATE is designed upon the framework of the evidence-backed Mediterranean and MIND diets, and includes 17 nutrients for long-term brain health. Click here to learn more about RELEVATE.
