5 Minutes with Bettina Campolucci Bordi

Meet Country & Town House’s plant-based columnist Bettina Campolucci Bordi, founder of Bettina’s Kitchen. Bettina is a plant-focused chef, retreat host and educator whose work spans global wellness retreats, a dedicated Retreat Chef Academy and now a new studio home in Camden. In everything she does, Bettina’s focus is the same: seasonal, delicious food that feels good to eat and good for the planet.

Meet C&TH’s plant-based columnist Bettina Campolucci Bordi, founder of Bettina’s Kitchen. Each week Bettina gives us the lowdown on a particular vegetable or ingredient, alongside unique and vibrant recipe ideas. 

Interview with Bettina Campolucci Bordi

Tell us about you…

I’m what I like to call a plant focused chef, educator and retreat curator. Over the past decade I’ve written three cookbooks, including Happy Food and 7 Day Vegan Challenge, run wellness retreats all over the world and founded the Retreat Chef Academy, where I train the next generation of retreat chefs.

My work now lives in a few different places: on retreat, in my cookbooks I love writing for Country & Town House, sharing wellness tips on my Substack BE WELL and on Instagram at @bettinas_kitchen. The newest chapter is my Camden studio. A space for filming, teaching and hosting. Which I’ve created together with Sustainable Kitchens. However my work shows up, it always leads back to the same thing. My love of food and the power it has to bring people together and community at the heart of it all.

What is Bettina’s Kitchen?

Bettina’s Kitchen started as a tiny blog and Instagram account where I shared plant-based recipes I was testing for magazines restaurants, retreats and brands. It was also my way of documenting the colourful plates I served on retreat. I’d snap an overhead shot, usually with my mismatched socks peeking in. The account grew faster than I expected, and suddenly there was this engaged community who wanted more: more recipes, more tips, more ways to make plant-based eating feel doable. Today, Bettina’s Kitchen is both a digital and physical space. Online, it’s where I share seasonal, plant-forward recipes that are playful and accessible. Offline, it’s my Camden studio. A working kitchen, classroom and content space. Both are built on the same idea. To inspire people to eat more plants in ways that feel good for you, delicious and easy!

When did you first become interested in food and cooking?

Honestly, food has always been my love language. Both my grandmothers were incredible cooks, and my parents were the kind of people who planned entire trips around where we were going to eat. I have Norwegian roots on my father’s side, my mother is Danish/Bulgarian, and I grew up in East Africa until I was 11 before moving to Sweden for 12 years. That mix of cultures meant we were always travelling, shopping in local markets and tasting our way through new places. We remembered trips by what we ate rather than what we saw. By my teens I was cooking for family and friends, then I studied hotel management and business and worked in food and beverage for years. Launching my first wellness retreat was the moment everything clicked. From there, cooking and retreats became my full-time world.

What’s your food philosophy?

I always start with what’s in season and as local as possible. When I’m working abroad, I ask what grows nearby and then build relationships with farmers and producers. Vegetables are always the hero, and I want dishes to feel abundant, comforting and unfussy.Over the years I’ve also become really interested in soil health and regenerative farming. Eating plant-based is a great start, but I think it’s just as important to know how our food is grown and who’s behind it.In simple terms, my philosophy is: eat with the seasons, celebrate vegetables and make it delicious enough that you want to come back for seconds. If that happens, the “healthy” part takes care of itself.

Bettina Campolucci Bordi

What role does the kitchen play in your retreats and teaching?

For me, the kitchen is where people let their guard down. On retreat, it’s often where the best conversations happen – over chopping boards, next to the stove, while someone stirs a pot. It’s the same energy I want to bring into the studio.At the Academy, the kitchen becomes a classroom. It’s where we talk about flavours, but also about systems: how to prep for 20 guests, how to minimise waste, how to create menus that feel generous without being overwhelming. Having a studio kitchen that supports that work is huge.

Earliest food memory?

Living in East Africa and going to the food markets with my mother. The colours, the smells, the noise, the sense that food was at the centre of everything.

What was the first dish you learnt to cook?

Pancakes, when I was seven. Once I mastered those, I was hooked. It’s also the first dish I taught my daughter to make, and we still cook them together on the weekends.

Favourite places to eat in London?

I love Fallow in central London, Bubala for something more low-key. Plates for the best plant based menu out there!

Three top tips for eating a more plant-based diet?

First, subscribe to a seasonal veg box – it’s the easiest way to discover new ingredients without overthinking it.

Second, start with dishes you already love. Make a rich, indulgent veggie curry, or load your favourite sandwich with hummus, roasted veg and something crunchy.

Third, don’t try to change everything overnight. Go veggie a few days a week, see how it feels and build from there. Small shifts are much more sustainable than all-or-nothing approaches.

Biggest misconception about plant-based food?

That it’s boring, expensive and time-consuming. I spend most of my career proving the opposite. With a few good staples and a bit of creativity, plant-based food can be abundant, comforting and surprisingly simple.