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Mediterranean Diet Recipes
Remember that old saying, ‘food like mama used to make’? Well, if you are from
the Mediterranean region you may not have known that ‘mama’ was trying to save
your life. What’s old world is new again as the potential health benefits of
the Mediterranean diet are slowly being realized by North American populations.
Due to the antioxidant and high-fiber nature of the vegetable heavy Mediterranean
diet, people of that region have displayed a remarkable resilience to chronic
disease like cancer and heart disease.
Not only that, but most Mediterranean food is quite delicious. Whether it be
the couscous laden dishes of North Africa, the polenta and fish meals of Italy,
or rice based Mediterranean diet recipes from the Balkans, one is sure to find
delicious meals from that region that will help make you a healthy and happy
person for years in the future.
In case you are unfamiliar with a Mediterranean recipe, here is fabulous example
that sure to please you heart in more ways than one. The following is a traditional
meal from the Greek island of Crete, right in the heart of the Mediterranean
Sea.
Stuffed Vegetables (Yemista) for 5-6 persons
5 or 6 tomatoes 2-3 aubergines 2-3 zucchini 2-3 green peppers 2 onions, dill,
parsley, 1 cup of olive-oil salt, pepper 1 lb. of rice 1 tbsp. of concentrated
tomato pulp diluted in 1 glass of water 1 cup grated cheese.
Hollow out all vegetables and chop their contents (except for the green peppers)
in a bowl. Add the finely chopped onion, the dill, the parsley, the rice, salt
and pepper. Salt the empty insides of the vegetables, stuff them and place them
in a baking pan. Pour the tomato concentrate and a cup of oil over them. Cook
in a heat oven. Just before turning off the oven, sprinkle with the grated cheese
and let this melt.
Or you could try,
Sarikopites (pies)
Prepare regular style dough with 1/2 kilo of flour, add small cup of Greek
olive oil, then add 1 glass of water to even out the consistency, combine salt
and a little lemon juice.
Next, roll out the dough and cut it into strips 8 to 10 cm wide and 25-30 cm
long. Spread the sour "mizithra" (A Greek cheese made from the healthier and
more digestible milk of goats) all along the strips and fold them.
Starting at one end, twist the ribbon in a spiral. The shape is similar to
a "sariki" (the traditional headdress of Cretan men which is why the pies are
called "Sarikopites":sariki-pies). Deep fry and serve with delicious honey.
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