When my husband found out he had heart and other health issues last November, we very quickly reassessed our lifestyle so we could make the necessary changes to help him and the rest of us live better. We weren’t doing terribly badly. Exercise was one thing that was missing in a huge way and I am glad to say that at least ONE of us (not me) is making great inroads on that. Our diet wasn’t awful. Not spectacular, but not awful.
We had fun trying to convince our doctors that yes indeed we were already eating the ‘right’ way and just had to cut out more of the ‘wrong’ things to make bigger differences. We are doing this now and my husband looks amazing.
I suck and will freely admit that. I hope on changing that now though.
Through the magic of Twitter, while moaning about our situation, a kind follower named Meri Raffetto told me that not only was she this amazing Dietician with a fabulous nutrition site called Real Living Nutrition, she was also the author of a couple of fitting cookbooks from the Dummies line of publications that she thought would be a great help to us.
She very kindly sent both the Mediterranean Diet Cookbook and the Glycemic Index Diet Cookbook to check out.
If you have ever used a Dummies book of any kind, you know how PACKED they are with information. These two books are no different. This review will only scratch the surface of just their newest, the Mediterranean Diet book. There is a LOT in there. A lot.
Eating in a Mediterranean style is about as close as I will get to actually living there. I have not yet been whisked away to Spain or Italy to live my live in some villa enjoying rustic and local cuisine and therefore living a lot longer as they are wont to do over there. Yes, the food there IS healthier. Even with all that wine you are supposed (right!!??) drink too. 🙂 Choosing a Mediterranean style of cooking guarantees not only health but with the added promise of not losing the taste or flavour. This is yummy hearty food.
This isn’t just a cookbook. This is a DIET cookbook. This is to help you eat better and lose weight and stay healthy Mediterranean eating isn’t just about the food, but about the meaning behind the food and the preparation Learning to find the time to cook good food, de-stressing, relaxing, and learning to make good food a part of your lifestyle not just what can I grab to eat.
Poor eating usually comes from a poor lifestyle. We are all busy and rushed and eating balanced meals is usually the last thing on our minds at the end of the long day. This is a great book to remind you that it really isn’t that difficult.
Not only do they have a section on what to keep in your pantry and refrigerator, but they also have tips on how to shop for the best quality products in your neck of the woods. That and how to store your foods, how to safely prepare your foods, what sort of utensils and cookware to have on hand. EVERYTHING.
I have found this very helpful as I am a terrible meal planner. I spent one shop just buying the extras – the right oils, spices, seasoning’s, canned goods etc. Many things that I had not yet cooked with. Knowing that I have at least some of the ‘right’ products in my pantry on hand makes my make it up as I go cooking a lot easier and healthier. Especially when I do grab a recipe to follow.
The recipes are spread out from breakfast to dinner with snacks in between to keep you happy and energized. Omelets, Frittata’s, Greek yogurts…….are these not things we love already?
Who doesn’t love Tapas? For me, pretty much anything with tomatoes is heaven. I am also proud to say that I not only love hummus, but have made it from scratch. Am now teaching my husband to embrace the hummus.
There is an entire chapter on SAUCES. I am drooling.
Do you know how to pit an olive? They do…and they show you!
I love pasta. I love pasta with anything. Meri shows you that you can eat your pasta and be healthy too. Like all things it all to do with the portion sizes and cooking it just right (al dente). I also try the whole wheat pastas and the rice pastas too.
I think the biggest thing you can learn from a Mediterranean diet is that while the quality of the food is important, it is more HOW you cook it, what you cook it in and how much of it you eat.
Balance. Balancing your grains, your proteins, your greens and then mixing them together to create delicious meals that don’t make you feel like you are dieting is the key to building lifelong healthy habits.
We are learning to not miss certain things and instead enjoy other tasty treat. Having a bit of a Mediterranean flavor to our diet makes this a lot easier.
The Mediterranean Diet Cookbook for Dummies has amazing recipes ….the scope and the detail of the book can be overwhelming. Take it one section at time. Focus on what grabs you first…and build up on it I started with what to stock in my kitchen and then selected a few choice recipes to add to my weekly shopping plans. This has at least livened up our dinners and given my health concious husband many more options and ideas.
Now for that villa.
[…] chatting with Meri Raffetto about the Mediterranean Cookbook for Dummies, I started reading more about her site Real Living Nutrition and the Balance Program that they […]