Mediterranean Diet Cookbook: 150 Quick & Easy, Essential Mediterranean Recipes for Daily Cooking And Healthy Living

MD.

Also by Alberto Bellino, MD

Mediterranean Diet Cookbook: 150 Quick & Easy, Essential Mediterranean Recipes for Daily Cooking And Healthy Living

To all the friends, families, and loved ones who are looking forward to living healthy and strong.

Mediterranean Diet Cookbook

150+ Quick & Easy, Essential

Mediterranean Recipes for Daily Cooking

And Healthy Living.  

ALBERTO BELLINO, MD

Copyright © 2020 by Alberto Bellino

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

FOREWORD

INTRODUCTION

SOUPS & STEWS

Minestrone Soup

Greek Avgolemono Sauce Lemon Chicken Soup

Moroccan Lamb Stew

Greek Spring Soup

Avgolemono Soup

Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato soup

Moroccan Lentil Soup

Greek Lemon Chicken Soup

Slow Cooker White Bean Soup

Copycat Olive Garden Minestrone

SALADS

Feta salad with pomegranate dressing

Tomato and Hearts of Palm Salad

Horiátiki Salata

Tabouli Bulgur & Parsley Salad

Fig & mozzarella salad

Traditional Greek Restaurant Salad Dressing

Greek Salad with Avocado

Three-Bean Salad

Tabouli Salad

Watermelon Salad

Arugula Salad with Shaved Parmesan

Cantaloupe and Mozzarella Caprese Salad

Greek Salad

Avocado and Greek Yogurt Chicken Salad

Watermelon & feta salad with Crisp-bread

Spicy Cherry Tomatoes Salad

Greek Chicken Gyro Salad

Homemade Tzatziki sauce for drizzling

Tuscan Tuna and White Bean Salad

Outrageous Herbaceous Chickpea Salad

Avocado Caprese Salad

RICE, PASTA, COUSCOUS, & GRAINS

Greek Lemon Rice

Tortilla Espanola

Egyptian Lentils with Rice and Pasta

Tomato Rice with stuffed peppers

Chorizo Pilaf

Couscous with Sun-Dried Tomato and Feta

Quinoa Tabbouleh with Chickpeas

Pasta with Griddled chicken

Shrimp Scampi Pasta with Zucchini Noodles

Quinoa-stuffed Peppers with Courgette

Autumn Couscous Salad

Pasta Salad

Greek Pasta with Cucumbers and Artichoke Hearts

Quinoa and Kale Protein Salad

Spicy Whole Wheat Greek Pasta

BEANS

Black Eyed Peas with Fresh Dill, Olive Oil, and Orange Slices

Broad Bean & Feta Cheese Toasts

Spicy Chickpeas with Falafel Sauce

Chickpea and Spinach Salad with Avocado

Sesame with Chickpea Patties & Cilantro

Garlicky Swiss chard and Kidney beans

Chickpea Hummus with Lemon Juice

Crunchy Roasted Chickpeas

Mediterranean chickpea salad

Chickpea Egg Mix

Spicy Chickpeas Couscous Salad

Chickpea farro salad with shrimp

VEGETABLES

Mushroom and Asparagus Frittata with Goat Cheese

Briam – Baked Vegetables in Olive Oil

Moroccan Vegetable Tagine

Mushrooms Cheddar Cheese & Strata

Briam Greek Roasted Vegetables

Greek Yogurt Tzatziki Sauce

Spicy Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

Herbaceous Spicy Potatoes with Cherry Tomatoes

Aioli

Tzatziki Sauce

Italian Oven-Roasted Veggies

Roasted Red Peppers with Anchovies & Tomatoes

Roasted Red Peppers Slices with Puff Pastry & Artichokes

Tahini sauce

Polenta, Roasted Vegetables & Peppered Parmesan Crisps

Spinach with lemon crumbs & Chili

Grilled Chopped Veggies with Quinoa and Fresh Coast Retreat

Mini Frittatas

Hummus

SEAFOOD

Mediterranean Baked Cod with Lemon & Garlic

Grilled Swordfish with Parsley Lemon

Crunchy Baked Mussels

Spinach with Pesto Shrimp, Parmesan and White Beans

Easy Seafood Paella

Citrus Shrimp and Avocado

Mustard and Garlic Shrimp Bruschetta

Pancetta-wrapped fish with lemony potatoes

Pan-Seared Citrus Shrimp Recipe

Shrimp Pasta with Roasted Red Peppers and Artichokes

Saucy Greek Baked Shrimp

Mussels with Chili & Tomatoes

Shrimp with Feta and Tomatoes

POULTRY AND MEAT

Chicken Quinoa Bowl with Broccoli and Tomato

Pork Scaloppini with Capers and Lemons

Grilled Greek Chicken Kebabs

Greek Chicken Souvlaki with Tzatziki

Chicken Shawarma

Sautéed Chicken with Olives, Capers, and Lemons

Armenian Losh Kebab

Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore

Italian Chicken Wrap

Chicken Tray Bake

Skinny Slow Cooker Kale and Turkey Meatball Soup

Caprese Chicken

Greek Baked meatballs - Soutzoukakia

Grilled Lemon Chicken Skewers

Greek Turkey Burgers with Tzatziki Sauce

Chicken Caprese Sandwich

Grilled Balsamic Chicken with Olive Tapenade

Easy Chicken Gyros with Tzatziki Sauce

Chicken Piccata

Greek Spicy Marinated Chicken Gyro

Greek Chicken Marinade

Chicken with roasted vegetables

Moroccan Spicy Meatballs with Vegetables - Tagine Kefta

Herbed lamb cutlets with roasted vegetables

Beef Cacciatore

Kofta Kebab

Italian Baked Chicken

EGGS

Microwave Egg Caprese Breakfast Cups

Moroccan Eggs Poached in Spicy Tomato Sauce

Brie & Bacon Omelets Wedges

Spicy Shakshuka with Tomato Sauce

Mediterranean Eggs

Eggs on Toast

Scrambled Eggs with Tomatoes, Spinach, and Mozzarella Cheese

Parmesan Egg Wraps

Sausage and Eggs

Egg Muffins with Mozzarella Cheese & Vegetables

BREAD, FLATBREADS, PIZZAS, AND MORE

Anatolian Flat Bread with Spinach and Cheese - Gozleme

Greek Spinach Pie

Hummus and pita bread

Jari's Greek bread

Lagana Greek Bread

Pita Bread

Easy Delicious All-Purpose Flatbread

Black Olive Bread

FRUITS AND SWEETS

Caprese Avocado Toast

Orange Lemon Potatoes

Avocado Caprese Wrap

Eggplant Parmesan with Deli Ham

Eggplant, Lentils, and Peppers

Cinnamon Pecan Apple Cake

Caponata

Crispy squid with caponata

Spiced baked figs with ginger mascarpone

Scones with Olives & Tomatoes

Italian apple olive oil cake

Popped Quinoa Crunch Bars

Honey Almond Milk Spread with Fruit

Cranberry Muffins baked with Olive Oil

Flourless Chocolate and Olive Oil Cake

Healthy Apricot Balls with Dates, Cashews, & Coconut

Easy Roasted Fruit

Whole Grain Citrus & Olive Oil Muffins

FOREWORD

Over the years, I got accustomed to processed foods. I saw people eating fruits and vegetables, and I thought they were sick and needed to be diagnosed. By the time I was forty years, I started feeling too heavy in some parts of my body. Having lived in Milan, Italy for over 25 years, a childhood friend, Paul Mancini called me on the phone to pay a visit; I replied Well Paul, I'm sorry I can't! Before I knew it, within the next hour, he had already arrived at my door.

We had conversations about all the symptoms and everything he listed was right about my dietary lifestyle. Most of the recipes I loved eating lacked enough whole foods, and in most cases because of the schedules, I opted for eating-on-the-go. I later got to know that processed grains led to the rise in the sugar level, and at this point, I knew there was something I was getting wrong in my diet. I ate much of red meat and saturated fat.

Along the lines, I got introduced to the Mediterranean lifestyle which encompasses a diet of fresh, whole, and unprocessed foods. After so many observations, one could easily conclude that its health advantages reach far beyond just diet. You have to get informed of your immediate environment, provide the needed support in the society, you see a set of people who embrace and support the well being of each other, and you would have to grow the herbs, spices, fruits, and vegetables that you would need in your kitchen! Everything is purely natural.

Within a short while, some positive changes began to emerge in my body, soul, and spirit. The gymnastics I could not do again, I started doing easily, and before I knew it, I had lost some bad fats, and life became more meaningful and sweeter. 

If you want to experience the benefits of the Mediterranean living, you would have to focus more attention on plants, vegetables, chickpeas, beans/legumes, fruits, nuts, healthy fats, olives, oils, cods/shrimps/fish, and whole grains all with a little amount of vinegar, the red wine type, while you eat less of red meat.

Above all and with great honor, I honestly introduce this cookbook (Mediterranean Diet Cookbook) to you; well detailed with pictures, so you could see what you're prepping, and contains over 150 Mediterranean recipes in the categories of Soups and stews, Salads, Rice, Pasta, Couscous, & Grains, Beans, Vegetables, Seafood, Poultry & Meat, Eggs, Fruits & Sweets, Bread, Flatbreads, Pizzas, & More.

And I strongly believe you would rely on this book to achieve a healthy status you have been craving for. Go Mediterranean now, boost your vitality! 

George Richford!

INTRODUCTION

HELLO, AND MUCH THANKS to you for taking a look into this cookbook, where Mediterranean control principles and practices are shared. You won't regret going Mediterranean and you could always feel free to add your cuisines and share with your friends and loved ones. 

It is very interesting to live Mediterranean! You would always notice everyone embracing each other, a very strong community where love and support exist.

A lot of health benefits are attached to the Mediterranean diet. Most of the time, when you maintain the Mediterranean lifestyle, the body, mind, spirit, environment, and general well-being will perform excellently. The reason for this cannot be overemphasized. By going Mediterranean simply means you're waving goodbye to high amounts of processed foods and high intake of red meat.

In this cookbook,  you would observe that maintaining a Mediterranean lifestyle requires some key ingredients mostly used in the Mediterranean regions; they include olive oil, vinegar, olives, seasonal fruits, citrus fruits, nuts, grains, fish, yogurt, legumes, beans, spices, shawarma seasoning, and za'atar seasoning blend.

Thus, there is the need to stock up on the staples listed above. Going by the first, olive oil - this is the basis of all Mediterranean recipes and cooking. It is the most frequently used among all other staples, and its quality varies by country. Extra virgin olive oil is not refined and free of additives.

Vinegar does not contain calorie and salt, and it is an essential ingredient if you want your dish to taste good. The most common types are white wine, balsamic, and red wine. You only need to add just a splash to your dish, and that's just it.

Olives, most especially the dark kalamata types are commonly used to prepare dips and salads. It all depends on your taste because the flavor is so strong; you only need to add just little volume of olives to your dishes. Some foods do not require much of olives. Olives are of two categories - pitted and non-pitted, and in this cookbook, much emphasis is laid on the pitted olives because you will eat your recipes, most especially the appetizers one at a time.

Olives contain a high volume of monosaturated fatty acids, which makes them good sources of heart-healthy fats, a very good example is the olive oil.

Fruits and vegetables - At least about five servings of fruit should be eaten per day, it is, therefore, necessary to stock up many fruit types in your kitchen, and for this reason, you can select the ones that are in season to add flavor to your recipes. You can stock up excess dried fruits in the refrigerator. Vegetables, about three or more servings are recommended daily if you want to follow the Mediterranean style of living.

You can as well sub to replace any veggie you can't find in the nearest local grocery store. Selecting the vegetables in the season combined with the freshest ingredients is very important.

Thank you.

SOUPS & STEWS

Minestrone Soup

This healthy vegetable soup is loaded with veggies that would help strengthen your immune system. Tastes delicious. Yummy!

Preparation Time: 10 minutes

Cooking Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes

Servings: 10

Ingredients:

5 bacon, cut into bite-size pieces

1 small yellow onion chopped

2/3 cup leeks white part only, chopped

1 cup carrots, chopped

2/3 cup celery, chopped

12 cups beef broth

1 tsp. sea salt, or to taste

1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper, or to taste

3 chunks Parmesan cheese

1 1/2 cups Irish potatoes

1 cup small pasta

1 1/2 cups tomatoes, diced

1 1/2