Member Reviews
When your doctor tells you its time to diet because of many health reasons, and then suggests going on a Mediterranean Diet, you try to figure out what he is talking about. I found this recipe book with not only easy to make recipes, but also a clear understanding of what a Mediterranean diet is. I also loved the shopping list, 2 week menu planner and more.
I need this in print!
The Mediterranean Diet Cookbook is a brilliant introduction to the Mediterranean cooking and proves very easy to follow. I made a couple of recipes already and am eager to try more.
Great book about the mediterranean diet. This book explains all you need to know about this diet and lifestyle and all the benefits of doing it. I love greek food so this diet seems be perfect for me. The recipes look very good, the photos are bright and appetizing, it's very well organized and easy to read to follow. All the recipes have some basic nutritional information such as calories, fats, carbs, proteins and they also have serving, prep and cook information. Very good book! I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review
A nice introduction to the Mediterranean diet. My doctor recommended this and I struggled to find anything I wanted to make. There were a handful of recipes in this book I will probably try out. Includes general info about the concepts of the diet as well as meal plans to take the guesswork out of it and simplify shopping lists.
I readily admit I am a sucker for ANY DK publication. So it doesn't take too much for me to open a book with a DK on the spine for a quick perusal. But for me to consider purchasing it, it does need to impress. This one did.
I liked it for a couple reasons. The absolutely fantastic bean & legume recipes. They really got my eye. The Chickpeas with Spinach & Sun-Dried Tomatoes was tempting enough, I had to try it before writing the review! Paired it with the Spanakopita and even the teenager was sneaking chickpeas from the pot after her caramel apple fondue. I suspect we will get a couple of years of enjoying Mediterranean meatless meals from this book - well worth the expense.
While meatless entrees grabbed my attention first, I was very impressed that the meat entrees were not all fish. As a nice Scandinavian, Lutheran girl from Minnesota, this style of cooking isn't exactly in our wheelhouse especially if the fish used doesn't come out of the lake. However, it was a WONDERFUL surprise to have such a bounty of chicken, pork and beef recipes.
I think this book would be the perfect addition to anyone working with clients who have been told to look into eating a more Mediterranean style diet and need a good solid reference with recipes they would probably explore.
The beginning is a bit lengthy for anyone with a foods/nutrition background but it is solid information. As a book seller who interacted with customers who think a Mediterranean diet is just like some other kind of quick, weight loss, fade thing that tells you exactly what to eat & when; finding out that a Med diet is more a style then instructions can be overwhelming. This book would have been perfect!
The breadth, width and depth of the recipes include enough "safe" things (meaning not having to switch to all fish, noodles that they already eat, ingredients they have or can access) that it would be a great resource to be able to share with clients before they purchase.
Thanks to NetGalley & DK Pub for an ARC to prepare this honest review!!
This is a beautifully illustrated, easy to follow guide to the Mediterranean Diet. It is laid out nicely and will not intimidate anyone new. The recipes are laid out nicely and easy to follow. I loved Fskorizo (Greek lentils with vegetables and rice) and Zucchini and Ricotta salad. The Easy Eggplant dip was just that, Easy and quite delicious.
This cookbook needs to be evaluated as two books combined into one.
The book wants to be a scientific-style diet book in the introductory chapters. This creates an unfortunate focus on weight loss and healthism with a side of hyper-focus on the nutrition information. While many may choose to eat this way in an attempt to lose weight, it is worth noting that this focus may be problematic for some readers. Add in that the primary study referenced in this introduction is a long-debunked study by Keys, this could have seen a lot of improvement. Given the wealth of information available on the Mediterranean eating style, this focus and study selection makes this section seem like it needs some revision.
However, as a cookbook, this book shines in many ways. The recipes (if you can ignore the obsessive calorie counts) look delicious and accessible. The ingredients are relatively simple and can likely be sourced by many home cooks. The instructions are clear and the overall methods are straightforward and unintimidating. This collection of recipes is exactly what’s on the tin: solid basics for beginner cooks. The pictures, though I would love to see more, look very enticing and I have several recipes incorporated into my next set of meal plans.
In short: as a book on the history and science of this style of eating, it gets one star, but as a cookbook, a solid four star read.
Thank you to the publisher for an advance copy of this book via netgalley!
This book is great! First, it gives you a fulsome 101 on what the Mediterranean diet consists of, its benefits and answers common questions related to it. It’s simple, yet super informative. The rest of the book are yummy recipes which anyone can simply make with a few simple ingredients. These ingredients are simple because they are natural and pure. And the photographs of some of these recipes are mouth drooling! Can’t wait to try a whole bunch out!
The Mediterranean Diet Cookbook for Beginners is a tutorial and recipe guide with recipes developed by Elena Paravantes. Due out 29th Dec 2020 from Penguin Random House on their DK imprint, it's 192 pages and will be available in paperback and ebook formats.
The Mediterranean diet has gotten a lot of attention because of its association with a wide variety of health benefits including a lower incidence of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, neurodegenerative disease, and early death. This book provides a good introduction to the diet and lifestyle for beginners wanting to make changes to their eating habits for health benefits and a healthier lifestyle.
The layout is logical and easy to follow. The introduction covers the basics of the Mediterranean Diet, tools, supplies, and the how-to and why of choosing ingredients (the subchapter tutorial on choosing and storing olive oil is one of the best I've ever seen). The following chapters include the recipes arranged roughly by category: breakfast, vegetables & beans, pasta rice & savory pies, seafood meat & poultry, salads, snacks & appetizers, and desserts.
Ingredient measurements are supplied in American standard measurements with metric in parentheses. The nutritional information: calories, fat, carbs, and protein content are listed for the recipes as well as serving sizes. Extra tips or recipe alternatives are listed in sidebars. The recipes themselves are fairly straightforward and are made with easily sourced ingredients. Many are very simple, none of them are overly complex.
The photography is not abundant; roughly 25% of the recipes are illustrated, but the photographs which are included are clear and well done. I wish there had been more photographs and serving suggestions, but I do understand that extra photography increases the price of book projects very quickly.
This is a nice collection of recipes and even allowing for the fact that some of them are very similar to others in the same category, this will keep cooks going for ages. Many of these can also easily be adapted to other styles of cooking and meal planning.
Four stars.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
Lovely diet and recipe books with a Mediterranean style of cooking. Want to eat like the Greeks...snap up a copy. I found most of these recipes to look flavorful but unfamiliar which is kind of daunting. From breakfast all the way to dessert, and some brief history about the Mediterranean diet.
What did I like? My favorite recipe was the Sicilian Salad, looked absolutely delish! If your familiar with Greek food then most of the names in this book won’t be a surprise for you. Either way the book is filled with some beautiful pictures and filled with information on the diet trend. I’d love a copy for my shelf, benefits from this diet look amazing.
I received a copy to read and voluntarily left an opinion.
I have so many cookbooks any new additions have to be really special to get my attention. This one is filled with information about the Mediterranean way of eating, and that is why it caught my eye.
Recently, Mediterranean foods have captured the news, books and online sites that recommend this as the best way to stay healthy through life. Apparently, this has been proved by the people who live in countries where this style of eating is more popular. I wanted to see what all the fuss was about.
The book starts out with information about the diet and the diseases it actually helps to prevent one example is cancer which seems to be taking more lives with every year that passes. Another interesting point is that if you are diabetic, this diet will work for you also.
I have to say that I loved the recipes from breakfast choices (there is even a cheese pie!) to stews, lots of vegetable recipes and ways to cook beans as well as meats there are lots of things to chose from. Vegetarians and meat eaters will all find something to enjoy.
I loved this cookbook, and would be happy to find a place on my shelf for it.