Greek Vegetarian: Celebrating Mediterranean Diet Month #Healthy Eating #Weekly Menu Plan

Hello everyone! My name is Lisa, from the food blog Greek Vegetarian and I'm delighted today to be writing a guest post for Diane's wonderful Simple Living and Eating blog – especially given it's Mediterranean Diet Month!

Although the Mediterranean diet has been around for thousands of years, it has only recently gained recognition as one of the healthiest in the world. But the Spaniards, Italians and of course the Greeks knew that a long time ago. Lentils, for example, have been a part of Greek cooking for millennia. High in protein and loaded with minerals, the ancient Greeks knew they were on to something when they introduced lentils as a staple in their diets over 8,000 years ago.

Many people don't know that the Greek diet is largely plant-based with a very low meat component. When you think of Greek food you might imagine a big plate of shaved lamb off the spit. It's true, this dish represents an element of Greek cuisine, but meat isn't really considered an essential component of the Greek diet and spit roast lamb is usually only served up on special occasions. In fact, for a significant part of the year, many Greeks observe fasting periods such as those leading up to Easter and Christmas which means abstaining from meat, fish and sometimes even eggs and dairy products.

The Greeks have become quite the masters of vegetarian eating, making the most of beautiful fresh vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts and legumes. And not just because of their fasting periods. In earlier times most families couldn't afford meat, but their own fields provided them with such an abundance of plant-based foods to feed their families that meat was not missed.

Today's Greek diet is still rich in fresh produce and unprocessed ingredients, and having a low red-meat content it is no coincidence that the Mediterranean diet can protect against heart disease and stroke. Studies also show that eating as the Greeks do can lessen your chances of developing cancer, diabetes and obesity, and lowers cholesterol and blood pressure.

As a vegetarian, I focus on the vegetable, grain and legume aspects of Greek cuisine and let me tell you, there is no shortage of deliciously healthy dishes that can be created from the plethora of fresh ingredients that make up the vegetarian Greek diet.

Olives, eggplants, tomatoes, honey, feta cheese, mint, pistachio nuts, oregano, almonds and cinnamon are just a few of the many flavor sensations that are found in traditional Greek recipes, and with ingredients like these, it's no wonder Greek cuisine lends itself so well to a healthy, vegetarian diet.

I swear my Aunt Koula has a Greek recipe bible stored in her head and her cooking skills and techniques are well practiced. Needless to say she is my main source of inspiration and education when it comes to Greek cooking. Last year she and I shared some time in the kitchen on the Greek island of Limnnos where my dad's family is from. We have an old family house where we stay when we are on holiday on the island (I know, we are very lucky!) and family members come from the mainland of Greece and from Australia to spend the summer months together in Limnos.

Lunch with the family outside on the terrace is the best part of the day and usually involves lots of laughter, waving of hands, good conversation and clinking of drinks. On the table would be a basket of warm crusty bread from the bakery around the corner, a huge Greek salad made from vegetables freshly picked from the garden that morning, and a tray of rice and herb stuffed tomatoes that Koula had only just taken out of the oven.

The recipes for this simple but gorgeously colourful and healthful lunch are what I want to share with you today.

Greek Salad with Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Feta and Mint (Horiatiki Salata)

Serves 4
Ingredients

200g mixed lettuce leaves
300g cherry tomatoes, cut in half
1 continental cucumber, sliced
1 small red onion, finely sliced
1 small red capsicum, finely sliced
100g feta cheese, crumbled
6 large flat green beans, blanched and sliced
1 small handful of fresh mint, roughly torn
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

Instructions

Arrange lettuce leaves in the bottom of a large salad bowl.
Place remaining vegetables, followed by the mint and feta cheese over the lettuce leaves.
In a small bowl, whisk the oil, lemon juice and vinegar until combined and pour over salad.

Vegetarian Stuffed Tomatoes (Yemista)

Serves 4
Ingredients

8 tomatoes
100g long grain rice
8 spring onions, white part and some green finely chopped
1 large zucchini, finely chopped
1 tablespoon parsley, finely chopped
1 tablespoon fresh mint, finely chopped
100ml olive oil
3 potatoes, peeled and thickly sliced lengthwise
200ml water

Instructions

Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius.
Using a sharp paring knife, remove the tops of the tomatoes and reserve for later. Carefully scoop out the tomato flesh using a spoon, taking care not to pierce the skin. Reserve half of the pulp and discard the rest.
Place the tomato shells in a baking dish and set aside.
Fry spring onions and zucchini in 50ml of oil over low to medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring, until lightly golden. Add tomato pulp, parsley, mint, rice and 100ml of water and stir well. Allow to simmer uncovered for 5 minutes and season with salt and pepper.
Fill the tomato shells almost to the top with the rice mixture, leaving room for the rice to expand, and replace tops on tomatoes.
Arrange the potato pieces between the tomatoes to help keep them in place and carefully pour the remaining 100ml of water, followed by the remaining 50ml of oil around the vegetables.
Cook for around one hour.