The Best 10 Mediterranean Diet Cookbooks, According to Experts
From braised eggs with leeks and cauliflower to lamb and feta meatballs, the whole family will love the simple, easy-to-cook recipes from these MedDiet cookbooks.
Just the thought of munching on warm sourdough bread, silky olive oil, and fresh salmon next to a sparkling turquoise body of water can instantly calm down your nervous system—and it turns out all of those things can help you live longer, too.
In a review published in Current Opinion in Clinical Nutrition & Metabolic Care, researchers found that a Mediterranean Diet—which focuses on eating healthy fats and whole foods such as fish, nuts, oils, and whole grains—can increase life expectancy, reduce the risk of major chronic disease, and improve quality of life and well-being.
Although moving to Greece would be a dream, you don't have to live near the Mediterranean Sea to reap all of the wonderful health benefits of this doctor-recommended diet—all you have to do is order a Mediterranean Diet cookbook and hit the kitchen.
What exactly is the Mediterranean Diet?
The Mediterranean Diet, also known as the MedDiet, is not exactly a diet at all, says doctor, health coach, and ACE certified fitness and nutrition expert Tina Gupta, M.D. “It's more of an eating pattern common to those living in the Mediterranean regions of Italy, Greece, France and Spain,” she explains. “This diet encompasses the daily eating habits and ways of living for those living in and around the Mediterranean sea. It's more about what you can eat, as opposed to what you shouldn't have. Because it's less restrictive than your average diet, many people find that it's more easily adaptable,” Gupta says.
That being said, the Mediterranean Diet emphasizes eating healthy fats, fresh fish, and whole grains, with tasty foods on the menu such as:
- Colorful fruits and vegetables
- Fish and other types of seafood at least twice per week
- Olive oil
- Nuts and seeds
- Beans and legumes
- Whole grains like brown rice, quinoa, and oats
- Fresh herbs
What are the benefits of the Mediterranean Diet?
Not only does the MedDiet consist of some pretty tasty foods, but it also boasts a number of health benefits that make it well worth adding it into your lifestyle. For the forth year in a row, the MedDiet has been ranked as the number one diet by U.S. News & World Report, and Gupta couldn't recommend it enough.
“The Mediterranean Diet has been well studied, and the results show that it can help in reducing incidences for a number of diseases,” she explains. “The MedDiet helps achieve weight loss, lowers insulin resistance, improves heart conditions, cancer prevention, and diabetes control and prevention (through lowered rates of insulin resistance), all while improving mortality rates.”
How to get started with a Mediterranean Diet
Anyone can follow a Mediterranean Diet, Gupta says. Shopping at your local grocery store or farm for fresh, whole food products from the list is a great way to start. You can begin to slowly introduce some MedDiet foods into your meals, and then eventually commit over time.
“Initially, some individuals may find it hard because of increased fiber demands due to increased consumption of legumes and vegetables,” Gupta says. “To avoid bloating and/or bowel habit changes, it is best advised to begin increasing these types of food gradually.” Cooking your veggies instead of eating them raw can also help with bloating, as does soaking legumes overnight, Gupta says.
To start cooking up some mouth-watering meals, consider ordering a Mediterranean Diet cookbook from this list of top-rated and best-selling books on Amazon. With easy-to-follow recipes, you'll become an expert in the kitchen in no time. For delicious Mediterranean-style recipes, read on for the best Mediterranean Diet Cookbooks on Amazon for 2022.
