Mediterranean Love

Sometimes I think I should have been born a native of the Mediterranean region! Great wine, rich food and passionate people. I don't know about you, but when I read the first part of Eat, Pray, Love as the author is in Italy, I felt like I was reading my own food diary. For those of us Americans who lust after a Mediterranean lifestyle, it is easy to forget that, through cuisine, we can partially create the experience without hopping on a 757. I often find myself gravitating toward recipes that have staples of Greek (feta, olives) and Italian (good pasta, parmesan, wine) cooking.  Post a comment about some of your favorite Mediterranean foods or dishes!

Center stage tonight are lentils, olives and feta cheese. Lentils are a delicious member of the legume family. They cannot be eaten raw and require a cooking time of 10–30 minutes, depending on the variety. Lentils have a texture similar to other legumes like beans and have a distinctive earthy flavor. They are an especially wonderful staple in the Vegetarian diet as they contain high levels of protein, dietary fiber, folate and B vitamins. 


Here's what's cooking.

LENTIL SALAD WITH FETA, FENNEL & OLIVES

This salad is super fast, well-balanced and uber delicious. Served on top of field greens with a big glass of red Zinfandel and I imagine myself on a boat off the coast of Rhodes. This is adapted from my Simply Organic cookbook by Jesse Ziff Cool. 

Ingredients:

2 c. green lentils, cooked

4 oz. feta cheese, crumbled

1/2 med. red onion, thinly sliced

1 med. fennel bulb, thinly sliced

1/3 c. kalamata olives, roughly chopped

1/4 c. fresh parsley, chopped

2-3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

juice and zest of 1 lemon

kosher salt to taste

freshly cracked black pepper to taste

field greens for serving if desired

How to prepare:

Wisk together in a large bowl the olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, kosher salt and black pepper. 

Add in all other ingredients except the feta and field greens. Toss well to coat. 

If desired, portion lentil mixture over a bed of field greens. Otherwise, simply top with feta and enjoy! Best served room temperature. Yes, please!

A quick word about buying olives:

Please, I beg of you, do not buy olives in a jar or can or olives that have been pitted. If you are not a fan of olives, go to your nearest olive bar - stat - and pick out a few plump kalamatas that have the pit IN. Very important! I promise you, lives will be changed. I spent many Thanksgiving dinners being grossed out by the bowls of black olives on the table, only learning as an adult that they were canned and far inferior! Olives taste so, so, so much better when you pit them yourself and when they haven't been sitting all sealed up in a jar for who knows how long. To pit, just squeeze them in between your index finger and thumb or, if eating immediately, just pop in your mouth and spit out the seed. Creamy, salty, yum!