 MEDITERRANEAN STYLE use lunch to energize your brain Lunch may well be your most important meal of the day! Eating a plant-based meal with lean protein at midday boosts your blood sugar -- slowly -- thereby giving your brain the energy it needs to finish the day's work without a carb crash. This approach also keeps you from ravenously overeating at night, which can cause weight gain.
Traditionally, lunch in the Mediterranean was the biggest meal of the day, often followed by a nap!
But forget dishes like lasagna, paella and lamb souvlaki on a daily basis. Simple, plant-based cooking is the focus, with most of each meal created from fruits and vegetables, whole grains and legumes, with a few nuts and seeds and a heavy emphasis on extra-virgin olive oil.  Cooking food in olive oil or "laderá" is such a part of the Greek culture that if natives think someone is a bit crazy, they say they are "choris ládi" or "losing oil."
Fats other than olive oil, such as cholesterol-raising butter, are consumed rarely, if at all. And say goodbye to refined sugar or processed foods -- your sweet tooth will soon be craving seasonal fresh fruit.
Fish and other seafood (which are good for your brain) are consumed at least twice a week. Yogurt and cheese show up daily to weekly, in moderate portions. Chicken and eggs are OK on occasion during the week, but the use of red meat is very limited.
A Mediterranean lunch is only limited by your imagination! Choose from a rainbow of flavorful vegetables, eaten raw or steamed, oven-roasted or sautéed (but only with EVOO) or stuffed into other veggies and baked.
Focus on leafy green salads and add in fruit, beans or lentils, and whole grains. Or stir up a batch of homemade veggie soup, flavored with herbs and spices instead of salt.
Use a weekend day to prepare large batches of dishes you can pack up and take to work. But if you can't find the time, healthy options like grain bowls, specialty salads and vegetable soups are available at a growing number of restaurants.  Rahaf Al Bochi, a registered dietitian nutritionist and founder of Olive Tree Nutrition, has whipped up an original recipe for your lunch: Warm Farro Grain Salad With Pomegranate, a delicious mix of cooked farro and veggies, sprinkled with and feta and drizzled with vinaigrette. Need an extra protein boost? Add salmon or tuna.
We invite you to make Al Bochi's original recipe or any other in this newsletter, or your favorite Mediterranean dish at home. Snapshot your creation, then send it to us at eatbetter@cnn.com or share with #plateitpostit. You might be featured in an upcoming story! Bon appétit!
Add an ancient grain you've never tasted to your shopping list this week. Get creative and try quinoa, African fonio, amaranth (which is actually a seed), millet, farro, spelt, Kamut (a wheat grain said to be discovered in an Egyptian tomb) or teff (an Ethiopian grain about the size of a poppy seed). Experiment and let us know what you think! add to cart A good knife makes chopping and food prep a breeze. Our partners at CNN Underscored, a product reviews and recommendations guide owned by CNN, like the handcrafted Wüsthof Classic Ikon knife set. Check it out. spice rack The versatile Moroccan spice mix charmoula can be used as marinade or seasoning rub -- most typically for fish -- or as a side sauce or condiment. The spicy dry rub is made of allspice, cayenne, chili powder, cinnamon, coriander, cumin, ginger, paprika and turmeric. Add olive oil and lemon juice to turn it into a paste for marinades. Add more to turn it into a vinaigrette for veggies or salads.
Farro, a chewy ancient grain with a nutty taste, was found in the stomach of the ancient Ötzi the Iceman, who lived between 3100 and 3370 BC.
 For this week's healthy challenge, shop al fresco and visit your local farmers market to buy seasonal leafy greens, a colorful array of vegetables and fresh fruit -- then use them in each meal this week. |