The 14 Day Mediterranean Diet Cookbook: The Complete Mediterranean Diet For Beginners (2016)
Chapter 5. Mediterranean Dinner Recipes
If you were to travel in the Mediterranean area, you would discover that dinner meals are light and often made with flavorful ingredients. This chapter includes a number of Mediterranean dinner recipes, so that you can try your very own cooking experience at home.
#1 Mediterranean chicken pasta
Made for: 4 servings
Total time: 30 min.
Ingredients: rotini pasta (2 and ½ cups), oil (1 tbsp.), chicken sausage (3), frozen sweet peas (1 and ¼ cups), basil pesto (3/4 cup), shredded Italian cheese blend (1 cup), tomato (1)
How to prepare:
Start by cooking the pasta according to the instruction that are present on the package. Once cooked, drain and rinse them with cold water. Cut the chicken sausage into thin slices and cook it, until it turns a lovely golden-brown color. Add in the pasta, frozen sweet peas and pesto. Cook for another five minutes, making sure to stir from time to time. Add the shredded Italian cheese blend and the chopped tomato on top. Cook for another three minutes, so that the cheese melts to perfection. Serve and enjoy!
#2 Layered Greek salad
Made for: 8 servings
Total time: 25 min.
Ingredients: dressing - frozen spinach (9 oz.), Greek yoghurt (5.3 oz.), skim milk (2/3 cup), mayonnaise (1/4 cup), lemon-pepper (1 tsp.), dried dill (3/4 tsp.); salad – salad greens (8 cups), chicken breast (2 cups), cherry tomatoes (1 pint), cucumber (1), red onion (1/2), crumbled feta cheese (3/4 cup), pitted Kalamata olives (1/4 cup)
How to prepare:
Start by cooking the spinach according to the instructions on the package. Rinse with cold water and drain well, then place it in a food processor, together with the other ingredients for the dressing (Greek yoghurt, skim milk, mayonnaise, lemon-pepper, dried dill). Process until you obtain a smooth dressing and set aside. Take a large salad bowl and place the first layer of salad greens. Then, form another layer of chicken cubes, followed by tomatoes and cucumbers. Repeat the layers, until all of the ingredients have been used, topping it off with onions, cucumbers and remaining salad greens. Pour the dressing over the salad. Then, add the crumbled feta cheese, the Kalamata olives and the remaining onions. Serve and enjoy!
#3 Turkey burgers with minted and cucumber sauce
Made for: 5 servings
Total time: 50 min. (20 min. prep, 30 min. cooking)
Ingredients: cucumber sauce – plain yoghurt (1/2 cup), cucumber (1/2 cup), fresh mint (2 tsp.), lemon juice (1 tsp.); burgers – frozen chopped spinach (9 oz.), ground turkey (1 and ¼ lb.), plain yoghurt (1/4 cup), dried oregano (1 tsp.), garlic salt (1/2 tsp.), pepper (1/4 tsp.), tomato (1), pita bread (5)
How to prepare:
Start by mixing the ingredients for the cucumber sauce. When done, refrigerate. Cook the spinach according to the instructions that are present on package. When done, squeeze it to remove the excess water. Take another bowl and mix the spinach together with the ground turkey, yogurt, oregano, garlic salt and pepper. Then, form the mixture into burgers. Broil the burger patties until they turn a lovely golden-brown color. Cut the pita bread into halves and place tomato slices on them and add the burgers. Add the cucumber sauce, serve and enjoy!
#4 Pork tenderloin with roasted sweet potatoes
Made for: 3 servings
Total time: 50 min. (15 min. prep, 35 min. cooking)
Ingredients: vegetables – olive oil (1 tbsp.), Italian seasoning (1 tsp.), salt (1/4 tsp.), garlic clove (1), sweet potatoes (2), yellow onion (1); pork – tenderloin (1 lb.), olive oil (1/2 tbsp.), Italian seasoning (1 tsp.), seasoned salt (1/4 tsp.), Parmesan cheese (1 tbsp.), fresh parsley (1 tbsp.)
How to prepare:
Start by pre-heating the oven at 425ºF. Then, mix one tablespoon of oil with the Italian seasoning, salt and garlic. Cut the sweet potatoes into chunks and chop the onions. Mix the sweet potatoes and onions with the oil and spices. Roast them in the oven for about ten minutes. Brush the tenderloins with half of an oil tablespoon. Take a small bowl and mix Italian seasoning, with seasoned salt and Parmesan cheese. Coat the tenderloins with the mixture and roast them in the oven for twenty minutes. When done, cut them into slices and serve them with sweet potatoes and onions. Garnish with parsley, serve and enjoy!
#5 Spinach parmesan pie
Made for: 6 servings
Total time: 58 min. (15 min. prep, 43 min. cooking)
Ingredients: butter (1 tbsp.), green onions (4), garlic cloves (2), frozen chopped spinach (10 oz.), cottage cheese (1/2 cup), baking mix (1/2 cup), milk (1 cup), lemon juice (1 tsp.), pepper (1/4 tsp.), eggs (3), parmesan cheese (3 tbsp.), ground nutmeg (1/4 tsp.)
How to prepare:
Start by pre-heating the oven at 350ºF. Chop the green onions and garlic cloves and cook them in a skillet, in butter, over medium heat. Then, add the spinach and spread the mixture over the pie plate. Add cottage cheese. In another bowl, add the following ingredients: baking mix, milk, lemon juice, pepper and eggs. Add the mixture to the pie plate. Then, add some more parmesan cheese and ground nutmeg. Bake for about thirty-five minutes. Allow to cool before serving. Garnish with sliced green onions, serve and enjoy!