My New Mediterranean Cookbook: Eat Better, Live Longer by Following the Mediterranean Diet [Hardcover]

Jeannette Seaver (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 5, 2005

This sumptuous new cookbook of over 200 mouth-watering recipes focuses on nutritionally proven ingredients that are as tasty as they are healthy. In this book, Jeannette Seaver, a gourmet chef and author of several cookbooks, offers a rich panoply of recipes using delicious traditional Mediterranean-diet ingredients: vegetables, legumes, fresh fruit, nuts, cereals, olive oil, and fish, with judicious amounts of red meat and poultry. Among her offerings are salmon on a bed of smoked eggplant caviar; gratin of cod and spinach; broiled marinated duck breast with grilled peaches; stuffed zucchini flowers with red pepper coulis; zucchini cakes, Greek style; Jeannette's own bouillabaisse-and hundreds more! Eating Mediterranean is not only wonderfully pleasing to the palate but may well prolong your life. A recent (2003) Harvard study concluded that those who followed the Mediterranean diet for four years showed a remarkable 33 percent reduction in heart disease and 24 percent reduction in cancer! Given the startling, positive statistics emanating from the recent medical studies, which demonstrate unequivocally that one can not only live substantially longer but also feel better, eating as the Mediterraneans do seems a virtual necessity.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Seaver (The [Almost] No Cholesterol Gourmet) offers a delectable feast from the sunny coasts of southern France, Spain, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Tunisia, Morocco and the Middle East. Despite their distinct cultural identities, these regions share common culinary points: generous use of olive oil; lots of fruits, vegetables, legumes, grains and nuts; fish at least twice a week; moderate dairy and poultry; very little red meat; and, happily, wine with meals. In return, Mediterranean-area dwellers are trimmer than their American counterparts and live longer, healthier lives. It's a commonly cited connection, and Seaver, associate publisher of Arcade and a frequent visitor to the Mediterranean, says this isn't "a diet book" on the phenomenon. Rather, she offers a cookbook emphasizing "the gourmet rather than the mundane" of the Mediterranean culinary landscape: ingredients should be seasonal and fresh, and meals are meant to be enjoyed at leisure. Classics like gazpacho, bouillabaisse and moussaka appear alongside lesser-known regional dishes like Terrine of Monkfish with Green Sauce, and Pork Loin in Dried Figs Sauce. Some recipes are as simple as Fresh Vegetables with Anchovy Cream, while others, such as Quenelles of Pike or Shrimp, boost the difficulty level, but are explained in enough detail to make them doable. Seaver has created a mouth-watering tribute to a healthy, scrumptious cuisine.
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Product Details

• Hardcover: 292 pages
• Publisher: Arcade Publishing (January 5, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1559707232
• ISBN-13: 978-1559707237
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 8.9 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,161,006 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

120 of 123 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Experienced Cooks Only, December 27, 2004

By 

Connie C. (Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: My New Mediterranean Cookbook: Eat Better, Live Longer by Following the Mediterranean Diet (Hardcover)

Very high-brow recipes that come from mainly European countries such as France and Spain. If you're looking for a healthy eating guide, such as learning how to substitute olive oil for butter and how to cook less meat-oriented meals, this is not the book. I studied the Mediterranean Diet Food Pyramid, which this book seems to turn upside-down. Many recipes call for milk and cream and most recipes are 2 pages long. Individual Beef Wellingtons - doesn't sound very healthy to me! This is a good choice for Gourmet Cooks looking for more wordly recipes!

17 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A step-by-step approach and includes tips for complete menu plans, July 4, 2005

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: My New Mediterranean Cookbook: Eat Better, Live Longer by Following the Mediterranean Diet (Hardcover)

Followers of the Mediterranean diet will want to have Jeanette Seaver's My New Mediterranean Cookbook: Eat Better, Live Longer By Following The Mediterranean Diet in their collection: it comes from a French-raised gourmet chef who provides hundreds of recipes based on the diet plan, emphasizing fresh fruits and vegetables. Recipes are easy to prepare, especially with an approach geared to beginners which takes a step-by-step approach and includes tips for complete menu plans.

16 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For adventurous cooks who'd like to be healthy too, April 25, 2005

By 

Lynn Harnett (Marathon, FL USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: My New Mediterranean Cookbook: Eat Better, Live Longer by Following the Mediterranean Diet (Hardcover)

Classic or contemporary Mediterranean food, with its preponderance of fresh vegetables and fruit and its reliance on olive oil instead of butter, forms a naturally healthy cuisine, Seaver points out, obviating the need for diet books. With main courses like Lemon and Artichoke Risotto, Broiled Duck Breasts with Grilled Peaches, and Trout with Sorrel, who needs steak and potatoes?

The book is divided into First and Second Courses, followed by Dessert and each course is organized by main ingredient - meat, fish, vegetable. Most first courses (Carpaccio of Beets, Terrine of Monkfish with Green Sauce) can be at least partially prepared in advance and many are served cold or room temperature. Main courses (Bouillabaisse, Moussaka of Artichoke and Veal, Pork Tonnato) range from quick and easy to elegant and time consuming.

Recipes are clear and attractively presented. Presentation is important to Seaver and is included as an integral part of the recipe. Except for a recipe for Coq au Vin which uses boned chicken breasts, every dish in this book has a mouthwatering freshness and sophistication which will inspire cooks who want to celebrate mealtime and stay healthy too.

Portsmouth Herald