An article in Friday’s New York Times Magazine asked an intriguing question: Does the Mediterranean Diet Even Exist? The headline caught my eye because I’m starting to develop a bad taste in my mouth from recipes that have “Mediterranean” in the title. As you probably know, unless you’ve been living under a rock, the diet is based on foods such as eggplant, garlic, red peppers, chick peas, olive oil, olives, fish, figs, herbs and wine.
Not much meat, dairy, saturated fat. A lot of it is low-calorie and high-nutrition. (And a lot of it is not.)
At any rate, The New York Times reported that the actual Mediterranean diet is nearly impossible to define, as it varies from regions as diverse as Italy and Egypt. Also, in reality, the diets of many locals are trending toward western foods such as french fries and burgers.
Meanwhile, the “Mediterranean Diet” we’ve been trying to emulate brings to mind cold, watery tomatoes and overpowering olives punctuated by the tasty, but ubiquitous feta cheese.
I’m sure if you eat a lot of these foods, you probably will get healthier than you would on burgers and fries. But I think there are a lot tastier ways to eat healthy foods without stuffing grainy pita bread with fish and eggplant.
Maybe it’s just the recipes I’ve been using, but I haven’t found one yet that’s worth writing about. If you disagree — and have tasty recipes that match up to what’s commonly known as “Mediterranean” foods, please share.
Here’s one I actually like. It originally ran with my Loaves & Dishes column in 2002.
HUMMUS
1 (151/2-ounce) can chickpeas
(garbanzo beans, ceci beans)
4 teaspoons tahini
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
(about half a lemon)
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
1 clove garlic
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon salt
1. Drain and rinse chickpeas, reserving 1/3 cup of the canned liquid; set aside.
2. In a food processor or blender, combine the chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice, lemon rind, garlic, cumin and salt.
3. With the processor running, gradually add the reserved liquid through the feed tube and process until smooth.
Makes 11/2 cups for 6 (1/4-cup) servings.
n Per 1/4 cup: 63 calories, 2 grams fat, 0 grams saturated fat, 0 milligrams cholesterol, 192 milligrams sodium, 8 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams fiber, 3 grams protein and 23 milligrams calcium.
– Weight Watchers, “Take Out Tonight!”

I could go on and on about what I did in my kitchen over the weekend, give you some recipes and a cute little photo, but I know why you’re really here today, so let’s get right to it:

I have four cookbooks to give away. To enter the drawings, please send an e-mail to jennie.geisler@timesnews.com including your name, the title of the book you want, and your street address. You can send one e-mail with all your requests. If you’ve won a book in the past 2 months, please wait another month to enter. Thank you.

“Tupelo Honey Cafe: Spirited Recipes from Asheville’s New South Kitchen,” by Elizabeth Sims with Chef Brian Sonoskus. Big yellow hardback tome. Asheville as in North Carolina

“SlowCooker Revolution: One Test Kitchen. 30 Slow Cookers. 200 Amazing Recipes,” America’s Test Kitchen (publishers of Cooks Illustrated magazine) Heavy white paperback

“Maida Heatter’s Cookies,” Recipient, James Beard Foundation Cookbook Hall of Fame Award, with a foreword by Wolfgang Puck

“Maida Heatter’s Cakes,” Recipient, James Beard Foundation Cookbook Hall of Fame Award, with a foreword by Nancy Silverton