oldways

There are cook books. There are history books. There are books on the culture of food. Then there is Oldways Table (published by Ten Speed Press) a book that masterfully blends all three.

This book was written by K. Dun Gifford and Sara Baer-Sinnott, the minds behind Oldways, the culinary think tank that brought you The Whole Grain Stamp and the Med Mark. Who would have thought a cook book with essays could be so engaging as to make me miss my train stop? But it is that interesting and I did miss my stop, but I still love reading this book and imagining the recipes I could make. Now I only read it while in the kitchen. The book feels like a travel guide for food and distant cultures – cultures that all share the love of kale, lamb and lima beans. This book is great for the foodie and the healthy eater alike. It explores the basics of the celebrated Mediterranean diet, but the book includes recipes from countries far outside that region.

My favorite recipe from the book is so simple and tasty: Mashed Potatoes with Kale and Olive Oil. It mixes carbs, fat and greens all in one incredible dish. The only thing I change from this original recipe is keeping the skins on the potatoes, since that's where all the nutrients reside.

Go ahead and cook adventurously, even though you will be cooking like people have for centuries. You can find the book for $21.45 at Amazon. It just might be more fun to walk or ride your bike to your local book store and see if you can find it on the shelf there.

To check out the recipe just read more

The folks that brought you the Whole Grain food stamp have created the Med Mark to help shoppers quickly identify healthy Mediterranean Diet food, drinks, and products.

Oldways, a food think tank, has been promoting the benefits of the Mediterranean Diet for over a decade, has created a stamp to help us choose healthy foods that meet their standards. While the diet is not a formal lose weight "diet", like the Atkins or the Pritikin Diet, it is more of a food philosophy and a food culture. Nobody "owns" the Mediterranean diet, and since Oldways is a non-profit organization, they are not seeking to make money off the Med Marked products you buy. They simply created the Mediterranean Diet Food Pyramid a few years back to work as a guide in meal planning - that is the diet.

Although manufacturers pay Oldways a fee to place the Med Mark on their products, the stamp ensures that the product bearing it meets the following standards:

• Contain no trans fat
• Limit saturated fat to 8 percent of total calories
• Limit sodium to 480 milligrams for an individual food or 600 milligrams for meal-type products
• Keep added sugars to four grams, or about one teaspoon

The easy-to-identify symbol, of an amphora (the pottery jug used for 3,000 years by all Mediterranean cultures to store and ship their foods and drinks) comes at a time when nutritionists and other health experts are praising the Mediterranean diet as the “gold standard” of healthy eating. Research on this way of eating has linked the foods to decreased risks of heart disease, cancer, lung conditions, Alzheimer’s, allergies and asthma.

Look for the stamp at your next outing to the grocery store; it is about the size of a postage stamp.

Recently I told you all about the Whole Grain Stamp for foods that are made with whole grains. That stamp was so successful that the folks that brought you that stamp, Oldways Food Issues Think Tank, are creating a Mediterranean Diet Food Stamp. The plan is to introduce the stamp in about 6 weeks.

Here's what the Food Navigator has to say about the stamp

The new stamp, which is in its final stages of development, will be available for use on products that meet the traditional Mediterranean guidelines set out by Oldways. The nutritional profiles of products submitted for the program will be examined against these guidelines, which promote foods rich in cereals, fruits, vegetables, and olive oil.

I'll keep you posted cause it will be here before you know it.

Folks are often out pimping their new diet books, trying to make a buck with a fad diet based on the bottom line rather than decreasing your waist size or helping you get healthy. Well, have you heard of the Mediterranean Diet?

Introduced in 1993 by the "nutrition meets gastronomy" group Oldways, Harvard School of Public Health, and the World Health Organization, the Med Diet is a not-for-profit diet. The diet was created in reaction to the non-fat food craze of the early 90s and incorporates good fats, namely olive oil, into meals.

Oldways promotes satisfaction over deprivation and believes eating should not be about denying foods, but instead about enjoying them. Take pleasure in the foods you eat. Notice the foods you put into your body, enjoy and savor them, share a meal with friends, and realize that eating healthy is about management, not banishment.

Here are the basic guidelines of the diet:

• Make olive oil your primary source of dietary fat
• Incorporate an abundance of food from plant sources, including fruits and vegetables, breads, grains, beans, nuts, and seeds
• Eat low to moderate amounts of fish and poultry weekly
• Eat low to moderate amounts of cheese and yogurt daily
• Drink a moderate amount of wine (one to two glasses per day for men, one glass per day for women)

Here are a few tips for following the Med Diet:

• Substitute olive oil for butter.
• Snack on almonds instead of fat-free cookies.
• Spread avocado on a sandwich to replace the mayonnaise.

This diet is considered
a healthful diet for heart patients to follow. If it is good enough for folks with heart conditions it is good enough for me.

Curious to see their version of the food pyramid? Then read more

Have you seen this little stamp yet? There are 2 versions and they are helping consumers identify foods made with whole grains. It's recommended that everyone aims for at least 48g of whole grains each day.

The stamp to the left means that the product contains half a serving, about 8g of whole grain. The number "8g" on this stamp is just an example. The number will be different depending on the product.

This label to the right means that the product is made with 100% whole grain, offering 16g per serving. This stamp is the one you want to see.

Eating just 3 servings of products labeled "100% Whole Grain," will get you your whole grain fill for the day. If the label just says "Whole Grain," you'll need to eat 6 servings to get your daily dose.

I love these stamps. Anything that makes eating healthy easier has my vote.