Best of The Best Recipes

Featuring: The Mediterranean Diet.

Grilled octopus

Being someone of Greek heritage eating octopus is in my DNA. I remember my first trip to Greece seeing fishermen drying out their freshly caught octopus on long lines. When you travel around Greece you see little restaurants in fishing villages drying out their octopus as well. This shows you how amazing and fresh the produce is!
But not only is octopus completely delicious, it is also incredibly nutritious. Just 85 grams has only 140 calories for those of you who love to count calories, has 25 grams of protein and only two grams of fat. But it’s the amazing amount of vitamin B12 at 1275% of the recommended daily value, plus 139% of selenium, 70% copper, 45% iron, 32% vitamin B6 as well potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, sodium, pantothenic acid, choline and potassium.
This recipe will also give you a good boost of vitamin C with the lemon plus omega 3 with the addition of extra-virgin olive oil. Truly this is where health meets deliciousness.

Ingredients (Serves 8–10)

• 1 kg fresh baby octopus
• Salt
• ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 lemons
• 2 teaspoons black pepper
• 1 tablespoon fresh or dried oregano

Method

1. Put the octopus tentacles in a pot and cover with cold water. Bring to the boil then reduce to a simmer, cooking until the octopus is tender, about 40 minutes.
2. Remove from the pot and drain well.
3. Sprinkle the octopus with salt, then with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Cover.
4. Mix the remaining olive oil with the juice of 1 lemon. Cut the other lemon into wedges for serving. Grill or barbecue the octopus for a few minutes on each side over a medium-high heat. Squeeze a little lemon juice over, drizzle with the oil, and sprinkle with oregano and lemon wedges.

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Baked snapper and vegetables

I love this recipe as it is how I was brought up eating fish. I recall sitting around the family kitchen table after school eating afternoon tea watching this meal being prepared. The snapper was always purchased whole from the local fish shop. The adult conversation between Mum and my Papou would usually be about how fantastic and fresh the snapper was. There was so much pride in the produce sourced. When I think back this really reinforced for me the importance and appreciation for good-quality produce. This recipe is a favorite of mine as it is so easy, nutrient dense and full of flavour.

Ingredients (Serves 4)

• 1 whole snapper (about 1 kg)
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• salt and pepper
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1 onion, sliced
• 3 tomatoes, sliced
• ⅓ cup fresh parsley leaves

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180ºC. Brush the fish with the olive oil in a baking dish. Season with salt and pepper, then squeeze lemon juice over.
2. Scatter the onion and tomatoes over the fish, followed by the parsley and bake until the fish is cooked, about 25 minutes.
3. Serve with baked seasonal vegetables.

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Baked ricotta figs

My papou used to drizzle honey over ricotta and eat it just like that, or on a slice of toasted sourdough. We had a fig tree in my front garden at home. I recall my dad and papou loving eating figs fresh from the tree.

Ingredients (Serves 4)

• 500 grams ricotta
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive • oil, plus extra for greasing
• 4 tablespoons honey
• 4 fresh figs, quartered
• pinch of salt and pepper

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180ºC. Grease a baking dish with olive oil.
2. Put the ricotta in a bowl and give it a good stir, then transfer to the baking dish. Sprinkle with the rosemary, half the olive oil and half the honey. Bake for 20 minutes.
3. Remove from the oven, add the figs and salt, and return to the oven for another 5 minutes.
4. Remove from the oven and drizzle with the olive oil and honey plus salt and pepper to taste. Serve with a green salad and maybe some toasted sourdough.

Sarah Di Lorenzo is Channel 7’s Sunrise and Weekend Sunrise’s clinical nutritionist with 20 years’ experience in the wellness industry. She is the #1 best-selling author of 6 books which have sold in excess of 200K. Sarah has a successful clinic in Sydney, she’s a regular public speaker and a single mother of three. Sarah is an avid exerciser and firmly believes in the benefits of a healthy lifestyle. Connect with Sarah on instagram – @sarah_di_lorenzo

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