New Harvest Olive Oil – Oil Verde Novello 2012

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New Harvest Olive Oils – Oil Verde Novello 2012

olive oilIf you are are passioante about your olive oil selection as I am than January is a very exciting time of year with the arrival of New Harvest Olive Oils.

One of the great rituals for food-loving Italians is the annual tasting of freshly pressed olive oil. The harvest of green olives right before Christmas ensures this traditional holiday treat.

These New Havest oils usually arrive in the US sometime around the end of December to early January. Now is the time to buy as they quickly sell out.

Thought our affiliate partnership with Cyber Cucina I am happy to offer you, what I consider one of the best New Harvest (or Novello) oil available, Oil Verde Novello. Continue reading →

Olives – At the Core of the Mediterranean Diet

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Olives – A Mediterranean Dieters Friend

 

LZ98_001_0011_11DMOlives are at the core of a good Mediterranean Diet.  Not only are they used in the production of Olive Oil, which is the only oil we use for cooking and intensifying meals, but they are a perfect snack or for adding to recipes.  Olives come in many shapes, sizes and taste, and today we’ll take a look at a few varieties we handled at our shop.  We’ll also provide a link as to where you can purchase them as some can be hard to find. Continue reading →

The Mediterranean Diet = Weight Loss

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Does a Mediterranean Diet really result in weight loss?  I have been asked that question many times by people who seemed to be a little skeptical about how a diet that includes a good dose of foods they love and a distinct Italian flavor can possibility translate into weight loss.  So on January 2nd of this new year (2013) I decided to put myself to the test.  I surely needed to lose a few pounds and also needed to get real in the “practice what you preach” aspect of putting a blog out devoted to this Mediterranean Lifestyle.

So here we are 17 days after my resolution and I have shed a whopping 3.5 pounds.  Not bad, but more importantly is that I feel better, sleeping better and my outlook is definitely better.  Here are some of the things I have incorporated into my daily routine: Continue reading →

Gracie’s Sunday Sauce

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Gracie’s Sunday Sauce – We Called it Gravy

I could not think of a better way to kick off this blog than by giving you the recipe for my mother’s (Gracie) Sunday Gravy.  She would labor over the sauce each and every Sunday, putting up a huge pot that would suffice not only the Sunday family feast but at least two other weekday meals.  My mother simmered her gravy for hours and always had her meatballs or some other meat cooking and flavoring the final product.

In the recipe below we’re are going to include meatballs and sausage for flavoring, but you can go meatless (Mediterranean style) by adding additional vegetables.  In our next blog post we will give you a step by step guide to great, low-fat meatballs.

Here We Go: Continue reading →