The Mediterranean Prescription: Meal Plans and Recipes to Help You Stay Slim and Healthy for the Rest of Your Life

by Laurie Anne Vandermolen (Collaborator), Angelo Acquista (Primary Contributor)

The eating style proven to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke.

LOSE WEIGHT, STAY FIT, AND FEEL GREAT WHILE EATING SOME OF THE MOST DELICIOUS AND HEALTHIEST FOOD ON EARTH.

Renowned for its dazzling beauty and delectable cuisine, the Mediterranean island of Sicily has historically one of the healthiest diets in the world. Recent studies show that this eating style can reduce the risk of developing Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's, diabetes, and depression, and that it can even increase fertility rates! Now all the succulent flavors and myriad benefits of Sicilian cooking are yours to savor in the very first weight-loss program that will not only help you effortlessly shed unwanted pounds but will become a prescription for a lifetime of nourishing, palate-pleasing fare.

Created by respected physician Dr. Angelo Acquista, who has successful counseled his patients on weight management for years, The Mediterranean Prescription starts with a two-week weight-loss stage that includes simple, delectable recipes to help you lose eight to ten pounds right away. Still convinced that all diets leave you feeling deprived? Imagine eating Baked Zucchini with Eggplant and Tomatoes, Sweet-and-Sour Red Snapper, Chicken Cacciatore, Pasta Fagioli, and Baked Onions. Dr. Acquista culled his Sicilian mother’s recipe box for the most mouthwatering recipes–plus he includes meals from famous chefs at top Italian restaurants, such as Cipriani and Serafina. If you follow these lifestyle-changing suggestions, you will enjoy

• long-term success: Eat the foods you love and enjoy–bread, pasta, and all your favorite Italian dishes–while adopting healthier eating habits.
• no more addictions: A two-week “tough love” stage helps you kick the habit of sugar, junk food, and preservatives.
• zero deprivation: The Sicilian way of cooking and combining foods means less snacking in between meals, and less temptation to fill up on desserts.
• family-friendly recipes: Children will love and benefit from the dishes as well, so you can share the good eating and the good health.

Plus you’ll find vital information on how being overweight affects each part of your body, including the skin, brain, heart, liver, joints, back, and breasts.

Most people don’t realize that many of their health problems derive from unhealthful weight. Discover the Sicilian secret to a happy life. Capture a pleasurable way of eating that will bring all the blessings and bounty of the Mediterranean to your table, to your life, and to your health!

Genres: Cookbooks, Nonfiction, Food, Health, Cooking, Reference

320 pages, Hardcover

First published April 11, 2006

Reviews

[Melissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I bought this book because I had already made the decision to follow a Mediterranean diet, and I was looking for some tasty, easy recipes that I can fit into my very American lifestyle. This book really doesn't fulfill my expectations.

First, I was a little put off by the touch of pretentious. I really don't care what celebrity visits your family’s New York country home. I really don’t care what famous doctor requests recipes from your mother. If I had the time or money to keep a country home in New York, I probably wouldn’t have high blood pressure or be overweight anyway.

Second, although this is a medically focused book, I don’t appreciate the professional posturing. I think the journals where the audience is other professionals are the place for that. This is a commercial book, focused on the general public. If you want to give differing medical advice than that provided in another doctor’s professional study or the media, just tell me that you don’t think incorporating dairy in my diet with help me lose weight.

I also think it very dangerous to encourage weight cutting. Losing five pounds in one week is not healthy unless you’re extremely overweight and are under medical/dietician/trainer supervision. The weight loss should be a side effect of making healthier choices. Cutting calories or over exercising to make up for caloric transgressions does not help to change my fundamental unhealthy habits.

Which brings us to Dr. Aquista’s “Maintenance” prescription. I would think this to be the true essence of the plan. However, there’s not as much content given here as in other sections of the book. Also, the recipes are limited, many of which I’ve figured out on my own just following the olive oil, garlic, lemon holy trinity of Mediterranean cooking I’ve learned from free websites.

[Nazhin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two of my friends swear by this book. It's not a diet, but a healthy way of living. Great for veggie lovers and I lost 7 pounds.

[Suzanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy to read and great recipes. I used this as a template a few years ago to change my eating habits. Getting ready to pull it out and re-read!

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some good ideas in this book, and some decent looking recipes. However, I found the writing to be stilted, boring, and repetitive, and much of his advice is either pretty generic and standard for anybody who knows anything about healthy eating, or it's now outdated and has been proven false in more recent years. For example, we now know that saturated fats are not as evil as we once thought, and his recommendations to cut out butter, egg yolks, etc., are somewhat obsolete. I also thought it was somewhat ridiculous that he kept stressing how this was a lifestyle change and we need to enjoy food, etc., etc., and then offers such an incredibly restrictive weight loss plan. He calls it his two-week plan, but then says that you should stay on it as long as it takes to lose the weight you need to lose. That's fine for anybody with only a few pounds to lose, but anybody with any sort of significant weight loss goal is going to need a lot longer than two weeks. Personally, I couldn't imagine sticking to such a restrictive plan for that long. I'm sure you would lose weight on it, but it's really a pretty standard restrictive cutting plan - chicken or fish, vegetables, fruit, no dairy/sugar/bread/etc. Nothing I had to pay for this book to find out.

Basically, nothing special here, and really nothing I didn't already know. Some decent recipes, but not worth the cover price on the book.

[Kendra · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Mediterranean Prescription has been a terrific resource for me personally, as I try to improve my eating habits in an effort to lower my cholesterol without taking prescription drugs. A brief introduction provides the science and justification for eating the Mediterranean way--which includes a lot of vegetables, limited meat intake, fish a couple of times per week, replacing most fats with olive oil, and limiting alcohol intake to a moderate amount of red wine each night. Recipes which adhere to these guidelines are provided, as well as modifications and suggestions for a two week weight loss jump start which Dr. Acquista claims will work with anyone wishing to lose weight. I have not attempted the weight loss portion of the book, but the recipes have been a great way to wean my family off of meat and onto a mostly vegetable and fish based diet. We have enjoyed all of the recipes we have attempted, and plan to eat them over and over again.

My favorites include:
Lentil Soup
Minestrone Soup
Broiled Portobello Mushrooms
Oven-Baked Zucchini
Baked Halibut
Scrod Filet with Onions and Tomatoes
Salmon with Orange and Lemon
Baked Shrimp Oreganato

Even though this book was published in 2006, it is still a tremendous resource for those wishing to adapt a Mediterranean diet without sacrificing taste and enjoyment of food.

[Tamara Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book takes my current eating habits and rebalances them. I'm starting to lose weight after just a few days and I feel great. I happen to love Mediterranean food, cooking, gardening, and being healthy and active, but I have struggled with pounds creeping on over the years and I'm just too old to want to starve myself any more. Some people who reviewed this book were apparently not inspired by it, thought the author was pretentious, or talked too much about his culture. To me, that painted a picture in my mind of the way I want to live....the ways of the Mediterranean before it got Westernized. Taking time to prepare food with good, fresh, local ingredients, sharing it with family and friends, and getting outside for some daily exercise is part of the whole gestalt of creating a new way of living and eating. By focusing on the use of lots and lots of fresh fruits and veggies with a bit of meat, especially fish and seafood, plenty of olive oil and olives and a few nuts....you can fill up and still lose weight. It's not a diet. It's a way of nurturing yourself, honoring the beautiful bounty of the earth, and enjoying friends. Forget all the starches, sugars, butters, and creams. That is what was really doing me in. This is not a diet. It's a beautiful tribute to a healthy culture....at least the way it was in the old days.

[Beverly McCall · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Mediterranean Prescription by Angelo Acquista, M.D. and Laurie Anne Vandermolen is a book explains Mediterranean cuisine. It provides information to help readers stay slim, remain healthy, and help with meal planning. I like the incorporation of the easy to read Sicilian family recipes.
I didn’t read this book to find a way to lose weight or to go on a diet. My intent was to understand the concept of the Mediterranean diet. From this perspective, I believe this book accomplishes this goal and that why I rated it the way I did. The recipes shared gave me ideas to add to our family menu. I strongly suggest that if you are looking at this book to lose weight then please consult with your physician. But if you just want to find another way to incorporate healthy dishes into your diet then by all means this book is one you should look at.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Mediterranean style of eating appeals to me, and Dr. Acquista does a good job of explaining the benefits of following this type of food plan. All through the book, he touts his recipes for their simplicity and raves on about how delicious they are. By the time I reached the recipe section of the book, the part in which I was most interested, I suffered a severe let down. While I do understand that the recipes are aimed at those who wish to lose weight and to do so quickly, the relative unoriginality of the recipes let me down. My search for good, usable Mediterranean-style dishes will continue beyond the last page of this book.

[Missy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was ok, I ended up being distracted by the author's love of his own cooking, which seems odd as he certainly must be a good cook to have a cookbook. Also, I turned out not liking the weight-loss solution tone of the book. I am not so much a diet person, but I am trying to pull and understand elements of this vast way of life to improve the quality and health of my cooking. Overall it was ok.

[Andi Rae · Rating 4 out of 5]

I stumbled into this book somehow after a google about reduced sense of smell...anyway, it has changed my life in just one week. I am sold on the diet of the Mediterranean people! I have made 16 dishes so far and have never had food so deliciously seasoned that I prepared!!! It's a game changer for me and my family. This kind of cooking, using so many veggies, that actually tastes good and has health benefits? It's a dream come true :)

[CraftyBirdies · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was my first introduction to the Mediterranean way of eating, and it was very informative and helpful. It's not a way of eating for me due to the restrictive nature - I don't do well with that. However, it was great to understand the premise of it and had a lot of references to studies and science as well as acknowledging when the jury was still out on a certain aspect like whether dairy helps you lose weight.

[Bonnie Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another good resource for those following the Mediterranean diet. Would like to see more recipes for the average person - with readily available product.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars for the content only (I've lost 2 lbs in 2 weeks and my clothes fit so much better - yay!). His writing deserves 3 stars, he goes on and on and his little stories are annoying.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good recipes but take too much time!

[Julie H. Ernstein · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good common sense, not too preachy (which can be a concern with this sort of book), and some helpful menu plans. You will find a few suprises (i.e., counterintuitive things), so well worth a peruse.

[Jessica Bishop-Royse · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book for people considering the Mediterranean diet. It makes a great case for how to get kids on board. I would have liked more science and fewer anecdotes, but that is just me.

[john k. bisset · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good recipes , but I don't see it changing my life!

[Sonia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of good diet/health information in here and good recipes

[Jennifer Spiliakos · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eh. A bit pretentious, honestly.

[Larry Wood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very thorough as well as practical.

[Paul Flagg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Complete with research, recipes, meal plans, and so much more, The Mediterranean Prescription makes learning about and starting a Mediterranean diet so simple.

[Bree · Rating 2 out of 5]

Notes:

the doctor's 2-week plan:
breakfast = coffee, toast, egg whites
lunch and dinner = fish/chicken and vegetables
PLUS exercise 30 minutes a day 5 days a week

after that he recommends for each day:
8 svg whole grains
4 svg fruit
4-6 svg veg
1+ cups legumes
2 svg lowfat dairy
1 svg fish
2-4 Tbsp. olive oil
1 oz. nuts

bad foods = butter, egg yolks, coconut oil, red meat, full-fat dairy products

[Laura Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve lost 25lbs in 2 .5 months . I’m not hungry. I’m enjoying the food I eat. So yes I liked the book but it wasn’t the only book I read on the topic, so I used some recipes as inspiration and I got the concept of whole grains and fresh real food.

[pianogal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read. Very helpful in learning how to get started on this way of eating.

[Sean · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not enough emphasis on glycemic load or healthy fats.

[Leigh]

For a couple weeks, eat dry toast and egg whites for breakfast. One cup of coffee no sugar, no cream (whhaaaaa???). For lunch and dinner, eat chicken/fish and a ton of vegetables with perhaps some legumes but don't go crazy with them. Use olive oil like a mo fo. Nothing else. Want a snack? Eat more of what you had for lunch and dinner. No time for sitting around and whining, cause you need to exercise daily.

After two weeks, eat like this for the rest of your life:

3-4 servings of fruit daily
4-6 servings of vegetables daily
2 servings of legumes daily (1/2 cup per serving)
8 servings of whole grain (30 grams of fiber daily)
1 oz of nuts daily
2-4 tbsp olive oil
Up to 8 servings of fish weekly (3-4 oz portions)
1-2 servings of low-fat dairy (or small amounts of higher-fat dairy)

Also do these things:

Quit yer whining
Exercise for 60 minutes 5 days a week | 45 minutes every day
Prioritize time with friends and family

The seafood recipes look yummy and pretty easy.

My kids are gonna hate, but they can have peanut butter and preserves on whole grain bread and grilled low-fat cheese.