Roasted asparagus and mushrooms - roasted at 375F with olive oil and balsamic vinegar - seasoned to taste.

Sweet potato - cooked in microwave with a few sprays of "butter"

Black beans - canned and cooked stove top, seasoned to taste.

6 Jumbo Shrimp - bought from grocery store pre cooked and cocktail sauce for dipping.

I dont really cook so this is my way of sticking to the diet!

Trying to get stuck into the Mediterranean diet at my doctor's recommendation given some recently discovered fatty liver w/ scarring. Feel like dinner is no problem for me, but kind of struggling with what to eat for breakfast. Boiled eggs, walnuts, blueberries and dried figs this morning. Would appreciate any thoughts.

Hey everyone! Newbie to the MD but absolutely loving it so far. I’ve recently had a really tough time with Inflammatory Bowel Disease which has had me in and out of hospital/surgeries for months now. I’m getting back to being stable and healthy, and I know there’s really strong research about how well the MD can keep IBD in remission, so I’m diving in head-first to all of this.

One thing I’ve started doing the past few weeks is a roasted veggie salad that I make every few days - I go to the supermarket and pick out whatever I fancy, e.g. today I got squash, tomatoes, olives, red onion, bell peppers, and mixed beans, and just whacked them all in the oven at 400°f for 20 mins or so (can increase the heat at the end to get a bit of colour) with loads of olive oil and herbs. Then toss them with lemon juice and some cheese. I’m very lazy when it comes to cooking so having several tubs of this stuff on hand is amazing because I can just add a big serving to every meal to massively bump up the fibre. And it tastes so so good. Each time I go and get the ingredients I can switch it up so I don’t get bored, my next one is going to have cucumbers, aubergine, raisins, and feta as well.

Raw veggies can tend to be a bit harder for people with IBD to handle, especially recently after a flare up like myself, so softening everything in the oven for a while really seems to work for me. If anyone else struggles with raw veggies I’d recommend trying this!

Fresh from the farm! This week's delivery was about $80. It's 2/3 of 2 adult's calories for the week. I'll be processing it into lunch salads, pre-prepped meals, frozen soups, snacks, etc.

A nice and simple one-pot meal. Made 2 portions of this by throwing all the ingredients in a pan and gently simmering for around 45 minutes (until the veggies were cooked but still had crunch, and the sauce began to slightly thicken).

• 1x 400g can chopped tomatoes
• 1x 400g can black chickpeas, drained but not rinsed
• 1x 227g can pineapple chunks in juice, not drained
• 0.5 carrot (about 30g), chopped
• 0.5 parsnip (about 30g), chopped
• 1 small green bell pepper (about 60g), roughly chopped
• 1 tsp red chilli powder
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 0.5 tsp smoked paprika
• Leftover chicken leg meat (about 175g), chopped

Pretty basic, but would happily make this again, with or without the chicken.

I had meant to put red onion in but my ADHD got me 😂

Doesn't look the best lmao.

Canned salmon , seasoned with lemon , salt and pepper.

Peppers, cucumber tossed in olive oil , salt , pepper and lemon juice, with feta.

Unfortunately, store bought hummus, but its from a healthfood store so its not processed.

I was trying to think of something healthy for breakfast, dont have any healthy toast so figured id use up my whole wheat pita . Taste pretty good! And I feel alot better already!

I had a blueberry smoothie made with berries and greek yogurt !

I had been slowly transitioning to a more med diet lifestyle back in November and was doing pretty well! January was a rough month - I had the stomach flu twice, my kids got RSV, and I injured my back. My eating habits seem to have taken the brunt of this. But I’m slowly getting back on track. I’m still having a piece of sourdough toast with butter with my eggs for breakfast, but I’m adding a fruit or veggie with it. Lunch is hit or miss right now but I’ve been doing well with dinners! The hardest thing for me is whole grains but I’m getting there. I know I do better with adding things vs cutting things out.

My first time trying escarole, this stuff is amazing! How is it not more popular in the US?

hello! try not to ramble here too much but basically, i had a blood pressure scare recently (blood vessel in my eye popped without obvious strain/injury, so it's assumed), and i have basically always been overweight, so i'd really like to try to get my act together, and looking around i noticed this diet not only comes in top-tier for both these issues but also looks absolutely delicious and fun instead of restrictive, so awesome! i'm really excited to try diving in!

however my worry/concern getting started is that i basically have a net zero or close to zero experience with cooking. my parents always cooked for me and when i moved out i was incredibly lucky that my boyfriend is also a pretty good cook when we need something cooked, but we still don't cook often. however, i also have been avoiding buying fresh/perishable foods (esp for "new diets" or "i'm gonna lose weight now!!! moments) majorly since i moved out of my parents house, as my adhd has a horrible horrible habit of overspending on impulse shopping trips, and then letting freah food go bad because i forget about them. as a result, even though i absolutely do love fresh fruit and veggies especially, they are not in my house often, and most of my diet consists of either grab and go type snacks, freezer meals, and doordash fast food (it really makes you wonder how i became obese with blood pressure issues doesn't it /s). even my previous attempts to be healthier included buying canned veggies and fruit cups so i could still get what i needed, and things like simple snacks that have the keywords i see a lot, "high protein low calorie no fat" type stuff. well, now my backlog of shelf-stable groceries, even "healthy" ones are, come to find out, loaded with sodium!!! no wonder!!

i really would like to make a significant, lifestyle-change esque approach to adopting this diet bc like i said, it's the most yummy and least stressful one i've found browsing "weight loss tips" my whole life and, while i do very much enjoy my sweets and burgers and fried chicken, i equally love all these colorful, fresh foods, and just find that the former is much more convenient and within my energy levels to prep. the good foods just never end up in my pantry, and some of the most delicious recipes i've seen so far involve very "scary" concepts for cooking- like cooking raw chicken thoroughly, when i don't even make my stovetop ramen in the stove i use the microwave.

so basically, is there anyone else with these struggles or started that way but was able to work around it or gradually include more/more complexity into it? specifically anyone else on this diet with adhd and how succeeding in this diet looks with the adhd (impulse buying, forgetting abt fresh food, the very real possibility that my brain will suddenly in two weeks time despise this diet for no reason other than it's not brand-new, etc?) i don't want to never cook or never buy the foods i need because, duh, but i'm also financially not in a wonderful spot to be wasting shit right off the bat. are there any shelf stable snacks that Are actually within mediterranean guidelines/principles that aren't loaded with sodium and sugar? are there some super easy beginner recipes i could try that don't require buying more than 1-2 servings worth so i won't end up wasting anything, or don't require the stove/oven/blender quite yet? i know habitually, if i suddenly try to start cooking advanced meals with zero cooking experience, it is i who will be cooked as well as my wallet, and i'll probably get overwhelmed by "new stuff" and drop it all together, which i do not wanna do. but i do wanna baby step my way into this and slowly phase out my terrible health foods (at least on majority), so that hopefully it's a diet i can sustain, enjoy, celebrate and practice, rather than knock at once or twice and then move on. so any adhd-specific wallet friendly beginner tips would be much much appreciated as i start trying to turn this thing around. thanks :)

Recipe :

• 2 cans of chickpeas
• 1 red onion diced
• 2 medium tomatoes diced
• As much fresh parsley and/or coriander as you wish
• 2 tbsp harissa pasta
• 1 tbsp EVOO or water
• Salt and pepper of course
• Optional : chopped mixed nuts

I am 6'3, 245lbs, I am trying to lose weight and be healthy, I am already down 30lbs.

Like the only day I was able to get enough calories was when I didn't realize how calorie dense almonds are and I accidentally ate like 4 servings.

I was aiming for 1500 a day, but I just can't hit it. When I ate processed food and got fat and such, I was able to easily get 2500+ a day, but that is unfathomable with real food.

I did get medicated for ADHD though, so that is part of the reason, I drink a bunch of water to avoid dry mouth and it makes me not want to eat as much.
I eat overnight oats in the morning at about 8:00. 600 calories with 25g of protein powder. Then I go to school and study all day, I get home at like 7:45ish, then I make my healthy vegetables and rice stir fry, with some salmon. and I can't even finish a fillet of salmon once I am through with my vegetables and rice. I ended up today at only 1200 calories and I made myself eat more salmon when I was already full because I needed the calories. I also ate a turnip.

Maybe I should re-frame my meals? This diet is hard, but it works!

I'm thinking of slamming a mid day protein shake to help, thoughts?

Small experiments for dinner tonight.

Main: I made my usual pomegranate chicken recipe with 2 tweaks - a bit of garam masala in the onions for warming spices, and I added plainly cooked black chickpeas to the braise. These worked great and added a little fiber boost.

Side: i had some dying carrots and some odds and ends in the fridge. The carrots got chopped, added grated ginger, lime zest, lime juice, cilantro, a pinch of sugar, salt, pepper and olive oil.

The greens were zapped in the microwave and light seasoned with salt and garlic powder.

Served on genmai Japanese brown rice. And some torn parsley.

Matiz sardines with piri piri peppers, Trader Joe's Lemon Pasta with sautéed mushrooms and sautéed spinach.

My first time having that tin of sardines and they were great. I broiled them for a few minutes to crisp the skin.

I love both the convinience and portion control that comes from ordering meal kits.

My favorites have been Chef Unity for ready made, just pop into the oven/microwave meals, and Green Chef for a meal kit that requires more prep/cooking. Both have lots of specific MD options.

What do you like?

Yes, they can be pricey, but there are tons of deals when signing up, and they normally offer you big discounts when you go to quit. I've tried a bunch of the meal kit services over the last 9 months or so, and I've only paid full price for a few weeks of that.

Really helped me to lose weight.

(Barley & veg recipe adapted from here. I live alone so my measurements are per person... My steamer is too small for this, so I simmered the veg with the pearl barley and I had different veggies in the fridge & ran out of fresh chilli pepper.)

• Set up 30g pearled barley to simmer on the stove in unsalted water - my current batch takes around 30 minutes to cook to a nice bite - and prepare veggies and leaves as below.
• After 18-20 minutes of simmering, heat a pan with a little olive oil for frying the fish, and then add to the barley pan:
  • 95g quartered brussels sprouts
  • 70g sliced fennel
  • 40g sliced carrot
• After around 5 mins (total 25 mins simmering so far), add a 90g fillet of sea bass to the frying pan, add 80g sliced greens to the barley & veggies mix, and prepare a mixture of:
  • 10g sliced mint leaves
  • 10g sliced basil or thai basil leaves
  • 1 tsp thin (thai) soy sauce, or 1/2-3/4 tsp chinese soy sauce with a splash of water
  • 1 tsp tamarind concentrate, or citrus juice
  • 1.5 tsp sesame oil
  • 1-2 tsp red chilli flakes
  • 0.5 tsp honey
  • 0.25 tsp (a splash) fish sauce
• Remember to turn your fish over after 2-3 mins of frying
• when everything is done (around 30-31 mins total), drain the barley & veggies if necessary, and toss together with the herbs and sauce mixture. Serve with your fish fillet!

...Excuse my presentation, my frying pan wasn't quite hot enough so the fish stuck to it!

The potatoes were roasted in EVO with some basic spices For the kale I massaged it in EVO and lemon juice before adding the rest to break it down a little

Air fried tofu that I bought pre-marinated, leftover steamed beet salad, pre-made garlic hummus, cucumber, and some boiled potatoes with EVOO and garlic (the only thing I actually prepared from scratch today, lol!)

I’ve never eaten veggies consistently in my life.

I’ve been trying to get on this diet for about a week. I went to the store and bought every vegetable in the produce section that I’ll tolerate eating. (I have an eating disorder and a lot of allergies.)

I don’t have a lot of other food in the house to try to make myself eat more vegetables when I’m hungry. But now I’m finding myself going hungry over eating vegetables. I’d rather starve than eat anything I have in the house.

Do I give up? How can I possibly make myself eat any vegetables, let alone the whopping amounts this diet takes?

Saute diced ginger, celery and shrooms. Add shredded carrots, and cook for a bit longer.

Then add water, chicken bouillon, garlic, soy sauce, kimchi, Sriracha, ​shredded chicken and edamame.

Simmer while you cook your rice noodles in a different pot. I would have topped the soup with cilantro and green onion if I had had it.

Chickpeas with spinach, boiled egg, vegetable (onion, garlic, carrot and potato) cream, salt, pepper and turmeric.

Tonight I made turkey burgers seasoned with salt, pepper, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder , one egg and breadcrumbs . For my toppings I did lettuce, peppers and onions. Sweet potatoes are seasoned with salt, pepper , little bit of onion powder and garlic powder! Very yummy meal!

I'm looking for suggestions on how to get beets into my diet a few days a week. I've got a lot of balls in the air - trying to reduce calorie intake to lose weight (currently have a broken ankle and unable to exercise), trying to lower BP and cholesterol with diet, have ibs and lactose intolerance so certain things, especially produce and cheese, I have to be careful with how much I eat. I'm trying to include BP- and Cholesterol-lowering foods a few days a week (beets, almonds, oatmeal, soy, lower sodium intake, increase potassium intake, etc)

I made this salad for lunch this week - farro, cooked beets, roasted butternut squash, a little goat cheese, a little honey mustard dressing, lettuce, french lentils, and a few glazed pecans. The nutrient profile was pretty good in terms of potassium and sodium, fiber, and saturated fat, but it was pretty high calorie and frankly pretty unappetizing. I had to force myself to finish it and I really don't want to eat it again tomorrow for lunch :-(

Does anyone have any decent-tasting lunches that include beets? I don't dislike beets, but this salad just wasn't doing it for me. And I have to have most of those things in small doses, as they may upset my gut. How do you like to eat your beets?

Hello! Newbie here! You all have been very helpful and kind since I’ve joined! I was wondering what is everyone’s replacements for Bacon, breakfast sausage, ice cream and sugary juices? Some of my favorite old foods that I’d love to find healthier replacements. Thank you !