This earthy, velvety and super flavorful pumpkin and mushroom soup not only is filling and delicious, but it’s also extremely easy to make. If you travel around Tuscany or Umbria during the colder months, and you base yourself in a traditional farmhouse or Agriturismo, this is definitely a dish you could easily find on the dinner menu. 

Nothing feels more authentically Mediterranean then sitting in a restaurant overlooking the Mediterranean Sea while enjoying a fish stew from fish that was caught that morning right next to the restaurant.  The warm stew is often served with wine, salad and other vegetables cooked in extra virgin olive oil.  Moroccan Fish Stew with Fresh Herbs is traditionally made in a Moroccan tagine, but we have adapted it so you can make it with any soup pot or Dutch oven.  

In recent years, Americans have begun incorporating more olive oil as a butter substitute in their diets and the heart healthy effects are beginning to show. A new study shows that men and women from the U.S. who consumed higher amounts of olive oil benefitted from lower instances of heart disease. By incorporating more olive oil into our diets we have the potential to protect our hearts. 

My first trip to Crete, the Greek island considered to be one of the healthiest places in the world, was the beginning of my education about the true Mediterranean Diet. This island has some of the highest longevity rates in the world and the men here live to be the same age as the women.  As a matter of fact, when the first researchers went to Crete in the 1950’s they could only find one man on the island with any kind of heart disease.

After my mom died, I started overeating.  One meal in particular stands out in my memory.  My extended family and I were all at an Indian restaurant and I ordered a full meal and then started eating everyone else’s leftovers.  I was stuffing my grief.  Even before my mom died, I was struggling with my weight, but after she died I gained 20 more pounds and was the heaviest I had ever been in my life (256 pounds when I got married a year later).