Ikarian Experiment: Day 7

When day 7 arrived I was ready to get creative with the ingredients in my fridge. I woke up late and skipped a proper breakfast. I made some tea and headed out to the farmers market. 

I walked a mile to the market, picked up some tomatoes, peaches, okra, zucchini and corn (all organic) and headed back home. Carrying pounds of groceries on your back in blistering heat is a heck of a workout!

Immediately I started thinking about lunch. I came up with a creation that I didn't picture but looked a lot like this:

via

I had several helpings and added a good amount of goat cheese. I also had two ears of delicious corn, raw. Did you know that raw corn is digested as a carb, not a starch?? Yum!

I spent some more time walking around and began prepping dinner at 4:30pm.

I had some leftover rye flour, 1 tomato, 1 small zucchini, 3 potatoes, capers, garlic, lemon and goat cheese. It looked sparse in the fridge, but there is a meal lurking somewhere in these ingredients. 

I made the flour into a dough for flat bread...

 

(Flour, salt, garlic powder and water)

And topped it with tomatoes (matted with a paper towel to remove some of the moisture), eggplant and feta.

 I baked them in the oven at 350 degrees until the bread was crisp and the cheese was browning. 

~40 minutes.

Meanwhile, I boiled the potatoes until soft and added them to the food processor.

 

I added 2 cloves of minced garlic, salt, a squeeze of lemon and plenty of olive oil. Puree in the processor until it has mashed potato consistency. You may need to add a little water.

Topped with capers and more lemon juice. YUM!

Soon the pizza was ready and we were starving!

Yum! We ate all three pies. 

It was SO rewarding to know everything on the table was my creation. Completely worth a rumbling tummy and a little extra time. Cooking is a craft well worth it. Some people pamper themselves with massages and manicures, but giving your body clean, healthy food is the ultimate spa treatment. This is nourishment it craves.

You'll notice we don't have wine on the table. A total Ikarian "no no". Honestly, I am sick of wine and this is coming from someone who typically loves a nice glass of red. After like six nights of it I need a break. I've said it before during this challenge- I don't know how the Ikarians do it. Especially the older ones. Maybe there is something in the air in Greece.

I will definitely be taking away an increased confidence in the kitchen and appreciation for home cooked/scratch meals. I have learned to not go to the grocery store out of laziness, but instead create something to eat from the ingredients I have on hand...even if it's just flour and cheese!

I will also definitely be making weekly loaves of bread. It is so affordable and so easy and just plain fun to make. There is a world of different recipes to try...I think next week I will be experimenting with gluten free.

So this ends the Blue Zones, Going Greek Challenge - focus on Ikaria. Thanks for following if you did! Now back to smoothies and raw, plant based recipes :)

Day 7 - Mission Accomplished!