The Greek Salad

Rule of thumb when glucose level matters is to go for meals where carbs are not the main part of the dish. Because if they are, about a half-hour after you end your meal, you will be craving for a sweet! Or, at least, I know I did...

Taking carbs completely off the menu is the logical way to avoid cravings, however, carbs are an important source of energy for your body that your digestive system converts into glucose (blood sugar) used as energy for cells, tissues and organs. In a nutshell, no carbs equals no energy, and no energy equals high fatigue. There are many ways around this, one of which is voting for "good" carbs to be part of your dish, a.k.a. carbohydrates that have not been refined and are as whole as they can be.

A classic and simple dish that abides by that logic comes from Greece; it's the infamous Greek "Horiatiki" salad. Although often viewed as a plain salad, it's actually a nutritional meal full enough to serve as your lunch or dinner!

Preparation

This is what you'll need to treat yourself with a nice Greek Salad:

• 1 cup of raw sliced medium Tomatoes
• 1 cup of raw sliced Cucumbers
• 1 cup of raw chopped Green Bell Peppers
• ¼ cup of black sliced olives
• 1 raw sliced medium Onions
• 1 cup of crumbled Feta Cheese
• 1 tsp of Oregano & ¼ tsp of Table Salt
• 1 tablespoon of Virgin Olive Oil

There exist a few ingredients variations, like adding lemon juice or capers, but this is the way I make my "good carbs Greek Salad". Preparation is quite easy: I simply mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl and enjoy my meal.

A brief history of... ingredients: The Tomato!

Tomatoes must have been an addition to an original tomato-free version of this dish sometime after the 17th century.

My assumption is based on the fact that food historians generally agree that the ancestors of the fruits we now call tomatoes originated in the Andes. Tomatoes were introduced to Europe from the New World by explorers in the 16th century. They were not immediately embraced because they were considered poisonous, but it wasn't long before they were incorporated into the Italian cuisine.

Tomatoes were initially grown as "botanical curiosities," not as food. Tomatoes grew easily in the Spain and Italy, and were widely used in Southern European dishes by the 17th century. Tomatoes slowly spread throughout Northern Europe, then back to the American colonies.

Feeling more curious about the tomatoes? You can read more here! 

Nutritional ID

There are many online sources and free tools available to analyze a meal's nutritional value. I will be using SuperTracker to bring to you nutritional insight over WanderFoods.

The Greek Salad is high in saturated fat due to the feta cheese, but besides that it has a balanced mix of protein and carbs, and is a rich source of calcium and fiber. The dish contains no additional sugars, which is always a good thing when dealing with sweet cravings!

So... this is the first of the WanderFoods! Have you tried it? Did you like it? What variations have you done?