When I was a young man, I lived in Carlton, a suburb of Melbourne. Now, anyone who knows Carlton will know that it is the restaurant district of that great cosmopolitan city. While there is a predominance of Italian restaurants, there were a couple of Greek restaurants. It was in those Greek and Italian restaurants that I discovered the food of the Mediterranean, with its simple, honest home style cooking. Now while I have a love of Italian food, and as my wife would attest to, I love Greek more than any other.

When reading Theodore's book, Real Greek Food, I have now been transported back to Melbourne to the halcyon days. Greek food is rightly seen as a healthy choice. While not all the dishes are really 'healthy', they have lower saturates and use of fresh local ingredients. That cant be bad for you, now can it?

The book is divided up into seven different food subjects including the Greek store cupboard, that lists the ingredients used thoughout the book. The subject areas are: Mezedes, Fagakia, Main Dishes Salads, Cheese and Bakery, Desserts and 'etcetras'. Within each chapter, Theodore has provided a description about the type of dishes in contains. So, Fagakia are an equivilent to starters, but are sometimes they are side-dishes.

The recipes, like all authentic home cooked recipes, are not complex. They are easy to prepare by a competent home cook. Some of the recipes that caught my eye are dishes like: fried salt cod with skordalia, salad of shallots and thyme honey, stuffed vine leaves (how could I leave them out), lahano dolmades and okra baked with tomatoes and parsley.

Ok, I have a love of Greek food, so I love the recipes. I think that anyone who loves Mediterranean food would love it to. Think of summer and enjoying light dishes like the ones above, and maybe it will whet your appetite.