Pangea Nutrition Mediterranean diet for a healthier you

There is a lot of pressure to have the perfect beach body this time of year, but really being healthy should be the goal. For years now we've heard how healthy a Mediterranean diet is, but truthfully, do we know what that actually means? That's where Pangea Nutrition comes in.

This is not a "diet" but a way to change your relationship with food without sacrificing flavor, blowing your grocery budget or taking the fun out of cooking. Plus they plan and deliver your meals which takes a lot of the guess work out of what you need to do.

The meals I got were chicken and salmon, with greens, beans, tomato, zucchini, walnuts, feta cheese, olive oil and balsamic vinegar. I would say I had or have cooked with every ingredient they sent, so there was no worry about odd flavors or being nervous about what I was trying.

They even sent a snack for in between lunch and dinner.

Basically, every time you prep dinner you're prepping your lunch as well. My first night was chicken seasoned with salt, pepper and oregano, served with quinoa made with chicken broth and grated carrot with a side of sauteed spinach mixed with green onion, feta cheese, walnuts, raisins and some lemon juice. It was by far my favorite of the three recipes.

While making dinner, I was also setting aside foods for lunch. This meal was paired with a lunch of radicchio salad with the couscous topped with feta and walnuts. I don't actually eat radicchio, but made it for my husband who loved it. I skipped ahead to the next lunch, which was arugula topped with feta, walnuts, pinto beans and pickled beets. The dressing recipe is simple and delicious. I was actually concerned that it wouldn't have a great depth of flavor, but it really complimented the other flavors without being overwhelming.

The next dinner was walnut crusted salmon with balsamic glazed apples and sauteed spinach and radicchio, cooked with balsamic vinegar and a bit of garlic. I did have the spinach and radicchio, which loses its bitterness when cooked, especially with vinegar and honey.

The final meal was chicken again, this time served with sauteed zucchini and tomato. This was my least favorite, mostly because I am not a fan of zucchini.

My concerns were not the size of the dinners, there was plenty of food, but the lunches which were salads. But there was fat and protein in them which definitely made them more filling. The snack of mixed nuts definitely made a big difference getting me through the day. There was no mid-day lag with the meals.

Breakfast was left open, just suggesting to keep it healthy and balanced. You cannot skip breakfast with this plan, so please do not try.

The other recommendations were to keep salt intake low, drink plenty of water, do some form of exercise for 30 minutes a day and enjoy an occasional glass of wine if desired.

Aside from being a bit fussy with some of the ingredients, the meals consisted of items that are in my house on a regular basis, simply put together in a different style. Had I just gotten the recipes, without food I would have had the core ingredients on hand, which makes this lifestyle change so much easier.

The one part of the program I had an issue with was the actual recipe card. Each recipe has 3-4 steps, which isn't hard. But instead of putting the notes on what to put aside to lunch in the middle of the dinner recipe instead of in a sidebar or at the bottom. For example, the first recipe had the vinaigrette recipe for lunches before the sauce I needed for dinner. The salmon recipe was the same, combining how to cook the apples with lunch prep.

The placement of those recipes slowed down my meal prep, mostly by distraction because after the first day I ignored what to do for lunch until I was packing up leftovers.

The other thing I would note is that if you do not cook regularly the prep work will take time.

Overall, I truly enjoyed the food, was very happy with how I felt even in just a couple days and look forward to making the recipes again.

Each week you get -

• Someone else to do the shopping with your choice of delivery dates.
• 3 lunches and 3 dinners for two people for about $150 or $12.50/meal.
• Six healthy meals with little prep and cook time.
• A variety of new recipes to try and enjoy.

Find out more or start your trial today by visiting them here - https://www.pangeanutrition.com/.

Use code MedMon17 for 60% off through mid-June, in celebration of Modern Mediterranean Diet Month.