Chef from Ikaria in Greece’s Blue Zone shares 3 plant-based recipes

• Ikaria, Greece is a blue zone where people often stay healthy into their 90s.
• Diane Kochilas is a chef who lives on the island and teaches people how to cook the Ikarian way.
• She shared three plant-based recipes from her new cookbook.

Diane Kochilas, chef and cooking teacher, lives between Greece and the United States, but Ikaria is her spiritual home.

Ikaria is a blue zone, where one in three residents reach 90, and rates of dementia and some other chronic illnesses are very low, according to the blue zones website. In recent years, there has been growing interest in the way the islanders live from those seeking to increase their own longevity.

Kochilas grew up in New York to Ikarian parents, but now spends most of his time teaching cooking in Ikaria and other parts of Greece. “I grew up with really good food at home,” Kochilas told Business Insider.

She follows the Mediterranean diet, a diet consisting primarily of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, herbs, spices, nuts and seeds. It has been ranked as the healthiest way to eat for seven years in a row by US News & World Report.

Her new cookbook, “The Ikaria Way,“ aims to popularize the principles of cooking in Ikaria. “It’s easy to eat this way no matter where you are, and you can eat seasonally based on what grows in your part of the world. It doesn’t have to be a Mediterranean palette of ingredients.” , Kochilas said.

Ikarians eat mostly plant-based foods, she said, but would never call themselves vegans. Many grow their own food at home, forage around the island and tend goats or pigs.

His goal with this book was to provide solutions to two prevalent problems in our relationship with food: “How to be kind to your body without being mean to your mind, and how to cook in the spirit of a relaxed, healing island where the pace of life is slow and easy, and people connect over food around a table,” she wrote.

Kochilas shared three plant-based recipes with Business Insider. All are reproduced with permission from “The Ikaria Way”, published March 2024.

Longevity Green Rice

This rice dish is inspired by the flavors of a Greek pie called pitarakia.

It’s packed with nutrients from green vegetables, fiber from rice, and has protein if you pair it with Greek yogurt.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound chard or rainbow chard
• 1⁄2 pound spinach, trimmed
• 2⁄3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 large leek, trimmed, washed and finely chopped
• 1 large red onion, finely chopped
• 1 medium fennel bulb, trimmed and finely chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
• 1 cup long or medium grain rice or parboiled brown rice
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 2 cups vegetable broth, or more if needed
• 1⁄2 cup chopped fresh dill
• 1⁄2 cup chopped fresh mint
• 1⁄2 cup chopped fresh chervil (optional)
• 1⁄2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Feta cheese or plain Greek yogurt to serve (optional)

Method:

1. Cut the chard and spinach, separating the stems from the leaves. Cut off any rough or tough parts of the stems, usually at the bottom, then finely chop the stems and set aside. Chop the leaves, then toss them in a basin or bowl and squeeze them out in a salad spinner or let them drain well in a colander.

1. Heat 1⁄2 cup olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Saute leek, onion, fennel, carrot and green stems until tender, about 10 minutes.

1. Add the garlic. Add the rice and stir to coat with the olive oil. Add the greens in batches and stir to cook until all the chard and spinach have been added. Season with salt and pepper.

1. Add the vegetable stock. Cook over low heat, covered, until the rice is very tender, about 45 minutes. Add more broth, if necessary, to keep the mixture moist and retain enough liquid for the rice to cook. The greens will also leak their own liquid, so you need to use your judgment.

1. About 5 minutes before removing from heat, stir in all the fresh herbs and half the lemon juice. Stir in the remaining olive oil and adjust the seasoning with additional lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste. Serve, if desired, with a little feta or a few spoonfuls of natural Greek yogurt.

Ferry spaghetti

The dish is a vegan version of a classic Greek pasta dish called Vaporisia Makaronia, or ferry spaghetti in English. “This makes for a hearty, warming pasta dish that is easy, healthy, and inexpensive to make,” Kochilas writes.

Lentils are a great source of plant-based protein, and whole-wheat spaghetti increases the fiber content.

Ingredients:

• 1⁄2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 large yellow or red onion, finely chopped
• 1 large carrot, peeled and finely chopped
• 2 stalks of celery, finely chopped
• 1 small fennel bulb, finely chopped
• 4 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 1 and 1⁄2 cup small brown lentils, rinsed and drained
• 1 large tablespoon of tomato paste
• 3 cups crushed canned tomatoes and their juice
• 1⁄2 cup dry red wine
• 2 cups of water
• 2 large bay leaves, fresh or dried
• 6 sprigs of fresh or dried thyme
• 4 sprigs of fresh or dried oregano
• 1 stick of cinnamon
• 6 allspice berries
• 1 generous pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
• 1 pinch of cayenne pepper
• Sea salt to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 pound whole wheat spaghetti
• 1⁄2 cup chopped fresh parsley

Method:

1. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over low to medium heat and add all the chopped vegetables. Stir to coat with olive oil. Add the garlic. Add the lentils and stir. Add the tomato paste and mix to distribute evenly. Cover the pan, reduce the heat to low and let everything cook for 5 minutes.

1. Add the crushed tomatoes to the pan. Increase the heat to medium and bring the lentils to a boil, then add the wine. Bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes to boil off the alcohol. Add enough water to come about 1⁄2 inch above the lentils. Add the bay leaves, thyme and oregano sprigs, cinnamon, allspice berries, nutmeg, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper.

1. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, until lentils are tender, about 1 hour. Add more water if necessary. Stir in the balsamic vinegar for about 10 minutes before removing from the heat.

1. While the lentils are simmering, prepare the spaghetti according to package directions and time them so that the spaghetti is hot and ready when the sauce is cooked. Serve the lentil sauce over the spaghetti and sprinkle with chopped parsley.

Warm lentils with parsley and crumbled walnuts

Kochilas compared this hot lentil dish, which can be served hot or cold, to tabbouleh, a Middle Eastern herb salad, because of the abundance of parsley.

Lentils, beans, and chickpeas are all staples in the Blue Zone diet. They are excellent sources of protein and plant fiber.

Ingredients:

• 1⁄2 pound small green or brown lentils
• 1 and 1⁄2 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 medium ripe tomato, seeded and diced
• 1 medium green pepper, seeded and roughly chopped
• 1 large red or yellow onion, roughly chopped (about 1 cup)
• 2 green onions, trimmed and washed, cut into thin rounds
• 1 large clove of garlic, peeled and chopped
• 1⁄4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 to 4 tablespoons of red wine vinegar
• Sea salt to taste
• 1⁄3 cup coarsely ground hazelnuts, cashews, or walnuts

Method:

1. Rinse and drain the lentils. Place them in a large pot covered with about 2 inches of water and bring to a boil. Season with salt.

1. Simmer over low heat, uncovered, for 20 to 25 minutes, until the lentils are tender but al dente. While they simmer, skim the foam from the surface. Draining.

1. In a large serving bowl, combine lentils with chopped parsley, diced tomatoes, bell pepper, onion, green onions and garlic.

1. In a separate small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, and a pinch of sea salt. Pour the vinaigrette over the lentils, mix everything gently, garnish with ground walnuts and serve.