Food writer Georgina Hayden, is on the podcast today, she is author of ‘Taverna’ and more recently ‘Nistisima’ which translates as lenten or fasting foods. And the secret to eating delicious plant-based foods is … it’s no secret! For over 200 days of the year, orthodox christians would essentially eat plant based! Sometimes it was a form of self-discipline and religious practice, sometimes out of frugality and generally tradition! And the dishes were always meant to be vegan, rather than a plant-based version of a meat dish. Drawing on history and culture from around the Levantine region, Mediterranean and Eastern Europe Nistisima is glorious. The cakes made with olive oil, the light slow cooked peppers, the sour leeks, the spicy harissa potatoes all look and taste amazing without the feeling that you’re missing a central element of the food. No wonder these Mediterranean countries have such healthy older generations! Georgina is a foodie through and through. Growing up in North London in a Greek Cypriot household, she was constantly surrounded by food from a young age. We dive into her career from laying the tables at her family's restaurant, to the 12 years at Jamie Oliver’s and her more recent experience as a judge for Channel 4's latest cooking show the 'Great Cookbook Challenge’. ________________________________________________________________________ CHAPTERS: Timecodes: 00:00 - Aligning Food and Culture 16:27 - Georgina's Background 30:40 - Inspired Food 46:05 - Food as Medicine 53:23 - Celebrating Tradition ________________________________________________________________________ FOR MORE INFORMATION FROM Georgina Hayden: G6PD Deficiency - Info, Wiki Book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Nistisima-secret-delicious-cooking-Mediterranean/dp/1526630680 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/georginahayden/ Website: https://georginahayden.com/ ________________________________________________________________________ EAT WELL EVERYDAY 📱 Download the Doctor's Kitchen app for free here: https://apple.co/3La17ce 🥗 Download a FREE 7 day meal plan: https://thedoctorskitchen.com/newsletter/ LEARN FROM THE BEST 🎤 Listen to experts on the podcast: https://thedoctorskitchen.com/podcasts 👨🏽‍💻 Browse articles on the website: www.thedoctorskitchen.com MY COOKBOOKS 📚 https://thedoctorskitchen.com/books/ LET'S BE FRIENDS 📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/doctors_kitchen/ 📹 Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDHTLhQbYlFnPBv-iLgFsQQ 🙋🏽‍♂️ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thedoctorskitchen 🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/doctors_kitchen 👔 https://www.linkedin.com/in/rupy-aujla/