We all love a little Italy

We might be proud to be British but the fact is, we’d still rather be Italian. Of all our European cousins’ lifestyles, it’s La Dolce Vita we envy the most, citing the glorious Italian weather, people-friendly work-life balance, peerless sense of style and mouth-watering cuisine as the reasons why. While Italy is famed for its rich traditions of art, theatre, cinema, literature and music, it’s perhaps for its food that people know it best.

Research by Grana Padano cheese, Italy’s number one selling PDO cheese, and the best selling PDO cheese in the world has shown that Italy comes top of the list of nations that Brits rate for national cuisine. Six out of ten people gave their compliments to Italian chefs, and almost half also commended Italian food as Europe’s healthiest.

Silvana Franco, celebrity cook and food writer comments: "Italy has a fantastic selection of fresh produce which makes it very appealing to get into the kitchen and cook delicious Mediterranean recipes. It's easy to cook nutritional meals from scratch using great ingredients such as pasta, tomatoes and cheese for a little taste of Italy."

While we can’t magically transport you to Naples or Rome for lunch with Sophia Loren, we can let you in on the secrets of healthy Italian nutrition, as Grana Padano have created a delicious seven day meal plan that you can recreate at home. Created by leading nutritionist Catherine Matthews, it’s now easy to bring the best of the Med to your very own kitchen.

Taking you from breakfast to dinner, this week long step-by-step eating plan will show you how to create perfect Mediterranean dishes. With recipes including bruschetta and sun dried tomato and fillet of veal with cheese and herb mash, these recipes are great for the whole family, quick to make and healthy. See below for the seven day Mediterranean Meal Plan and get cooking.

For more information on the Grana Padano meal plan, or to download the meal plan visit Enjoygranapadano.co.uk.

Grana Padano 7 Day Meal Plan

1 Day Example

Breakfast
Bran flakes with mixed fruit
(Calories 440, Fat 4g, Saturated fat 2g per serving)

Instructions

1. Serve 40g of bran flakes with 150ml semi-skimmed milk, a chopped banana, 2 chopped apricots and 1 chopped date.
2. 150ml glass of orange juice

Lunch
Chicken and bean salad
(Calories 410, Fat 10g, Saturated fat 2g per serving)

Ingredients

Lettuce leaves
½ onion, chopped
¼ of red pepper, sliced
70g kidney beans
1 large cooked chicken breast, shredded
1 tbs thyme, chopped
1 mini pitta bread

Dressing

1tbs olive oil
1 tbs balsamic vinegar
1 tsp oregano

Instructions

1. Place the lettuce on a plate, top with the pepper, onion, kidney beans and chicken breast.
2. Shake the olive oil, vinegar and oregano in a jar until mixed and drizzle over the salad.
3. Serve with a mini toasted pitta bread.

Dinner
Cod with tomato and Grana Padano sauce
(Calories 416, Fat 17g, Saturated fat 5.7g per serving)

Ingredients

1 tsp olive oil
½ onion, chopped
½ tin tomatoes, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
½ tsp oregano
½ tsp thyme
5 olives, halved
25g Grana Padano cheese, grated
35g pasta, uncooked weight
1 fillet cod (approx. 6 ozs)
Fresh parsley, chopped

Instructions

1. Heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan and sauté the onion for 2-3 minutes.
2. Add the tomatoes, garlic, herbs and olives and bring to the boil. Simmer for about 10 minutes. Reduce heat to low and add Grana Padano, stir until melted and well blended.
3. Prepare the pasta following package directions, omitting any suggested fat or salt.
4. Fry the fish fillet, divided into 3 pieces for about 10 minutes or until it begins to flake easily.
5. Once the fish is cooked place on a plate, pour the tomato and Grana Padano sauce over and serve with the cooked pasta. Garnish with chopped parsley.

Snack
Berries with fromage frais
(Calories 140, Fat 2.9g, Saturated fat 1.9g per serving)

A 100g pot of fromage frais with mixed with 70g of raspberries

For more information on the Grana Padano 7 day meal plan, visit enjoygranapadano.co.uk.