7 Fresh Mediterranean Diet Recipes (Including This Amazing Salmon Niçoise Salad)

The Mediterranean diet is one of the most studied diets out there, shown to promote heart and brain health. Based on the traditional foods of the countries surrounding the Mediterranean Sea, it’s full of heart-healthy fats, nuts, fish and seafood, vegetables and fruit, legumes and whole grains. Best of all—it's less of an actual “diet” and more of a way of life. (Which means it’s easier to stick to it.)

It's far from the only cuisine that promotes a low-meat, high-produce and whole-grain diet, and as a full-on diet may not fit with everyone's own healthy, locally based ways of eating. But as a guide, it's useful—and it's the backbone of plenty of tasty dishes to boot. We’ve created a group of fresh new recipes that are based on this heart-healthy cuisine.

If you want to go all-out, you can even make your own dips.