The Everyday Gourmet: The Joy of Mediterranean Cooking

What is Mediterranean cooking? Start your exploration by learning to cook some of the small dishes that populate menus around the region. Watch as Chef Bill Briwa creates pinchos morunos, or skewered food in the style of the Moors; a brandade of salt cod, which is popular in many Mediterranean countries; and dolmas stuffed with rice.

Turn your attention to northern Italy, which - with its pastureland and cooler climate - has far more in common with the cuisine of northern Europe than it does with other regions of Italy. Learn to scratch make ricotta gnocchi, vitello tonnato, and tiramisu, plus a quick hors d'oeuvre that makes the most of any leftover ricotta.

As you move south to the milder weather of central Italy, watch a step-by-step demonstration on making pasta from scratch for a savory pappardelle with ragù Bolognese, along with a salad accompaniment of bitter greens that serves as a digestive, and a simple first course - stracciatelle soup.

Because Italy extends into the Mediterranean, it has adopted many culinary ideas from other countries. Learn how to make one such dish: an African-inspired caponata with seared tuna rolled in spices. Also, discover how to make authentic Neapolitan pizza with a home oven and finish with a refreshing coffee granita dessert.

Olive oil is a defining element of Mediterranean food. In this look at a quintessential ingredient, explore its possibilities from the beginning of a meal through the end, with a salt-crusted branzino preparation, a tomato soup, and even a chocolate dessert. Discover how olive oil is made and how its flavor profile evolves.

If all the tastes of Spain could be captured in a single dish, it would be paella. Learn the subtleties of cooking this national dish, which can be made with a variety of meats and vegetables. Complete the meal with a marinated olive appetizer that pairs perfectly with sherry and a roasted salad called an escalivada.

A small dish tradition exists all around the Mediterranean. Among the most well known is Spain's tapas, which you'll explore here starting with bartender's chorizo, a dish served flaming in an asador. Take a detailed look at sherry, which is central to tapas culture, and learn how to make other simple small plates.

Continue to Tunisia on the North African coast for another small-plate tradition, known as mezze. After Chef Briwa demonstrates three such starters, watch as he prepares brik, a savory harissa-spiced pastry; a Tunisian tagine; and a chakchouka featuring merguez sausage - a food, along with preserved lemon, that reflects the country's Muslim faith.

While the cuisines of Morocco and Tunisia share much in common, such as using sweet spices, their differences can be striking. See how they vary, then turn your attention to making a complete Moroccan meal featuring mezze, an elaborate seven-vegetable couscous, and bisteeya, a savory pastry made with chicken.

Here, Chef Briwa demonstrates dishes that underscore the health benefits of Mediterranean cooking, including fava with tomato-braised capers, a North African salmon tagine, Greek salad over barley rusks, and a date and orange salad that can be enjoyed as mezze or dessert. Get a tutorial on making preserved lemons, which are substituted for vinegar in cultures that forbid alcohol.

See how a typical Sunday dinner in Greece might look, complete with roasted chicken; a horta featuring boiled wild greens, feta, and squash blossoms; and an orzo pasta salad with lentils. But first, learn how to make a simple, five-ingredient soup known as avgolemeno, and a saganaki using Kefalotyri, a unique, non-melting cheese.

Gain insight into Turkey's culinary influences, then watch as Chef Briwa creates a hot yogurt soup - which uses simple ingredients but a somewhat complex technique - rice-stuffed vegetables, hunkar begendi (a lamb dish whose name means "the sultan's delight"), and a dessert of poached apricots with yogurt and pistachios.

Travel to the Eastern Mediterranean, where you'll encounter simple but delicious street food, including falafel, that has its roots in a nomadic way of life; salads featuring labne, a drained yogurt cheese; and a simple purslane salad rich in omega-3. Also, learn how to make a tabbouleh salad with bulgar wheat.

What is in herbes de Provence? How do you deal with a fresh artichoke? Find out in this presentation on the cooking of Provence where, unlike the rest of France, olive oil is king. Discover how to prepare a quintessentially Provençal vegetable mélange, an olive tapenade, artichokes barigoule, and lamb featuring those famous herbs.

Make your way to the French Riviera for a lesson on traditional coastal cuisine. Learn how to cook the iconic, elaborate seafood dish known as bouillabaisse and a soup garnish called rouille, in addition to a fresh accompaniment salad that takes its inspiration from the mesclun mixes of days gone by.

Now that you've made your way around the Mediterranean, consider how what you've learned can be applied to make your cooking more satisfying. Discover new ways to incorporate olive oil, particularly at breakfast; revisit the brandade; learn how to feature the flavors of bouillabaisse in a versatile vinaigrette; and more.