A cook who grew up on the Mediterranean Diet shares what she eats in a day, including sweet potatoes at breakfast

Suzy Karadsheh is from Port Said, Egypt.

The Mediterranean Dish Suzy Karadsheh grew up following the Mediterranean Diet in Port Said, Egypt.

The city's cuisine is influenced by nearby countries, including Greece, Turkey, and Italy.

Karadsheh eats a savory breakfast and cooks dinner in 45 minutes or less.

Growing up in the Egyptian city of Port Said, Suzy Karadsheh and her dad would head to the local market after school every day to pick up fresh produce for dinner.

Once at home, she would do her homework in the kitchen, inhaling the fragrant garlicky, spicy, or tomatoey aromas as her mom cooked dinner.

The port city borders the Mediterranean Sea , making its local cuisine a melting pot of flavors from Egypt as well as nearby countries, including Greece, Turkey, and Italy.

"I was taking it in without realizing," Karadsheh, the founder of The Mediterranean Dish, a recipe website, told Business Insider.

Now based in Atlanta and a busy mom of two, Karadsheh no longer has time to visit the local market every day, but she applies the principles of the Mediterranean diet to the 45-minute meals she makes for her and her family each day.

The Mediterranean diet is widely considered the healthiest way to eat .

It prioritizes seasonal fruit and vegetables, legumes, whole grains, fish, and extra-virgin olive oil, but isn't rigid.

"It's a joyful way to eat.

It is not a restrictive way to eat.

And I think people miss that when they hear the word diet in Mediterranean diet," she said.