Oven-Dried Tomatoes is another, especially suited for fresh paste tomatoes. If you're lucky enough to have access to green tomatoes, whip up this traditional southern favorite, Fried Green Tomatoes or try this outside-the-box version of Fried Green Tomatoes with Pink Chili Sauce.Ĭanning is one way to put up an overabundance of ripe tomatoes brought in from the garden or purchased at your co-op or farmers market. Large, ripe tomatoes are the perfect choice for this Stuffed Tomatoes with Pesto and Orzo recipe. Try this lively Strawberry Tomato Gazpacho, which highlights two garden favorites. Tomato soup made with fresh, vine-ripened bounty is unbeatable. Or try this traditional Tomato Bruschetta that combines fresh Romas, red onions and balsamic dressing. Tuck thick slices of a ripe heirloom variety into a baguette layered with creamy, tangy goat cheese and peppery arugula. Top a pizza with some fresh oh-so-ripe tomato slices instead of (or in addition to) tomato sauce. Or combine Arugula with Tomatoes and Avocados in Lime Vinaigrette for a lovely Mexican-influenced salad. Toss sweet red cherry tomatoes together with fresh basil and balls of fresh mozzarella, and sprinkle with balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Tomatoes are standard in salads, of course, but don't stop at lettuce and tomato wedges. Olives, pickles and capers are also good bets. And for condiments, choose olive oil, balsamic vinegar, mustard, mayonnaise, aioli, and any vinaigrette. At the spice rack, reach for basil, chives, cilantro, cumin, cayenne, garlic, oregano, parsley, rosemary, thyme, marjoram and savory. And they're delicious raw, baked, grilled, roasted, or cooked into a sauce.Įggplant, avocado, cucumber, zucchini, squash, green beans, peppers, greens, potatoes… Is there a vegetable that doesn't benefit from the addition of tomatoes? Most cheeses (and especially feta and mozzarella) go well with tomato, as do beef, pork, poultry, fish, tofu and tempeh. Tomatoes enhance almost any savory dish, from soups and salads to casseroles and gratins. Varieties include: Sweet 100, Grape, Sugar Plum, Sungold, Yellow Pear, Peacevine Cherry and Currant. Incidentally, vine-ripened tomatoes will deliver much more vitamin C than those that were picked green.Ĭherry tomatoes are small and very sweet. They also provide smaller amounts of vitamin E, thiamin, vitamin B6, folate, magnesium, phosphorus and copper. Despite the dominance of these two states in production, tomatoes are celebrated across the country, with 19 states holding tomato festivals each year (find out if your state holds a tomato festival).Īccording to the USDA, tomatoes are an easy way to boost your intake of the antioxidant lycopene, and they're a very good source of vitamin C, vitamin A, vitamin K, potassium, manganese and dietary fiber. The tallest tomato plant, grown in Lancashire, England reached 65 feet in height.Ĭalifornia and Florida outpace all other states by growing over two-thirds of the tomatoes for fresh consumption, and California grows almost all of the tomatoes that are processed into soups, sauces, catsup, salsa and more. The largest tomato to date, grown in Oklahoma, weighed over seven pounds and topped enough sandwiches for 21 people. state grows tomatoes, and over 90 percent of home gardeners include tomatoes in their plantings. Today, though, this fruit is wildly popular in the United States, with average consumption at about 23 pounds per year per person, mostly via sauces and catsup.Įvery U.S. At first, in fact, it was considered poisonous (the poison turned out to be lead from pewter plates, which was leached by tomatoes' acid). The French and Germans, who first met the tomato in the 16th century, dubbed it "the apple of love," and "the apple of paradise." Our less-romantic name for the fruit dates back further, though, to the Aztecs, who called it "xitomati," or "plump thing with a navel."īoth in Europe and America, it took a while for the tomato to catch on.
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