Tomatoes - Fresh from the Garden

One tomato, two tomato, three tomato, four!
Get to know Tillie & Tom.

"Oh Tommy... I'm in an extra-saucy mood tonight!"
"Geez, Tillie. You know I love it when you talk like that at home, but we have an audience right now." Sorry folks. That's just how it is around here. [Grin]

Tomatoes are one of the most popular, versatile, and easily grown vegetables of our time. Important moments in the American love affair with the tomato:

• 1590s earliest record of tomato cultivation in England
• 1728 Cambridge University professor warns against eating flesh of the tomato
• 1790s Landreth's market garden in Philadelphia sells tomatoes — mostly to French Americans
• 1830s to 1850s French restaurants in US promote foods containing tomato
• 1834 Dr. John Cook Bennett makes first "cure-all" claims of consuming tomatos, ultimately leading to an all-out "tomato pill" frenzy
• Horticulturist Fearing Burr estimates tomato cultivation quadruples during the 1840s & 1850s
• 1858 John L Mason patents the self-sealing zinc lid and glass jar, revolutionizing the preservation of fruits and vegetables at home
• 1860's Civil War prevents shipment of tomatoes from southern US to north. Northern growers increase production, including in hothouses
• 1896 American Medical Association still questions whether tomato is safe to eat
• 1991 tomato-based prepared salsa surpasses ketchup in commercial sales
• Late 1900s to present: tomatoes abound in home gardens!

For such a popular food, tomatoes certainly had a controversial start in the Western world. "Love apples," as they were called, were widely believed to be poisonous and were originally cultivated for their ornamental value.

Tomatoes are well-known not only for their fresh flavor, but for their nutritional benefits. A well-grown red tomato is loaded with Vitamin C, carotenes, biotin, Vitamin K, dietary fiber, and a number of other nutrients.

Lycopene, star of the tomato's nutritional profile, is a powerful anti-oxidant that protects against breast, colon, lung, skin, and prostate cancers. It also may lower the risk of heart disease, cataracts, and macular degenration. It is stable during processing, so cooked tomatoes contain just as much benefit (perhaps even more) than raw ones. Add in a little olive oil (or another oil of your choice) and you will make the lycopene even more absorbable.

Tomatoes are generally regarded as having neutral energy.

Please see your health provider for guidance on your own health program.

Tomatoes can be eaten raw or cooked, straight up or mixed up. Sauced or plain. Dressed or not. Even straight out of hand in the garden!

Tomato — Try this: Pick a couple really nice garden-fresh tomatoes. Slice and arrange in alternate layers with slices of fresh mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle liberally with fresh basil (chopped or whole leaves). Drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Great salad! Or... do the same process on a slice of crusty rye bread & have an extremely yummy (if messy) open-faced sandwich!

Kid Tip: Have your kids decorate their own tomato "face" salad. Start with a ripe red tomato slice on a kid-sized plate. Use basil leaves or cheese for hair, sunflower seeds or raisins for eyes and mouth, or let your little Picassos pick from what you have on hand.