Tomato Recipes ♥ Alphabet of Vegetables

Tired of the same-old sliced tomatoes? Find new inspiration in this collection of seasonal Tomato Recipes ♥ AVeggieVenture.com, savory to sweet, salad to soup, sides to sandwiches, breakfast to dinner. Many Weight Watchers, vegan, gluten-free, low-carb, paleo, whole30 recipes.

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Perfect Summer Tomatoes

Green Tomatoes

Cherry Tomatoes or Grape Tomatoes

Roasted Tomatoes

Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Tomato Juice

By Course Just Tomatoes

Salads

Soups

Sauces

Jams, Pickles & Preserves

Cooking Methods Grill

Microwave

Slow Cooker

TOMATOES: THE BASICS
Pronounced. I say [tuh-MAY-toh], you say [tuh-MAH-toh] ...

The Season. The tomato season is "mid summer to late fall". It'll do no good to look for tomatoes when the farmers markets open in the spring. (The exception? Florida! In Central Florida in April one year, I asked the woman at a farmstand if the tomatoes were local. No, she said. "They're from _____" – – and named a place a hundred miles further south! So much for my idea about Mexico tomatoes!) Blush = Best for Summer Tomatoes. During the summer growing season, good tomatoes are such a treat, watch for recipes with "Blush the Tomato"

, these are only for the best of summer tomatoes. What About Canned Tomatoes? That said, canned tomatoes are a staple in my kitchen, just be sure to watch the ingredient lists, companies are starting to sneak in unnecessary and unhealthy sugar! Many great cooks swear by canned San Marzano tomatoes from Italy. Are they worth the price premium? I'm not impressed. Fruit or Vegetable? Botanically speaking, a tomato is a fruit but since 1893, has been classified as a vegetable by the U.S. for trade purposes and in the culinary world, tomatoes are nearly always in savory dishes, not sweet dishes. Botanical Cousins. The tomato is a member of the nightshade family, its nightshade cousins are the potato, the eggplant and the tomatillo. Bucking Conventional Wisdom. Now, this one will surprise you. The common wisdom is that tomatoes should be stored at room temperature, not in the refrigerator because once chilled, tomatoes become quite mealy. But here's the thing, what I do, what I recommend you do. To let tomatoes continue to ripen, leave tomatoes on the counter. But once they're fully ripe, moving the tomatoes to the fridge will stop the ripening. This is especially true for good garden tomatoes, ones you buy already ripe or almost ripe at the farmers market. Quick History Lesson. The tomato is native to South America but by the time European explorers arrived in the New World, the tomato had made its way north into Central America and Mexico. The Spanish carried plants back home from Mexico, but it took some time for tomatoes to be accepted in Spain because it was thought that tomatoes were poisonous. Some tomato advocates, however, claimed the fruit had aphrodisiac powers and, in fact, the French called them pommes d'amour or"love apples." It wasn't until the 1900s that the tomato gained some measure of popularity in the United States. Are Tomatoes Poisonous? Today, we know that tomatoes are NOT poisonous but the common wisdom says that tomato leaves are. But even that idea is subject to dispute, however widely held. Popularity Contest. Today tomatoes are second only to the potato in popularity. Dozens of tomato varieties are available today — ranging widely in size, shape and color. SOURCES. Personal experience & Vegetable Love by the late (2018) Barbara Kafka & by On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen Harold McGee aka the "Curious Cook".

TOMATO NUTRITION INFORMATION

Per 1/4 pound raw tomatoes: 24 Calories; 0g Tot Fat; 0g Sat Fat; 0mg Cholesterol; 10mg Sodium; 5g Carb; 1g Fiber; NetCarb 4; 0g Sugar; 1g Protein.

WEIGHT WATCHERS POINTS: WW Old Points 0, WW PointsPlus 0 (technically .5 and for those who follow the usual Weight Watchers PointsPlus, "free") & SmartPoints 1 & qualifies as "free" in the Freestyle program

More Vegetable Nutrition

What's your favorite tomato recipe? or what tomato recipe did you hope to find here? I'm always looking for new ones, especially healthy tomato recipes. Leave me a quick note in the comments! ~Alanna

HEY, TOMATO LOVERS! WHAT SOUNDS GOOD?
~ A Few Highlights ~

BEST Recipes for PERFECT SUMMER TOMATOES

NOW EXTRA-EASY TO FIND! Watch for recipes marked with "Blush the Tomato" – that's this cute little tomato graphic,

. These recipes are only for the very best of summer's ripe tomatoes! Recipes without Blush call for canned tomatoes (most often) or year-round supermarket tomatoes (usually Romas), perfect for cooking during cold weather and before summer's tomatoes ripen!

THE SHORTLISTS
Never Take a Good Tomato for Granted: Twelve Favorite Tomato Recipes ♥

Pretty Ways to Serve Summer's Best Tomatoes ♥

BASIC TIPS & TECHNIQUES
How to make tomato soup with summer tomatoes ♥

How to make tomato soup with canned tomatoes ♥
How to make homemade marinara with canned tomatoes ♥
How to freeze summer tomatoes for winter ♥

How to roast tomatoes ♥

How to freeze tomato paste ♥
How to marinate tomatoes ♥
Tool Tip Tomato Knife ♥

CLASSIC RECIPES for Tomatoes
Kitchen Parade recipes
BATTLE Sandwiches ♥

Panzanella ♥

Shakshuka (Eggs Nested in Summer Vegetables) ♥
Wedge Salad with Homemade Low-Cal & Low-Carb Blue Cheese Salad Dressing ♥

A Veggie Venture recipes
Caponata - Sicilian Eggplant ♥

Fresh Tomato Sauce ♥

Tomato RECIPES for LATE SUMMER & EARLY FALL
Kitchen Parade recipes
Roasted Eggplant Salad with Tomato-Caper Salsa ♥

Skillet Burgers with Tomato Gravy ♥
Steak & Tomatoes ♥