Wizard Recipes

Tomatoes are members of the nightshade family, related to potatoes, bell peppers, and eggplant. They can be red, pink, orange, or yellow, round to oblong, and from 1 to 6 inches in diameter.

The flavor ranges from sweet to bland to tart, depending on variety.

Varieties

Tomatoes are available in three basic types: small, round cherry tomatoes; plump, oblong plum, or Roma, tomatoes; and round or globe-shaped slicing tomatoes, probably the sweetest and juiciest type. Within each type are numerous varieties, totaling about 4,000.

Origin and botanical facts

Although the tomato is botanically a fruit, it is prepared and consumed as a vegetable. In fact, because of a tariff dispute, the U.S. Supreme Court officially declared it a vegetable in 1893.

The word “tomato” is derived from the Mexican Nahuatl Indian word “tomatl.” The wild form of the plant, which still flourishes in Mexico and Central and South America, is similar to the domestic cherry tomato.

Spanish explorers to Mexico brought tomatoes back to Europe in the 10th century. The first official mention of the fruit appeared in 1544, in the work of Italian botanist

Matthiolus, who described a yellow-fruited variety he called pomodoro, meaning “golden apple.” Europeans initially regarded tomatoes with suspicion, because mostplants of the nightshade family were known to be poisonous.

The tomato was not widely accepted as a food until the early 19th century, although even then tomatoes would be cooked for hours to neutralize the toxins they were thought to contain. Raw tomatoes were not consumed until the late 19th century.

Today, tomatoes are one of the most popular vegetables in the United States.

To increase durability and shelf life, tomatoes are usually picked when they are at the “mature green” stage. In response to year-round demand, growers have developed thicker-skinned, hardy varieties of tomatoes that can withstand longdistance shipping.

Uses

Unripe tomatoes can be ripened in a paper bag at room temperature. Tomatoes should be stored at room temperature. Ripe tomatoes can be kept up to 2 days. The most popular way to eat fresh tomatoes is to slice them raw and eat them in salads or sandwiches.

Tomatoes also are available in a variety of processed forms, including canned whole, diced, and puréed. Canned tomato paste is a concentrated form of the fruit’s pulp. Processed tomato sauce in cans or jars is similar to purée, but with seasonings and sometimes fat added.

Nutrient composition

Tomatoes are a good source of vitamin A (carotenes) and are high in vitamin C.

Red tomatoes also contain substantial amounts of lycopene, an antioxidant that may help protect against cancer. The lycopene in cooked or processed tomatoes is more easily absorbed than that in fresh tomatoes.

In lieu of many spices, golden treasures and precious gems early Spanish explorers returned to Spain with items of much greater signifi­cance: tomatoes, potatoes and corn. Unfortunately for those who financed the voyagers, the value of this produce was not immediately appreciated.

The Spanish and the Italians hailed the tomato (whose name comes from the Aztec tomatl) as an aphrodisiac-perhaps because of its resemblance to the human heart- when it arrived from the New World during the 16th century.

But even though tomatoes soon become part of Spanish and Italian cuisines, most other Europeans, New World colonists and later, Americans considered tomatoes poi­sonous. (There is some truth to this notion: tomato vines and leaves contain tomatine, an alkaloid that can cause health problems.) Thus for many years and in many societies, only the adventurous ate tomatoes. Tomato historians consider September 26, 1820, a red-letter day marking the popular acceptance of the tomato.

On that day, the then-well-known eccentric Colonel Robert Gibbon Johnson ate an entire bushel of tomatoes on the Salem. New Jersey courthouse steps before a crowd of thousands -and lived. Tomatoes soon became one of the most popular of all vegetables.

Similarly, the potato, first delivered to Eu­rope from its native Peru by Francisco Pizarro in die 16th century, did not win wide acceptance in haute cuisine until Antoine-Augustin Pamientier (1737-1813), a French army pharmacist, induced King Louis XVI of France (reign 1775-1793) to try one. He and his courtiers liked them so much they even began wearing potato blossom boutonnieres.

Pamientier was ultimately honored for his starchy contribution to French cuisine by having several potato dishes named for him, such as potage Pamientier (potato soup). Not only did Pamientier lobby for the accep­tance of the potato as a food fit for a king, he also prophesied that the potato would make starvation impossible.

Potatoes ulti­mately did become a staple of many diets. But, sadly, the converse of  Paniientier’s prophecy came true during the Irish Potato Famine of 1846-1848, when a terrible blight destroyed the potato crop. Nearly 1.5 million people died, and an equal number emigrated to the United States. They brought with them a cuisine that incorporated potatoes; thus an appreciation of the common potato was rein­troduced to its native land.

When returning from his second voyage to the New World. Columbus took corn with him. Called mahiz or maize by West Indian natives, com had been a staple of Central American diets for at least 5000 years.

Although Euro­peans did not actively shun corn as they did tomatoes and potatoes, corn never really caught on in most of Europe. (As with another famous New World import, corn’s origin was mistakenly attributed by the British, Dutch, Germans and Russians to Turkey. They called corn “Turkish wheat”: the ‘lurks simply called it “foreign grain.”) Grown for human con­sumption mostly in Italy, Spain and south­western France, corn was and still is usually eaten ground and boiled as polenta.

But de­spite an unenthusiastic European reception, corn’s popularity quickly spread well beyond Europe: Within 50 years of Columbus’s journey, corn was being cultivated in lands as distant from the New World as China, India and sub-Saharan Africa.

More than beautiful and delicious, adding variety and interest to meals, vegetables brim with nutrients such as cancer-fighting folate and selenium, as well as other essential vitamins and minerals. Potent phytochemical storehouses, vegetables contain beta-carotene, lycopene, flavonoids, and thousands of other compounds nutritionists are only beginning to discover.

Phytochemicals are nonnutritive substances in plants that may serve a variety of protective functions in the human body, from blocking carcinogens and flushing them out of the body to strengthening the immune system.

Vegetables contain few calories in exchange for such high nutrient levels, making this the food group for serious indulgence. On top of all these benefits, vegetables contain fiber, which is linked to decreased cancer risk and also helps to fill you up and keep your digestive tract working smoothly.

Every vegetable contains its own unique package of nutrients and phytochemicals, so to reap the most benefit, eat a wide variety of vegetables. Studies show too much variety in other food categories, such as meat or sweets, can actually lead to over consumption and overweight, but eating a variety of vegetables is inversely proportional to body fat.

In other words, the more vegetables you eat, the less body fat you are likely to have.

The great variety and range of flavors, textures, and colors make vegetables the perfect food group around which to base a meal.

Remember to sample vegetables from all the following categories. A handful of veggies from each category thrown into a soup pot with some chicken stock or vegetable stock and some dried oregano, fresh basil or thyme leaves, and a clove or two of minced garlic makes a fantastic, Mediterranean-inspired vegetable soup!

• Cruciferous Vegetables. These vegetables, which include broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, bok choy, cauliflower, kale, kohlrabi, and greens like watercress, mustard, rutabaga, and turnip, are so named because their flower petals are arranged in a cross shape (crucifer means “cross-bearing”).

Cruciferous vegetables have many nutritional benefits, and none more so than broccoli, a nutritional “star” rich with fiber, vitamins A and C, folate, calcium, iron, potassium, magnesium, and a host of phytochemicals including beta-carotene found to be active in the human body.

Many cruciferous vegetables feature prominently in traditional dishes: cabbage in minestrone soup or boiled and then baked with olive oil and garlic; steamed broccoli with garlic, olive oil, and hot peppers or cooked until tender and tossed with a variety of pasta shapes;

• Solanacae Vegetables. This family of vegetables includes the tomato, pepper, potato, and eggplant.These vegetables are good sources of vitamins A and C and potassium. Tomatoes have recently been in the spotlight because of a phytochemical called lycopene that gives them (as well as watermelons and red grapefruit) their red color.

Consumption of lycopene, which is particularly concentrated in tomato sauce and tomato paste, has been linked with reduced risk of prostate cancer and some other cancers.

When tomatoes combine with eggplant in fragrant dishes such as ratatouille or eggplant Parmesan, these vegetables make a mouthwatering treat.

Other favorite dishes include peppers roasted with eggplant; potatoes boiled with garlic cloves and mashed together; and any or all of these vegetables roasted, sautéed, or lightly boiled and tossed with pasta, rice, or polenta, or eaten on their own. (Fresh tomatoes with mozarella cheese, anyone?)

• Umbelliferous Vegetables. These vegetables have umbrella-like leaves. They include carrots, celery, parsnips, fennel, and the herbs parsley and cilantro. Rich in beta-carotene, vitamin A, and vitamin C, these vegetables further expand the vegetable lover’s culinary repertoire.

Raw fennel makes a sublime palate cleanser between courses; carrots add color, crunch, and flavor to salads and a sweetness to soups; and braised celery is a Mediterranean staple.

• Cucurbitaceous Vegetables. Offerings from this family of vegetables include the gourds and melons, those fleshy fruits and vegetables that grow on vines. These include pumpkins, summer squash, winter squash, zucchini, cucumbers, honeydew melons, and watermelons.

Cucurbitaceous vegetables contain high levels of vitamins A and C, betacarotene, phosphorous, iron, and fiber. While squash isn’t typically considered a part of traditional Mediterranean cuisine, zucchini is the one exception.

• Allium Vegetables. These vegetables (some considered herbs) include those Mediterranean staples, garlic and onions. They also include shallots, chives, and leeks. Allium vegetables contain a host of cancer-fighting phytochemicals, and may also have antibiotic properties. Flip through any Mediterranean-inspired cookbook and you’ll see garlic and onions featured in many recipes.

Garlic makes a fantastic and surprisingly mellow featured ingredient in Spanish garlic soup. Who can forget the rich aroma and savory taste of French onion soup brimming with tender sweet onions, flavored with a splash of brandy, and topped with a slice of French bread and a little grated cheese?

The Italian version of liver and onions contains far more onions than liver, and stifado, a Greek beef stew, contains more onions than beef.

Dried tomatoes, also called sun-dried tomatoes, were possibly the most trendy vegetable on the American markets in the 1980s and they still somehow survived into the 1990s though they lost their tarnish. I also think that they are the most overrated vegetable. Their appeal is their appearance.

Dried tomatoes dress up a plate or a dish with their pleasing shape, texture and color. It is the flavor that is somewhat overrated and often does not come up to expectations.

The idea of drying tomatoes to preserve the m is not a new one. This alternative to canning is easy, but it requires warm sunny weather during and after the tomato harvesting season. Any rain or periods of cloudy, cool weather, and the sun-dried tomatoes turn mold-covered and semi-dried. This means that climate limits making truly sun-dried tomatoes to very few tomato-growing areas in the world: the Mediterranean regions of Italy and France and California.

Italians have produced sun-dried tomatoes for at least a century. In the early 1980s importers introduced them to North American markets and they were accepted instantly, even though the imported products were quite costly. Sun-dried tomatoes made a hit with the nouvelle cuisine chefs of the West Coast who constantly search out innovative new products.

They were particularly popular in the winter when red-colored produce was rare. (Red peppers were still not common and outrageously expensive back then, because they were airfreighted from Holland.)

High price or not, dried tomatoes have a long shelflife and are available when needed. They solve the problem of providing a desirable eye-catching red color on the plate during the colorless winter months. That is why the red pepper has been such a smash hit, too.

Home cooks picked up the idea and sun-dried tomatoes were on their way, helped by a generous dose of intense marketing. It didn’t take long before several California dried fruit producers noticed this very profitable opportunity to compete with the pricey Italian imports.

Since they had both the know-how and equipment to dry fruits, it was but a short step to add tomatoes to their line of dried produce. Dried tomatoes, they discovered, bring in much more revenue than prunes and apricots.

To dry tomatoes in the traditional Italian way by sun is slow and labor intensive. It takes 8 to 10 days under the weakening late summer sun. Leaving the tomatoes exposed that long to insects is somewhat questionable, too.

Italians use their sun-dried tomatoes in pasta sauce, so they are always cooked before eating. Americans, on the other hand, eat their sun-dried tomatoes raw or blanched quickly to reconstitute the moisture content.

Drying does not destroy the bacterial contamination so for export, they add sulfur and salt to eliminate bacteria. The California processors also tried heat treatment to solve the problem.

There are three major ways for American processors to dry tomatoes:

1. Like the Italians do, under the sun for 8 to 10 days, then pasteurize to produce a safe and acceptable product. This process retains the original color and some of the flavor.

2. Dried like other fruits, in hot dehydrating ovens at about 190°F (88°C) with fans to draw the moisture off, a process that takes only a few hours. The process is quick and eliminates the need for sulfur or pasteurization because of the heat that kills microorganisms. But the tomato turns rather dark, losing its attractive color, because the heat partially caramelizes sugar. The heat also alters the flavor a great deal, more than pasteurization does.

3. Dehydrated without heat by blowing fans. In warm weather this process takes about 36

hours and results in a product similar to sun-dried tomatoes with good red color and moderate change in flavor. To kill all larvae, processors freeze the dried tomatoes for two days.

It takes 17 pounds (17 kg) of fresh tomatoes to make 1 pound (1 kg) of dehydrated product after about 95 percent of the moisture evaporates. Processors’ favorite is Roma tomatoes, which have less moisture to begin with, but some small specialty producers use other, more flavorful varieties and sell them for premium prices.

While firm and low in moisture, commercial Romas are not very flavorful tomatoes even when fully ripe. None of the dehydrated tomatoes have anywhere

near the flavor of vine-ripened tomatoes. But they do have their own distinctive flavor and special place in our kitchens.

Most good cookbooks tell you not to refrigerate your tomatoes. It is true that in cold temperatures tomatoes, like all foods, lose much of their flavor. Wholesale produce distributors and supermarkets never refrigerate tomatoes either.

They keep them in a cool room at about 55°F (13°C) once they reach the red but firm stage. And you never see them in the chilled vegetable bins at the produce department.

However, lately food scientists disputed the no-refrigeration rule. As aconsequence, I tested two identical-looking, fresh, candy-red vine-ripened tomatoes. One shivered a full day in the refrigerator and the second one rested patiantly on the cool kitchen counter.

At the end of the experiment I allowed the chilled tomato to come back to room temperature and cut both tomatoes for a taste test. I couldn’t detect any difference in flavor or texture. The no-refrigeration rule for tomatoes appears to be an old myth. I urge you to try your own tomato experiment.

TASTINGS Tomato equivalents

¨ 1 medium tomato is ½ cup and equals 1 tablespoon tomato paste

¨ To get tomato sauce from paste, dilute 1 part paste with 2 parts water

¨ Tomato purée is halfway between sauce and paste in concentration

¨ 2 medium tomatoes is ½ pound (225 g) or 1 cup chopped

¨ 1 pound (450 g) tomato yields 1½ cups drained pulp

¨ A large tomato is 7-8 ounces (200-225 g), a medium tomato 4-5 ounces (110-

140 g), a small tomato 3 ounces (85 g)

If you buy tomatoes that are still pink rather than red, ripen them in a warm place for a few days but not in direct sunlight (as some cookbooks suggest). Direct sun cooks or spoils them before they ripen.

To speed ripening, put the tomatoes in a paper bag that traps and concentrates the natural ethylene gas from the tomato. The paper bag lets the accumulated moisture escape that hastens spoiling. Banana is a generous ethylene gas generator. If you have one, put in the bag with the tomato.

When cooking tomato-rich dishes, avoid aluminum and cast-iron pots if the cooking process is longer than 20 or 30 minutes. Not only the acid in the tomatoes leach out too much of the metal, giving the dish an off-flavor, but tomatoes discolor by these metal pots, eventually turning dingy brown.

Our heart functions 24/7, because all cells of the body are in permanent need of oxygen and nourishments, provided by the well functioning of the heart. Some nutritionists appreciate that the main method for preventing heart diseases is adopting a ‘neutral food’ diet.

Summers, we should consume all the berries we can find:  raspberry, blueberry, blackberry, because they have a high level of antioxidants that protect the organism.

Regarding the barbecue, leave the meat to rest for some time, because now, it is vegetables` time! The most healthy type of barbecue is the vegetables one. Start grilling mushrooms, carrots, eggplants, green peppers, tomatoes and so on. Sprinkle some seasoning on top of your grilled vegetables, some salt and pepper, thyme, basil, dill and lemon juice.

This type of snack offers your system the level of fibers rich in a substance known as lignine, which helps with keeping the cholesterol level at normal, which contributes also to reducing high blood pressure.

Also healthy for cardiac problems are goat cheese, tomatoes and quail eggs.

Nutritionists also consider that the fruit salad is the healthiest dessert for the summertime. Try it with apples, pears, melons etc. Peel all fruits and chop them into medium sized chunks, and, as a topping, mix a juice from a lemon with some honey, cinnamon and mint leaves, and enjoy healthy!!!

Did you know that…

• Grated potatoes help your eyes regain their brightness? Potatoes also help reduce superficial burns of the skin, by rubbing the damaged skin with potato juice.
• Our organism cannot produce by itself Omega 3 and Omega 6?
• Each vitamin from the B complex has its functions, but cannot prove its efficiency if not administrated with the other vitamins from the B complex?
• Half of the mineral springs of Europe are located in Romania?
• Green leafed vegetables contain Iron and Calcium and mustn’t be boiled for too long, because they lose their nutrients?
• Vitamin C is eliminated from the blood after ~4 hours of being administrated?
• South America offered the world for the first time chocolate, vanilla, corn, tomatoes, potatoes and peanuts?
• If your sense of smell is very deteriorated you cannot tell the difference between potato and apple?
• You should boil the potatoes in their skin in order not to lose the vitamin C from potatoes ?
• Kiwi contains the most nutrients? It has more Vitamin C than an orange and  more Potassium than a banana?
• A few tablets of dark chocolate, consumed daily, have the same effect as aspirin? Dark chocolate reduces the risk of heart  and cerebral attacks?