by Sandy James

Created on: September 01, 2009

Love Your Tomatoes!

Tomatoes have long endured the controversey of fruit or vegetable? To make matters more confusing, tomatoes are described as a fruit that is commonly considered and used as a vegetable, (www.yourtotatlhealth.ivillage.com). We just love tomatoes and consume about 18 lbs. of tomatoes each year. What you may not know is that tomatoes are very versatile, easily home grown, and a healthy food to eat.

The real advantage of eating tomatoes, is its health benefits. Tomatoes are considered to be the healthiest of the fruits and vegetables with the power to ward off some of the worst diseases known to man (www.healthfood-guide.com). Not only are tomatoes loaded with vitamins A, C, K, potassium, and fiber, but they also have a high concentration of lycopene. Lycopene is an anti-oxidant that helps in the fight against cancerous cell formation and other diseases. Currently, there are ongoing tomato studies analyzing the correlation between lycopene and prostate, lung, and breast cancer among other diseases. Studies are inconclusive but the health benefits of eating tomatoes regularly is promising.

The versatility of tomatoes is endless. Tomatoes can be served as a breakfast, lunch or dinner item, not to mention as an in-between snack. Tomatoes are found in sauces, pizza, salsas, breads, salads, juices, appetizers, sandwiches, and the list goes on. Its versatility doesn't end there. Tomatoes can be eaten raw, cooked, dried, or in powder form. However you eat your tomatoes doesn't really matter in terms of health benefits and versatility. Tomatoes are a popular item in the kitchen and some might even consider the tomato as a food staple.

Recipes for tomatoes abound on the internet. You can easily find any tomato recipe that you want by visiting any of the food websites. If you prefer thumbing through a cookbook, just visit any bookstore and you'll easily find cookbooks with tomato recipes, especially in the Italian section.

Most people agree that there is nothing tastier than a home-grown tomato. There is no comparison with a tomato that is home-grown and one that is store bought. The flavor from a home-grown tomato will win hands-down every time. Home-grown tomatoes are easy to produce whether you grow them in a field, a garden, a raised bed, or a container pot. They are one of the easiest plants to grow which is probably why just about every garden has a tomato plant. Just water them daily (they do like lots of water), stake them up when they get tall enough, feed them tomato plant food once a week, and you'll have delicious fruits (veggies) to prepare in a gazillion different ways.

During the winter months, most of us have to purchase store bought tomatoes. When choosing a tomato, buy the deeper red ones as they have more nutrients than the paler ones. If you do purchase the paler tomatoes, don't put them in the refrigerator; instead, leave them out in a bowl to ripen more. When you put tomatoes in the refrigerator, the cold temperature stops the tomato from ripening any more. By leaving the tomatoes out in a bowl at room temperature, the tomatoes will ripen a little more and taste better. On the other hand, if you purchase very ripe tomatoes, do put them in the refrigerator to stop the ripening process and to make them last a few days longer.

Tomatoes unlike most fruits and vegetables, do not lose their health benefits when cooked. Lycopene is in the skin of the tomato, so cooking the tomato in a little bit of olive oil releases the lycopene into the sauce or cooking mixture. Lycopene is absorbed more easily in our bodies with the help of olive oil. So, go ahead and slice that tomato, add a few drops of olive oil, and munch it down!

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